My first time growing tomatoes

Container tomatoes

In the above container the variety is suncherry tomato. I may have been a bit ambitious by placing five plants in this large container.

I lost one plant totally with wind damage and one is a lot smaller than the other three possibly due to overcrowding

There are baby fruits just starting on the plants in the above container.


Seperate variety below.


Container tomatoes

(left photo) This plant has been potted individually and is one of the three pots in the far right corner against the wall.

The (second photo) furthest three pots against the wall on the far right of the picture are tomatoes I only wish I could remember which variety as I have planted a few different types and thought I was on top of ''which were which''

In one of those pots I have two tomatoes and the others just the one in each pot.

Courgette Tricolour F1 hybrid

Container courgette

Thompson & Morgan courgette Tricolour F1 hybrid
Both plants from same seed packet.

I noticed this morning the yellow courgette then found the other plant had green courgettes. They are about the size of a marble at the moment.

I am hoping my little helper will taste these. It says on the packet delicious raw or stir fried.

Red onions

Red onions

Clodagh wants to say that she dug and lifted this onion all by herself.

Red onions.

Chris joins in.

I'll be leaving the red and white onions to dry in the sun for as long as possible weather permitting 7 - 10 days.

Garden spider.

Garden spider

I had my camera in hand, and was just getting ready to photograph the large black strawberry tub, out of the corner of my eye I saw a shadow, something moving......

I nearly died when I saw the size of this garden spider my hand was shaking I tried to zoom in but didn't want to get too close.

Generally I am not scared of spiders but he was big in the third photo you can even see his blue eyes!

Strawberry Florian F1 Hybrid

Florian F1 hybrid

These are either Thompson & Morgan Strawberry Florian F1 Hybrid or B&Q Alpine strawberry Mignonette as they were the only two varieties I had sewn from seed.

A couple of these are going into containers at my father in laws house, possibly Lisa and Paul will have a few, the rest either in the black container or wherever theres a space.

Container strawberries

Container strawberries

(click on container strawberry photo link to see earlier post)

Update on container progress.

I managed to get hold of some wire mesh which I formed into this tube shape and inserted through to the base of the container.

Later if I get time, I'll pop down the beach and get some pebbles to fill the tube and then add some compost and hopefully continue with the planting.

I have two types of strawberry that were started from seed they are:

Alpine strawberry Mignonette from B&Q and Thompson and Morgan strawberry Florian F1 Hybrid

Footnote for this digital photograph:

Container strawberries Digital photograph 2009

Red and white onions

Red and white onions

Planted 7 th October 2008. Taylor onion sets.

A few of the onions had gone brown at the tops were bending over and have been for a while. I had a go at pulling one, then next thing I knew I had pulled the whole lot of the white onions.

I read you can wait for the stems to go yellow then push over and leave the onions in the ground for a week or two, but then I have also read this could harbour disease.

I am going to leave these dry out for a week, weather permitting if the weather changes I will move the onions into the shed.

Later today when Clodagh comes we can pull the red onions.

Click on red and white onions photo link to see the sets that were used.

Digby

Digby

What a poser!

Everytime I get the camera he jumps into position I swear I dont call him, he just appears.

Espalier kiwi

Espalier Kiwi

Update Espalier kiwi

I have had to re assess my thinking on the espalier shape due to not having enough wall space to continue growing horizontally on each tier

I placed a cane and have started to train the bottom tier vertically and the second tier vertically inside the lower tier.

The arm that broke, has been re trained in, on the left hand side upper tier but I noticed this morning the tip of this may have got wind damage. Next year I will have to try and sort that out. That top left hand branch is causing me a few problems.

Another problem I will have is trying to re pot this into a larger pot! I clearly did not think this through.

Dwarf peach tree

Dwarf peach tree

This is the first season of the peach tree. No flowers appeared. Hopefully next year.


Dwarf peach tree

Lower down the stem of this peach tree I have had leaves appearing that did not look like the leaves on the tree. I hesitantly cut them off, they regrew and I cut them again.

I hope I did the right thing. I am assuming the leaves lower down the stem were of the original tree the peach has been grafted onto.

Container Brown turkey fig tree

Container fig tree

The Fig tree was over wintered in my garden shed.

I have decided to leave it in this pot for this year and will look at changing it next year. I have taken off some of the lower leaves as I would like more of a standard form tree rather than a bush.

Click on Brown turkey fig tree label to see earlier posts.

Container veg garden

Container veg garden

In the above window box planted from Johnsons World kitchen seeds

Onion Japanese bunching long white Tokyo
Mild, crisp non-bulbing salad onions, delicious raw or cooked.

Container spring onions

Container spring onions

Update container spring onions.

Container lettuce

Container lettuce

Mr Fothergill's mixed lettuce leaves.

A mixed variety lettuce seed which planting in the container is ideal as I just pick the outside leaves from the different varieties which allows them to keep on growing.

Container courgette

Container courgette

Thompson & Morgan Courgette Tricolour F1 Hybrid

Now I am not sure why these two plants are different colours. Looking through my seed packets I only have the seeds that are named above It does not look as though I planted a different variety. as these are called Tricolour maybe thats why?
Click container courgette photo link for similar posts.

Container cucumber

Container cucumber

Thompson & Morgan Cucumber Cucino F1 hybrid. The ideal lunch box snack!

I originally transplanted four plants into this window box. I lost two plants possibly down to over watering or not firming in the soil. The two plants on the outside left and right are the original plantings and the two in the centre were started slightly later. There is also one lettuce.

I have had two flowers on the left cucumber so hopefully we will have lunchbox cucumber snacks.

When Clodagh and I construct the trellis, we had died it with vegetable food colouring. This faded and washed out the moment it rained.

I re stained the trellis with green wood preserve.

Container carrots

Container carrots

Update container carrots.

Patio vegetable carrot Ideal.

The tops of these look great I pulled one the other day and it was tiny.
I suppose the only way to know they are ready is to keep pulling them?

Container strawberries

Container strawberries

Update Container strawberries.

I purchases these six plants from B & Q for £5.98 Strawberry Elsanta.
Peat approx £4.00

Since the previous post about this container, i've removed some of the leaves to allow the sun to ripen the strawberries and pushed the runners under the soil for new plants.

Not only have Chris and I eaten these with cream, Clodagh and I helping ourselves, to a couple most days, taking into consideration the cost of the peat and plants and the fact I should be able to have fruit from these for three to four years with runners providing me more plants, the taste and convenience of picking your own the investment spent will be worth the effort.