Seeds sown and more trees bought
Some wild flower seed sown around poly tunnel, 150 Centurion Onions set, Carrot sown and trenches for potatoes have been started with Leek, Brussels, Tomatoes, Oak Leaf Lettuce, Peas sown in the green house. These were done over the last week or two and Peas and Brussels have already started.
Yesterday, Sweetcorn, Strawberry Spinach, Sweet Peppers, Broad Beans and more Tomato were sown in the Poly tunnel. Hopefully others will be done today.
It's full steam ahead now and the last chance to buy bare rooted trees taken with 10 more Hazel, a Peach, Nectarine and a Cambridge Gage tree ordered along with Hop seed.
Sweet Chestnuts
The Sweet Chestnuts that I planted as seed in a grow bag, with the hope that one or two might germinate and grow has seen most of them germinate. I think I sowed about 20 and perhaps 15 may grow. I had been told that mice would almost certainly get them over winter if I left them outside in a grow bag but that hasn't happened.
Fruit Bush cuttings
The Red and Black Currant cuttings I took late Autumn seem to be growing. They have fresh buds on them as well as the Gooseberry cuttings. It looks like all have taken. I had simply cut them (old and new wood) and stuck them in pots with compost and left them outside. If they work then this will be something I'll do a lot more of as it was so easy. Reading about taking cuttings the books make it sound quite complicated, cut here with x number of buds after leaves fall, cut at this angle, plant and keep moist using rooting hormone and if the conditions are kept correct they should take. In reality all I did was cut small branches with and without leaves and stick them in a pot of what ever was to hand and left them. I rather wish I had done another 20.
Poly Tunnel
The tunnel went in last October but the high winds damaged the cover so for most of the winter the cover was off until a few weeks ago when we replaced it with a new one, not before putting up some trellis along one side and a bit of the front. Hopefully the trellis should reduce the wind by 20 or 30% and remove the danger of damage. This last week has seen temperatures top 25 deg C inside the tunnel when the sun shines for any length of time and with overcast days it's around 10 or 12 deg C.
Poly Tunnel
The tunnel went in last October but the high winds damaged the cover so for most of the winter the cover was off until a few weeks ago when we replaced it with a new one, not before putting up some trellis along one side and a bit of the front. Hopefully the trellis should reduce the wind by 20 or 30% and remove the danger of damage. This last week has seen temperatures top 25 deg C inside the tunnel when the sun shines for any length of time and with overcast days it's around 10 or 12 deg C.
For me there always seems to be a sharp line between easy cutting plants and impossible ones, with not much in the middle. The Ribes are all easy from cuttings.
ReplyDeleteI find it hard to throw away cuttings from them so I alway have extras in pots, using exactly the same method as you. This year I've got 5 new Langley Gage plants that will hopefully all come through. It's the nicest dessert Gooseberry there is and you can't have too many plants... oh, and I've also had some luck this winter with American Elder cuttings.
Hi Chris, American Elder, is that the same as (or almost the same as) our normal elder? I took a cutting from an elder, this time of year, stuck it in a bucket of water for a few weeks and it through out loads of roots. Then placed it in the ground and 2 years later, maybe three, it is 6 ft tall and about 4 ft wide. Very bushy. It was in a sheltered spot. The 2nd one I did was in an exposed area, with grass competition, it grew very slowly and then died in the 2nd year.
ReplyDeleteThis is one of my jobs today, take 5 or 6 cuttings and try to grow more for my hedge line.
American elder is sambucus canadensis. There are two main differences to European Elder: it's a bit shorter and shrubbier, and supposedly it's not self fertile so it will flower for months in hope of pollination as long as your neighbours haven't had the same idea and planted a different variety. I planted it because I like elderflower cordials. Mine are still small though so I can't tell you how good it performs in the field (ha!).
ReplyDeleteWhether it's any good for your hedge depends on how tall you want the hedge to be.