Strawberry

I bought a strawberry plant because it was on sale in Homebase. I find strawberries very confusing when reading about them. So i am not sure what I am supposed to do with this one. I have transplanted it into a bigger pot but i need to ask Hilary about the runner thingys that are hanging down.

The picture shows it in its old pot along side the mint which has gone mad in growth since it was repotted.

Radishes

As we had emptied the pot which contained the potatoes, I decided to clean it up and get it back into use. We had had some success with the first sowing of radishes so decided to grow some more of the same variety.

They are “French breakfast 3”. They should appear in about 7 days. I have planted less seeds in the space this time as they were quite congested and I didn’t really get to grip with the whole “thinning” process.

You can plant this variety right up to September so if I get some more free space then I may plant some more.

They should be ready to harvest in about 4 to 6 weeks.

Potatoes - Pentland javelin

As I may have mentioned, I bought the pot of potatoes because my daughter thought it looked nice! Well to be fair, it has looked very nice and has helped fill up the appotment.

As the foliage was beginning to look a bit jaded, we decided to harvest the spuds and to see what £5 worth of home grown veg looked like.

I have to say, digging up those spuds with our mini trowel was worth every penny. It was so exciting seeing them appear. They varied in sixe from tiny to a good size for a new potato.

The resulting yield weighted one and a half pounds. I ate some of them for my dinner, boiled with mint out of the plot, along with home grown lettuce. I had to buy a tomato as mine are not quite ready but it was wonderful to eat what we had grown.

I have to admit that I ate the rest during the afternoon as sweets because they were so yummy

Shallots and lettuce leaves

As we had just harvested the potatoes, we were on a roll so decided to see what the shallots looked like. We first of all had to trim back the lettuce. It looked lovely, some red and some green but all very healthy.

We then cleared round the shallots and laid them on some newspaper. I had already perused several articles to see what to do with them and this seemed to be the generally accepted idea. This was the yield from 4 bulbs

I waited for the soil to dry off a bit then brushed them clean and laid them out in a row. Not bad for a first attempt. Now I have to go back to the books and find out what I do with them now as they can’t stay here they are.

Once I have found out the next step then we can harvest the other pot which just has shallots in with no distractions.

Lettuce

I have planted a new pot of salad bowl mixed lettuce in a round pot. The last lot that i planted has grown really well but has been made difficult to harvest as the shallots have been getting in the way. This should be a nice neat pot of lettuce (hopefully)

Sow outdoors March to August

Seedlings will appear in 7 to 14 days

For baby leaves, thin to 2 inches apart, for mature plants, thin to 10 inches apart. I will probably do very little thinning as i want the plant pot to look full and over flowing

Pak Choi

First thing to be planted for ages. Seedlings will appear in 14 to 21 days. Harvest unthinned as baby leaves or thin to 10inches apart to produce mature plants.

Can be used in stir frys or salads.

Plant every three weeks for continuous crops.

Sow outdoors from March to October

A new brown bin

My new brown bin has arrived at last. Our council will collect garden waste once a fortnight so I am planning on using them rather than setting up a compost bin at the moment.

The first sad addition to the bin was the remains of the courgette plant. Still not sure what happened to it. Maybe a combination of not enough soil for two plants, not enough water and food, too many black fly and all manor of other things that i don't actually know about. On the plus side, i did get 5 courgettes which are on the menu for this week.

I have also put in the bin the first of the mile a minute stuff that Lianne has cut down. I cant remember its proper name but it is growing over the fence from next door. This is part of the appotment expansion scheme as we clear the patio ready for use.

Courgettes - good and bad!

11th May 2010

6th July 2010

The first courgette

13th July 2010

15th July 2010

So in the beginning were two little plants. They grew and grew and looked great. They produced 5 courgettes. Then they went yellow. What went wrong??

Potatoes, carrots and peppers

After a shaky start the carrots look nice and leafy. There is probably going to be a yield of one carrot but they look nice. I really thought i was growing soil so it has been nice to see the wonderful feathery foliage appear.

The potato was bought at a garden centre, already in a pot. It cost me £5 which is stupid but Lianne wanted it so i gave in (lol). Next year i am going to get a potato bag or two. I may even have my garden up and running by then.

There is a redskin pepper and a yellow banana pepper. They have not really done much so maybe they want more space.

Micro toms and yellow pepper

There are two micro toms in one pot and as normal for me, that is too many lol. Next year, I am going to have one thing in each pot but as i will hopefully have a garden by then , it shouldn't be a problem. There are several tomatoes vi sable but nothing like the yield promised on the label.

The yellow pepper has a pot to itself but my gardening guru suggests that if i get chance, i should move it to a bigger pot. Roll on getting the patio sorted so i will have some more room. It looks nice and green but no sign of a pepper!

Shallots and salad leaves

In one pot is just shallots, planted in a nice circular design. In the other there is a cross of salad leaves with shallots in each quadrant. This was fine while the plants were small but now the shallots are so big, the salad leaves are hard to harvest as they are hidden. Even so we have had three cuttings so far and they tasted wonderful.

I would like to sow more like they recommend but i simply don't have the space. Once the patio is cleared then i will be able to expand.

Tumbler tomatoes

I planted three plants in one pot as they were really small. I now

know that they need a pot each!!!! They have really bushed out and look great. There are lots and lots of green tomatoes that hopefully will one day turn red. i am feeding them every week but may up the feeding as they are needing so much water.

Chives

This was one of the original pots. The chives have a regular haircut. There are several ice cubes in the freezer containing chives. I have placed the pot on a brick and put it in the shady bit as it doesn't seem to mind.

The big pot

This pot contains coriander, sage, golden feverfew and an alpine strawberry. They were all bought as little herbs and i guess because they got the biggest pot , they have grown the most.

It takes an entire watering can every day in this dry weather and the coriander keeps falling over but I am still pleased with it

Long gap

It has been over a month since i posted anything. The balcony looks amazing. There is barely room to move. We have harvested radishes and lettuces.

What have i learnt

Well the simple answer is that "stuff grows". Amazing really, even with a novice to hinder its progress, plants still do there best to grow. The problem this gives me, is that i have planted everything too close together.

My big gripe with all the magazines that have articles about pot vegetables is that they don't tell you how many fit in a given size pot. they say plant 30 cms apart. Does that mean one per pot or what. As someone with no knowledge whatsoever, i need very simple instructions.

One magazine was nearly there, it said to use a 35.7 cm diameter pot. Brilliant. then it said plant the beans 15 cm apart. What does that mean in a round pot. Does that mean i can fit two in that pot??

I need a very simple idiots guide. I am sure that if i had oodles of time i could learn from blogs as people must make these kind of discoveries for them selves but i don't have loads of time, i need a resource now. So if anyone knows a fool proof book on planting veg in pots please let me know.

Getting behind

I have got behind with my blog. Things have been planted that i have not written about. Pictures have been taken that are not posted. Need to get a grip!!!!!!

I have added a profile picture of the balcony when i started so must take a new picture showing how it has developed. Also joined a new forum but i cant work out how to post the link.

Slushy compost

I have been fretting over the last few days that i have two tubs of slushy compost. One that should have carrots in and one which should have shallots in. Then yesterday morning when i was watering the pots, Lianne noticed that there was greenery in both pots. I was so excited i nearly fell off the balcony!!!. You have to look really hard to see the carrots but they are definitely there

The other exciting thing that happened yesterday was that we made parsley sauce with fresh parsley from the appotment. It wasn't very parsley ish as the recipe wanted four tablespoons of parsley and it is only a small plant but it was still wonderful.

Lianne seems to be getting converted to the idea of gardening so we spent a couple of hours at my mums sorting out their front drive. They have loads and loads of pots so we took some home. We still have 15 left at Mums to fill so if she is well enough today we might take her to the garden centre.

Discovery

I found out today that marjoram and oregano are the same thing. I never knew that before but the herb society says so and they should know!

I showed Lianne the balcony and she moaned, "what have you done to my outdoor lounge, where am i going to put my chairs and table". I think she is unhappy at my expansions. However she did help me plant my pot of radishes. It says they are great as an introduction for kids to grow their own.

Radishes - french breakfast 3. Seedlings usually appear in approx 7 days. For continuous crops sow every 2-3 weeks. harvest 4 to 6 weeks from sowing.

Cold and windy

The weather today is rubbish. Cold and windy so the plants look a bit windswept. I have decided not to repot the rest of the peppers as they look a bit frail but i have put the welsh onion, the pot marigold and french golden oregano in to black pots. Every time i do anything, i wonder if i am doing it right. Is it the right compost, is it the right size, is it too wet or to dry. You could literally spend hours researching each plant and i simply don't have that kind of time so i am going on the trial and error method.

I put the two micro tom tomatoes together in one pot although i think they would probably be better in separate pots. I have bought some arch canes to stake them on if needed. If not, the arch looks quite nice. I read Alan Titmarshes article about staking after i had bought them and i think that i have the required level of undergarment in place. He likens stakes to bras!!!

I was looking in my gardening box and i have loads of seeds that i bought and simply don't have room for so I am thinking that maybe i will have to expand onto my windowsill or put up some shelves. I think I have created a monster!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Three more pots

In this pot there are two pepper plants. "Bell Boy" and "Yellow". I have planted all these three pots very low on soil as there is quite a wind on the balcony and i am hoping that this will give them some form of protection. I discovered today when potting the plants that i bought yesterday, that i have bought too many for the pots that i have. Need to go to Mums and see if i can liberate a few.

The courgettes are called "all green bush". Where do they get the names from? It seems that the more I read about plants , the less i know. Apparently some courgettes grow up and some down, i e trailing or stake i guess. Not sure what this one does. Does a bush need staking?

Last but not least, tumbler tomatoes. I did try growing these in a hanging basket last year but they got blown away. Hopefully by planting them below the surface of the pot, they will have some protection. As I am typing this, i can still smell tomato on my fingers even through the soap.

So now i have to go stand on the balcony and try and decide what pots i need to complete potting up all the plants that i bought. I can see that i will end up with too many pots, then too many plants etc etc.

Gift voucher

I finally got to the garden centre to use my vouchers. I had £25 to spend so i bought 10 assorted little herb plants and 12 assorted tomato, courgette and pepper plants. I also spent £12 on two more bags of compost which puts my budget well over but hey who cares when you having fun.

In the big pot, i decided to put some herbs. I think that in the future I may only grow herbs as they seem to be foolproof. Buy a plant, plant a plant and enjoy the plant. So easy. None of the worry that i get when i look at my pot of carrots that for all i know may just be a pot of slushy compost. I thought i saw some green in the carrot pot but looking closely it looks like a speck of the lettuce although how that happened, god only knows.

Anyway in the big pot is coriander, golden feverfew, an alpine strawberry and a sage. There may also a few nasturtium seeds as i have been adding them here and there. The woman in the garden centre said they were fool proof. We shall see!!!!!!!!!!!

First sign of green

If you look closely, you can see little bits of green in my lettuce tub. Yippee, i am so excited.

Inspiration

I have been gazing at the photo of my untidy pots and i think i have decided how to arrange them. It does occur to me though that if they start having things in them , then they might need rearranging some more as i have no idea about height etc.

Well, i have no arranged them and they look better but still not quite satisfied. I should have stuck to one shape and size as i like symmetry. perhaps once they are overflowing with plants i will feel better.

Need to buy three more big bags of compost and of course some plants. Hopefully my gardening voucher will arrive tomorrow. i cashed in some points to get a £20 voucher. Still going to have to spend more though. If i do get some produce it will be the most expensive i have ever had.

Which reminds me, in Homebase you can buy a pot with carrots or potatoes already growing in them. £5 each, now assuming you get one meal from each pot, that is bloody dear. BUT i was still so tempted as they looked really nice, much better than looking at my soil and wondering if anything will grow.

Expansion

I was at a Sunday market at the weekend and i saw some cheap pots so i blew my last ten pounds of the original budget on expanding. Now I have the dilemma of how to arrange them as i don't do artistic and at the moment they look a mess.

Planting from seed!!

I managed to get my three big pots planted today while the laundry was drying at the launderette.

In the first pot, i have put a cross of lettuce with four red shallots in the quadrants. I have no idea about how to space these things or on how thinly to sow the seeds so it is pure guess work.

The second pot has two lines of carrots and the third pot has a ring of shallots with one in the middle.

When i had finished planting, using my acquired little gardening tools, i came to the conclusion that i am not a seed gardener. I like to see instant results so i think i will be buying small plants in future so i can see something other than soil.

Lettuce - salad bowl mixed (oak leaf).Seedlings usually appear in 7-14 days. For continuous crops sow every 2-3 weeks. Growing on - for baby leaves, thin to 2 inches apart and for mature plants, 10 inches apart. Keep moist. Can have 4 cuts of baby leaves for each plant.

Carrots - amsterdam 2-amice. Seedlings usually appear in 14 - 21 days. For continuous crops sow every 2 - 3 weeks. Growing on - When harvesting select young carrots alternately from row or pot allowing the remainder to develop fully. Keep well watered.

Red shallots - no instructions so i have just planted them with the tips showing and hope that they will be OK

Not enough time

I was hoping to get some more done on the balcony today but I had to spend the day sorting out my mother in the hospital. Maybe tomorrow.

One Pot Pledge

http://www.gardenorganic.org

i got my One Pot Pledge confirmation through and my membership number is 538. Sounds exciting!!! So first things first the carrots. I dont have a light on my balcony so these may come in handy during the winter months!!! One can only hope the myth is true.

Due to the fact i am trying to do this project on a limited budget, i have had to resort to some what less enviable means. My mother has had an indoor garden set sat on her window sill for the last 2 years, well no longer it has been liberated. Never should such a handy piece of equipment be left un-used. Well thats my new moto anyway it helps me feel better!!!

Looking good

Well, I have to say I am impressed with myself. The three big planters have not got anything in them yet as I am trying to work out how to sow lines in a circular pot. But the herbs look good and the fencing looks quite attractive.

Photos of the balcony

Taken on 20th April prior to getting started.

Budget blown already

I had this naive idea that i could set up my appotment with a budget of £50. Well I spent £20 in Wilkinsons yesterday on buying three large planters and six packets of seeds along with some bamboo fencing to fight against the wind. I have just spent another £20 on compost, a couple of little planters and 4 herb plants. So that leaves me £10, mmm i think i need to revise my budget.

I have fastened the bamboo fencing to the back fence of the balcony and I have let it continue round about half a metre. I may need to extend it later. I have observed the sun and basically the balcony is in full sunlight until about 1pm. the fencing should not change that, it should just act as a wind shield.

The four herbs are now planted. In the blue pots, i have put marjoram and chives. These were larger plants so should be well established. In the smaller pots i have put the smaller herbs of parsley and mint. I have a vague idea now that i am writing this that both those get quite big so i may need to repot them.

The Beginning

I bought a copy of the Gardeners World magazine which had an article on growing vegetables on the patio. I decided to have a go at making an appotment on my balcony.