[mumofstig]

Hi MOS.
These were the cucumbers that I bought in a kit for Jake to do just to keep him occupied for a few hours. (the kit was ...ahem....all of a pound, lol)
Out of all the seeds we have sown, these ones have done the best!
They were never even meant to germinate  
I don't have a greenhouse so for now they are still resident on Jacob's window ledge.

That's right thats the idea I was going to try out on my grandchildren ...thanks for reminding me.
Mind you it would be shame for your little'un if they don't make it to the great outside.
Pop back to £land and buy a cloche, so they get outside at the earliest
I'm not on commision honest

[janet12000]

It's quite a dinky little kit. Mini propagator, compost, seeds. Just ideal for little people to have a go with. I got the cucumbers and a sunflower one. I think they do stuff like tomatoes as well.
There is a noticeable lack of instructions and they don't name the seed variety, but for a quid mustn't grumble.
I bought some garden fleece from there the other day for my good old pound.

Where the old Woolworths was, a new shop to rival Poundland has appeared......the 99p store!!! Have yet to have a look!

[mumofstig]

oooh we got one of those before Christmas...great stuff!! Lots of cheap tins, pkts n sauces as well as all the other stuff that £land do. But beware of queues..they don't seem to employ many staff on the tills....that's why they stay cheap I suppose

[diggerjoe]

Loubs what variety of alpine did you sow? I have just sown some red and white ones and having never tried these before wondered if they take a while to get going.

[Christine]

The soil is cold and wet up here, the forecast is awful and so I've just pulled up some compost from the allotment courtesy of car driven by the daughter and son-in-law and a few seed trays.

I'm going to warm up the compost and start off the awkward items like parsley, rosemary and lavender in trays. May well give aubergines a go too. Tomatoes I could try later as next month is quite early enough. I also usually start of courgettes and marrows on the windowsill at home at end of March.

[Loubs]

Loubs what variety of alpine did you sow? I have just sown some red and white ones and having never tried these before wondered if they take a while to get going.

They were mignonette. But entirely own fault... I've been very good since this autumn about putting all my new seed purchases straight into an air-tight box in the fridge. The alpine straws were just one of about 40 or so packs of assorted fruit veg & flower seeds I found in the kitchen drawer next to the oven, a collection of stuff chucked in there over a number of years. Tried a few things from that pile but nothing grew so chucked it all out last night  -  I'm sure I've killed them all (well, that drawer does get a bit hot when the oven is on) . Live & learn!

[Sideways]

I have two trays of leeks (about x40 a tray) on the go, I started the one tray three weeks ago in the greenhouse and they are nearly all through.

At the weekend I sowed broad beans and peas (Feltham first) in 4” pots, these will go in the ground towards the end of March with a few rows of seeds straight in the soil. The plan is to stagger the harvest.

Have also sowed some summer cabbage in pots.  Everything else will be sowed in the ground on the plot when the time is right.

I have bought my red onion sets, my white onions I plan to grow from seed on plot.

My potatoes are now chitting in the cold greenhouse.

Also in the greenhouse for home use, from seed-
Lots of lettuce, various types including lambs lettuce and a patio mix.
New season herbs- Parsley, coriander, red and green basil, tarragon, lemon thyme, chives. I have three pots with baby seedlings by the kitchen window. All of last years parsley survived and is now growing on after a good feed.
Lots and lots of chilis!! I plan to grow enough to keep Asia happy for a month.
Tomatoes, two different types.

Err, I think that’s it.  :happy:

My plot is dug, fed and ready to go.

I can’t wait.  

[Kristen]

I grew some Summer Cabbage last year ... but there were abundant other crops when the Cabbage was read, and we aren't that keen on it (I suppose we see it more of a Winter veg) so it never got eaten. Not growing any this year!

Have also been holding off on sowing Leeks - bit worried that if I sow TOO early they will bolt.

[DD.]

I tried some leeks early last year.

Guess what? They bolted.

[Kristen]

What's your recommended date to sow leeks DD?

[DD.]

Around mid-March.

[Aunt Sally]

I'm just going to sleep for another couple of weeks 

[diggerjoe]

This weekend it is felt tip in hand and write on each seed spud what they are - Not for you DD with your 300 - but after two years running when OH stumbled into the greenhouse ( either looking for the loppers or trying to find string  ) and tipped over the trays of chitting spuds I feel the effort of penning a code on each one which lets me know variety and type will save the day in case he goes looking for something else this year. It will be time well spent with a pot of tea and a bit of cake and the radio on.

[DD.]

That's just an excuse to get out of the way of him!

How's the raspberries doing?

[andtiggertoo]

diggerjoe why didn't I think of that I have 10 spuds each of 6 varieties. My cat keeps trying to get them out of the egg boxes they are chitting in. That's a simple solution, brilliant.