Lots of ideas from this thread for next year. Here in the westcountry we have had a bumper year, even though we had a cold spring. Highlights: runner beans Moonlight. Tried the new Jackpot dwarf runner beans. Very early, good flavour, have collected seeds for next year, but will give more support.
Beetroots Cylindra and Red Ace, very prolific, and tasty, just cooked the last ones.
Leeks Elefant and Porbella which were free from D.B. Brown, very good.
Courgettes best ever, Cavili, Napoli and Soleil, but will try Parador next year as suggested on here. I make loads of soup with my courgettes for the freezer for winter lunches.
I grow purple sprouting broccoli amongst my courgette plants in the vain hope that the cabbage whites will miss them, but they eventually found them. They are now recovering, so all is well. Winter cabbages however, were well and truly damaged, am hoping they will come good. Tried the new Black Kale and liked it, its not as tough as Nero.
Chard, always in the garden, great stand by. I grow Fordhook Giant and the rainbow collection, grow in good fertile ground.
Broad bean Monica, will grow again, have loads in the freezer.
Tomatoes best ever in the garden for Sungold, and Black Krim. No blight this year. In the greenhouse tried Delicious, and they were really were delicious but not very prolific.
Where would I be without my trusty Burpless Tasty Green cucumber. I grow them up a south facing wall, in plenty of compost and well watered. Picked the last one today for lunch.
Next year I will grow more flowers for the bees and butterflies, they were very much in evidence this year so don't want to disappoint next year. They loved the marjoram and verbena bonariensis, buddleigh, scabious etc.
Wont Grow Again: This is the last year I grow carrots, they just don't suit my garden, even though I have a fleece cover, the root flies still get in. Same goes for parsnips. This leaves more room next year for extra broad beans and leeks.
No more onions, as have been inflicted with rot, or potatoes either, although I had a few Lady Balfour left over from the supermarket which had sprouted, so planted them in a small row. I recently thought I should dig them up to see if they had produced much, and lo and behold I have a wonderful crop of large sound potatoes! So perhaps do the same next year, although I know you are not suppoed to do this!
I grew courgettes called "Romanesco" this year as it said on the packet that they are one of the best tasting. Never again! They are the blandest courgette I have ever tasted.
Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
I have used my own compost in parts of my garden and found that tomato seeds that have been put in the compost bin have germinated and have produced a better crop out side than the ones I have purchased from garden centres and grown in the greenhouse. So I am going to save some seeds from my tomatoes in future I have also found it works well with peppers.
Well Auntie E I will be growing carrots again next year but only root fly resistsnt varieties like Flyaway or Resistafly. Two beds of Amsterdam Forcing got root fly this year because the fleece got torn by the high winds we had in April and May. Covering with fleece hasn't worked for me, never again.
One thing I won't grow again is a 'Shark Fin Melon'. Firstly it was a monster and destroyed it's supports and grew over everything in it's way and secondly it just didn't taste of anything lol...we live and learn, which is the fun of gardening.
I'm swapping garlic for Jermor shallots, as the garlic didn't really taste of anything. Had good success with the runner beans, but will be swapping them for dwarf french beans next year as they shaded everything else - it's a small plot.
Been really pleased with white lisbon spring onins, and had a few good courgettes (black beauty), and plenty of baby carrots (chantenay red cored). It's my first year growing things, and I'll be rearranging things to try and get the most out of the space.
Good year on the whole if a bit of a late starter. Lots of new beds for me to go at although addition of several truck loads of mushroom compost in the spring may have made the soil a bit rich for some plants & seedlings in the first season. Cougettes liked it though & it should be great soil next year!
1st year for raspberries - Autumn Bliss - amazingly good crop so far. Summer ones have put on lots of growth for next year
Cougettes (yellow & green) - bumper crop - have made loads of spicy fritters for the freezer & several jars of sweet pickled cougettes - absolutely yummy with cheese or cold cuts
Peas - Early Onward - much better than last year - fairly long period of cropping
Runner beans - Scarlet Emperor? - tasty & v tender when picked small - heavy crop - very late but great just now
Chantes carrots - good tasty crop - had to protect from fly
Cosmos - huge bushy plants (4' +) - still full of flower - sown late (mid April) & pinched out
Tomatoes - GD & Sungold grown outside both really poor (again) - thick skins, lots split & very late to ripen. I think too many extremes of temp & very little rain this year. Oudoor toms often dont seem to do very well for me & cause lots of anxst - is it warm enough? will the neighbour water? are they staked securely if its windy? have I fed enough / too much? - not sure if I can be bothered next year! (Taste so good when I get it right tho')
Coriander - Calypso - started well but bolted in the heat & 3 further sowings in ground failed to germinate - same with Butterhead lettuce. Have done well in the past. Wondering if mice or voles have eaten the seeds - lots of holes in my raised beds this year!!
Garlic & shallots - tiny & rotting in the ground - ended up in the bin
Seems to have been a year of extremes both weather & cropping - wise
Heaven is ... sitting in the garden with a G&T and a cat while watching the sun go down
Tomatoes (outdoor): Sungold, especially eaten straight from the plant. Totally yum. For what it's worth, it was Gardener's Delight that split in my garden, while Sungold didn't. Also had a good crop of little cherry tomatoes from Losetto (bush variety, blight resistant).
Cobra climbing French beans, always good although not so vigorous this year (should have watered them more, I think). Seed is saved for next year.
Charlotte potatoes, very reliable and the tubers don't get affected by blight even if the tops rot away.
Courgettes: Spineless Beauty were scarily prolific. Four plants grew a humungous crop. Next year I'll try two of those and maybe two yellow ones.
What would I not grow again? Celtuce. Chicory. Salsify. Butternut squash - not really worth the space and effort for what was (for me) a tiny crop. And probaby not brassicas, although I get tempted and keep thinking this time they'll be OK. This year I tried kale, thinking it would be relatively free from caterpillars etc. I was wrong.
As I said at the beginning of this thread, I grew Wisley Magic runner beans last year and they were good - this year they've been great.
Started picking in August and we're still picking now, in the third week of October - we had two meals-worth last week and there's still enough for one more picking! I think that really will be the last and I'll be taking them up this weekend.
I had planned to do it last weekend, but there were still beans on the vines!
With their great flavour and almost stringless pods, I really wouldn't consider growing any other variety.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Posts
Lots of ideas from this thread for next year. Here in the westcountry we have had a bumper year, even though we had a cold spring. Highlights: runner beans Moonlight. Tried the new Jackpot dwarf runner beans. Very early, good flavour, have collected seeds for next year, but will give more support.
Beetroots Cylindra and Red Ace, very prolific, and tasty, just cooked the last ones.
Leeks Elefant and Porbella which were free from D.B. Brown, very good.
Courgettes best ever, Cavili, Napoli and Soleil, but will try Parador next year as suggested on here. I make loads of soup with my courgettes for the freezer for winter lunches.
I grow purple sprouting broccoli amongst my courgette plants in the vain hope that the cabbage whites will miss them, but they eventually found them. They are now recovering, so all is well. Winter cabbages however, were well and truly damaged, am hoping they will come good. Tried the new Black Kale and liked it, its not as tough as Nero.
Chard, always in the garden, great stand by. I grow Fordhook Giant and the rainbow collection, grow in good fertile ground.
Broad bean Monica, will grow again, have loads in the freezer.
Tomatoes best ever in the garden for Sungold, and Black Krim. No blight this year. In the greenhouse tried Delicious, and they were really were delicious but not very prolific.
Where would I be without my trusty Burpless Tasty Green cucumber. I grow them up a south facing wall, in plenty of compost and well watered. Picked the last one today for lunch.
Next year I will grow more flowers for the bees and butterflies, they were very much in evidence this year so don't want to disappoint next year. They loved the marjoram and verbena bonariensis, buddleigh, scabious etc.
Wont Grow Again: This is the last year I grow carrots, they just don't suit my garden, even though I have a fleece cover, the root flies still get in. Same goes for parsnips.
This leaves more room next year for extra broad beans and leeks.
No more onions, as have been inflicted with rot, or potatoes either, although I had a few Lady Balfour left over from the supermarket which had sprouted, so planted them in a small row. I recently thought I should dig them up to see if they had produced much, and lo and behold I have a wonderful crop of large sound potatoes! So perhaps do the same next year, although I know you are not suppoed to do this!
I grew courgettes called "Romanesco" this year as it said on the packet that they are one of the best tasting. Never again! They are the blandest courgette I have ever tasted.
I have used my own compost in parts of my garden and found that tomato seeds that have been put in the compost bin have germinated and have produced a better crop out side than the ones I have purchased from garden centres and grown in the greenhouse. So I am going to save some seeds from my tomatoes in future I have also found it works well with peppers.
Well Auntie E I will be growing carrots again next year but only root fly resistsnt varieties like Flyaway or Resistafly. Two beds of Amsterdam Forcing got root fly this year because the fleece got torn by the high winds we had in April and May. Covering with fleece hasn't worked for me, never again.
One thing I won't grow again is a 'Shark Fin Melon'. Firstly it was a monster and destroyed it's supports and grew over everything in it's way and secondly it just didn't taste of anything lol...we live and learn, which is the fun of gardening.
I'm swapping garlic for Jermor shallots, as the garlic didn't really taste of anything. Had good success with the runner beans, but will be swapping them for dwarf french beans next year as they shaded everything else - it's a small plot.
Been really pleased with white lisbon spring onins, and had a few good courgettes (black beauty), and plenty of baby carrots (chantenay red cored). It's my first year growing things, and I'll be rearranging things to try and get the most out of the space.
Nice thread!
Good year on the whole if a bit of a late starter. Lots of new beds for me to go at although addition of several truck loads of mushroom compost in the spring may have made the soil a bit rich for some plants & seedlings in the first season. Cougettes liked it though & it should be great soil next year!
1st year for raspberries - Autumn Bliss - amazingly good crop so far. Summer ones have put on lots of growth for next year
Cougettes (yellow & green) - bumper crop - have made loads of spicy fritters for the freezer & several jars of sweet pickled cougettes - absolutely yummy with cheese or cold cuts
Peas - Early Onward - much better than last year - fairly long period of cropping
Runner beans - Scarlet Emperor? - tasty & v tender when picked small - heavy crop - very late but great just now
Chantes carrots - good tasty crop - had to protect from fly
Cosmos - huge bushy plants (4' +) - still full of flower - sown late (mid April) & pinched out
Tomatoes - GD & Sungold grown outside both really poor (again) - thick skins, lots split & very late to ripen. I think too many extremes of temp & very little rain this year. Oudoor toms often dont seem to do very well for me & cause lots of anxst - is it warm enough? will the neighbour water? are they staked securely if its windy? have I fed enough / too much? - not sure if I can be bothered next year! (Taste so good when I get it right tho')
Coriander - Calypso - started well but bolted in the heat & 3 further sowings in ground failed to germinate - same with Butterhead lettuce. Have done well in the past. Wondering if mice or voles have eaten the seeds - lots of holes in my raised beds this year!!
Garlic & shallots - tiny & rotting in the ground - ended up in the bin
Seems to have been a year of extremes both weather & cropping - wise
I found a UK Based ebay shop that has Soldacki, Cuore Di Bue and Anna Russian toms;
http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Premier-Seeds-Direct/Tomatoes-/_i.html?rt=nc&_fsub=9717831&_sid=79364908&_trksid=p4634.c0.m14.l1581&_pgn=3
Great thread, I've noted down a few suggestions.
For me, the best crops/varieties were:
Tomatoes (outdoor): Sungold, especially eaten straight from the plant. Totally yum. For what it's worth, it was Gardener's Delight that split in my garden, while Sungold didn't. Also had a good crop of little cherry tomatoes from Losetto (bush variety, blight resistant).
Cobra climbing French beans, always good although not so vigorous this year (should have watered them more, I think). Seed is saved for next year.
Charlotte potatoes, very reliable and the tubers don't get affected by blight even if the tops rot away.
Courgettes: Spineless Beauty were scarily prolific. Four plants grew a humungous crop. Next year I'll try two of those and maybe two yellow ones.
What would I not grow again? Celtuce. Chicory. Salsify. Butternut squash - not really worth the space and effort for what was (for me) a tiny crop. And probaby not brassicas, although I get tempted and keep thinking this time they'll be OK. This year I tried kale, thinking it would be relatively free from caterpillars etc. I was wrong.
As I said at the beginning of this thread, I grew Wisley Magic runner beans last year and they were good - this year they've been great.
Started picking in August and we're still picking now, in the third week of October - we had two meals-worth last week and there's still enough for one more picking! I think that really will be the last and I'll be taking them up this weekend.
I had planned to do it last weekend, but there were still beans on the vines!
With their great flavour and almost stringless pods, I really wouldn't consider growing any other variety.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.