[Fleecewife]

[member=188406]Briggsy from Gower[/member]   Years ago when our growing was all done in two allotments in Edinburgh, we had horsetail.  At first, taking over the plots in winter, I had no idea what all those black threads were, so just left them.  Then I found out they were horsetail/marestail (I can never remember the difference) and everyone around said what a pest it was and you had to get rid of it.  So I tried for a few years. I think those roots go down about 5 or 6 feet  . Then I noticed that actually, being light and airy, it didn't take up much room and didn't seem to do much damage to the crops.  So I stopped demonising it and let it be until we moved here.  I suppose the next tenant went through the same process, and clearly the old bloke who had it before us (who was killed when the gable end of his house fell on him    ) had clearly done, as the plot which had been his was otherwise immaculate.  Our other plot had bindweed - now that's eeviiil !

[Briggsy from Gower]

I believe you are right Fleecewife.

The tunnel had been neglected for several years before we moved in and the horsetail (marestail lives in streams) formed a mini forest so hacking back was kind of essential, but in it's reduced state I am quite happy to live alongside it. Just as well as I am sure with roots that deep it will outlive me.

In years gone by people used it to scour pans.

[Fleecewife]

Thanks for sorting my horsetail/marestail forgetfulness. Really, scouring pots?  Makes me a bit sad I don't have any anymore 

[cloddopper]

We didn't get  much sown this current season . except for me broadcasting five year old carrot seeds in one raised bed in th vain hope they might give us a few carrots .
 All my seeds are either decanted  as soon as we get them into individual air tight  15 ml screw top sample jars  or left in their sealed foiled  packs 7 given a seed store index number . So long as they are kept air tight , out of extreme heat & out of daylight they  have some amazing  lengths of seed viability.

 Those old carrot seeds  must have been sown at the ideal soil temps & moisture content for they beat the weeds up .  The bed is absolutely chock a block with nice long thick Autumn King carrots.
 I think the only seed that don't store well for me are parsnips & some times spring onions
 So they are the only seeds I buy every year. 

[Alex_]

With my old seeds i just sprout them and give them to the hens.
I use real seeds pretty much exclusively apart from potatoes and the odd plant that they don't do like spaghetti squash

[Polyanya]

We ordered most of our seeds at the end of December from the Real Seed Co, and have had delivered some very early tatties and shallots for the polytunnel from ebay. I try and save seed but it is very weather dependent as a lot of times its too cold up here and they all go mouldy but usually get peas, beans, garlic and tatties and some herbs like parsley most years - have done courgette and cucs and tomatoes before so will be having a go again this year.
Just about to start sowing some seeds in the propagator.

[Fleecewife]

We ordered most of our seeds at the end of December from the Real Seed Co, and have had delivered some very early tatties and shallots for the polytunnel from ebay. I try and save seed but it is very weather dependent as a lot of times its too cold up here and they all go mouldy but usually get peas, beans, garlic and tatties and some herbs like parsley most years - have done courgette and cucs and tomatoes before so will be having a go again this year.
Just about to start sowing some seeds in the propagator.

What are you about to sow [member=124905]Polyanya[/member] ?  I just sowed leeks, plus a couple of flowers: helianthus and verbascum to try to get them to flower this year. I shall probably get the broad beans sown soon, into pots hanging in bakers trays from the crop bars, to keep the vermin off.
 I am keen to get my onion sets in in the polytunnel, as the sets are really good quality - plump and clean.  Is it still too early for them?  I usually get onion sets in in mid-March.

[doganjo]

Got your reply, Juliet, thank you, look after yourself.  Hopefully see you and  Gordon at the Smalholders Festival in October 

Having moved in Autumn last year and loads of renovations needed in the house, I haven't got far with garden plans, other than some fruit bushes and a couple of apple trees for the big skelp of land at the west side of the house

I've carpeted the piece of grass at the other side of the house aiming to put in raised beds (like really raised - hip height) but it may be summer before they'll be planted up. 

I'm thinking flowers in the ones seen from the road, with veg behind them.  It's quite protected from the elements but I haven't decided what to put in yet.  What's the  latest planting times for veg - I'm in Central Scotland so no real extremes of weather.

There's a large piece of grass down at the roadside which I've offered to the primary school to plant up via the council website but had no response - I suppose most schools have their own ground    I though I was being helpful.

[Briggsy from Gower]

Hi Fleecewife,

Not too early for those onion sets, I always put them in as soon as they arrive. They are perfectly hardy enough to handle a late freeze if it comes. In fact I am getting earlier and earlier with alliums, the elephant garlic went in in September and are a good 12" tall already, expecting some monsters this year.

Interested to hear you have planted leaks already, I have found in the past that they flower if sown too early and we get a late cold snap. Possibly variety is my problem.

Broadbeans and early peas are next, and thanks to your handy tip last year will be suspended in the tunnel to keep the pesky mice off. We seem to have had a population explosion this year. In fact there's one brown mouse who does not even take the trouble to hide from me now, though he is munching the kohl rabi so I think I need to harvest before he takes the lot!

[Polyanya]

Hi Fleecewife 

I usually start most things off in the heated propagator in the house this early in the season and am planning to sow leaf lettuce, sweet peppers, toms, squash, viola, leeks, parsley, shallots and shetland kale. I sow a row or two in the polytunnel of raddish, rocket and spring onion. We can get really warm Febs in the polytunnel so its nice to maybe get an early start with a few things, then its not such a loss if its too cold for them as we haven't used all the seeds. We planted 12 early tatties (Swift) in the PT and will be harvesting them in May.
We get mixed results with onion sets in the PT, shallots work better for us I think they're more hardy - some onions will bolt if the weather is very changeable. We have planted overwintering onions in the raised beds outside last autumn so I'm looking forward to seeing the results.
Do you think you'll risk it with the onions and are you growing anything outside?
On a different note in a past thread you wrote about using shopping baskets from willow (I think) and I asked if you made them yourself? 

[graemeatwellbank]

I have a multitude of seeds for this year. No half measures in my 20 beds. and I just finished digging my first no-dig bed

[graemeatwellbank]

I have a multitude of seeds for this year. No half measures and surely doomed to be drowned in a sea of weeds but trying anyway.
Onions (sets), garlic, leeks, shallots (saved from last year), Spring onions and pickling onions.
Cabbage, Cauliflower, Sprouts, Kale, Chard - not Broccoli as I never grow it successfully.
Beetroot, turnip, swede, radish, carrot, parsnip.
Courgette, pumpkin.
Peas and beans.
Salads.
Potatoes.
and plenty of different varieties within this mix.
Hope to provide all our needs for half the year. Well hope to provide all our needs but will be pleased with a half-year supply.
Just finished last years potatoes, Some onions left but garlic all turned out to be empty/dry. Still got parsnips, swede, sprouts and kale in the ground.
This years garlic growing well - not 12" like Briggsy.
Some seeds from Real Seed but also some from SeedParade - dirt cheap but I used them last year and they were OK.
Trying to keep records this year so might eventually be able to share successes and failures of various varieties/sources.

[Anke]

I have started to follow the Charles Dowding sowing calendar quite closely last years and all worked out well, except that my Keder is too damp in the winter (although I try and open the doors most days).
So far I have only put sweet and chilli peppers in the propagator, but next week will try and sow some onions, spring onions, peas (for shoots), broad beans, spinach, coriander and parsely, plus some early brassicas and trying again with caulis (didn't work very well last year). Tomatoes by end of February (they and the peppers go under grow light and are repoted several times).
Won't be sowing leeks until April time - they will shoot into flower too early otherwise.

Check out Ch Dowdings website, I find it particularly useful for late summer and autumn sowing - we have tons of greenery in the Keder, and the spinach and mustards are not affected by the dampness (though the radishes, and turnips, plus cabbages are unfortunately...)

[Fleecewife]

Got your reply, Juliet, thank you, look after yourself.  Hopefully see you and  Gordon at the Smalholders Festival in October 

Having moved in Autumn last year and loads of renovations needed in the house, I haven't got far with garden plans, other than some fruit bushes and a couple of apple trees for the big skelp of land at the west side of the house

I've carpeted the piece of grass at the other side of the house aiming to put in raised beds (like really raised - hip height) but it may be summer before they'll be planted up. 

I'm thinking flowers in the ones seen from the road, with veg behind them.  It's quite protected from the elements but I haven't decided what to put in yet.  What's the  latest planting times for veg - I'm in Central Scotland so no real extremes of weather.

There's a large piece of grass down at the roadside which I've offered to the primary school to plant up via the council website but had no response - I suppose most schools have their own ground    I though I was being helpful.

Maybe identify the one person at the school who is interested in growing and approach them direct?  There usually seems to be one person who keeps the interest in gardening going.


For latest planting times it depends on what you are growing, and you may have to experiment a bit to get used to your new plot.  I have lived in various places in Britain and have had to relearn how to garden with each move!  Many seed packets give a range of dates for sowing and sometimes they tell you how many weeks they need between sowing and harvesting.  If they are frost tender, then work backwards from your first expected frost, so everything you sow should be eaten before it gets killed.

[Briggsy from Gower]

Hi Anke,

Will check it out.

I have gone with trial, error and successional sowing for autumn sowing, currently have celery, winter radish, swede & kohl rabi all going strong in the tunnel, normally I would also have beetroot, but I am giving the ground a rest as last years looked a pit sickly. Coming along nicely for the hungry gap - cabbage and wawa (fleshy oriental stem thingy).

This may not suit your climate, however here in South Wales I NEVER shut the polytunnel doors, I soon found that sacrificing a week or so at each end of the season was much more preferable than seeing veg go to rot. We had minus 5 a couple of weeks ago and the straggling nasturtiums and a few volunteer spuds managed to survive. In our damp climate ventilation is king!