Allotments 4 All

Good morning everyone, hope someone can answer this question. Last weekend, when it was still mild, I bought several raspberry canes and two rhubarb crowns from Woolies. Needless to say, the weather went downhill immediately and they're still sitting in those cardboard and plastic boxes Woollies pack their plants in. How long can they stay in these? And should I pot them up as a temporary measure?

Thanks in advance for any advice, don't want to lose these - especially the rhubarb (bought a couple of crowns last year and then forgot about them - discovered them several months later, completely dessicated! >:()

Cheers,
Rob ;)

Hi rob,

Exactly the same happened to me last year with woolies rhubarb.
I lost both to rot . I would say take the crowns out of the packaging
and plant them in pots until you can permanently plant them.
Then protect for a while `til it warms up a bit.

Best of luck, Col

Thanks for that Columbus, will get onto it tonight.

Cheers,
Rob ;)

I brought some raspbery canes from Woolworths last year and they rotted in the packet before I could get them out.I have just brought another 12 canes and have planted them out today to take their chances rather than just lose them.

we've put the rhubarb crown in, the ground was covered before, and mulched with straw afterwards  :)

I think you have to buy the Woollies plants as soon as they are in the shop, as they have been in storage for a long time and dry out quickly in the warm shop.
I bought a few raspberry canes last year, they had a few green shoots on, but they died soon after putting them in the ground. :(
I had a blackcurrant cane too, which did well in a pot in my garden.  :D

Thanks everyone. So the consensus seems to be that whatever I do DON'T leave them in the packet for too long!

Cheers,
Rob ;)

Hi Rob and Col,

shame you don't live near me in Northumberland as I have a vast acreage of rhubarb and would be only too glad to give you some roots!! I took a "root" into work for a colleague last year and I think she was a bit taken aback at the size of it!!

Carole.

Carole, if only I did live in Northumberland! Went there for a holiday a while ago and did NOT want to come home... thanks anyway :)

Cheers,
Rob ;)

..whereabouts in Northumberland did you go?

Stayed on a smallholding in Glanton, near Alnwick. Absolute bliss, the single best holiday cottage I've ever stayed at ;D - fed the goats and ducks, the sheepdogs took us for walks, visited loads of places and nearly drove off the road in the National Park as it was so beautiful I couldn't concentrate properly! Oh, and heaven, for me, is the Farne Islands :D

Cheers,
Rob ;)

yes Alnwick is gorgeous....I live 4 miles from Hadrians Wall...and still can't believe how lucky we were to find this place.  ;D

Thanks to everyone above. I was going to ask exactly the same question ;D

Thanks for the kind thought Squashmad,  ;D

After the loss of those crowns I acquired some peices of root from
a plot neighbour most of which have taken and my first crown
which was just a peice of nothng when I found it in my plot
has matured nicely.

I still have some of last years crop in my freezer, and several jars
of rhubarb and ginger jam.

Col

Hi robkb
had my raspberry delivered just before I went away to Devon the other week so I just put them into a temp home in the garden - just heeled them in  and will plant out as soon as i have got one of my sons to sort out some poles for the supports and put some compost in the trench ready for them.

Managed to plant my rhubarb !

Hi all,

Well, as the weather was lovely yesterday I managed to get the rhubarb and the raspberry canes planted out. The ground was a bit wet but I backfilled the holes with plently of compost to improve the drainage, so fingers crossed it'll be okay! Thanks again for the advice everyone :)

Cheers,
Rob ;)