Inspiration

For Christmas my sister sent me an interesting looking book – The Garden Jungle by Dave Goulson, biology Prof at University of Sussex. From the first page I was hooked.  Not only is it written well and simply put, it is full of fascinating facts and figures about insects, creatures and the state of our food production in Britain today. As somebody who has recently started looking at small insects and trying to identify them, he has opened my eyes to the small and helpful living things that lurk in the soil and hidden away in secretive places.

His pages on Twitterand FaceBookare worth following too.  It was on such pages that I came across the bee fly – not a bee as the name suggests.  I think in the past I’ve assumed these bumble shaped creatures were bees but when one began buzzing in amongst the seeding spicy lettuce (so slug free!)  in the greenhouse I spotted its ridiculously long proboscis seeking out nectar.

Late March and it seems there are many about.

My next insect I found in the lawn outside the greenhouse.  It looked like a bee but not like the usual solitary or bumble bees buzzing  about.  After trying to capture a photograph good enough for identification and having found it difficult to ID from the pages of bee types in the insect book, I posted it on Dave Goulson’s Twitter page.  Shortly afterwards the answer was returned (via another bee expert, Steve Falk) – it was an Ashy Mining bee, commonly found in the barer patches of lawns, the female mining into the lighter soil for a home.

Earlier, enthused with urges to build a bee house by the bee community one was made, from an old chunk of a fallen ash tree.  Not by me!  Thanks Andy

Dave Goulson’s advice was to drill holes of varying sizes, around the 8mm diameter figure. He argued that if some of the holes are too small, other insects will find them.

Back in the greenhouse slugs continue to evade my notice.  Look at this one!

Hidden under a trough of carrot seedlings which have all but disappeared.  What did I do with it?  Well marched over to the hen run and it was gobbled up in no time.  I’ll enjoy the slug enriched eggs later!

Gardening in lockdown

Now that we’ve all been locked down with the Covid Virus measures there’s more time to take stock of how much better I could grow more of our own food.  Seeing empty supermarket shelves on TV is enough to make anybody rush outside and start sowing seeds!

The greenhouse is under utilised – probably because in the past at this time of the year the stronger sunlight shining through  scorches tender young seedlings and kills them.

Solution:  Look for some whitewash to paint on the glass.  Last year I tried pinning up thin sheets of envirofleece but even though lightweight, they fell down.   This year I began looking in garden centres and Wilkos for some whitewash but couldn’t find any.  Found some on EBay though and this seems to be working.  Trying to paint the inside of a hexagonal dome greenhouse is not as easy as a more tradition shape.

Recent slug control methods of find pick and feed to hens is working better.  I still suspect some munching going on but can’t fins them!  Carrots of germinated as have spring onions.  I’ve sown lettuce three times now…will try a fourth! In the plugs chard, spinach, kale, spring cabbage and beetroot are growing quite well.  I’ve started pricking the cabbage out into pots.  Inside the house the tomatoes, repotted a week or more ago, are showing signs of increasing leggyness so they’ve gone in the greenhouse too this afternoon.  The cucumbers on the window ledge are very leggy.  I tried potting on one or two but they are struggling.  Probably tried to start growing them too early.

 

 

 

March 2020 activities

I’ve been blind to the potential of the dome greenhouse we bought second hand off a school about 20 years ago.  There’s potential to grow all sorts of veg in there at the moment.  So I’ve set to work.  There are several crops that have taken things into their own leaves though.  The rocket has been self seeding diligently for some years now and yield a steady crop.  Another leaf  salad veg are some of the spicy leaf  lettuce I grew from a pack from Wilkos which have self seeded too.  Some leaves are huge and quite hot.

I sowed lettuce, radish, spring onion and  carrot and waited.  Nothing!  apart from a few radishes which bravely poked through the soil.  What’s going on?  Slugs?  I can’t see much activity though…hang on.  One slug trap of beer later and a huge fat slug lay in the bottom of the dish accompanied by several tiny slugs, looking for tasty leaves to fatten up on.   Gradually I have come to the conclusion that the slugs are quicker and more wily than me!

Alice Fowler writing in the Guardian on gardening suggests placing a stone/slab/ wooden plank flat piece of some material to create a place for the slugs to hide and congregate. Then..lift up the cover and there they are.  I picked up about 20 in one session, hiding under plant pots and fed them to the excited hens.  Each of my precious seed trays , some with ominously empty plugs had at least one slug each nestling underneath waiting for night time to begin their midnight feast. No wonder plants weren’t growing!

 

After a few days of intensive slug removal it looks like there are less to find.  I’ll need to resow the lettuce and see if I get some success.  Why the rocket and spicy leaves then?  I guess they are too hot to handle.

 

Wet February

Two significant storms in succession, Ciara and now Dennis. The ground  is already saturated so yesterday and today’s rainfall has brought flooding.  Any chance of gardening outside was thwarted again!  However inside the greenhouse I planted a small row of Ailsa Craig onions and another of Autumn Giant Leeks in a deep trough – bought from B and M I’m afraid and plastic to boot. I should really try and make seed boxes out of pallets.

 

The peas in a gutter that Joss and I sowed last week have been eaten by hungry mice!  They have carefully dug out nearly all of them and scoffed the lot. More have been sown and holly leaves placed on top – sorry mice. Last night they started on my nicely germinating broad beans in pots.  More thinking required to outwit them.  Would they be able to climb the thin metal table leg in there?  Probably not so both sets are placed on the table now.

 

Under the large plantpots are nestling woodlice, snuggled up for winter. Slugs are creeping out too.

Seed Ordering Day

Last year I subscribed to Grow Your Own magazine

Each month a glossy magazine arrives (in a plastic bag) with about 6 packets of seeds, usually Thompson and Morgan.  These have introduced me to varieties I haven’t tried before, eg Little Gem lettuce which turned out to be fabulous crunchy lettuces which I picked and picked (and ate).  The celariac didn’t germinate sadly. Or perhaps it did and the slugs ate them.

Each year when I buy seeds I quickly leaf through the packets of what I’ve got then order.  Every year I end up with duplicates of several vegetable seeds and gaps.  Time to be more organised.  I found a shoebox upstairs and cut out some  dividers from old cardboard folders.  Then went through each seed packet putting them all in alphabetical order.  What did I find?  Many many carrot seeds packets – mostly freebies from the magazine, unsown.  I have huge difficulties in achieving anything like a good germination rate. Why?  I’m not sure. Some years, as if by the hand of fate, there’s a dry spell and the delicate seedlings perish.  Or (more likely) the slugs!  They hang out under the wall and amongst the honeysuckle and fern stems, scuttling across the garden at night for a feast of juicy seedlings.  You may wonder why I don’t take action but I do!  I’ve tried organic pellets but quite often there’s more success with little pots of beer.

Cataloguing job done though and seed order made.  This year I’m buying organic seeds after reading David Goulson’s The Garden Jungle . Quite  worrying read on the subject of pesticides and fungicides inherent now in non organic seeds.  I’m buying them from Tamar Organics based in Cornwall this year, in an effort to find a smaller company. Impressive range and easy, clear ordering.

 

January experiment. Broad beans

Found last years seeds – dreadnought.  Collected toilet roll holders, squeezed these into an old ice cream carton and filled with last year’s tomato compost (so hopefully not too rich for germination).  Also tried small pots to compare. In greenhouse.

Unsure whether or not to try and sow some outside as a comparison/experiment. I could sow them underneath the cardboard I’ve laid down on some of the beds and covered with leaves.

The crimson flowered broad beans were especially nice last year. Will try them again.

2020 plans and progress

2019. what worked well and what didn’t?

The kale lasted well into the late spring, oak leaved nice raw, curly good in stir fries. Yet growing on another crop didn’t prove so successful. I think slug damage was the main problem, coupled with some extended dry periods. I must get on top of the slug problem. They crawl out from the wall at night in crowds, slurping and munching their way along the delicate but obviously tasty seedlings.

Beetroot did well. The cylindrical ones especially. They grew well and the mixed variety had some supersweet yellow and white specimens.

Beans – I prefer the French varieties – blue lake being one that seems to grow well here. I tried a new variety called ‘mile long’ but they germinated erratically and grew spindly. No beans appeared – I lie. Some pathetic sticks that quickly shrivelled and died.

Raspberries. I bought some new canes, Glen Ample.  Ample they truly were. I think (reading in the Grow Your Own Magazine)  they are the long cane variety since we had a fair crop last year. Unexpectedly and yes, they really were ample in size.  As expected they threw up some good canes last year so this year there should be a good crop. they need staking up properly.

Leeks. These did very well, in part due to the ‘guano’ placed around them from the barn floor.

 

 

March 1st

Weather more average for the time of year.  Cleaned half of the greenhouse glass today.  Cleared some ivy from the wall behind where I’ve planted two thornless blackberries and a logan/Boysen berry.

Moved on to the compost heap which is more erm ‘informal’ .  At the bottom of this big pile of discarded plat clippings going back a few years now is some decent compost.  It is probably riddled with weed seeds.   I’ve pulled out the  invasive nettle roots already springing forth and riddled the compost underneath which is being used to sow seeds.

Sowed carrot in the greenhouse – Amsterdam Forcing (early) and some basil for the kitchen.

 

February 24th – a weekend of sun and warmth

Unseasonally warm is how the met office put it.  A record February temperature of 19oC in Wales on Sunday puts nature into a spin and myself duped into thinking it is spring and I can start sowing and planting as if it was April.  Yet a year ago we were knee deep in snow with harsh frosts. Self restraint is called for.

Since I put some organic slug pellets around the pot of lettuce seeds sown in the greenhouse they have managed to come through.  The broad beans had a 50% germination rate in the greenhouse so I have sown more to fill in the gaps.  They became slightly singed by…too much heat!

In trays of plug units I sowed chilli, mizuna and purslane lettuce, beetroot and shallots last week. Too premature? we’ll see.  The compost I am using is from the pile of garden ‘stuff’  that has been accumulating for years.  The wasps used it as an ideal home last year.  I know this because I was stung twice, once with a bad reaction which involved the Drs surgery.  Digging at the bottom of the pile topped with woody twigs which look reluctant to break down I have managed to sieve through a sizeable amount and there’s more.   I imagine it is full of weeds and I will spend the rest of spring trying to differentiate  the wanted seedlings from the unwanted ones..

The old peas and beans steeped in water in the kitchen have shown some promise.  Yesterday I put the germinated peas into plug units, one a plug and the suspect non germinated three/four abreast into the remaining plugs. I wonder..will the mice sniff them out and help themselves?

Meanwhile in the kitchen the French beans are beginning to stir and some of those will be planted out today.

Outside I have declared war on the tangled mass of marguerite daisies and Michaelmas daisies.  Over the years they have proliferated at a rate which has checked some of the ground alder but at the same time, takes over everything else.  So far the ground alder hasn’t surfaced but it will..

February 11th and the days are lengthening

The sun is out, the birds are singing enthusiastically and green shoots of daffodils, bluebells are poking out proudly.

It was windy over the weekend and the silver birch tree in the garden has left a carpet of spindly brushwood branches on the lawn.  I’ve been sweeping these up and tying them into small bundles ready to use as kindle for the log stove. They burn rapidly so that the logs are blazing in no time.

It’s been 9-10 degrees today, much warmer than last week and it is this factor more than any other that encourages me to get out into the jungle.

Time to check on progress of the broad beans and lettuce and sowed in the green house two  weeks ago.  Tiny bean shoots are appearing so all good there but the lettuce..I am pretty sure I saw a few tiny shoots a week ago so I am wondering if the slugs have beaten me to it 😦  Try again.  This time I have scattered a few organic slug pellets over the soil. Something like this product

Another factor may be that the seeds are old.  So I’ll try germinating some on absorbent towel in the kitchen and if they sprout, then they’re okay.

 

I’ll report back!