Has spring finally arrived? The woodpeckers in our nearby woods are active - their drumming clearly audible over the sound of the neighbours labouring lawnmowers! The daffodils are late and the tits are still hunting for a suitable nest site. Despite all this seasonal confusion gardening must go on and the seeds must be planted (under glass of course!) so I was out in the garden at last, with my husband Phil.
Now in the past, Phil, a creative sort of chap, has utilised a small off-cut of chipboard to level and firm the compost in the trays ready for a neat sowing -this simple action ensures the seeds get the best possible start. But the aforesaid piece of old chipboard has now been consigned to the compost heap (yes chipboard is compostable) as our Burgon & Ball Square Seed Tray Tamper now takes pride of place. It's actually a rather satisfying job and it's convenient wooden handle makes the job so much easier - wonder if its any good for flattening pastry?!
A note from Phil - whichever word you choose - tight, careful or penny wise - I don't believe in spending money frivolously so in the past I always pinched one of my wife's old flour sieves to dust newly planted seed trays with the thinnest covering of soil, mind you it's got such fine holes that the compost often clogged and if it was at all damp then forget it!
And then I discovered the benefit of using the proper tools - Maria sourced a Burgon & Ball Potting Riddle for me and now my compost is always fine, free of those strange lumps (what are they?!) and it never clogs. Oh happy days when you find out that, as an old dog, you can indeed learn new tricks!
Showing posts with label Sowing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sowing. Show all posts
Monday, 22 March 2010
Monday, 26 October 2009
Winter Salads
Can it really be possible? Salad leaves all winter through? Well it has to be worth a try.
A quick scan of the seed company catalogues will give you more choices than you can shake a stick at. I decided to plump for mostly 'cut & come again' leaves with one heart forming lettuce - the king of winter lettuces - Lettuce Valdor (seeds shown above).
A firm growing platform is best for seeds - I used a tamper to gently compact and level the surface of the soil before covering the seeds with a thin layer of riddled compost.

Labelling (variety and date) - almost the last thing on the list - and so important for tracking which varieties do well and how long they take till you can start eating them.
Finally, watered my new crop-to-be and with a bit of luck, Bob'll be my uncle.
For the record, this is what went in the planters:
Herb Burnett: Will grow to 30cm and has a fresh cucumber taste. Leaves can also be used as a tonic tea, said to be good for the skin.
Lettuce Valdor: Actively loves the cold. A butterhead variety said to be the King of winter lettuces - should be ready for harvest by early spring.
Land Cress: I've never even heard of this before - apparently tastes very much like watercress but with a smaller leaf. Likes cool, moist conditions and should be ready to eat in 8 weeks!
Golden Purslane: Green leaves on beautiful red stems. Use as a salad leaf when young (8-10cm high) or allow to grow bigger and use the stems in stir fries.
Corn Salad: A lamb's lettuce that should grow prolifically over the winter. Pick a few leaves at a time from each plant.
Texsel Greens: A fast growing leaf developed from Ethiopian mustard. Tastes a bit like spinach - actually can be cooked like spinach if you let the leaves mature a little.
A quick scan of the seed company catalogues will give you more choices than you can shake a stick at. I decided to plump for mostly 'cut & come again' leaves with one heart forming lettuce - the king of winter lettuces - Lettuce Valdor (seeds shown above).
I filled four Home Allotment Willow Planters with John Innes no 3 and topped off with a couple of inches of no. 2. The John Innes compost system is a long standing favorite of gardeners - they are soil based composts which unlike peat ones (or peat substitute) are much easier to 'wet' again if you have (shock horror) let them dry out. There's a different 'number' for each stage of growing - I picked no.2 to help the seedlings get off to a good start and layered it on top of No. 3 which the established roots will grow down into.
The no. 2 was sieved through a potting riddle to get rid of any big bits - imagine a tiny seedling trying to push one of these boulders out of the way.
At last the sowing - I broadcast the seeds, sprinkling them all over the surface of the Planters, rather than planting in lines as you might in a traditional veg patch.

Labelling (variety and date) - almost the last thing on the list - and so important for tracking which varieties do well and how long they take till you can start eating them.
Finally, watered my new crop-to-be and with a bit of luck, Bob'll be my uncle.
For the record, this is what went in the planters:
Herb Burnett: Will grow to 30cm and has a fresh cucumber taste. Leaves can also be used as a tonic tea, said to be good for the skin.
Lettuce Valdor: Actively loves the cold. A butterhead variety said to be the King of winter lettuces - should be ready for harvest by early spring.
Land Cress: I've never even heard of this before - apparently tastes very much like watercress but with a smaller leaf. Likes cool, moist conditions and should be ready to eat in 8 weeks!
Golden Purslane: Green leaves on beautiful red stems. Use as a salad leaf when young (8-10cm high) or allow to grow bigger and use the stems in stir fries.
Corn Salad: A lamb's lettuce that should grow prolifically over the winter. Pick a few leaves at a time from each plant.
Texsel Greens: A fast growing leaf developed from Ethiopian mustard. Tastes a bit like spinach - actually can be cooked like spinach if you let the leaves mature a little.
at
5:39:00 pm


Labels:
Sowing,
Winter Salads
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