I tried yellow beetroot once but we found them too earthy and prefer the sweeter red ones. Have grown and loved cavolo nero but it doesn't cope with our usual winters so gets zapped. When I started our veggie plot I made a whole asparagus bed but it never came to anything cos of the winters. Ditto globe artichokes.
Jerusalem artichokes do well but Chinese artichokes are a waste of time. Grew asparagus peas years ago - just the once. I grew parsnips once but they liked the conditions so much they grew huge whereas we like them smaller and juicier.
Radicchio does well and so do assorted Chinese greens. Mizuna was horrible - tough and bitter.
We love purple sprouing but need a mild winter to get a good crop here and those are rather rare.
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 shouldnt really matter now and again, it just may have put higher demands on the ground for that particular set of nutrients, but you are probably correct, with too much nitrogen, although it could also have been one of those things, some times its just a dodgy batch
http://www.tozerseeds.com/eu/en/broccoli/ psb is a great crop for our winters. if you choose the right variety then its the cold weather that leads to the production of the purple spears. all the varieties from tozers can be found in small pack sizes on the net. I use summer purple, red spear, red arrow and cardinal and this covers October until may.
Greg S - great looking selection but they won't do in my normal winters of -15C if I'm lucky and more usually -20C and below in Jan and Feb. I did try it again last year with - ever the optimist - and had a great crop this spring because it was a mild winter but I'd need a polytunnel for normal years.
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)."
I'm told the trick with scorzonera is to grow it in rich sandy soil in a tub. When the time comes to harvest it (preferably after a frost), you tip out the contents onto a sheet of plastic, when it's easy to separate roots from soil.
All well and good -- if only the seeds would germinate, and the seedlings not damp off. Can anyone tell the secret of getting scorzonera to grow at all?
KEF...my OH eats loads of pickled gherkins!!! I'm going to try them next year.
I am debating whether to not grow Brussels sprouts again, I don't think I'll have any for Christmas. Third time if trying and potentially thud time of failing
Also Aubergines, taking over my GH with lots of leaves and a few pretty lilac flowers, but that's it, I'd heard (after I'd sown the seed) that they were hard to get any fruit from so at least I know it's not just me!!
Posts
I tried yellow beetroot once but we found them too earthy and prefer the sweeter red ones. Have grown and loved cavolo nero but it doesn't cope with our usual winters so gets zapped. When I started our veggie plot I made a whole asparagus bed but it never came to anything cos of the winters. Ditto globe artichokes.
Jerusalem artichokes do well but Chinese artichokes are a waste of time. Grew asparagus peas years ago - just the once. I grew parsnips once but they liked the conditions so much they grew huge whereas we like them smaller and juicier.
Radicchio does well and so do assorted Chinese greens. Mizuna was horrible - tough and bitter.
We love purple sprouing but need a mild winter to get a good crop here and those are rather rare.
If my OH ever builds the raised bed i was promised, i will make it into a hot bed and have another go at sweet spuds and melons
I once grew gherkins outside, huge crop, nothing wrong with them at all but at the end of the season how many pickled gherkins can two people eat ?
http://www.tozerseeds.com/eu/en/broccoli/ psb is a great crop for our winters. if you choose the right variety then its the cold weather that leads to the production of the purple spears. all the varieties from tozers can be found in small pack sizes on the net. I use summer purple, red spear, red arrow and cardinal and this covers October until may.
Greg S - great looking selection but they won't do in my normal winters of -15C if I'm lucky and more usually -20C and below in Jan and Feb. I did try it again last year with - ever the optimist - and had a great crop this spring because it was a mild winter but I'd need a polytunnel for normal years.
I'm told the trick with scorzonera is to grow it in rich sandy soil in a tub. When the time comes to harvest it (preferably after a frost), you tip out the contents onto a sheet of plastic, when it's easy to separate roots from soil.
All well and good -- if only the seeds would germinate, and the seedlings not damp off. Can anyone tell the secret of getting scorzonera to grow at all?
KEF...my OH eats loads of pickled gherkins!!! I'm going to try them next year.
I am debating whether to not grow Brussels sprouts again, I don't think I'll have any for Christmas. Third time if trying and potentially thud time of failing
Also Aubergines, taking over my GH with lots of leaves and a few pretty lilac flowers, but that's it, I'd heard (after I'd sown the seed) that they were hard to get any fruit from so at least I know it's not just me!!