I’ve found germination for parsnips good, I sow those when I plant out runner beans, sometimes as late as end of May / start of June. Always buy fresh seed new each year for maximum germination.
Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor.
Our garden is a wildlife one and we just have a small area
by the greenhouse to grow veg. From
April onwards I’ll grow potatoes. lettuce, spinach, and rocket outside and
tomatoes and cucumbers in the greenhouse.
By the end of August/early September my second crop of
potatoes are finished and this is when I put in my ‘winter vegetables’, this
winter leeks and turnips. From what I’ve
read this will give them a good start with what’s left of the warmish weather. I’ve read that turnips should grow in about
two months with leeks at 4/5 months. I
was expecting a decent crop of turnips by November!
These were the turnips around January 23 after they had been
growing for over four months, at first outside and then in the greenhouse. Better than last winter but still not
brilliant by any means.
The growing area/greenhouse are quite shaded by trees, so
this restricts what sunlight we get. I just
think that there are too many things against growing winter veg. where I
live. A neighbour across the road started
growing veg. at the start of the coronavirus outbreak but has given up growing
things in winter.
I would have thought that planting just as summer is
finishing would have worked but it’s failed two years running so I’ll probably
just stick to growing April to September in future unless I can find a veg. that likes the cold and dark
At about 750 feet on the western edge of The Pennines. Clay soil.
Leeks certainly need a longer growing time - it might work if you start them in modules and plant them out after the first early potatoes come out (June-ish) rather than after maincrop potatoes. I've never grown turnips so I don't know about them. If you get a mild autumn you might just squeeze in a crop of baby-leaf salad from an early September sowing. You could grow winter salads in the greenhouse when the tomatoes etc. are finished.
Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
I feel you might be asking a bit much from the plot you've got. Ever tried runner beans? Even by sacrificing a few spuds, you could raise 24 healthy plants in a square yard.
I feel you might be asking a bit much from the plot you've
got.
I think that you are right.
Summer is OK but winter growing has too much against it. I’d have though that turnips would have had
enough of a start by planting in September, but it doesn’t seem so. I’ll see if there is any other ‘quick’ crop
that I can plant in September, otherwise I’ll forget it.
Ever tried runner beans? Even by sacrificing a few
spuds, you could raise 24 healthy plants in a square yard.
Never though of these but I’ll certainly consider them.
At about 750 feet on the western edge of The Pennines. Clay soil.
Posts
Always buy fresh seed new each year for maximum germination.
Our garden is a wildlife one and we just have a small area by the greenhouse to grow veg. From April onwards I’ll grow potatoes. lettuce, spinach, and rocket outside and tomatoes and cucumbers in the greenhouse.
By the end of August/early September my second crop of potatoes are finished and this is when I put in my ‘winter vegetables’, this winter leeks and turnips. From what I’ve read this will give them a good start with what’s left of the warmish weather. I’ve read that turnips should grow in about two months with leeks at 4/5 months. I was expecting a decent crop of turnips by November!
These were the turnips around January 23 after they had been growing for over four months, at first outside and then in the greenhouse. Better than last winter but still not brilliant by any means.
The growing area/greenhouse are quite shaded by trees, so this restricts what sunlight we get. I just think that there are too many things against growing winter veg. where I live. A neighbour across the road started growing veg. at the start of the coronavirus outbreak but has given up growing things in winter.
I would have thought that planting just as summer is finishing would have worked but it’s failed two years running so I’ll probably just stick to growing April to September in future unless I can find a veg. that likes the cold and dark
Hi Nick
I think that you are right. Summer is OK but winter growing has too much against it. I’d have though that turnips would have had enough of a start by planting in September, but it doesn’t seem so. I’ll see if there is any other ‘quick’ crop that I can plant in September, otherwise I’ll forget it.
Never though of these but I’ll certainly consider them.