David - I hadn't been able to get 6X at my local GC until this year. When I lived in Hertfordshire, I could get it from a number of local GCs, but down here it hasn't been readily available. But I always found it to be superb - all the plants benefit from it being mixed in with potting compost, for example, in pots and troughs. And I knew a gardener who shoved a couple of handfuls into the foot of an old stocking and soaked it in water to make a liquid feed. Haven't tried that (yet ) It would certainly be more "perfumed" than the SPs ) It may be pricey - but a little goes a long way.
SV - I've recommended 6X so many times on these boards. It really is excellent stuff!
Regarding availability, it can be bought directly online of course.
"And I knew a gardener who shoved a couple of handfuls into the foot of an old stocking and soaked it in water to make a liquid feed"
Well as it happens, many of the old sweet pea growers who grow them for exhibition, collect sheep droppings from the field, put them in a hessian sack & dunk them in a tank of water (rather the same principle as tea bags) And the similarity dosen't end there, it is ready for use (about a week) when the liquid is the colour of tea.
I've just read your answer to the post on the other thread - I'm not sure if I have the same problem. I've got 3 sweet pea wigwams in different parts of the garden, but on one of them in particular, some of the plants are turning yellow and crispy, whilst the rest on the same wigwam are flourishing. I did spot what looked like an insect (like a tiny round ball) on one of the sickly ones, but not on the others. I'm in northern Spain, so we haven't had the recent wet weather you've been having in the UK. I've given them a good watering twice a week, and they get plenty of sun.
As you suggest, I don't think over-watering will be your problem, in fact the conditions seem ideal. Here in the UK sweet peas don't have many insect enemies, but I'm not really familiar of what you have in N Spain.
In view of the fact that your other 2 wigwams are flourishing, I'm inclined to think that there maybe something lacking in the soil.
Try a feeding with a foliar feed of liquid seaweed (hope this is available where you are) this is best used as a tonic and not a regular feed and should be discontinued after they perk up.
Other outside and unlikely causes could be: Pea mosaic virus, powdery mildew, root rot, or herbicide spray drift.
Thanks for that David, I was thinking the same thing about the soil, but one of the other wigwams which is doing well is only about 2 feet away from it.
I have always grown sweet peas but am in a new garden (well was a bit of a field last year which we are slowly bringing back to cultivation) which is on heavy clay and floods at the first sign of rain of which we have had a lot up here in Carlisle. Still I have 3 lots of sweet peas on the go. One batch sown in pots and planted out about 5 weeks ago another straight into the ground which looked so unwilling to go that I planted climbing beans in between them and a few spares I put in an old plastic box. All seem to be going well and in fact the ones sown straight into the ground soon caught up with and overtook the earlier pot ones and are now flowering in amongst some reluctant bean plants. I had my first vase of flowers yesterday. I use feed made from either comfrey or dandilions whichever is growing at the time. Both seem to really get things going. So far the waterlogged soil does not seem to have harmed the plants although I have notices that a lot of the flower stems are a little shorter this year.
I have always grown sweet peas but am in a new garden (well was a bit of a field last year which we are slowly bringing back to cultivation) which is on heavy clay and floods at the first sign of rain of which we have had a lot up here in Carlisle. Still I have 3 lots of sweet peas on the go. One batch sown in pots and planted out about 5 weeks ago another straight into the ground which looked so unwilling to go that I planted climbing beans in between them and a few spares I put in an old plastic box. All seem to be going well and in fact the ones sown straight into the ground soon caught up with and overtook the earlier pot ones and are now flowering in amongst some reluctant bean plants. I had my first vase of flowers yesterday. I use feed made from either comfrey or dandilions whichever is growing at the time. Both seem to really get things going. So far the waterlogged soil does not seem to have harmed the plants although I have notices that a lot of the flower stems are a little shorter this year.
Hi, Frensclan - given this year's atrocious weather, I would say you have done really well.
Mine are about 3 - 4 foot high, should be 6 foot by now, very strong and healthy looking but very late due to darkness and wet. I'll just leave them alone and see - if we get some late summer we may still get sweet peas, who knows yet!
Bookertoo - I think it has been one of the worst years I can remember for SPs.
I was talking to my friend and owner of Eagle Sweet Peas, Derek Heathcote just a week or so ago and he said that he had struggled to find enough blooms this year to show at Chelsea and the other shows.
Posts
SV - I've recommended 6X so many times on these boards. It really is excellent stuff!
Regarding availability, it can be bought directly online of course.
"And I knew a gardener who shoved a couple of handfuls into the foot of an old stocking and soaked it in water to make a liquid feed"
Well as it happens, many of the old sweet pea growers who grow them for exhibition, collect sheep droppings from the field, put them in a hessian sack & dunk them in a tank of water (rather the same principle as tea bags) And the similarity dosen't end there, it is ready for use (about a week) when the liquid is the colour of tea.
Hi David,
I've just read your answer to the post on the other thread - I'm not sure if I have the same problem. I've got 3 sweet pea wigwams in different parts of the garden, but on one of them in particular, some of the plants are turning yellow and crispy, whilst the rest on the same wigwam are flourishing. I did spot what looked like an insect (like a tiny round ball) on one of the sickly ones, but not on the others. I'm in northern Spain, so we haven't had the recent wet weather you've been having in the UK. I've given them a good watering twice a week, and they get plenty of sun.
Any ideas?
Hi, Lorea
As you suggest, I don't think over-watering will be your problem, in fact the conditions seem ideal. Here in the UK sweet peas don't have many insect enemies, but I'm not really familiar of what you have in N Spain.
In view of the fact that your other 2 wigwams are flourishing, I'm inclined to think that there maybe something lacking in the soil.
Try a feeding with a foliar feed of liquid seaweed (hope this is available where you are) this is best used as a tonic and not a regular feed and should be discontinued after they perk up.
Other outside and unlikely causes could be: Pea mosaic virus, powdery mildew, root rot, or herbicide spray drift.
Thanks for that David, I was thinking the same thing about the soil, but one of the other wigwams which is doing well is only about 2 feet away from it.
As this thread is now slipping off the first page & questions seem to pop up in other places....I'm giving it a little bump.
I have always grown sweet peas but am in a new garden (well was a bit of a field last year which we are slowly bringing back to cultivation) which is on heavy clay and floods at the first sign of rain of which we have had a lot up here in Carlisle. Still I have 3 lots of sweet peas on the go. One batch sown in pots and planted out about 5 weeks ago another straight into the ground which looked so unwilling to go that I planted climbing beans in between them and a few spares I put in an old plastic box. All seem to be going well and in fact the ones sown straight into the ground soon caught up with and overtook the earlier pot ones and are now flowering in amongst some reluctant bean plants. I had my first vase of flowers yesterday. I use feed made from either comfrey or dandilions whichever is growing at the time. Both seem to really get things going. So far the waterlogged soil does not seem to have harmed the plants although I have notices that a lot of the flower stems are a little shorter this year.
Hi, Frensclan - given this year's atrocious weather, I would say you have done really well.
Mine are about 3 - 4 foot high, should be 6 foot by now, very strong and healthy looking but very late due to darkness and wet. I'll just leave them alone and see - if we get some late summer we may still get sweet peas, who knows yet!
Bookertoo - I think it has been one of the worst years I can remember for SPs.
I was talking to my friend and owner of Eagle Sweet Peas, Derek Heathcote just a week or so ago and he said that he had struggled to find enough blooms this year to show at Chelsea and the other shows.
He did however still win a gold at Chelsea.