There are two types of Samphire. Marsh Samphire (Victoriana Nursery ) is about 4 inches tall and needs salt when watering (1 teaspoon sea salt per pint of water) and can be eaten raw. This is the Samphire found in restaurants. Rock Samphire (Seedaholic) is broader leaved and a little taller, rather like a short, green cactus, and is less salty and rather spicy. It does not need salt when watering. Rock Samphire has to be cooked before eating. Simmer for 15 mins in a mixture of water and vinegar - 70/30. Marsh Samphire self seeds. Rock Samphire is a perennial. Both need well draining soil which is not rich.
hi again improving garden from what I can say aboiut plaster board s why not se your builders merchant and get a small bag of gypsum mix with plastering sand and scatter on garden but don't over do should also help michael
Thank you michael mpc and everyone else who has advised me on the sand topic. I have now got some sharp sand and noticed a vast difference. I have been told that builders sand has lime in it too and I notices that not only had the seeds not germinated but that the peat/sand mixture was very dry. I now have sharp sand and it is so much finer and lighter in colour and texture. Having said that I have now decided to use John Innes seed compost to start my seeds off - yes it is expensive but so many gardening gurus suggest using this medium so I will give it a trial for a week or two and see if my seeds germinate before resorting to plan C
GWRS - sand is a cheaper alternative to perlite. it has to be the right kind of sand, or you achieve the opposite of what you want. Sand used for making mortar will bind the compost/soil together and prevent good drainage. It has to be gritty sand. You can use horticultural grit, but again, it's more expensive. Adding sand or perlite etc also lowers the nutritional content of the compost so it's more useful if you sow seed in autumn to overwinter. Too much nutrition means seedlings grow too quickly and then become lanky because of lack of light. Hope that is of some use
I generally only sow seed in late winter early spring and beyond. At that time of year, I usually use plain old MPC for them. No point sowing in autumn here, there's no room for them and they can't go outside till much later in the year. SPring sown seeds catch up anyway.
It's a common mistake many people make - sowing too many and too early.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Fairygirl, I have some good healthy plants that were sown in October and are just about ready to go out although I am holding back with them because the forecast says we may have a few frosts coming our way. I believe that if you sow biennials at the end of the year they are more likely to flower the following year - which is what I have done. However I have just sown my annuals which hopefully will be ready to plant out and flower later this year. Thanks for the information regarding the sand - a steep learning curve but I think I have the right sand now!
It's all a bit confusing with the sand GDonkey! I tend to use grit, but I don't sow as many seeds as some people do - mainly sweet peas and salad crops. The climate up here ( as I mentioned ) means that it's hardly ever worthwhile sowing in autumn - too cold and wet by the time they would need to go out, and I don't have a heated greenhouse or anything. I expect your climate is a bit more hospitable, if your forum name is an indicator!
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
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Samphire is basically posh seaweed (like skinny asparagus to look at) which you get charged lots of money for in trendy restaurants
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
There are two types of Samphire. Marsh Samphire (Victoriana Nursery ) is about 4 inches tall and needs salt when watering (1 teaspoon sea salt per pint of water) and can be eaten raw. This is the Samphire found in restaurants. Rock Samphire (Seedaholic) is broader leaved and a little taller, rather like a short, green cactus, and is less salty and rather spicy. It does not need salt when watering. Rock Samphire has to be cooked before eating. Simmer for 15 mins in a mixture of water and vinegar - 70/30. Marsh Samphire self seeds. Rock Samphire is a perennial. Both need well draining soil which is not rich.
hi again improving garden from what I can say aboiut plaster board s why not se your builders merchant and get a small bag of gypsum mix with plastering sand and scatter on garden but don't over do should also help michael
Thank you michael mpc and everyone else who has advised me on the sand topic. I have now got some sharp sand and noticed a vast difference. I have been told that builders sand has lime in it too and I notices that not only had the seeds not germinated but that the peat/sand mixture was very dry. I now have sharp sand and it is so much finer and lighter in colour and texture. Having said that I have now decided to use John Innes seed compost to start my seeds off - yes it is expensive but so many gardening gurus suggest using this medium so I will give it a trial for a week or two and see if my seeds germinate before resorting to plan C
Dumb question: Can you use bird sand as well?
I will look for the number on the bag tomorrow aym280 - I bought it (3 bags) because it said suitable for seeds and cuttings.
Hello , interesting thread
Quetion , why add sand in first place ?
I use ordinary compost for seeds but sieve first to get lumps out , am going to try mixing with perlite 50/50
GWRS - sand is a cheaper alternative to perlite. it has to be the right kind of sand, or you achieve the opposite of what you want. Sand used for making mortar will bind the compost/soil together and prevent good drainage. It has to be gritty sand. You can use horticultural grit, but again, it's more expensive. Adding sand or perlite etc also lowers the nutritional content of the compost so it's more useful if you sow seed in autumn to overwinter. Too much nutrition means seedlings grow too quickly and then become lanky because of lack of light. Hope that is of some use
I generally only sow seed in late winter early spring and beyond. At that time of year, I usually use plain old MPC for them. No point sowing in autumn here, there's no room for them and they can't go outside till much later in the year. SPring sown seeds catch up anyway.
It's a common mistake many people make - sowing too many and too early.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Fairygirl, I have some good healthy plants that were sown in October and are just about ready to go out although I am holding back with them because the forecast says we may have a few frosts coming our way. I believe that if you sow biennials at the end of the year they are more likely to flower the following year - which is what I have done. However I have just sown my annuals which hopefully will be ready to plant out and flower later this year. Thanks for the information regarding the sand - a steep learning curve but I think I have the right sand now!
It's all a bit confusing with the sand GDonkey! I tend to use grit, but I don't sow as many seeds as some people do - mainly sweet peas and salad crops. The climate up here ( as I mentioned ) means that it's hardly ever worthwhile sowing in autumn - too cold and wet by the time they would need to go out, and I don't have a heated greenhouse or anything. I expect your climate is a bit more hospitable, if your forum name is an indicator!
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...