Monday 8 April 2013

Beginnings

Well, after having whinged so much about the weather last week, I have to admit that the weekend was pretty Spring-like. We actually had some sunshine, and the daytime temperature went up to about 8 degrees - even higher in the full sun. WooHoo!

This was an opportunity not to be missed, so I spent some time sowing seeds in my pre-prepared raised bed. There's not much for you to see of course, especially since I have protected the bed with netting laid over some flexible plastic hoops, and weighted-down with bricks:


This sort of precaution is absolutely necessary in my garden these days. I am 100% sure that if I do not provide it, the foxes / badgers will dig up the bed within no more than 48 hours of sowing, thereby ruining my work. With the evenings being lighter these days, I have seen a fox in my garden several times. Whenever I do, I bang on the window and/or shout at the animal just to let it know it's not welcome. I don't mind if they pass through my garden, just as long as they leave my crops alone!

Under that net are:
One row of Turnips - a mixture of "Atlantic", "Golden Ball" and "Purple Top Milan"
One row of Parsnips - a mixture of "Panache" and "Gladiator"
One row of Beetroot - a mixture of "Boltardy", "Red Ace" and "Detroit 2"

Those are the real crop, but in between the rows I have also sowed two rows of quick-growing Radishes - "Cherry Belle" and "Flamboyant", which hopefully will mature before the other crops block out their light.

I chose to mix the seeds in the rows as a way of "hedging my bets" in relation to the weather. Hopefully at least one variety of each will do OK.

You remember I planted some peas in a couple of pots? Well, the d****d wildlife has dug them up about 10 times already! I'll be really surprised if the poor peas ever amount to much. I did put some small sticks across the top of the pots, woven between the support canes, like this:


but that proved insufficient, so now I have surrounded the pots with some plastic clematis-netting, like this:


I also potted-up some of the little seedlings that I have been keeping alive through the good services of the recently-acquired Grow Lights. It really is time they experienced the Great Outdoors! On Saturday I transplanted them into individual pots in the garage, where I left them overnight to recover before putting them outside on Sunday morning. I have given them the protection of my second little plastic greenhouse, so that their eviction is not too much of a shock for them.


Those are mostly brassicas - Tenderstem Broccoli and Brussels Sprouts, but at the back are four Aquilegia plants grown from seeds sent to me by fellow-blogger David Ford. Thanks, David!

Upstairs in the spare bedroom, the tomato seeds almost all germinated:


From that tray of 15 pots, each containing 2 seeds, only one seed failed to germinate (it may still decide to do so). Since this photo was taken, I have thinned them to one seedling per pot, so that they don't get overcrowded.

With the weather finally looking as if it may be turning, I decided to plant my next batch of potatoes. I have again put them in pots, but since I have no means of protecting them outdoors, I have kept the pots in the garage for the time being.


When the potato shoots poke through the soil I will earth them up at least once, possibly twice, before I take the pots outside to get some light. By the time they are ready for this Spring will hopefully have finally defeated Winter.

Just for the record, the varieties I planted today are the same as those I planted on 22nd March: Ratte, Swift, Rocket, Accent, Orla, Casablanca, Lady Christl.  The "Pink Fir Apple" tubers have so far not produced any chits, so I'll delay planting them for a while longer.

18 comments:

  1. The weekend weather was certainly a bonus not to be wasted. It's great to get things underway isn't it - now all we can hope is that it stays like this with no little weather surprises - like more snow or something.

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  2. The angle of the picture made it look, on my screen, as if there are domes on top of the netting - and I spent muddled ages wondering why.

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  3. I'm glad you finally had some good weather. I was out preparing beds today and I think I'll get out and plant my carrots.

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  4. Wasn't it great to finally get a break with the weather. Lets hope it holds out now and turns a bit milder too. I can sympathise with your pea dilemma. The squirrels have dug up masses of strawberries from my beds over winter. So annoying!

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  5. I'm glad that your weather has turned Spring-like. There's so much of precaution you need to take with the netting and all that. The weather here is getting warmer and without rain we're having a hard time with all the extra dusting that needs to be done.:(

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  6. Ah yes, the danged wildlife. For me it's birds and rats, gophers and moles, and how could I forget the deer, ah and the voles too. Thank your lucky stars you don't have gophers and voles! I think I employ just about every critter barrier available to modern gardeners. Maybe a slight exaggertion...

    Thank goodness the weather has improved for you. Spring is just around the corner!

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  7. Well done for getting those first seeds sown outdoors. I like your idea of sowing different varieties of the same veg into a row to increase your chance of success. If your Fort Knox of protection doesn't keep those Pea seedlings safe, then nothing will!

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  8. Have you actually seen a badger in your garden?

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    1. Sue, the honest answer is "No". But my brother who lives 100 metres from me has seen them often. We think their set is very close to his house. I have also seen dead ones on the road very nearby.

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    2. Is there anyway they can get in to your garden? Foxes can jump over fences but I think badgers tend to knock them down or tunnel under them. They can climb well and could climb a lowish fence but yours are high ones aren't they?

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    3. Sue; Yes, there are a couple of places where badgers can get into my garden - two where they have tunnelled under the fence (thus making a highway gladly used by foxes and cats too) and one gap in a gate which we made some years ago to allow our own cats to come and go! (We don't have any cats any more).

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  9. A fabulous array of protections against climate and annoyances. I like the peas best but the big cloches come a close second.

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  10. I have the same problem as you with the wildlife Mark,it can be so frustrating when you have put all the effort and time into growing things.Glad you managed to get some things planted.I managed to get some more done yesterday so here is hoping for some more good weather

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  11. Living where I do, I have to contend with all manner of destruction. And it sometimes feels hopeless, particularly when I read other gardening blogs (yours in particular) about gardens that are so perfect, that produce copious volumes of harvest that seem to have no trouble whatsoever, or less at least. So it really was comforting and, more importantly, motivating and helpful to read about your protection, i.e. what and why. Thank you, I try and will put more effort into netting etc this year.

    I have a couple of questions about your pots: how many seed potatoes do you plant in each of those containers? and can they grow in your garage without light? I understand it is only a temporary solution, but will they still grow?

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    1. Laura, the potatoes will only be in the garage for a few days, during which time the shoots will be below compost-level, so they don't need much light. By the time light becomes a real issue, the weather will hopefully be warm enough for me to put the pots outside. I usually plant one tuber in each pot, unless the container is very large, in which case it will be two.

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    2. Thanks Mark. I'm thinking of doing the same thing as it looks like we might just be in the clear by next week, frosty fingers crossed! :)

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  12. Glad you could get something in the ground at last!

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  13. You seem so organised as usual. I'm so behind this year. I've not sown a single seed yet.

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