Plants

Danji

Danji Jr kept asking about getting a pet, but it's just not feasible or fair to keep one.  

So in an attempt to placate the little chap we started planting the seeds of the food that I cooked for us, and told them these are our pets, that's worked too!

I planted some chilli seeds thinking nothing would happen, 30+ plants growing.  In addition to that we have a pineapple, avocado, spinach... as you can tell we're hooked!

Does anyone else grow vegetables/salads/fruits? 

VimFuego

well, I have a 60m by 20m vege plot, plus a 30ft by 10 ft kitchen garden, a med sized herb garden (in the making, just started this year), a 40 foot poly tunnel and a mini orchard (5 bramleys, a cox's, 2 "local variety apples we have yet to identify) 2 plums, a cherry and a pear tree, and assorted soft fruit bushes. So yeah, I grows a bit. 

Nikko

We grow strawberries, and have a really unruly Rhubarb patch in our garden

kaypeejay

Nikko said:

We grow strawberries, and have a really unruly Rhubarb patch in our garden

Our Rhubarb plant is flowering this year and I've never seen it do that before. It's like a bloody big penis sticking straight out of the middle of it!

Fretwired

Two apple trees, herb garden, blueberry bushes (protected from the birds), strawberries and blackberries.

DLM

Apples; pears; gooseberries; red, white and blackcurrants; blackberries; strawberries; Zwetschge and mirabelle plums here. Also walnuts.

Regular readers will not be at all surprised that I am very fruity and a bit nuts.

SteveRobinson

kaypeejay said:

Our Rhubarb plant is flowering this year and I've never seen it do that before. It's like a bloody big penis sticking straight out of the middle of it!

Lop it off. The plant will put all its energy into seeds, not stems so you'll get less rhubarb.

One of my rhubarb plants on our allotment bolted again (about five flower stems) so I dug it up last week and it's now on the compost heap.

kaypeejay

SteveRobinson said:

kaypeejay said:

Our Rhubarb plant is flowering this year and I've never seen it do that before. It's like a bloody big penis sticking straight out of the middle of it!

Lop it off. The plant will put all its energy into seeds, not stems so you'll get less rhubarb.

One of my rhubarb plants on our allotment bolted again (about five flower stems) so I dug it up last week and it's now on the compost heap.

Oooh, thanks for the advice Steve, I'll neuter it tonight.

Danji

Blimey, this is awesome!  Vim, you have an orchard! 

fields5069

I have tried to grow veg in the past, and I cleared our 2 small veg patches this year to have a last try at some consist veg action. Got some onions planted so far, with chard and cauliflower and salad leaves due to be planted soon.

I may try artichokes as well, they didn't sprout last time I tried but that was a bad year for growing.

VimFuego

Danji said:

Blimey, this is awesome!  Vim, you have an orchard! 

yup, and oi makes me own zider, I even wassail my trees ('ome made scrumpy will make you do things like that).

Sporky

I have trouble growing grass. Well, it's more trouble stopping Sprocket from destroying the lawn to be fair.

We do have a productive cherry tree.

DLM

Forgot the Zwetschge plums, but in fairness the tree is so sickly I've never been able to sample one. None of our trees are in good shape after years of neglect by previous custodians. I'm trying to prune them back to health but don't hold out much hope.

Nikko

kaypeejay said:

Nikko said:

We grow strawberries, and have a really unruly Rhubarb patch in our garden

Our Rhubarb plant is flowering this year and I've never seen it do that before. It's like a bloody big penis sticking straight out of the middle of it!

Isnt that called a 'Crown'? Give it to someone else who might want to grow rhubarb

boogieman

We've got a greenhouse, we're growing cucumbers and aubergines in there this year. Outside we've got a couple of veg beds and have runner beans, elephant garlic and normal garlic, carrots, parsnips, courgettes, various herbs, strawberries and lettuce going so far. Then there's stuff growing in pots and bags: various types of tomatoes and chillis and a couple of different types of spuds.

We've got a cooking apple tree but it never produces much fruit. I pruned it back really hard last year and it's put on some growth but there's not much in the way of blossom so far. I'm not very hopeful. 

Hootsmon

Rubber Plant

EricTheWeary

We used to have an allotment. Surprising success with sweet corn which is fantastic really fresh. Rule was don't bother with anything you can buy really cheap ( onions, potatoes) so tended to do fruit, artichokes, courgettes. Started doing a Three Sisters with the sweet corn ( using the plant as a frame for growing other stuff up it) but didn't really get a result out of that. The allotment was a bit too time consuming and a lot of cliquey, unhelpful people there who were hard to avoid.
Just got rhubarb, strawberries and a couple of fruit bushes in our tiny back garden 

CabbageCat

I have an allotment. Tomatoes are doing OK and I planted a few of them out at the weekend but it has just hailed so I'm a little worried for them.

I also have six chilli plants growing on the windowsill in the office. I think some people at work think that's taking the piss but I don't.

VimFuego

EricTheWeary said:

We used to have an allotment. Surprising success with sweet corn which is fantastic really fresh. Rule was don't bother with anything you can buy really cheap ( onions, potatoes) so tended to do fruit, artichokes, courgettes. Started doing a Three Sisters with the sweet corn ( using the plant as a frame for growing other stuff up it) but didn't really get a result out of that. The allotment was a bit too time consuming and a lot of cliquey, unhelpful people there who were hard to avoid.
Just got rhubarb, strawberries and a couple of fruit bushes in our tiny back garden 

I have this theory that allotments are actually recruitment and training centres for the SS. There is something about them that brings out the inner nazi.

EricTheWeary

VimFuego said:

EricTheWeary said:

We used to have an allotment. Surprising success with sweet corn which is fantastic really fresh. Rule was don't bother with anything you can buy really cheap ( onions, potatoes) so tended to do fruit, artichokes, courgettes. Started doing a Three Sisters with the sweet corn ( using the plant as a frame for growing other stuff up it) but didn't really get a result out of that. The allotment was a bit too time consuming and a lot of cliquey, unhelpful people there who were hard to avoid.
Just got rhubarb, strawberries and a couple of fruit bushes in our tiny back garden 

I have this theory that allotments are actually recruitment and training centres for the SS. There is something about them that brings out the inner nazi.

Most people came in, did their bit and left but there was a group who spent long hours there doing their allotments but also giving uninvited opinions on other people's, enforcing all the daft rules and drinking gin out of tea cups ( odd but true). 

VimFuego

I'll always remember my last year on our old allotment, one of the couples there had some bad luck, he developed lung cancer and was under going treatment, then she developed bone cancer (terminal) and it got to the point where they couldn't look at the plot, but they both enjoyed spending time there just sitting (don't think they had a garden), so a few of us would help keep plot tidy, keep the grass cut etc. But the allotment committee weren't happy with that and did their best to get them kicked off. I ended up contacting the local rag about it, and they ran a story shaming the committee members. I made sure they knew it was me who told the press. The chair of the committee was so happy when she saw we were moving away, almost carried my stuff away from the plot when I gave it up. Fecking bullies.