[englishladyMember]

Hi Steph

Nope, once the kitchen roll is damp all over, I sprinkle the seeds in as far apart as I want them, then close the ziplock bag. All of the moisture stays inside the bag as the bag is now sealed.  I put the bag in full sunlight and they germinate.

After the first two seeds and a strong root system are visible, I exhale into the opened ziplock giving the little ones some Co2.  Then they go back on the windowsill.

There is a video on youtube showing how to do it, way easier than dealing with microscopic seeds otherwise, even easier than mixing with sand in my book.

Best wishes

Julie

[englishladyMember]

Sounds like the perfect set up Steve  – ‘green’ with envy !

Julie

[englishladyMember]

Done so much reading I must have gotten the wrong end of the stick.  Thank you for straightening me out.  Now I am not sure whether to throw the whole lot out and start again, to be sure.

Of course you are right, the cost of seed is little by comparison.  Thank you for putting me right.

Best wishes

Julie

[englishladyMember]

Can I just be sure I have this right Stringfellow?  Buy the cloves around August, then they grow through the winter, put out flowers April/May, then harvest in June  — would that be roughly right?

I STILL dont understand why a clove would not grow at any time of year.  We lived in France and they grew year round. Maybe it is me being thick or just the difficulty in getting the cloves?

Thanks for your post.

Julie

[englishladyMember]

Just wanted to update this post, the canteloupe melon seeds grew very fast and very strong.  There is an interesting page on the RHS site which says they are one of the best melons to grow here, so fingers crossed.

The tomatoes too have just been transplanted to larger trays and are thriving.  So are wild garlic seeds, spinach beet,salsify and peppermint.

Having read up about this, I understand now that if any of the scavenged pips come from F1 cultivars, then they are unlikely to grow true or even to germinate.  So I guess I was lucky with that !

It is certainly a very inexpensive way to get seeds from those veggies and fruits you enjoy and the price is right – FREE

Julie

[englishladyMember]

Thanks for that rt  —  very interesting indeed. Dont remember coming across them on my searching so will give it a go. Many thanks.

Julie

[englishladyMember]

Hi Charles  –  Thank you for replying.  I have grown garlic all year round before from shop bought cloves, and they have always sprinted ahead.  Maybe it is just this particular type which is not supposed to be planted until October?  Doesn’t that mean it goes through the winter months?

And of course you are right, it is a one time investment and it is certainly worth it for such fabulous ‘wet’ garlic.  It is bulging with almost all vitamins and minerals we need when straight from the ground ‘wet’ rather than dried, which you probably know already.

I will just have to be patient!  Thanks again.

Julie

[englishladyMember]

Hi Ashleigh  –  What a shame !  I know wood ash is supposed to be brilliant for keeping off pests, but would expect some problems from coal.

I dont know about the garlic absorbing the nasties from coal, if they did, surely you would see it ? At least the last quarter look ok.

I expect by now you have a whole new garlic bed underway.

Best wishes

Julie

[englishladyMember]

Not sure what it could be, sorry, but just wanted to compliment you on your image, very professional.

Seems to make sense if the soil is moist it could be that, glad the actual crop is good.

Best wishes

Julie

[englishladyMember]

Do slugs live underground ever?  Just wondering if you scatter the ecocharlie around the edge of the plot, will it get any slugs that surface from underground?  If they dont come from underground, then it sounds a good plan to me, but I am new to organic gardening, so you better wait for Charles to visit.

Best wishes

Julie

[englishladyMember]

That sounds good Laurence, I took out all the soft egg material, including the thin membrane, leaving only pure shells.

I have been sorting out books prior to moving, and found a great and one on ‘Companion Planting & Pest Control’ which also tells a great deal about how to deal with pests.  Thought this excerpt would be of interest:

“Leaving old cabbage leaves on the ground overnight, along with upturned citrus skins (like half an orange) dotted in amongst their favourite plants, will collect a satisfying number for slaughter.  A morning tour of the garden after a wet night can make the hand picking of snails most satisfactory.   Hand to hand combat is the most effective way of getting rid of them.”

Under mice it says “trap bait can be pea or bean seeds which mice are inordinately fond” Roll the seeds in paraffin wax before planting and they will leave them alone.”

And on slugs:
“Slugs have difficulty negotiating their way over crumbly compost or a covering of bark.  The loathe freshly limed ground or wood ash or the bitterness left behind on the soil by a watering with wormwood tea.”

Happy hunting

Julie

 

[englishladyMember]

Hi Kate   —  Just posted a mix to spray them with which they hate.  It is a ‘tea’ made from garlic, nettles, basil or wormwood.  As slug hunter says the tomato leaves are loathed by them as well, I would chop up a ton of those too for good measure and add them to the brew.

Apparently the aphids suck the sap from the plant turning it into a sticky gloop which ants love as Charles said. I hope you can get rid of them before the ants locate them.

You could also catch any ladybirds you can find and put them on or near the plants effected.  Each ladybird eats up to 400 aphids per day !

Good luck.  Do let us know how you get on.

Very best wishes

Julie

[englishladyMember]

Hi Richard  —  Thank you for your reply.  I did not know that.  I thought just one teaspoon dispersed through about 3 dozen crushed egg shells would not be too harmful, but do you think it would have an effect even at such a small amount?

I was thinking about putting ‘collars’ around the individual plant stems and then placing the garlicky salty crunchy mix on top of those, is that likely to be better do you think ?

Or should I just leave out the salt?  Had no idea it was so lethal to plants.  But knew it was death to slugs.  I wonder if they like or loathe pepper ?

Determined not to let these vile slime balls get at my goodies…………

Thanks again

Julie

[englishladyMember]

Hi Richard

How would you go about sterilizing the bed, just out of curiousity ?

Best wishes

Julie

[englishladyMember]

OMG that sounds like a massive number of ‘todes.  How can you keep them all on your allotment ?  Electric or laser wire fence (he he, just kidding).  

I read somewhere that when putting them into the soil, the effect only lasts 6/8 weeks.  I wonder why?  Don’t they reproduce after being released or maybe it is only the males which are being released, not the females (or vice-versa)?  That would be a very crafty way for the sellers of these things to ensure repeat buyers seems to me;.

Do you know if these nematodes are fond of chomping on veggies too or maybe they are only carnivorous?  Let’s hope so,

Best wishes

Julie

 

 

 

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