Allotment/Veg Patch Thread 9 - Spring is sprung, its getting really busy!

[bookbook]

Well, the last thread filled up quickly - maybe due to the horrid weather . Its time to battle slugs, snails and weeds !
Last Thread HERE

Grouchy 👋👋 😆

I've just loaded all my trays of seedlings into the car. This is (one of) the problem/s I have with growing anything these days - extended periods of having to go away with nobody at home to water and/or keep a watchful eye over my developing plants. Very frustrating and they just have to come with me until the point when I can plant them out.

Maybe I'm being over-protective though - WWYD? Would you all happily leave seedlings unmonitored for 4-5 days? Call me PFB I guess.

There'll then be a new form of torture when I have to sort out someone to water the tomatoes in the greenhouse ☹️

Does anyone know anything about walnut trees? I'd love to have one on my plot but i) I'm in the north east and I think it might just be too cold up here and ii) I know they can grow very tall - we probably have the space but I'm worried about it growing just too big.

Any advice or experience gratefully received :)

My strawberries are just flowering but seem to be doing well. I got three new rhubarb plants in the post today - not quite sure where they're going to go!

I just ate my first home-grown produce from this year: baby spinach. It was delicious. Must sow some more so I have plenty.

I've got a vague feeling I've seen a walnut in Morpeth Goodenough- don't quote me though, it could've been a chestnut! My FIL has one, but he lives in France They take years to fruit (or should that be nut?) IIRC. Nice trees though.

Thanks Eating, yes, apparently 4 years to nut (?) but I'd wait... I think I'd imagine being in the south of France while sitting under it, waiting for a nut to fall (not that I don't love the North East of England).

My experience of walnut trees is wonderful but enormous. And while they fruit, it took ours 10 to make edible fruit. And the tree surgeon reckoned it was 25-30 years old. But maybe there are quicker varieties?

Afternoon!
well, I got back from looking after DGS, sat down for a coffee ,looked at fb. Someone offereing free well rotted horse manure - delivered just for the fuel cost. Cue gulp down coffee, say yeas, and go and shovel it off the back of a pick up truck. To be fair, it wasn't enough, but she has promised to bring a horse box full on Saturday. It is the most crumbly well rotted stuff I have ever seen, and I haven't had to pay much at all.
Gin - as long as the growing tip is still okay , it will be fine :)
Halsall - maybe just a tweak overprotective- but I can see where you are coming from. Once in the ground , they should be fine. But I must admit, the one time I left tomatoes to be watered with DD ( who still lived at home at the time) it wasn't a good crop....

How old is your GDS book? It's lovely you get to spend so much time with him. Must be tiring too though!

Newts wow-stunning, I'd be looking out of the window too!

We have a walnut, planted as part of a hedge. It's young but already very tall and been in 5 years. No sign of a nut, but I'm patient! I'll try and take a photo tomorrow.

Beautiful day here. Cropped the first of the radishes, potted on the last of the cucumbers and pumpkins (may have gone over board-seems to be a recurring theme!) and sowed some more spinach, spring onions and lollo rosso.

I meant to do more radishes but clean forgot.

I also filled up the woolly pockets for the tumbling toms-we had huge success growing tomatoes like this a couple of years ago, so I'm hoping to recreate that success-we picked tomoates for months and barely any failed to ripen.

My final job was sorting out the strawberry bed a little bit. Great progress but no fruits yet and certainly no red ones!

The apricot has gone mad this year, it's covered. Photos to follow because they take so long to load!

1. Strawberry path-with the kiwi and apricot

1. Same, just the other end

1. The woolly pockets.

Last three.

Just one of the apricot branch sections! Laden. I'll have to thin the clumps out but it breaks my heart!

I did try and take one of the walnut-but I'm not sure how much you can really see. The hedge is 10ft ish.

doitjulia those apricots are amazing. I don't do well with that family- peach leaf curl central it seems. Did have the first rocket and radishes from the garden tonight and grabbed half an hour after work to potter about winding down from the day and planting out a couple of French beans that are in danger of flowering. Forcast heavy rain tomorrow I think

How do woolly pockets work- are they woolly??

Cathpot yes, they're woolly! One of the perks of DH being in the trade is that he does get some pretty cool stuff. He got the pockets because he built a living wall using them at one of the flower shows and the company gave him a load.

We also get a lot of plants - often half dead-we're like a plant sanctuary! Sometimes it pays off, sometimes I want to scream when another half dead gigantic grass appears.

He's off to Chelsea flower show for three weeks on Saturday-but he's going on the train, so no chance to bring many 'goodies' home. He drives to Hampton Court though and last time came gone with a 15ft birch tree sticking out of the passenger side window!

*home

Halsall I've done DIY self watering containers for my seedlings this year which allows me to leave them 4-5 days at a time. Working pretty well so far.

Thanks for all the walnut responses (and photo, DoIt). Maybe it's just too long a wait, but I'll keep exploring.

More of my new asparagus showing signs of life today, and the second lot of spuds are appearing.

The knotweed that was injected on Tuesday is already looking very sad and droopy! Yay!

Elephant - I think technically I qualify for the Netherlands strawberry medal only :) I now have garden envy, strawberry path envy and red pvc strawberry envy :)

Halsall, isn't it quite nice having the baby plants along with you though? Broadens their horizons a bit...

Also book book, do you find horse manure still smells by the time it's really well rotted? I might be able to get hold of some for my garden but can't if it's too stinky. I don't mind the smell at all but my gardens quite small and I don't want to piss of the neighbours too much.

Evening!
Gin - my DGS is 4 , and will be off to school in September. I have had him one day a week since he was 1 ( and a few extras too) It will be a big hole. I will be less fit too - he thinks I am inexhaustible, (as well as immortal )
Doit lovely path, and the apricots!!!!
Flop - barely smells at all - shows it well rotted . ( I did rather interrogate her about whether the pasture had been weed killed for ragwort, but was assured it hadn't )

Thanks book, I was a bit worried about the potential for weedkiller residue but thought maybe I could test a bit by growing a bean/pea in it. Do you think that would work?

book I very much doubt you will be less fit with all the gardening you have to do!

I noticed some signs of life from the potatoes while watering the garden this evening very exciting!

(It's GinAndOnIt here with a new name)

Gin I love potatoes popping out! :)
Flop - from RHS
;Germination test
If you suspect a problem with a particular batch of peat-free or peat-reduced compost or manure it is possible to do a simple test for weedkiller residues. This involves germinating plants that are sensitive to herbicide such as tomatoes or beans.

How to do the test
STEP 1: Fill two clean pots with suspect growing media (fresh, not used) and label.

STEP 2: Fill another two clean pots with another brand of growing media or John Innes potting compost as a control (i.e. a standard to compare to) and label.

STEP 3: Into each pot sow four broad bean seeds or insert four tomato cuttings (use sideshoots from healthy tomato plants). Water well with clean water.

STEP 4: Place the pots in a greenhouse or warm windowsill in winter, or for beans outdoors in summer. Keep the compost damp but ensure the drainage water from pots containing the suspect growing media cannot contaminate the control pots.

If after three weeks the seeds fail to emerge, the seedlings or cuttings are distorted, show less growth than in the controls or exhibit fern-like growth in the suspect growing media, while control plants are normal, there are strong grounds to believe weedkiller residues are present.