Timely Garden Tips: Week Two continued.

Timely Garden Tips: Week Two

1. I find that a lot of my crops are attacked by birds at this time of the year.There is not a lot out there for them. However, it is my view that there is not a lot out there for me either. I net my crops so that they are for me and not the birds. It is quite easy to do and if you get a good net and look after it , you will find that it will last for years. Believe me one or two pigeons can strip a far few cabbage in a night and you can be sure that they will be back tomorrow for the rest.
2. The young basal growths proceeding from old roots of chrysanthemums may now be used as cutting with a view to working up a good stock of plants for flowering next autumn. Make sure you insert the cuttings around the edges of small pots, filled with sandy soil, and it will be found that they will root readily in your frame or greenhouse.
3. I do love Lilies of the Valley and this is just the right time of the year to start making new beds. You must choose a partially shaded spot and prepare the soil by digging and adding some good manure. I arrange the crowns in rows 15 inches apart, allowing 6 inches from root to root in the row itself. Beds of Lilies that have become overcrowded may be lifted, divided and replanted now as well.No time to work your plot; then read this
   
   Nothing doing on my plot because of floods

Second Week of January in the garden.

What to do in the garden during the 2rd week of January.

7. If you wish to grow large onions this year, now is the time to sow your seeds.

I have found that Bunton’s Showstopper (allium cepa) is a good one to go for. Some of them will grow up to 5lbs in weight.

Fill a six-inch pot with good soil and sow the seeds thinly.,coving them with a very light coating of the finest compost. It is essential to have gently heat.

8. It is a good time to prune fruit trees during this month provided that there is not too much frost.

9. Hollyhock,that fine Old English flower may be raised from seed  sow made in the glasshouse now.

My own plot is now under 20 inches of water flooded from the Thames; so not a lot going on there then!No time to garden; then read this!.You will be surprised

not a lot else for me to do this time of the year with these floods and all!

More to do in the garden during the 1st week of January:

More to do in the garden during the frist week of January:

4.When you are putting manure on your land make sure that you do not dig it in on any land that you are going to use for parsnips, carrots,beets or salsify as doing so would cause those crops to be badly forked

5.If you wish to have a fine desplay of flowers this coming year then now is the time to check out the flower seed orders and plan your garden for a bit of colour.

6.If you have clod frames it is a good idea to make a start of sweet peas.Sow the seeds in shallow pots that are filled with farily good soil and allow germination to take place in the frame. It would be wise to put down mouse traps to protect your seeds from them as they are on the look out for any form of food this time of year.

My own plot is under  a foot of water. Old father Thames has burst its banks after nearly two weeks of rain. So not a lot going on there.

Want to grow veg but do not have the time! then read this.

What to do in the Garden the frist week of January:

What to do in the Garden the frist week of January:

You might look out of your window and think that there is not a lot you can do this time of the year  in  the garden,however now is the time to:

1.Make new flower beds. If you want to reorder your garden it is a good idea to select and prepar now . No matter wether annuals, bieunials, or perennials are to be planted, it is important to dig the land deeply and to add organic manure.

2.If you have light and well drained soil, now is the time to arrange the planting of any new fruit trees. If,however your land is wet and heavy you may wish to defer until February or march.

3.Most of the UK at the moment is waterlogged. My own plot is under 10 inches of water. So not a lot can be done. However it is a good time to make a cropping plan and look to your stock of seeds to see what you would need to buy. 

Planning your new year.

The New Year is very nearly upon us and it is time to plan for it. Think about what you want  to grow and what you grew last season.

I always try not to get too bogged down in to much “high tech”.I grow what I like to eat and what  and what I know grows on my plot.

The main thing is not to be in too much of a hurry to do anything. I always look to nature to see what is going on:

     Is the grass growing?

     

      Are there buds on the trees or in the hedge rows?

If the answer is no not yet; then it is too early to do anything in the garden.

I am still gathering winter greens and trying to keep my plot as clean as possible.

However, right now I have ten inches of flood water over all plot, but not over my beds because last year I spend a lot of time raising up my beds. They are a good eight above the flood. A good reason, to have riased beds in the frist place.

Cabbages and pears

I have been in Australia this past month. I went out there to see my brother and family. We had a great time.

Having driven over 3000 miles, I was amazing at the lack of vegetable gardens. I did look, because I wanted to see how the other side of the world did it.

I only saw four gardens. One was my brothers another was a hotel garden and the other two were in schools. None of them were brilliant.

They blame it on a lack of water. I beg to differ; the weather was quite mild and wet ( it is there spring ) also there appeared to be water all over the country side, in the form of lakes,dams and rivers.

Growing vegetables in Australia can be done. All the veg that I saw in the shops was grown in Australia. Here in the UK shops, our greens are from all over the world.

I put it down to a mind set. In the USA and Europe we are really into "grow your own vegetables"the Australians are not.

Having been away from my plot for over a month: I was a bit concerned as to what I would find.
Everything was fine.

My pears had all gone soft in the store and the same had happen to all of my summer stored white cabbage.

On of the things that I am going to look into this winter is; the growing of all round cabbage. I am going to study the subject and put an article up in hub pages.

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Caterpillars on my cabbage!

I have just been down to my allotment to see how things are getting on. I have been in London for the last week.

It looks like I am losing the war with   caterpillars on my cabbage. It really is difficult to know what to do.

I try to practise organic chemical-free garden and have been going down to the cabbage patch to pick the little beast off , however, as I said I have been away in London for a week they have done a vast amount of damage. 

I think that I will have to give them a spray of something or other. It is too late for organic control, I fear.

One way would be to go through the lot and dig up the worst effected and try and clean up those that remain. As I have nearly a 100 plants, there should be enough left to see me through the winter.

The cabbage that seems to be affected the most are the soft summer ones. Interesting enough it seems that my Kale has not been affected at all and I still have my chard, spinach and sorrel to see me through the coming winter


You think that you have no time for gardening: then read this.