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.