Fruit & Veg growers Club 2007

[nikkie]

What is everyone planning to grow this year?
I have the bluberry bushes, strawberries,apple and pear from last year and hopefully i will get some proper fruit this year.Will be growing peas/tomatos/lettuce for definate as they all did really well. Cape gooseberry plants did well but fruit needed a couple more weeks of sun and never quite made it ,possibly start earlier this time.

MrsWho - you can put tomatoes outside as soon as danger of frost has gone (so anytime really). Harden them off at least a week and after you've planted them out, if it's very cold at night cover them with fleece for the first week.

Burek & Earthy... here are Pippa Greenwoods estimated vegetable yields...

Tomatoes : 4lb per outdoor plant & 8lb for indoor.
Runner Beans : 2lb 4oz per plant
French Beans : 1lb 2oz as Runners
Peas : 8-10lb on a 10ft row
Peppers : 6-8 per plant
Chillis : 15-20 per plant
Aubergine : 6-8 large fruits per plant
Cucumbers : 10-12 per plant
Courgettes : 15 per plant

Personally I find this to be very generous, perhaps it's what you get in perfect growing conditions - good soil, lots of compost, sun, rain, no weeds or pests.

There was no yield given for squash or pumpkin but they fruit in a similar way to courgettes.

Who's tomatoes leaves are going white? If it's fluffy & white then it's mealybugs (get some ladybirds). Otherwise it's either a mould (doomed) or a mineral deficiency.

Its not so much cold as wet here atm ,sun came out today but everytime my washing finished it went black again [grr]

My toms are in plastic-greenhouse-thing butits open duringthe day so will be pretty tough, more bothered about wind here though with the tumbling ones in baskets.LAst year it got very bad the week after I put them out , they were fine but very battered

Wish we had some rain - there is no grass in the paddocks and the ponies are complaining about it. And I'm having to water my pots - it's bloody April !!!

Its only come on the last couple of days and until then I was watering every day.

Hurrah! We had a thunderstorm last night, everything had a good soaking and we've had a few showers through the day.

Happy when it rains? I must be a true gardener!

I've committed the classic first time gardener's mistake - bought WAAAAAY too many seeds for the size of the plot, despite it being 15 x 15 metres . So please tell me which seeds if any I can store away until next year once the packet is open?

What do you mean first time gardener , I am on my 3rd year and still do that, and when I am overun with plants I am still buying more
(3 X rhubarb for £1 on the market today )

I saved loads from last year that have all come up fine. Most seeds have use by dates on them.

Well all the peas and beans that I planted this year, which have all germinated, had a sell-by date of 2005. You've nothing to lose by trying them again next year, and er, the year after that!

some seed is better fresh - I think parsnips and carrots are the worst culprits for not germinating as well as when they are fresh. Well, that's my excuse for mine not coming up anyway!

so my ENOURMOUS boxes of peas and beans will be ok and will probably keep us going for another 5 years!
How about those packets of seeds that are sold so very carefully sealed - has anyone found they're ok to use again once opened? Or shall I just chuck them away now?

Calling EARTHYMAMA re the 'yield' issue. Have unearhed a book I had forgotten I had (because I'd left it in my desk at work !!) and it has expected yields for everything. So if you'd like, just tell me your veg and I'll tell you how much to expect per row.

Do I grow rhubarb from seed or can I buy the plants?

both are possible. Books say that it is easier/better to grow from plants though. I have two packs of seeds which I am planting outside v soon.

Went to garden center today and got a plant as it said the seeds take over a year before they yield any fruit

Plants aren't very expensive or ask a friend if they have one ready to 'split' one of mine cam efrom a friend at work in exchange for some tomato plants!

Hi - Not sure who questioned the odd looking tomato leaves? Some of mine have gone quite yellow looking and abit scorched - looked it up and it says its a magnesium deficiency - it said to buy a sachet of magnesium - but I could only see normal plant food with abit of magnesium.
Also planted a root of ruhbarb - and somethings eaten the whole thing - its disappeared!!

On the plus side - my onions are sprouting and so are my potatoes!!

Some of mine yellowed last year and I just gave them some Tom food they seemed ok after.

NO idea about the Rhubarb though

I was reading an article the other day about a farm where they have been growing rhubarb for about a hundred years and still force it in the traditional way, in sheds by candlelight. Apparently rhubarb loves sulphur. Can you buy that on its own in the garden centre?

Mum said i should put a slate underneath the rhubarb to stop its roots growing downwards. Through luck more than good judgement there actually was abig stone underneath where I planted the rhubarb :D

Burek/Earthymama - I posted yields for several veg/fruit below at Tues 24 Apr 20:40pm.

I planted three rhubarb roots a couple of years ago and they also disappeared I haven't bothered since. I would like a longer season of fruit though so I might try again with the slate idea.

What outdoor fruit is there, that is in season after October and preferably earlier than June. And don't say apples/pears as I have an old orchard of those!

Oops - forgot to change my name back. I don't believe David Gest actually does gardening. But I do!

Thanks guys, I'm desperately trying to get out to Allotment, RL and MN keep intervening!!
I'll have a think and let you know what I've planted.
Here I go to be called a part-timer by all the old blokes!!

thanks duchess/davidgest - have seen it now. Much appreciated. lovely day here today, so back outside again - potatoes, peas, onions, spinach, and cabbage are in so far.

Feel like I have had a really prouctive am on the allotment, we have netted all the fruit and hung bird scarers,also started moving the old compost heap back to make room for the compost bins we have ordered now the old one is full