Weekly Update 17/06/11

More Marrow flowers - Male this time 

My first cucumber

Chili plants flowering nicely

The Big Experiment - Soil Mixes - Part 3 - day 16

Firstly apologies, It should be day 14 (I've been really busy - To be revealed later). The soil mix experiment almost at conclusion.

Most of the seedlings are now at a stage where i needed to pot on, The sweetcorn definitely needed it as their main roots must be about 8" long.

My conclusions.

This is really difficult, the slowest for germination was - the soil free mix (not exactly slow 16 days). Where it failed there was a plus point, by far the easiest to prick out and pot on.

As time has gone by I have developed my own method for germinating, a mix of soil - vericulite and a little perlite. the cover the seedlings with vermiculite. Water from the bottom and give one spray across the top to further dampen the vermiculite.

If it starts to look a little dry, water from the bottom - never spray the top.

I'm getting good results this way and no damping off. (touch wood)

There is another soil experiment I'm working on though and I will post the results when the time comes.

  

Plant Pots - On The Cheap

Locally I have been buying my small plant pots for £1 for about 10, sometimes 15. If I was to go to the likes of B&Q they can get quite expensive.
I had been looking on ebay at a deal £7 for 50 - 13cm pots, not too bad a deal. I still wanted cheaper, after scouring the local car boot my wife spotted 2 bin liners full of large pots, I asked the gentleman how much and his reply was "make me an offer". After a bit of discussion he came back with the price of £3, I thought that was a little expensive per pot (there was some big pots in there). To my surprise that was for the bag full. He offered the 2 bags full for £5. We had struck gold there must have been 300 pots in there.
On our way back we called in a local garden centre, Right next to the toilets was a skip with lots of plant pots.
I enquired and was told to take as many as I liked. We took most of them.
Another 100 possibly.

Now is all I have to do is wash and disinfect them all.

Weekly Update 9/06/11

Weekly update number one.

So much is currently happening in the garden. I spent a lot of time over the past couple of days, digging a new vegetable patch (I use the term vegetable patch loosely there is only tomato, basil and lettuce in it). It would seem that my soil type would be silty clay, that has been dried out and compressed over the years.

I went out to buy a digging fork as I was getting no where fast with a shovel, I should have bought a pick axe. With me having to resort to using a hatchet, it only took me two days.

The plants are really starting to flourish and I have been quite happily eating strawberries as they ripen. I have big plans for my strawberry patch which is now in my redundant greenhouse. I have a growbag across the bottom and then the shelves will also be filled with new plants.

I have given up cutting off the runners in the hopes of increasing fruit. Every time I remove a runner two new ones grow.

The marrow plant has gone nuts outside and produced its first flower (if you can call it that, looks like something off the alien films). I've never eaten a marrow before, I hope it tastes nice.

The Peppers are starting to flower.

Finally I have tomatoes after a long time waiting.

I mentioned in an earlier blog that I was guilty of overwatering my plants, I just never knew to what scale until now. Wilkinsons ph and moisture tester - £4 and worth every penny. Just stick the probe in and a meter will tell you how wet. I've not watered my Livingston daisies for 3 days and they are still wet.

The Big Experiment - Soil Mixes - Part 2 - Day 7 Update

Doesn't time fly when your having fun, Seven days have passed and the preliminary results are here. If I'm honest they have and haven't surprised me.
Looking at them it turns out the best soil mix for germinating seeds is (drum roll) soil. Allysum was showing growth after 2 days, then second was the perlite and soil mix on day 3.
Vermiculite and soil - vermiculite, soil and perlite came in a joint third.
Last was vermiculite and perlite only showing the slowest growth.
My thoughts:
Firstly the seedlings are looking quite leggy, thats my fault due to lack of space they shared a home with the tomatoes and chillies so light is at a premium.
I don't know if its me making excuses but the soil used is very expensive and designed for germinating seeds, would the results have been the same if I'd used normal general purpose compost.
I suppose its still the old me, everything needs to be upgraded and made better.
There is one big hurrah, I've never had sweet-corn germinate before.
Finally these results are just the beginning I want to see how the plants develop, those that need nutrients will be given them. So next set of results in seven days.

Moving Day - My Plants Get A Real Greenhouse

Friday was a perfect day, started by taking my son to fly his plane then on for some fishing at a local canal. Blue skies and definitely the hottest day this year.
I got a phone call from my wife to tell me that the greenhouse I had been so eagerly awaiting had arrived. It took me about two mins to pack my tackle away and a quick drive home. There it was, Two boxes. I could hardly believe they could flat pack a greenhouse so small.
I found the instructions and I could see why there had been so many bad reviews, they made no sense at all (I spent a lot of time over the next 2 days staring at those instructions very blankly).
It was a giant meccano set, as my wife said I needed the help of my son.
Many hours later and things were starting to take shape. My brother turned up and helped for a while, but he had to stop as he had dislocated his arm digging a couple of days ago. He was a lot of help to say he was in a sling.

About 8 hours work for 2 people

The next day after tightening and un-tightening every screw on the frame to fit the panels, my plants finally had a new home. 

The Tomato's look very lonely in there with only  a cucumber for company

The whole project must have taken about 14 hours and 2 people to complete. As for the reviews of the greenhouse, I would say partially founded as most of them were complaining about how difficult it was to build.

I know I took a risk buying it, especially based on the reviews. When you think about it though are there any easy to build greenhouses. The one thing that counts is I am Highly pleased with the finished product, and I can't wait to grow lots more plants. 

Straw for the Strawberries.

Firstly I wonder if thats where they got their name (never thought about it before).
Two of the Strawberry plants I bought have done really well over the past month (both Elsanta) the final one (Cambridge Favorite) has been infested with aphids and ants :( no amount of spraying with soapy water is getting rid of them.
My first strawberry was ready for eating the other day :) (delicious) a lot though had been sitting on the soil, I'm surprised they hadn't rotted.
A 3 mile walk and a 40p bag of straw from the farm shop later.

I can now stop worrying :)

Hydroponics for the beginner :(

First I'm going to start with a couple of disclaimers.
I know my blog title states Technology out.
I'm going to stand by that and in my mind I class Hydroponics not as a growing Technology but more a science, just another growing medium.
On another level ethically I'm not so safe, I don't like to use of chemicals, pesticides etc. I have used slug pellets but they are organic so I'm told, safe for children and pets.
So then why hydroponics which is just water and chemicals, I like to play I cant help myself.
It was totally an accident. (sort of)
I got to thinking about my big experiment, those seeds without soil would die once they expend their own nutrients. At last an excuse to go to the hydroponics shop I've passed for months and wondered about.
The soon to be seedlings needed nutrients.
I came away from the shop with a bottle of nutrients, a very basic Deep Water Culture setup (called a bucket bubbler) and lots of magazines.
This works by suspending the plant in a nutrient solution and an air pump/air-stone highly oxygenate the water.
this site can explain it all a lot better than I can - http://www.easyhydroponics.net/
I see another experiment on its way. my cucumber plants (grown from seed about a month old) one plant has gone nuts, its double the size of its siblings.

Having planted out the ones I need its left me with lots of spare plants, I just can't figure out what to do with them even Jurassic plant on the right there.
1 hour later.

If hydroponics is as good as they say it is - this little cucumber should grow bigger than its bro, I'm not going to hold my breath :(
Again I will post updates in a week.