Charles answered Charles replied once in this thread. Jump to his answer ↓
Charles
After a week of what is best descibed as perfect onion growing weather (sunny, dry, 14-20C by day, 8-12C by night), more traditional night time temperatures appear to be returning next week.
The forecast says night time minima of 6-8C esrly next week.
Would you be fleecing up new sowings of carrot, radish and turnips?
What about young onion, shallot, beetroot and turnip plants?
No problem fleecing and unfleecing each day, but if it will be of marginal benefit, why bother?
Hi Rhys. Are you trying to get maximum light benefit during the day, hence you removing and then replacing the fleece each day?
An experienced gardener on our site fleeces his carrots the same day he sows them, his theory being to keep the fly off from the outset. Seems a lot of effort to be removing and replacing fleece on a daily basis. What do you think?
Rhys, in the temperatures we have enjoyed, and even with the cooler nights to come (though no frost), I would not use fleece here, except for rabbits, who love small plants.
So pests excepted (pigeons too), fleece is less important in the UK this April than last year. It’s looking like quite a fine month to come and less wind than usual too.
And Tris I agree, if using it I leave it on all the time, because daily removal takes so long, and there is a surplus of light in spring, relative to temperature.
Yes Tris, I need to maximise sun as I am constrained by neighbours trees with the sun not above them for a couple of weeks yet. I only have four fleeces and it is 10 mins each morning and evening for me. Obviously, Charles could not do it with 20 fleeces or however many.
I noticed a real change in my onions, spring onions and beetroot being unfleeced – the deep green of healthy plants now apparent. Of course it is probably the warmth that did it.
This week, our neighbour to the east is reducing their hedge to 2 metres high, which will give the garden uninterrupted morning sunshine. Having discovered The High Hedges Act and the procedures to ensure it is enforced I now have hopes that the southern neighbour may have to deal with their trees also this year.
That explains it Rhys and makes me feel fortunate having such an open plot. However, I do have to put up with dogs or ? That like to eat fleece covers!
It’s these variables that help to make gardening interesting and also a real art form and test of judgement (and luck!). Great to be able to bounce ideas off others on here.
Charles Dowding's Skills For Growing: Sowing, Spacing, Planting, Picking, Watering and More£23.00