Kitchen garden update

Although we haven't been grow much veg this year, I am really happy with what we have so far. We've collected a nice bunch of mange touts. I had originally sown 3 seeds directly, I think next time I'll start them off in the greenhouse and then I will put together some bamboo canes and help them climb up. This year only one germinated and I have made it go up the fence. Looks nice, though!

The peppers are coming on nicely. I have potted them on twice, and this third time I hope I don't have to move them again. We are going on holiday soon, so I thought I would move them now so they won't go thirsty.

I personally don't like courgettes, but my mother-in-law does. These are growing nicely. I also bought a cucumber seedling from a garden centre, not expecting much. However, it has thrived! With T's SMYG, however, I have wondered whether the flowers have been pollinated properly... I guess if it has produced fruit it will be ok.

We've had a bunch of strawberries. I am not worried about the plants as I know they produce more fruit the more established they are. It's their first year and I think I've managed to eat about 2 dozen, with some casualties fallen to slug attack. They tasted amazing, I ate them au natural, without cream. The smell was so sweet and mouth watering that it took all my self-restrain not to each them one by one as I picked them. I have started making new strawberry plants with the tendrils they send out. It might be quite rudementary, but I out them in a pot and bury them a little, I place a pebble or stone on the tendril so it does not move and wait for the stem to root. Once it is rooted - and you can tell because there is resistance when you pull the plant up - you can cut the tendril from the mother plant and it will survive on its own.

We've had some spinach and salad leaves. The spinach has now gone to seed, probably because it has been very hot, the salad leaves are on their way out now too, I might sow some more. I also directly sowed some lettuce. I should have thinned the lettuce out, but I felt bad!

The carrots, onions and kale are still growing. The kale has slowly been attacked by slugs, and I have seen white butterflies around. I have planted sage near the kale to deter the butterflies, but perhaps it's something I should have done before. I have enjoyed having the veg spread about the garden. It has filled it out majorly, and I love the dark green of kale.

I thinned out the carrots in the pot. I got quite worried because I spotted some black bugs on the carrot and wished it wasn't carrot fly. I hosed them down, and I planted some garlic as I know the bugs don't like the smell of it. I know it's not the season to plant it, but my plan seems to be working!

 

 I think next year I will plant more onions out. I have about 5 spread out the garden at the moment. I have a line of spring onion next to the lettuce, and I have also planted some in a pot that is sitting next to the potted carrots, also to act as a fly deterrent.

Digging Up Potatoes

I dug up my potatoes today. It was my first time growing them, and many people I have spoken to have said they don't bother as they cost nothing in the shop. I can see where they are coming from, and they have taken a long time to grow, but I haven't yet decided whether I will pass on growing them next year or not.

I have grown 3 varieties. Hunter, Charlotte and Swift

I haven't had much luck with Swift - you can see it in the photo above, the grow bag next to the watering can. They started to grow well, but after the 3rd or 4th time I added compost to the grow bag the plant stopped growing through. Therefore I have only harvested a very small amount. All the seed potatoes grew as I found the skin among the compost.

Hunter produced a good amount, especially as I dug them up second and so was rather disheartened.

Charlotte also came up with a nice little crop. Considering I grew them is bags it's not a bag little harvest!

I took the bags to the top of the garden so I could reuse the compost. As you can see, the garden slopes down, so I have noticed that over time, roots have started to show in established shrubs. I used the fork to turn over the soil and it's just a question of time for the worms to do their thing. However, there are a couple of things I would like to show you. 

This splitting of the potato is because of too much water while the tuber is growing, according to the research I have done on the internet. Only one potato suffered from that and it was the Hunter variety.

The second photo I want to show you worried me a little more. I still don't know what 100 per cent what has caused this on the potatoes. There are 2 reasons; one I can solve easily for next time. The other will mean I might have to cover the area of compost.

The Swift potatoes do not have this, whereas some in the Hunter and Charlotte bag do. The first thing I found was that it could be drought stress. We've had quite a dry start of summer and that might be the cause for some potatoes to develop these bumps. When I tipped the bags, there were patched where the compost was absolutely dry. I can work with that and bear it in mind for the next crop.

The second reason, however, is what worries me. It could be Root Knot Nematode. It's caused by a microscopic worm that lays eggs on the surface of the potato. You can eat them if you skin them but boyfriend and I just don't like the idea of it, so I have disposed of the ones that have the most "nodes". What worries me, however, is that it can be in the compost I have just tipped onto the garden. Apparently the best thing to do is to cover the area with a transparent plastic, so the heat of the sun kills it. I have yet to find any pesticide that will do the trick. I really, really hope it was simply drought, but I might invest in some plastic just to be on the safe side.

 If you have come across this in your potatoes please share what it was and if it was a pest, how you ensured it did not affect future crops. I guess I am lucky to a certain extent in the sense that I do not use the garden solely for vegetables and so have a natural rotation and variation of things growing. Fingers crossed nothing will come of it!

Snippets of June

June is a month that has never interested me. The only excitement it brought was my town festivities. Since gardening, however, it is the month where everything is lush and green and growing. I have planted out plenty of kale and lettuce, utilising the space I have and embracing the kitchen garden. It's the first year I have done this and I am quite pleased, although I know I can do more next year! I think I will invest in more reclaimed pots, etc. as I really like that look. I bought an old bread bin and paint bucket this week. Thinking about what to use them for!

In the meantime, I have emptied the big plant pot with jasmin and forget-me-not like flowers, and I have planted them elsewhere in the back garden. I have left the lavender pot and have added 2 buckets of daisies I got from M&S a couple of months ago. 

The sweet peas are rapidly becoming one of my favourite annuals. While I am considering not investing so much time and money in annuals, they smell amazing! They remind me a little of jasmine, which is one of my most favourite scents. 

I planted these sweetpeas out last ___ and for a while I was worried that they weren't going to grow as the change in temperature stunted them. Look at them now! They have climbed all the way up the wigwam I built earlier this year have they are producing lovely little flowers. 

These sweet peas I sowed a little later and they have only started shooting up now. I'm expecting a lot from them, so any growth and flowers will be a bonus. 

I also have one snap pea plant growing. I sowed 3 peas directly in the soil and only one germinated. So I think next year I will sow them in the greenhouse and have some more to eat!

This is an example of how I'm using the bits in the garden to grow veg. I do want to do more research on companion planting, so I'll make sure I do more of that next year. Here you can see some lettuce and kale growing among the plants. I also moved the strawberries planter as I don't think it was getting the sun it needed to ripen the fruit. They are growing much bigger and faster now. 

 I have also found some tendrils. These are capable of making new strawberry plants. What you should do is "plant" the tendril so it is contact with the soil. That way it'll produce its own roots. Once that is done you can cut the tendril from the "mother plant" and plant them wherever you please.

I have potted on my pepper plants. They are looking healthy! No sign of baby peppers as of yet but I am looking! 

I planted the ferns in the more sheltered part of the garden. The weeds come in from next door, so the fact that there weren't many plants to begin with make it the ideal place for weeds to go wild. My plan is to slowly add some more ferns and shadow-loving plants. That way it'll look nice and keep the weeds at bay. I was concerned that no one would see my nice ferns, but Boyfriend says he likes looking at them while he practises his martial arts at the top of the garden. I'm not sure what those grass-looking plants are, but there have been bluebells popping up here and there. 

Finally, the top of the garden. I'm loving how it's looking so far. You can see some alpines mixed with kale, onions and thyme on the left. To the right I have my strawberry cage, lettuce, cut flower patch, chives, spinach and some pots. Since taking this photo I have also panted 3 sun flowers where the white painted bricks are. I might have to stake them soon!

I haven't had any flowers yet. I am a tad worried as everyone else on the blogosphere seems to have blooms everywhere. Perhaps it was because I sowed them directly into the soil...? Hopefully they'll bloom soon! I need to see what I think of having rows of flowers as opposed to sowing freely - or, indeed, whether I will grow the seedlings in the greenhouse and then plant them out next time round.