I was late in taking a look through the October editions but even allowing for that, time seems to be rushing by and we here are again, now taking a look at November.
As in life, there are precious few tomatoes to be found between the covers, during November. There were a few rueful reflections on the issue of blight alongside the anticipation of the 2010 seed catalogues and what new tomato varieties they might bring.
Kitchen Garden did remember us tomato lovers and tantalized with the thought of a record breaking 28 metre long plant. How is this possible ? Hydroponics . You don’t have to dig or lift heavy soil and the average yield is 2 – 3 times higher than from plants grown in the soil. I’ve been going wrong somewhere ! More on amazing hydroponic tomato wizardry here.
Also in Kitchen Garden was an article on saving seed which made the point that by saving your own seed, over the years, you’ll benefit from collecting seed from plants which have adapted to your site. It also gave advice on developing your own strain. Will next year see the beginning of the quest for the Tomato Lover variety?
Flicking through the ‘do now lists’ for ideas for my empty pots, I could grow winter salads with cloche protection or garlic for harvesting next June or July. I’ll want most pots freed up by then but I could use the smaller pots as I’m planning on only using the larger ones next time around.
More on composting with a reminder that leaves are better done on their own, as they have their own fungi which goes to work on breaking them down into leaf mould.
Grow it ! has an address to add to my list of days out for next year. Doddington Hall – another kitchen garden to drool over !
Reality is my Cuprinoled, fence panels but ’ give me land, lots of land ‘ and I would fence it in, with a hedge of native shrubs and trees, thickly planted with a 5 bar gate half way along to stand and admire the view from. Just the names evoke Devon lanes, where the grass isn’t confined to the field but grows down the middle of the road : Blackthorn, Dogwood, Dogrose, Spindle and Hazel.
And gleaned from the same hedge article, the term ‘ whips’ for the bare rooted, young, single stemmed saplings from which I would grow my hedge.
Grow Your Own didn’t take me on any flights of fancy but has a reminder of the value of record keeping. I’ve tried excel spreadsheets to pen and paper this year and haven’t quite found the right format yet.
It also came up with 10 reasons to buy a greenhouse. I find 1 compelling enough – I’d still be picking tomatoes now if I had one and I wouldn’t have to wait till next August to do so again either ! But where would I put it ?
I think I better take my head out of the clouds and direct it back to the article on ‘ 10 ways to save money on the plot’.
