Growbags and Greenhouses -The WB Garden Blog

Finally I managed to find time to get the potatoes planted - so now there are three and a half rows of spuds (thanks again Guy for the gift).
The varieties were:

1 Kestrel - (second early) - a bit late I know but better late than never nearly 2 rows
2 Desiree - (maincrop) - a row and a bit
3 King Edward - (maincrop) - about 3/4 of a row

So now we’ll have to wait and see how they do. I did try potatoes once before in plot C and I wasn’t very impressed - but I didn’t look after them very well I don’t think, so maybe these will be better.

I leaves a bit of space still between the onions and potatoes so now I’ll have to think what to put in there.

In the greenhouse four or five of the cherry tomatos have come through, but curiously, none of the olive variety, at least yet.

Also, rather worrying, is the fact that none of the peppers are through yet.

On the brighter side, another set of broad beans are just about ready to be hardened off (Bunyards Exhibition). Another set, this time of a variety I bought recently - ‘Jubilee Hysor’ - are just coming through. There should be enough for three rows altogether with the ones already in.

While I’m mentinong varieties - the onions I planted are: ‘Centurion’ and ‘Jet Set’

I would note that we still haven’t had any rain, so watering of the onions and broad beans each day is necessary - and of course of the seedlings etc. in the greenhouse.

Well things have moved on since the last post - first of all the digging is complete though not the final preparation, there is still some compost to add and raking over to do on plot A.

As for what to grow, those decisions were helped by a donation from the my niece’s husband (thanks Guy) of some onions sets and potatoesleft over from planting in his garden. So I have already planted three rows of onions in plot B (that’s all of them - 2 varieties), and hope to get round to the potatoes sometime this week (also to go into plot B). I’ll add in the name of the varieties when I remember to take some paper into the greenhouse! I might note that I had raked the plot and added some ‘growmore’  few days before planting - though I wouldn’t describe the soil as a ‘fine tilth’ that the books describe - I’m not sure I ever get that in my garden.

The weather has been so dry and hot that the recently planted broad beans needed serious watering over the weekend - we haven’t had any real rain for a couple of weeks at least now.

Meanwhile, in the greenhouse, more broad beans are coming through, the lettuce seedlings are growing fast and a couple of tomatos are through now. No sign of the peppers or french beans yet however.

The weather is still fine and sunny, which means the grass and the hedges are growing - so those jobs are on the horizon again. We have had quite a few butterflies in the garden and ‘our’ blackbirds may well have chicks as I’ve seen both of them searching madly for food in the garden at the same time. Spring has more than sprung - it feels like summer already, though colder weather is predicted I gather.

The first row of broad beans was planted yesterday - plus part of another row (Bunyards Exhibition), and the weather is still good - sunny today and 20C. Mind, none of the other beans planted in pots in the greenhouse have appeared yet, although some new ones have been added (bought a few days ago - can’t remember the variety just now).

First Broad Bean row (on the right)
a partial row runs under the cloche in the middle

However, the lettuce have started to come through in the tray so that’s quite encouraging. All I have to do now is to decide what else to plant this year and where (apart from the peas and beans).

Other developments - the last area to be cleared and dug over has almost been completed (plot A) so that also puts pressure on decisions of what to grow….

Plot A - nearly finished digging