Author Topic: Greetings from North Wales (Read 8657 times)

welshdragon · « **on:** October 28, 2007, 07:48:50 pm »

We have been smallholders for over twenty years and we are still learning !
We look forward to not only learning new things but also helping out with information if we can.
Our web site is http://www.herbsfromwales.co.uk
you will see from this the sort of set up we run and the potential for so much more.

Dan · « **Reply #1 on:** October 29, 2007, 07:40:05 am »

Hello welshdragon! What a fantastic setup you have. I've only been vageuly aware of hydroponics, the principles behind it etc, so will have to have a good read of your site.

Was the strawberry project a success?

welshdragon · « **Reply #2 on:** October 29, 2007, 08:58:18 am »

Hi Dan
The strawberry project was a partial successs in as much as we cropped quite well and over a fairly long period. We are still picking now. As you will gather from the site we research all sorts of things until we get it right and the strawberry set up needs to be modified,so we are moving the whole thing from a normal plastic covered polytunnel to one covered with shade netting to see what we get next season.If it doesn't work out we will try something different. We will also fill the tubes with perlite to give the strawberry roots a better grip as at the moment they just sit in the tube with their roots in the water/nutrient. Perhaps we could set up a hydroponic thread on here to give people an intro.,to it as it is very straightforward and a lot of fun.
Regards
WD

Pebbles · « **Reply #3 on:** November 21, 2007, 09:05:57 pm »

Hi Welshdragon,

I do have just spent ages browsing your site - I am so impressed. HP was already on my partner's plans and your strawberry set up looks fantastic. A seperate thread would be great to discuss principles and learn from each other.

Look forward to hearing lots more from you.

Best wishes,

Pebbles

Fluffywelshsheep · « **Reply #4 on:** November 22, 2007, 11:29:15 am »

always fancies a hydroponic. Okay gona put kids kit on my wish list lol
linz

welshdragon · « **Reply #5 on:** November 22, 2007, 09:54:11 pm »

Hi Pebbles and Fluffy
Yes hydroponics is a subject all of its own and there is such a lot of enjoyable stuff to learn as you work the system. We are currently cutting lettuce,mustard,oriental greens (pak choi etc),rocket and other stuff that will grow without heat. We bag up the leaves and sell the bags locally,freshly harvested,no pesticides,unwashed by our doubtful local water and low food miles. People trying the salad bags ;or correctly their contents ,seem to relish the diverse flavours of the mixed leaves. Sadly the rubbish that is sold in some of the big shops is a wishy washy mush with no flavour whatsoever.
The bags we pack the leaves in are made of corn starch so are easy degraded in the compost heap. Expensive but worthwhile.
We are very busy getting ready for next year as our season seems not to end. In two weeks time we start sowing tomatoes and onions and then in Jan/Feb.the real sowing takes off with early legumes and flowers.It is all so exciting and the beauty of hydro., is that you do not need a lot of land even a small back garden can be very productive as long as you use your imagination.
Rowena updates the website regularly so keep browsing.
WD