Container Gardening

Is it possible to grow tomatoes year round in a greenhouse?

Realistically it isn’t, however it is possible to harvest tomatoes for 7 or more months of the year. By making several sowings indoors from November to May will extend the harvesting season massively. August – September is when regular gardeners harvest their tomatoes but I consider us Container and Greenhouse gardeners the elite gardeners.

Extending the season isn’t easy and nature can be a difficult thing to work with but there are ways you can extend the season easily. Making sowings in November in a heated greenhouse will mean that your plants should have green tomatoes on there before others have even begun sowing. Tomatoes grow best at 65F (18C) so you should make sure you greenhouse is constantly at that temperature.

The rest is simple, work, work, work!

As garlic reaches maturity, the leaves will soon begin to brown and die away. This is telling you that it is time to harvest your crop of garlic. If you harvest the garlic too early the cloves will be very small, harvest too late and the bulb will have split.

Proper handling of garlic after it’s been picked is almost as important as looking after it whilst it’s growing. It’s really is essential that garlic is dried properly, otherwise it will rot. The bulbs are often hung up in a cool, dry place. After a week or so, take them down and brush the dirt off gently - don’t wash the bulbs at this stage.

Then enjoy the delicious results of growing your own garlic in your own garden.

Garlic is part of a vegetable family called the allium family, this includes onions, shallots and leeks.

Garlic is growing from cloves, Once the plants are ready for harvesting each clove will produce a bulb which should contain a number of cloves (10-12 on average)

When planting garlic you should always choose a well drained variety which gets plenty of sun throughout the day. Cloves should be planted upright about 2.5 cm under the soils surface, plant the cloves 2 inches apart in rows which are around 18 inches apart.

Once the garlic cloves begin to grow you should keep the beds well watered and weed free. Regular checks for pests and disease should also be done.

When buying seeds of any type you should always make sure you buy seeds that are of a really high quality. Low quality seeds can effect germination as well as cause the plants that do grow to be weaker than they should be.

I buy my seeds from a number of places which means I get a good selection of different varieties to grow as well as a good price.

I personally use Dobies Seeds, Kings Seeds, Real Seeds, Unwins, Thompson and Morgan, and Suttons Seeds and all of them are great companies and a must when buying seeds.

Don’t get me wrong there are loads of seeds companies who sell great quality seeds but you should always check to see if they are a well known brand. The well known brands all sell great seeds or they wouldn’t sell there seeds!

You should always just check the quality of the seeds before buying them.

Want to know how to create rustic looking wooden fencing? My tip of the day is to use wooden pallets. They can easily be cut up into fence like pieces and built into a strong rustic fence. Best of all you can get pallets for free if you look around.

I have a fence in my garden that is made out of old pallets, it looks good, does the job, was free and really easy to make. Trust me I really not to great at making things, better at breaking them in fact but I made my own little fence using pallets and it is perfect.

It’s simple, free and works!!

It’s something I have been wondering about for a while, what do ladybirds eat?

I’m sure it’s a common question so I posted the question over at a gardening website I occasionally visit

http://www.chat.allotment.org.uk/viewtopic.php?p=80931#80931

Hopefully I just get some good answers from there!

Turnips are a fantastic vegetable but are often not grown by gardeners, maybe this is because of the low quality turnips sold in most supermarkets?

My favorite variety is called Oasis a variety which is well known for it’s great taste which is commonly described as tasting similar to melon. I like the varieties that can be picked at tennis ball size as in my opinion makes the turnips taste much nicer.

Growing Instructions

Turnips are quick growers! The plants like soil which is none acidic and is pretty well drained. Sow the seeds between April - July and regular intervals. You should sow the seeds thinly ½ an inch deep in rows that are 10-12 inches apart.

Once the seedlings are big enough to handle you should thin the seedlings to 4 inches apart making sure you keep the strongest plants.

A common problem with turnips is that they become woody, you can avoid this by growing them as quickly as possible. This means that watering is essential and feeding with a general fetiliser is also an option to consider.

Hope that helps ‘ya!

I know there are a lot of people who read my blog who are totally new to gardening and planting there first potato would be a daunting task. So hopefully this post will be helpful to a number of people for next spring as well as now for planting second cropping potatoes.

Potatoes can be grown in most soils, they are ideally suited to a sunny location where the soil has recently been dug. If you are planting main crop potatoes or second cropping potatoes it would also be a good idea to sprinkle a little Growmore on the soils surface.

Plant the tubers 5 inches deep, 12-15 inches apart in rows which are around 27 inches apart. Alternatively if you are growing in pots you should only one potato in a twelve inch pot.

When the plants are around 9 inches high you can begin earthing up, this is the process in which the soil is drawn in around the plants to stop sun light getting to the potatoes under the soil.

The potatoes may need a little watering in dryer whether but this is only really important once the tubers have begun to form.

Harvesting can begin once the plants begin to flower however if you wish to store the potatoes you should wait until the haulm (tops) begin to die. When harvesting make sure that you harvest ever single potato however small, as these will grow again next year and this can cause problems.

So that is the basics, I will post in more detail about planting potatoes in spring when earlies, second earlies and main crop potatoes should be planted.

Chamomile is great for herbal teas as well as healing, I will show you how to grow it, you can figure out how to use it! Chamomile is easy to grow in containers or in small herb gardens so it should be suitable for growing in your garden however big or small it is.

There are 3 main different plants sold under the name ‘Chamomile’.

Double Chamomile – This is often solid as a small plant by garden centers. They are harder to grow from seeds so are often divisions from other plants

German Strain – This is an annual chamomile which is quick to grow. They produce an abundance of flowers over the summer months.

Roman Chamomile – This is the perennial version, these plants are generally a little larger with less flowers.

Germination of the seeds is not high and you should expect a germination rate of about 50%. Sow the seeds in March and a temperature of around 55-65F being careful not to cover the seeds as they do require a small amount of light for germination.

Once the seedlings are a few inches tall you can transplant them into larger pots. Chamomile seedlings don’t mind being transplanted but the larger plants hate being moved.

Harden the plants off to outdoor temperatures and once all risk of frost has gone you can plant them outdoors or just keep them outdoors in pots.

Soon after the plants will start to produce flowers which can be harvested, if you are growing a double flowered variety the plants may produce another set of flowers later in the year.

I thought I would share a few tips with you about growing basil. As I am sure you are aware basil is a key ingredient in many Italian and Indian dishes meaning it should be something you grow.

Basil is a small, easy to grow plant meaning it is quick and easy to grow it in containers.

It is almost impossible to buy fresh asparagus anywhere in the UK or US.

Basil originates from India where it is a sacred herb.

Basil loves hot weather.

Sweet Basil is the top variety to grow and one you should try.

When harvesting always take the top leaves first, this will ensure more leaves form quickly.

It is best to feed your basil twice a month.

Anyway, it’s getting late here so I am off to bed. Speak soon!