Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
How about squash Glynn?
Hi Jan.
Watering celeriac in dry, hot weather is a major help, although over watering can be an issue – I think Charles experienced this a couple of seasons back? Catch crop of interplanted radish could be possible but I have space elsewhere and find that celeriac is a challenge at the best of times, so I give it all the help I can; space, protection, no competition, watering regimen etc.
Additionally, if I didn’t net them, we’d lose the lot inside 48hrs to pigeons & rabbits – keep an eye open there. Best of luck.
Thanks Rhys, interesting. I use klassman for germination and then potting on – everything seems to thrive in the stuff! Apero and Ox Heart are my main two varieties this season and they are pretty much ready to go in the ground, albeit with fleece for protection. Cheers.
Sounds like you are thinking about enhancing or setting up a business?
From experience, I could not get my standard goji to fruit over a period of about ten years. Blueberries seem a much better investment…
The only sure way to have enough, is to grow too much 🙂
Interesting comments here, thanks. Over the long term we are now saving money by growing our own in quantity but it would certainly be easier to use the supermarket! However, you’d miss all those other lovely benefits of growing your own food, my primary two motivations being health followed closely by taste.
Regarding green manures equalling a zero sum return, wouldn’t organic matter and fertility have never naturally increased any where if this was the case? Energy is taken in from the sun and you end up with a physical addition to the soil – possibly a bit like the difference between taking a vitamin and mineral supplement instead of eating veg/ fruit that provides both the former and with the addition of fibre too.
It’s nearly time for the gun to go off, although it seems Charles has already started! Enjoy the coming season all.
Rain water leaching doesn’t concern me in my veg growing personally. With a thick mulch of compost I am happy that my winter beds are sufficiently ready for spring planting and sowing as is. Plastic sheeting can’t hurt…other than encourage slugs in our damp climate. This relates to green manures too as the slimey critters enjoy vegetation to live in – another potential reason for not bothering with them on a small scale allotment etc.
Green manures can be very beneficial though depending on your circumstances and different green manures bring different benefits. Elliot Colman is convinced that the roots of grass do something very beneficial to soil, especially for a following veg crop. He grows on a larger scale though than most of us and often combines green manures with veg crops – but in a drier climate.
Chap called Pete on here from years ago grows a lot of green manures very successfully and Iain Tolhurst does this too, with his vegan veg ethos.
There’s a lot of variables….it’s up to you and possibly your time constraints. Good luck with the coming season.
Denise, do you intend to leave the fabric on permanently? I’d suggest not; the couch grass will be dead in about six months and the manure mulch will provide a gradual feed over many months after that. Good luck with your fruit trees – mine have just gone in last week and it’s satisfying to know that harvests will be in your future 🙂
In theory these will work fine, but will cost you an absolute fortune in quantity. Do you have a local farmer you could ask about a bulk delivery, or some local stables with an old pile, or a green waste centre? Best of luck.
With that much potential horse manure and effort to move it, I’d consider checking a sample or two for AP content. Someone else on here went to huge lengths to shift tonnes of rotted horse manure only to find it was all contaminated with AP. Just sayin…
I love knowledge and books allow access to wonderful thinkers and people from across the ages. Charles’ fab books got me started and his brill bibliographies helped me find other jems. They’re all out there waiting to be discovered by those interested enough to find them…enjoy.
Thanks Neil. Don’t really understand that but stranger things have happened; don’t plants root outwards in an omnidirectional fashion?
Very large spacings seem to be favoured by professionals, and these plants can live up to twenty years plus, hence allowing for future growth/ expansion of the crowns. I’m not sure if lifting established crowns for replanting would be a false economy, or if starting with new, one year old crowns is a better bet? Thoughts?
Hi Guys,
how long have the plants been in final position Thomas?
What’s your reasoning Neil for that maximum 18” spacing?