A few years ago on Beechgrove, Jim did a trial growing the same variety of tomatoes in the same composts but feeding one lot with comfrey tea and the other with commercial feed. Comfrey won hands down but he thought it was a fluke - likes his traditional methods - so he did it again the next year and got the same results and became a convert.
I'm trying to grow a patch of comfrey just for teas - good for roses and clems too - but it's struggling in the recent heatwave and has gone very crispy. I grow my tomaoes in the soil in the polytunnel, improved each year with home made compost and some pelleted chicken manure and then I give a dollop of granular tomato feed when they start to flower. Watering is done by seep hose so goes straight to the roots and not all over the foliage.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
It's good to hear about the comfrey. We have comfrey growing like a weed in our garden and in several places; I should make more use of it really. I need to check up on how to make it too ... I put several handfuls of leaves in a bucket, six weeks ago, and just left it covered, in the polytunnel. I haven't got around to removing the leaves and there is always a yucky film on the top. I read on the forum of people who sieve it and then bottle it but I just take a small jug (about a cup size) and add it to a litre of water then pour it around the roots. The liquid is a pale colour - and smelly, of course.
We kept llamas for about 7 years, but they went in 2019; we were both working at the time and did not have the time needed for the garden. I wish now that we had made more use of the llama poo ... in the US they call it 'black gold' - and it can be used fresh. Anyhow, the compost for the raised beds, which are approx 12" high with open bottom, came from the muck heap which is now very well rotted. That said, the nutrients might have been washed away after 3 years; perhaps the tomatoes don't need feeding - but I will keep up with the comfrey tea.
Thought I would post an update on the polytunnel. Well it has certainly been a learning curve and the learning continues ... especially with regard to patience! The cucamelons have finally taken off and we are now getting fruits that are nearer the size of a grape instead of falling off when they got to 5mm. I reduced the amount of water and cut the tips which helped enormously. Next year though, I need to plant only 2 or 3 in the raised bed instead of 6!
The tomatoes 'Sweet Million' are producing 'millions' ... but they are not ripening very fast - I am only able to pick about 2 or 3 at a time and certainly not every day. We have probably had about 12 cherry tomatoes so far. I am never sure how much water to give them. We have 4 plants in the 4' square raised bed - I water them every evening and have been giving them 2 gallons but this last week I have increased this to 3 gallons of water per day. They seem to be okay but it is just guesswork. 🤷🏼♀️ I have also re-commenced feeding them with comfrey tea. The few tomatoes we have had tasted delicious. 🙂
The polytunnel is certainly a very different place (and experience) since replacing the cover this year. However, it only gets the sun in the afternoon and early evening due to the surrounding trees - but there is nothing we can do about that.
I will try to post some more photos/update tomorrow.
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I'm trying to grow a patch of comfrey just for teas - good for roses and clems too - but it's struggling in the recent heatwave and has gone very crispy. I grow my tomaoes in the soil in the polytunnel, improved each year with home made compost and some pelleted chicken manure and then I give a dollop of granular tomato feed when they start to flower. Watering is done by seep hose so goes straight to the roots and not all over the foliage.
We kept llamas for about 7 years, but they went in 2019; we were both working at the time and did not have the time needed for the garden. I wish now that we had made more use of the llama poo ... in the US they call it 'black gold' - and it can be used fresh. Anyhow, the compost for the raised beds, which are approx 12" high with open bottom, came from the muck heap which is now very well rotted. That said, the nutrients might have been washed away after 3 years; perhaps the tomatoes don't need feeding - but I will keep up with the comfrey tea.
Well it has certainly been a learning curve and the learning continues ... especially with regard to patience!
The cucamelons have finally taken off and we are now getting fruits that are nearer the size of a grape instead of falling off when they got to 5mm. I reduced the amount of water and cut the tips which helped enormously. Next year though, I need to plant only 2 or 3 in the raised bed instead of 6!
The tomatoes 'Sweet Million' are producing 'millions' ... but they are not ripening very fast - I am only able to pick about 2 or 3 at a time and certainly not every day. We have probably had about 12 cherry tomatoes so far. I am never sure how much water to give them. We have 4 plants in the 4' square raised bed - I water them every evening and have been giving them 2 gallons but this last week I have increased this to 3 gallons of water per day. They seem to be okay but it is just guesswork. 🤷🏼♀️ I have also re-commenced feeding them with comfrey tea. The few tomatoes we have had tasted delicious. 🙂
The polytunnel is certainly a very different place (and experience) since replacing the cover this year. However, it only gets the sun in the afternoon and early evening due to the surrounding trees - but there is nothing we can do about that.
I will try to post some more photos/update tomorrow.