Along with tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers, my greenhouses usually house a couple of physalis (cape gooseberry) plants. These aren’t the ones with bright red lanterns but the ones that are served in restaurants with your desert. They are perennials but there’s always the probability that they won’t survive the winter so I grow new plants…… Continue reading Physalis – Fruit for late in the year
Category: Greenhouse
2023 – Last Tomatoes
Today (5th November) I cleared out my greenhouse of the remaining tomato plants (and found a cucumber). I haven’t been watering them for a couple of weeks and the plants were in a bad way with grey mould on many of them. This collection won’t be added to the crop weight for the year, even…… Continue reading 2023 – Last Tomatoes
2023: A Slower year for tomatoes
Every year, I try to keep a record of how my tomatoes (and other vegetable & fruit) are harvesting. Its interesting how each year is different. 2023 has been slow for tomatoes and, as I’ve said elsewhere, the tomatoes are ripening unevenly with greenback on many cultivars. So far (24th August) we’ve had around 12kg…… Continue reading 2023: A Slower year for tomatoes
Tomato Seed Collection (2023)
Every year I collect tomato seeds for a number of reasons. Its simple to do and means that you only have to buy tomato seeds if you want to (my main reason to buy seeds is to increase the number of varieties I’ve grown in my effort to find the “best” range of tomatoes. Summer…… Continue reading Tomato Seed Collection (2023)
June 2023 – How things are progressing
Until now, June has been hot & dry meaning that the tomato plants in the greenhouses have got away well. Most plants have now got fruit set and, my guess is, we will start to see fruit ripening over the next few weeks (my records show that we get ripe fruit starting mid-July). The dry…… Continue reading June 2023 – How things are progressing
Tomatoes in Pots – 2023
A little early this year, I’ve potted up my tomatoes into their final pots. I grow my tomatoes in what’s known as “Morrison’s Flower Buckets (MFB’S)”. MFB’S are sold cheaply and, with holes punched through the bottom, they seem to be an ideal size. The benefit of growing them in individual pots is that there’s…… Continue reading Tomatoes in Pots – 2023
Starting to sow other vegetables
The weather is certainly on the up with bright sunshine for the past couple of days. However, its still wet underfoot and the ground is quite soggy & cold. So, for that reason, I have decided not to plant out my potatoes yet, despite the fact that the tubers appear to be well chitted and…… Continue reading Starting to sow other vegetables
Tomato Seedlings on the way
Tomatoes, Peppers & Physalis Despite the relatively cold weather over the last two weeks, the seedlings are beginning to push their way forward. Of the seeds I sowed, only one variety failed to germinate at all, the seeds were really quite old but I think I might have another go. The peppers and physalis are…… Continue reading Tomato Seedlings on the way
2023 – The Gardening Year Starts
Start of the Tomato Season
The Birds think spring is on the way
Despite the cold weather (heavy frosts for the last few days) the birds seem to think that spring isn’t that far away. The days are starting to get longer and the birds are starting to look for nesting sites with the blue tits and great tits taking a look inside the nestboxes. In the last…… Continue reading The Birds think spring is on the way