[HLS]

About four or so weeks ago, when I started feeling well enough to visit my small plot again, I ordered some potatoes (Anya, Desiree, Dunluce), garlic (spring planting) and a gooseberry bush (Captivator) from Thompson and Morgan.  Everything was listed as being in stock, so I naively thought that they would arrive fairly soon.  Unfortunately, I was wrong: the garlic and potatoes arrived yesterday and the gooseberry bush hasn't arrived yet.  Even more unfortunately, this is just before the one weekend when I won't be able to do any planting at all.

I'm guessing that I can leave the potatoes chitting until next week, but is it too late for the garlic, even if I put it in tonight?  (And if it is too late, can I legitimately complain to T&M?)  The gooseberry is even more of a problem, since it will have to be stored until the weekend after next and it may even arrive when I'm not there to deal with it.  How do I keep it alive until I can put it in at the allotment?

[Trebor]

Garlic – I would say it is too late as it generally needs a cold spell. That said I would still say if you ordered it then try it because you have nothing to lose. I got mine from ASDA (Organic no less) last October so didn’t have an ordering problem – maybe there is a disease problem here that I will get, but so far it is doing really well – could be worth a try for you next year.

Gooseberry – Should be OK to put in and they seem pretty tough. I got one from Homebase and it was pretty dry, but after a soak and couple of weeks in the ground it is now starting to shoot (I am down south so as you are up north then you should have a little more time). Can you get someone to lookout for it arriving and get them to look after it for a while? If that fails then the one I bought was literally only a couple of pounds so you could replace it if you don’t have any luck.

Spuds – These will be fine, doesn’t matter what you do with them, chit or otherwise, stick them in the ground in the next few weeks and no problem.

On the ordering side I used Marshalls and the spuds came out in December. I guess they are busy filling orders at the moment so not that surprised you are getting late delivery. You should check if there is any agreement as to how quick they supply plants. Generally they are quite woolly on timing commitment so not sure what comeback you will have. Even when you order early it is a guessing game as to what will arrive when…for me that is part of the fun (sorry maybe that doesn’t comfort you very much!) Anyway good luck with it all.

[p00rstudent]

if you bung the garlic in the fridge for a couple of weeks you can trick them into thinking they have had that cold patch to break the dormancy and then plant them out.

[mumofstig]

I have grown spring planted garlic with no problem...........perhaps the
cold snap theory does improve them  but it doesn't stop you getting a crop.

They grow them through the winter in countries that have no frosts and still get garlic

[HLS]

Thanks Trebor.  I think they are rather wooly about delivery times, although I'm fairly sure they do say somewhere that things are supplied in time for planting.  I'm not going to want to buy garlic now and plant it next Spring, after all.

I may be able to ask my neighbours to look out for the gooseberry, although I can't really ask them to do anything too time-consuming with it.  If it arrives in a pot it shouldn't be too much of a problem I suppose (put it somewhere sheltered and water it), but I have no idea what to do with a bare-rooted plant for over a week.

Interesting idea about the fridge, p00rstudent!  I've heard of doing that with some seeds, but not with garlic.

Thanks for the reassurance, mumofstig!  I might fridge half of them and plant out the rest tonight, and see what happens.

[Salmo]

Get the garlic in the ground. The cold spell needed is not very cold, I think it is below 10 degrees C. I have never heard of garlic failing to grow in the UK. I am sure our normal Spring climate is sufficient.

Not planting until now you may find the bulbs a little small as they will still ripen at the same time as early planted ones.

[madcat]

I may be able to ask my neighbours to look out for the gooseberry, but I have no idea what to do with a bare-rooted plant for over a week.

If they can bung it in a bucket with some water covering over the roots and put it somewhere out of the direct sun so it stays cool, it will be fine waiting for you to get back. 

[HLS]

Thanks, madcat.  Will it be all right like that for the whole week?

[paintedlady]

Thanks, madcat.  Will it be all right like that for the whole week?

Maybe a day, but I think it might be stretching it for a whole week.  You risk "drowning" it    It might be a lot easier to "heel" it in - whether you provide a bucket of damp compost and they park its roots in that and cover up, or perhaps pre-dig a hole outside for them instead.

[cawdor2001]

you beat me to it Painted LAdy, just what i was going to suggest.  Re potatoes i second the earlier comment, don't worry if not chitted, get em in.

Cawdor

[HLS]

Maybe a day, but I think it might be stretching it for a whole week.  You risk "drowning" it 

I thought a week sounded a lot for a non-aquatic plant!  I've got a pot that's still full of compost from last year - it had chard in and I've just planted more so I don't plan to keep them.  Will that be OK, do you think?  Not much in the way of nutrients, I imagine, though.  The trouble is that I'm not really up to lugging about large amounts of compost/heavy pots quite yet.  All the available areas in the garden are really shady - that's why I've got the allotment!

[paintedlady]

The damp compost will keep the roots moist (but not wet!) until you are ready to plant out.  So if it is only for a week or two, it doesn't really matter if the compost is lacking nutrients (sorry, should have explained what "heeling in" means - it is just a temporary stage, much like the situation you will have, until you are ready to plant out proper.  The roots won't have time to start sending new ones out so disturbance should still be minimal) 

[HLS]

That's fine, then.  Thanks, paintedlady!

[madcat]

I can only say that is how my currents - not from T&M - waited for me, bought (very) dry rooted late one sunday and planted out the following weekend.  They didnt drown and are now thriving.  Gooseberries are tougher than red currents.

Heeling in (temporary planting) in damp compost would be better if you have it and the nice neighbours are happy to pop them in.  

Gardeners eh!  Ask 10 gardeners and get 11 opinions!  Thats the fun of it ....

[HLS]

I think I'll use both methods: get the neighbours to put it in a bucket of water, and put it in the compost myself.  Different opinions are very reassuring, anyway, as it means that there are more 'probably right' options and I'm less likely to accidentally do something definitely wrong!

I'm glad to hear that gooseberries are tough.  This one might well need to be!