I’m trying to make sure that we have vegetables this winter and so I’ve been planting up swiss chard (Fordhook Giant), lettuce (winter crop) and spinach (giant winter). I’ve also planted a row of mixed salads, including rocket.

We’ve just eaten the last of the broad beans, I’ll definitely sow some more late this autumn for next year.

This year July is wet but sunny and hot when not raining.

Tags: salad, legumes

My plants survived a holiday. Mind you, it was rainy here. I put the peppers outside in a big tray of water. All but one (which has been a bit eaten) lasted well. I picked the last of this year's peas and broad beans. I used the peas and froze two bags of green beans. I think that I could have got more peas, but I suspect that Gill and Esther have been eating them. The green beans look about done, but I picked a whole load before we went on holiday and froze them. The old variety potatoes are not cropping that well, but they're ok.

The cabbages and cauliflower are being somewhat eaten by whitefly, but I've been spraying and watering them (and picking off caterpillars). I'm wondering what to plant as we slide into autumn.

Tags: blog, legumes

Tags: legumes

We ate the first of the Edzell Blues. They look very attractive, but if you boil them in their skins, all the colour goes (it turns the water an odd blue). Mashed they are somewhat floury. Taste wise, they're (I'm sad to report) nothing special. We also had a big portion of the green beans (Rocquencourt, I think). Actually, they're a lovely pale yellow. I steamed them for about 10 minutes and then added a bit of butter.

Tags: root vegetables, legumes

The first of the green beans, these are a mixture of white and green.

Tags: legumes

Here's Gill and Esther picking the peas. They taste lovely and we should have them for many weeks to come.

Tags: legumes

Like most other things, the broad beans are growing nicely and are now in flower.

Tags: legumes

It's all happening in the garden. Clockwise from top left:
tomato
potatoes
green beans, peas, turnip
asparagus
turnip
strawberries
peppers
beetroot, shallots, parsnips, broad beans, carrot, onions

In the middle is garlic, onion, spinach and swede

Tags: root vegetables, legumes

Started sowing outside. I sowed turnip (Purple Top Milan), Parsnip (Avonresistor), broad bean (??) and cress (American Land). Inside I sowed some round courgette (Tondo di pienza).

Tags: legumes, root vegetables, salad

I have spent weeks meaning to create a planting diary showing me when to plant successional plants. This weekend I failed (again) and decided to sow some new seeds of stuff that I want anyway but ran out of time. So, tonight as Gill made supper, I went out and pottered in the greenhouse. The result was a row each of green beans (Sonesta), rocket (Suffolk Herbs salad rocket), beetroot (Detroit 2), parsnip and broad bean.

Having lost a lot of green beans, I first put the soil in, damped it off, planted the seeds and then sprinkled a thin layer of soil over the top. The tray is under a lid in the greenhouse, but not in the propagator. I'll see how it goes.

Tags: legumes, root vegetables, salad

These are my dwarf green beans. They're coming along but I have a high failure rate. The problem seems to be that I'm waterlogging them and they end up rotting. Still these are being hardened off ready to go out next weekend.

The tomatoes are looking good too. Again, I'm hardening these off. The tallest one is Red Pear, the rest are Gardener's Delight.

These poor souls are also Red Pear. I nearly killed them by leaving them in the propagator one hot, sunny afternoon. Most of their leaves turned brown and died. I've nursed these back to health, but they're way behind the others.

Tags: salad, legumes

The weather report said that there might be snow and here it is. I'm glad that I didn't plant out my beetroot and lettuce. Hope the peas are all right and that the little carrot seedlings are surviving under the cloche that I put back yesterday.

Tags: blog, root vegetables, salad, legumes

Lots of gardening jobs today:

Outside

Planted spinach seeds in the small bed.
Built cane supports for the peas (which are now starting to come through)
Planted first early potatoes ("Rocket")

greenhouse

Planted "slenderette" dwarf green beans
potted up Gardener's Delight tomatoes (next stop outside in the garden at the end of April)

propagator

Planted more Rocquencourt (here's hoping)
Added more basil, only one plant came up.
Planted chilli pepper ("Anaheim"), these came free with Gardener's World

Tags: salad, herbs, root vegetables, legumes

I've finished the bark chipping path, so now I can walk around the raised beds without getting all muddy (and it looks neater). Outside, after the easter snow, the asparagus is peeping through and the peas have started to sprout. Meanwhile, in the greenhouse, it's all systems go. I'm glad that I bought a propagator.

Tags: blog, legumes

The tomatoes that planted (Red Pear) have started to come through (no idea what happened to the first lot). Also, both varieties of the green beans are coming through. The gardener's delight (and one Red Pear) are out of the propagator and are doing well.

Tags: salad, legumes

It's been surprisingly dry, I've had to remove the cloches and water under them this weekend (as I did last weekend). Still no sign of any outdoor seeds sprouting (carrot, peas, beetroot). The greenhouse sown seeds are making a showing, but I'm disappointed in the green beans. Some just expired. One of the green beans that I sowed last week has sprouted - I wish the others would be more enthusiastic. I'm not too worried, I checked last year's blog and I finished the raised beds at the end of April and planted out bought seedlings at that time. If all else fails, I can still buy seedlings.

I've used about 2/3 of the soil that I had delivered on Thursday, I think that I over estimated how much I'd need. I've been filling up the raised beds (I didn't quite buy enough soil last year and my compost heaps are not producing enough (yet)). Maybe I'll get some of the paths done this weekend; I bought some weed membrane yesterday.

Tags: root vegetables, blog, legumes

I think that my other beans are dead. Maybe I'm just being pessimistic. Meanwhile, I've sown some more Rocquencourt and some Sonesta. Mostly these have gone into the propagator, but I've put a few Sonesta into a normal pot just in the greenhouse.

Sonesta

Early maturing, waxy yellow beans on compact plants. Pods are slender, straight and stringless reaching up to 13cm (5 inches) long. Early to mature with a long cropping period. Plants are resistant to Common Bean Mosaic Virus and Anthracnose.

Tags: legumes

My tomatoes and green beans have stubbornly refused to sprout so I've bought myself a heated propagator which I hope will help. Actually, I had a little accident with the green beans and I saw one of them - it is starting to sprout, but hasn't reached the surface yet.

Tags: salad, legumes

Still optimistic, I planted out dwarf french beans and rocket salad. The dwarf french beans are Rocquencourt. Apparently, a very productve, primrose-yellow podded dwarf French bean. One of the most cold tolerant of all French beans. They're both planted up in nice new compost.

Tags: salad, legumes