Geraldine from Milton Keynes asks: I have a small garden doing all my growing in pots and sacks on the patio or dotted around the garden. This year I've had success with potatoes, beans, tomatoes, peas, and so on. Are there any winter veg I can grow in this way?
]]> Answer: Geraldine, you're a lady after my own heart! I do this too with many groups I work with. People love the ideal of creating their own 'apotments'. Depending on the size of the pots you have you could be growing; Onions (the Japanese over-wintering types), garlic (these love cold weather!), cabbage, carrots, parsnips and you could also start early sugar snap peas and hardy beans such as 'Sutton'. Geraldine, just remember to change the compost and add some fertiliser and a dusting of lime when you're readying your pots.]]>Eileen Johnstone from Dumfries and Galloway asks: Can I grow carrots in small hessian bags (small supermarket ones)?
]]> Answer: Hey Eileen, the joy of carrots is that there are many, many varieties available from the big shin bone lone types to the small marshmallow size, the chanteney variety we used in the Dig In this year is a nice short but fat carrot, ideal for pots and bags where you have a depth of at least 10 inches. If you're sowing now look out for short or stumpy varieties available now in the seed section of a good garden centre.]]>Edward from Great Yarmouth asks: I have recently purchased my own raised bed and constructed it in my garden so that I can grow my own vegetables. Can I start to grow now or should I wait until next year as most crops are now being harvested?
]]> Answer: If you start planting prior to the frosts, you can start to plant a few vegetables such as onions sets and garlic (purchased as small bulbs), kohlrabi, corn salad, winter lettuce, Chicory 'Treviso', Mustard 'Giant Red', Winter Purslane (Clytonia) mizula (a type of rocket salad leaf) and radicchio. Radicchio 'Cesare' is a reliable variety for hardiness. If you protect these crops with a gardening fleece, you could be harvesting in December. And a little tip... is that salad leaves do better under glass.]]>Fred Isaac from Newry, County Down, asks: Some of the advice relating to growing the Dig In vegetables says to start them off in small pots before planting them out. Can the seeds be planted straight into the ground or in pots outside without starting them in the house/greenhouse?
]]> And also, does there come a time over the winter when the compost heap is 'closed' and no more green/brown stuff is put onto it, to allow it to rot down over the winter?Answer: Hey Fred, good question and one we come across a lot. Yeah, with all the seeds you can 'direct sow' that is sow them directly into the ground – this is the only successful method for growing hassle-free carrots. However, the constant advantage of starting the seeds in pots first and then planting out when they form nice plants is that they are ready to eat sooner! Typically plants sown in pots and then transplanted out are ready about five weeks sooner than plants sown directly into the ground. Also with plants you don't have to rake the top of the veg bed into a fine crumb every time, as you can plant your veg plants into 'choppier' soil.
Your second question is another good one. After you've had a big autumn clear out you'll have very little to add to the compost pile, apart from the household stuff, so the compost pile gets a rest in a roundabout way. I always keep my compost bins well covered with carpet to keep the heat in and encourage decomposition during the cold winter months. As with all compost bins you'll always have 'stuff' on the top that's not properly composted down, this is where a regular mixing, say every three months is useful.
]]>DI Hughes from Carmarthenshire asks: For many years I have successfully grown carrots. During the last two seasons carrots have been totally destroyed by carrot fly. Is it possible that my soil is now contaminated? Would a dose of Jeyes fluid this winter help? Is an application of Jeyes fluid good for the garden?
]]> Answer: Jeyes fluid is a disinfectant. Very useful around the home, patio and glasshouses, but not to be used on the soil!The carrot fly breeding cycle will produce two generations within a year as follows:
The first generation is produced from the pupae and larvae from the previous year, which will overwinter in the soil and in any affected roots left in the ground. The shiny and black adults emerge from these pupae/larvae in May to June. When they emerge, they lay eggs in small white clusters near their intended food source, hatch into larvae a week later, and feed for about a month before pupating in the soil.
The second generation emerges in August/September and feed into the winter before pupating again in the following May/June.
Some things to try are:
Sandra Morris from Pinkneys Green, Berkshire asks: I never managed to get any of the Dig In basil seeds to germinate despite three attempts. I still have a few seeds left. Can I try to grow the basil indoors at this time of year? Likewise I have carrot seeds leftover. Any advice greatly appreciated.
Answer: Hey Sandra, you're not having the best of luck by the sounds of it! The secret to sowing basil is to sown them thinly on to moist compost and only cover them by an inch with compost, place them in a warm position (hotpress or on a towel on a radiator is ideal) and they should start to grow about a fortnight. With the carrots we regularly sow these as a winter crop here in Northern Ireland - many believe that carrots sown in autumn and harvested in spring are far tastier and sweeter! Sow them now for a tasty crop come the spring, sow these thinly into well prepared soil and they should start to show in about three weeks or so. You can read more advice on basil in the Dig In growing guide. Good luck!
]]>Jane Thompson from Manchester asks: I had some success with courgettes and beans this year, but generally I didn't get great crops. What should I do to improve the soil before next year?
]]> Answer: You cannot go wrong with organic matter! Incorporate compost or well rotted farmyard manure into your soil this will improve the structure as well as aiding water retention. The nutrient content of the soil will also be raised although this is difficult to quantify.Bob Hill from Manchester asks: Now that my courgette growing is over for this year - what can I do with my growbag soil?
Answer: I always dig my old growbags into my raised beds, of course I remove the soil from the bags first! It is not a good idea to grow crops in them for a second year as they may harbour pests and disease spores, the nutrient value of the compost will also be depleted. Our winter frosts usually kill these pest and diseases off when I bring them outdoors.
]]>Derek Middleton from Crosby Merseyside asks: I have very sandy soil - good for carrots and my carrots appeared to grow well. However, on harvesting many of them are strange shapes and look deformed. Is there any reason for this?
]]> Answer: Carrots should not be grown on any soil which has been fertilized in the previous year. Forking of the carrots is usually the result, so less T.L.C. should remedy the malady.Maureen Pitman from Dorset asks: Why are my carrots planted at the beginning of the summer in a pot standing on a garden bench (to avoid carrot fly) still only very tiny in autumn, yet the ones planted on my allotment are all a good size? My basil just did not germinate.
Answer: It is always more difficult to grow veg in pots, watering for example is always more challenging and if the pot is a terracotta one the situation becomes even more difficult. I suggest that you run a low mesh net around the bed, 12 inches high is sufficient, to keep the female carrot fly at bay. It is the females who do all the damage and they cannot fly.
]]>Synnove from Leeds asks: Thanks to Sally Smith for her advice about mildew on courgette leaves, which I read in the Dig In Q&A section on 23 August. I have been removing lots of my courgette leaves that have mildew on them. Is it OK to put these leaves on my compost heap? Thanks.
Answer: Some people say yes and others say no! I'm in the no camp as I am always afraid that the spores will overwinter and come back to haunt me the following year.
]]>Ingrid Senger-Perkins from Stoke-on-Trent asks: I am a complete novice, but I want to start growing veg. I have no land, just a patio. Reading through the veg, I wonder, can I still plant if it says 'indoors from May'. Or can I just put them straight outside? What is the best way to get started?
Answer: When growing vegetables in containers it is important that they have adequate nutrients and water so irrigation and feeding will be important. Sow directly into the containers, little and often does the trick. The best way to get started is to open the seed pack and take the plunge. Some books and articles suggest that it's a minefield out there, take it from me no hard hat required!
]]>Steve from Malvern asks: The courgettes I grew from seed all had male flowers. The courgette I bought as small plant gave 15-plus fruit. Why?
Answer: When courgettes come under stress, usually under- or overwatering or excessive heat they tend to produce more male than female flowers. Perhaps yours got a shock somewhere along the way whereas the one that you purchased did not. This is probably nature's was of ensuring that a plant under stress does not try to over fruit which may result in its demise.
]]>Suzanne from Hamilton asks: Next year I'd like to create a vegetable patch. I've read your tips. When is best to start preparing the ground? When is best time to start planting the seeds? Is it better to bring the seeds on in the greenhouse then plant them out?
Answer: Hello Suzanne, now is a great time to begin the planning of your veg patch. My advice is to build one or two raised beds but do assess your site first remembering that your veg will need maximum light. Fill the bed or beds with a good garden soil mixed with compost aiming for a light airy medium that will retain moisture without flooding. If you are just starting out I suggest that you go for direct sowing. Most people tend to sow too thickly so keep this in mind. Seed packets give an outdoor sowing time on the back of the packet and I always stick to this. Trying to 'jump the gun' always leads to tears!
]]>Catriona from Harpenden asks: I need to empty my swimming pool which is near my veggie patch. Will the chemicals in the water harm the soil?
Answer: As you know Catriona, swimming pool chemicals kill bacteria which are good in the pool but not in the garden as our soil is full of friendly bacteria. I also doubt if the worms would enjoy the experience either and these are the guys we need for healthy aerated soils. So I'm afraid the water will need to go elsewhere. I am wondering if your pool is above ground level as I have visions of a wonderful raised bed? Now that's an idea!
]]>Plants like tomatoes, courgettes and French beans just aren't designed to cope with cold weather. Make sure you keep harvesting before they get killed off by frost, but don't forget you can pick tomatoes and ripen them indoors. You might be able to keep your plants going a little longer by giving them some protection. Horticultural fleece is ideal, a light fabric that can be bought at garden centres.
Root crops such as carrots and beetroot are much tougher and can stay in the ground until you need them. Just watch out for slugs, which love to come out to feed on mild, damp autumn nights.
There is some veg that you can plant now. Oriental greens such as pak choi and mizuna will stand frost, but get them going now while the soil is still fairly warm. You'll get even better results if you cover them with a cloche. The plastic ones are fairly inexpensive.
Miniature onions known as sets can go in, along with garlic bulbs. Broad beans can be sown now, but check on the back to make sure you get a variety suitable for autumn sowing. These will sprout, sit through the winter, then grow away next spring to give you an earlier crop.
]]>Julia Hesketh from Bishop Auckland asks: My tomatoes are still green on the stems and there is no sign of ripening. Is this normal in September?
Answer: Hi Julia, your situation is not unusual. Right now I suggest that you remove all of the foliage including the growing tip from the plants using a sharp knife. This will prevent further fruit production as well as allowing more light reach the green tomatoes. You should also bring some ripe fruit into the glasshouse as the gasses given off by the fruit will speed up the ripening of your tomatoes. If this fails to do the trick there is always the chutney route. Good luck!
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