Allotmenting:: And so it begins ::

The seeds arrived a couple of weeks ago now, but with the arrival of some of the live plants this week, I really started to get going on this years growing season. Oh my, it is awfully exciting, so much hope and expectation in each tiny little seed.

I purchased the majority of my seeds from these guys this year, and they certainly look fabulous (obviously I can't vouch for the seeds themselves yet, having only just sown a few of them). The packaging is really nice, simple, but comes with great information, and even instructions on how to save next years seed from this years crop, brilliant.

I purchased too many to list here, but some of my favourites are the atomic red carrots, black plum tomatoes and squashes, but there really are lots I'm looking forward to growing.

This week I've sown, a windowsill full of herbs, (I've been slack with fresh herbs recently and really there is no excuse not to have a least a pot of basil in the kitchen) cauliflower, perpetual spinach, alpine strawberries, aubergines (3 varieties, this is surely a little ambitious as none of mine worked last year!) asparagus and leeks.

The plants that arrived this week came from Thompson Morgan, they include, black currant, white currant and red currant canes, honeyberry plugs and a variety of potatoes, I've also got some Jerusalem artichoke tubers arriving from these guys.

It's only January and I'm already feeling a little overwhelmed, I best get myself down that allotment and digging!

exciting times...

...I have been a fairly absent blogger, but I most certainly have not been an absent gardener the last couple of months.  There are seedlings on every available windowsill in my house, weighing down the shelves of my little green house and even a few outside (though some naughty snail/slug has devoured two of my baby marigolds).

Here is a little list of what is currently growing in some form or another in my garden/greenhouse/house:

Fruit ::

• strawberries : some from last year and some newly purchased runners, some of these are already flowering which seems crazy!



• blueberries : 3 newly purchased little plants
  
  
  
  
  
  


• raspberries : again a new addition, I have 3 varieties and 3 canes of each.  Planted in big containers and currently covered with some plastic sheeting in an attempt at a little polytunnel for them!


• gooseberries : this is a bit of an experiment, I took some cuttings from a huge gooseberry bush just over my fence (which is currently a building site, I imagine they will remove the bush in due course) and have just popped them a pot of compost, I have no idea if this will work, apparently it's fine to take cuttings like this but it should be done in the autumn, these are already flowering so we'll see how it goes!


• watermelon : from seeds, I know this is probably a massive long shot but thought I'd give it a go anyway!

Vegetables ::

• aubergines


• borlotti beans


• carrots


• courgette


• cucumber


• french beans


• garlic


• globe artichokes


• kale


• leeks


• onions


• peas


• potatoes : 6 different varieties


• purple sprouting broccoli : some forming florets from last year and some new seedlings for next year



• runner beans


• salad leaves : various kinds


• spinach


• spring onions


• sweetcorn


• tomatoes : 7 different types this year!

Herbs ::

• basil : regular, purple and thai


• dill


• mint


• oregano


• parsley


• sage


• rosemary


• tarragon

Plus a whole lot of flowers, including ::

• calendula


• dahlias


• marigolds


• nasturtiums


• poppies


• sunflowers

It's such an exciting time and seeing it all listed like that makes it seem even more promising!

All of this was already going on and growing away destined to become potted plants in my entirely decked little garden, when on Sunday I received a fabulously exciting email telling me an allotment had become available if I was still interested and wanted to make an appointment to view it!  I had a couple of reservations (namely time and that's it a bit of a distance away, about 30mins on foot) but the thought of having a proper proper space to grow food was just too tempting!  So I am going to view my little space this afternoon, I cannot tell you how much time I have spent day dreaming allotment plans since Sunday!

I am throughly daunted don't get me wrong, I really have no idea what I am doing, I have had 2 years experience growing in pots, I have read a fair few books and I did attend a weekend permaculture course back in October, but as for proper practical work I am very inexperienced.  I have no doubt the old time allotmenters will be watching me with raised eyebrows and little smirks, but at least I am not to be sniggered at alone as the lovely Bex of stuffed nonsense has vowed to help me out.

So back to dreaming of spiral herb gardens and little ponds full of wildlife, beds bursting with lovelies, necessary new purchases such as tools and wellies and a bike (with a basket of course), whilst I twiddle my thumbs waiting for 2 o'clock to arrive when I can go and view my little plot.  In my head this little plot is covered in weeds and throughly neglected a little smaller than I'd like without a shed and in the furthest spot imaginable from the entrance and water. I figure if I picture the worse, I can only be pleased with what I get!

 

**I actually took these pictures from the garden about 10 days it's amazing how much has changed in that time, the raspberries are full of leaves now and the broccoli is huge, ready to cut any day I think!**

vermicomposting...

...I have wanted a wormery for such a long time and now we finally have one!  I wanted to make one, but we were lucky enough to be given one of these lovelies for christmas.

I'm a little anxious about the worms though, I'm really worried we going to over/under feed them!  But I can't wait to have all that fabulous compost and plant feed, if all does go well!  They are living under the kitchen sink at the moment, but once the worst of the cold weather seems firmly behind us, they will be going in the garden.

January 05 2011 ::

So I've been a little rubbish at keeping this blog updated, but I haven't really been doing a lot of gardening, so I guess that makes it sort of OK?!

There isn't much happening yet either it must be said, but will a haul of new gardening books from christmas and the promise of spring, very slowly, approaching, I will gradually be sowing some seeds and tidying up my new out door space ready for growing.

I can't wait to get started again and when I do I promise myself I will keep a better record of it all here!

Trusses and violas!

I have some of my first trusses appearing on my tomato plants!

So exciting!

I also bought myself a few violas today.

I am completely in love with the black molly sanderson's.

Johnny feels growing flowers is wasted time and space (which is of course nonsense) so I am restricting myself to only edible flowers!

April 26th 2010...

...today I have...

Planted some new potatoes and earthed up the old ones which, from above the soil at least, look like their doing really well.

And discovered a little yellow flower on one of my cucumber plants! 

This is very exciting indeed, especially as two of my cucumber plants were moved outside when we literally ran out of room inside and unfortunately have not survived.

tomatoes...

...so when I did all my research on growing tomatoes there were a couple of things I forgot to investigate. Mainly, how big will my plants grow, how successful will my seeds be, how many plants can I really look after/fit in our small terraced house and very small outside space??

The answer to the final question would probably have been, 4, maybe 6 at a push.  How many do actually have? Hmmmm about 30.

I guess those little seeds just looked so, well little-I had no idea how well they would grow.

So currently I have set up a little space for them in the utility room where I have housed 18 of them.  6 are remaining on the most sun filled windowsills in the house and the rest have gone outside.  A little early I know but there simply is no room left indoors for them.

I'm dreaming of making lots of sauces and ketchup and chutneys come the end of the summer!

a very busy month...

...so I have been fairly terrible at keeping this up to date! In fact completely useless and it has been well over a month since I have blogged!

I have however been super busy planting seeds and tending to the seedlings and my terrace is beginning to look lovely indeed.

I currently have growing...

• tomatoes (a LOT of them)


• cucumber


• spinach


• carrots


• onions


• garlic


• strawberries


• various lettuce leaves


• beetroot


• cauliflower


• cabbage


• chilli peppers


• yellow bell peppers


• sweet peppers


• basil (green and purple)


• oregano


• thyme


• coriander


• parsley


• mint


• potatoes

Wow it looks like a lot when you write the list out like that.  As you can imagine my windowsills are looking very full at the moment.  I have set up a little table in the utility room in order to free up a little space but have still had to relocate some of the cucumbers, tomatoes and pepper plants outside-some are doing surprisingly well, others are suffering horribly.

I've also spent a small fortune on pots and compost-which has led me to look into vermicomposting.  As we certainly don't have room for a proper composter I think this will be a good compromise until I move in to a dream house with a huge garden.  If anyone has any experience of this I would love to hear about it.

I really want to keep a better track of my seedlings so promise I will be a more regular blogger from now on!

March 4th 2010...

...today I have...

• planted some strawberry runners (with a little help and advice from some lovely twitter peeps)


• purchased some seed potatoes and also a bag to grow them in, however the bag is way too big, not too tall but too wide, it won't fit where I want it to without causing a massive obstruction!


• sown some spinach seeds

I also have another little sprout!  This time it's the green basil-which looks fairly massive compared to the little purple basil sprouts!

Despite then fact majority of my pots are still inside on sunny window sills looking after little seeds, the terrace is starting to look fairly good! I can't wait for that whole space to be full up with pots and plants!

sowing seeds...

I've had a couple fairly disastrous attempts at gardening over the past couple of years, but despite that I'm going to give it another go!  As I'm actually on time for starting this year (something that may have been biggest problem in the past) and as I'm at home most of everyday now, I figure this year should be much more successful than the years gone by!

This blog is mostly an opportunity to keep a track of my progress, to keep a record of what I planted when and how well it is doing!  But please feel free to add your own comments and follow me on my gardening adventure!  I don't actually have a garden as such, but I'm not going to let that stand in my way!  I have a very small patio area, a (dangerous for a crawling baby) roof terrace, a few window sills and quite a lot of pots, I'm hoping that will be enough for now!

Yesterday I sowed the following...

• coriander


• basil


• purple basil


• parsley


• oregano


• sweet pepper

I also watered the much neglected little chilli seedling (that seems to have been a seedling for quite a few months now, probably caused by the neglect) and an aloe vera plant I picked up somewhere, and placed them all on the lovely sunny windowsill in my lounge where hopefully there everyday presence will remind me to keep them watered and healthy!

I've covered each of the pots with seeds in it, with clingfilm, I read somewhere that would work as a little green house.  It's worked well for me in the past when planting seeds.

Wish me (and them) luck! x

Herbs in pots one week on...

Growing anything from seed is just about one of the most exciting things!! Especially if, like these little beauties, they are quick to give you aesthetic rewards.

I'm quite tempted to create a little space especially devoted to the housing a growing of various herbs and plants that will be happy indoors.

Growing...

...herbs in pots...

I painted these pots at my mums shop on my last trip home and she kindly brought them up with her for my surprise birthday visit. The herbs I planted at the beginning of the year were transferred outside and have either been eaten by giant slugs or just not made it!

...my little green monster...

who just wants to sit or stand (or a combination of the two) all the time! He's growing up so quickly...he learns something new every day...amazing!

Dragon Fruit...

...whilst shopping at the weekend I came across a lovely looking dragon fruit. I am ashamed to say I have never tried one before! It was so beautiful I couldn't resist it!

We ate it last night and whilst looking at all those little black seeds I wondered to myself 'can you grow a dragon fruit?'. Johnny had already googled said fruit and informed me it was a cactus, so this morning I googled it again and discovered that yes indeed you can grow it from those lovely seeds.

So I picked some out from last nights remains and they are now planted and waiting to grow!! How exciting!

Click here to read the very helpful forum discussion in which I discovered the wonders of growing these little plants.

Growing...

Herbs from seeds...

Beautiful flowers in pots left by the previous occupiers of out little house...

Me...

Gardening adventures.

Despite being complete novices, not actually having a garden of our own and it being so late in the year, the weekend before last, we decided to start growing our own vegetables. To make things even more complicated we decided not to just go out and buy some ready to go plants, but instead to start the whole process from seed!! To any experienced gardeners this no doubt seems utterly ridiculous, but already we seem to have some progress.
The garden in the house we are staying in at the moment and all the gardens of the houses we've looked at so far in our hunt for a new home, are very small and courtyard style, mostly just squares of concrete or decking, so anything we do grow will need to do so in pots. I found this great and very inspiring book, which made us feel that maybe in wasn't so completely impossible.

Not ones to do things by halves, here is the extensive list of what we've planted so far...

Carrots

Beetroot

Radishes

Lettuces

Rocket

Onions

Spring Onion

Cucumber

Almost of all of the seeds have sprouted and most of them have now been repotted in larger spaces. We've also cheated a little and purchased both a tomato plant and a basil plant.

It's very exciting watching it all flourish, I don't know if it will all work out as planned, but it's been fun and we'll just be a lot more clued up and ready to get on it earlier next year.

I shall keep you updated on our progress.