The early plantings of Garlic and Brussels Sprouts have benefited from the warm conditions during March and put on good growth.Temperatures:
Lowest Min 7.1C
Highest Max 35.9C
6mm Rain
Propagation:
Seeds:
Spinach Viking Spinacia oleracea Easy Sow Tape from Mr Fothergill's
Onion Early Californian Red Allium cepa Easy Sow Tape from Mr Fothergill's
Radish Oriental Raphanus sativus from DT Brown
Kohl Rabi Purple Vienna Brassica oleracea var. gongylodes from The Seed Collection
These have been direct sown into Beds 2&3
Nasturtium Gleam Trailing Tropaeolum majus from Goodman Seeds direct sown in Bed 16
Alyssum Royal Carpet Lobularia maritima from The Seed Collection
Cabbage Red Dutch Brassica oleracea var. capitata from The Seed Collection
Cabbage Red Choi F1 Brassica rapa var. chinensis from Green Hartvest
Calendula Lemon Daisy Calendula officinalis from MrFothergill's
Chinese Broccoli Kailaan Brassica oleracea var. alboglabra from The Seed Collection
Cauliflower Macerata Green Brassica oleracea botrytis from The Seed Collection
Cauliflower Mini Brassica oleracea from Diggers
Corn Salad Valerianella locusta from Phoenix seeds
Ice Plant Crystal Leaf Mesembryanthemum crystallinum from Green Harvest I should have read this first Looks like these plants will have to spend winter in the greenhouse
Lettuce Red and Green Salad Lactuca sativa from DT Brown
Silverbeet Erbette Beta vulgaris from Select Organic
Sweet Pea Hi Scent (Not Edible) Lathyrus odoratus from Mr Fothergill's
Thyme Thymus vulgaris from DT Brown
These seeds were sown in punnets
Potting on:
Broccoli Royal Dome
Brussels Sprouts Ruby
Hyssop
Kale Red Bor
Kale Vates Blue Curled
Red Clover
Red Veined Sorrel
Salad Burnett
Planted out:
Snow Pea Climbing Mammoth Melting (see here)
Peas Dwarf Onward planted into Bed 3
Beetroot Bulls Blood, Golden Detroit and Cylindra into Bed 2
Newly sown seeds germinate so fast in the warm conditions!
New Garden maps I'm working on - I've culled the number of beds down to 17 (so far). The larger beds in the "Main Veg Garden" are to be removed and replaced by more fruit trees. I have found the fruit trees are more productive on less water than the intensive veg beds. The Kitchen Garden area will now be the main growing area...closer to the house and with several smaller beds that will be easier to manage and water.
In Bed 3: Seedlings planted and seeds sown so over a net goes...there are a lot of little grasshoppers hanging around!! Any Autumn planting need to be netted for a while or be eaten! With the warmer than usual March temperatures the Radish and Spinach seeds have germinated quickly...much better than last year where no spinach seeds germinated at all. Goes to show that seed suppliers vary in the quality of seed they sell. These Spinach Seed Tapes from Mr Fothergill's were so easy to use...just dig a trench, lay out the tape, cover and stand back and wait as the seeds germinate. Seeds are spaced so that I'll have minimal thinning out to do...I'll just pick the young spinach plants when they are big enough to use as "baby spinach" and leave the others to grow to full size!
