OwnGrown Discussion Forums: Last 35 Posts

richgill70 on "What can I plant now?"

richgill70 — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 20:51:26 +0000

I'm new to all this malarkey...what kind of veggies can I plant now to get myself started? Any help is greatly appreciated. Ta.

Chris-up-north on "Broad Beans - Pods but no beans"

Chris-up-north — Tue, 28 Aug 2007 19:07:46 +0000

Hi,

i've just joined the site, hoping to get some advice on my growing disasters!

I have this year for the first time grown broad beans but many of the pods are empty or have small beans - has anyone had similar or know why this happens?

Hopefully,
Chris.

gustybrae on "Keeping Chickens"

gustybrae — Sat, 25 Aug 2007 20:50:41 +0000

As a very new member, (just registered), I read with interest about your venture into the world of Chickens. My wife and I started with chickens about four months ago and our intention was to have four from a Battery Farm rescue org. We ended up having eight!!!. At the moment we get 6 to 7 lovely X-Large eggs a day of which we sell to friends around us at 60p a half dozen when we have surplass to our needs, the income going towards chicken feed. Anyway just another tip, nobody has mentiond, we collect all the chicken droppings for the compost heap they say its good for the ground, an old bucket a pair of marigolds and a wall paper scraper thats all thats required.

madwoman140 on "RUNNER BEANS"

madwoman140 — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 20:50:49 +0000

the birds have eaten all the flowers of my plants is there anything i can do please help

suem on "Whitefly"

suem — Sun, 15 Jul 2007 17:22:45 +0000

spray them quickly with a suitable bug killer or else you'll never get rid of them! Maybe you're overrun already as I see it is 3 weeks since your post

JaneH on "Keeping Chickens"

JaneH — Sun, 15 Jul 2007 12:16:59 +0000

Keeping chickens is the best thing I have ever done, it is a stress buster if ever there was one. They will repay with eggs as long as you keep them in clean, well looked after conditions. When I started I was clueless so I went to the local library and read everything I could. We currently have 4 hens, a mixed batch and they are providing 3 eggs a day. I have had cockerels in the past but I find the ladies are happier without one especially as I don't intend to incubate and breed at present.
My tips are - invest in good housing to start off with, use good quality layers pellets, keep the house and run clean, worm/louse treat regularly and speak to them!
have fun!

JaneH on "Garlic growing"

JaneH — Sun, 15 Jul 2007 12:11:43 +0000

I have grown garlic successfully in a raised bed for the past 2 years and what I would recommend is buying specialist bulbs from a supplier or at a garden centre. They are usually available from about Sept onwards and should be planted ideally Oct/Nov definately before Christmas. Shop bought garlic is not virus free so is not the most reliable to use.
happpy garlic growing,

OwnGrown on "Keeping Chickens"

OwnGrown — Sun, 15 Jul 2007 09:45:59 +0000

Some information is now on the main site. A cockerel is not needed and there is a very good little book caled "Starting with Chickens" by Katie Thear which should give all the information you need to get started.

Chichi on "Seeds"

Chichi — Sat, 14 Jul 2007 09:44:37 +0000

Thanks for that, not had chance to do anything at the mo. Those fibre pots sound good. Will have a look at the garden centre for them.

lindyb on "Seeds"

lindyb — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 14:23:34 +0000

Just read what to do on the seed packet. For most plants you don't need to do anything more than pop the seeds in the soil. The best way (I think!) is to buy small trays of fibre(?)"pots" (one name is Jiffy pots) in different sizes - fill these with the seed compost and one or two seeds in each. When they have grown a little you just put the whole pot in the soil so avoiding disturbing the roots and the roots grow through the pots which gradually disintegrate

lindyb on "Parsley what's left of it"

lindyb — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 14:12:47 +0000

I've tried it or at least something similar (maybe the same) bought from a garden centre and it works really well

Chichi on "Parsley what's left of it"

Chichi — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 08:53:44 +0000

You can buy some 'slug tape' from bettaware, You put it around the bottom of you pot and it stops slugs climbing in. I've not tried it but it looks good. Eco friendly too.

Chichi on "New vegetable garden"

Chichi — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 08:50:29 +0000

Hi,
Looks like the weather has finally turned, well at least for a couple of days anyway. What veg are you planting?
I'm taking a slightly different line to a veg patch. I will be growing in hanging baskets, window box's and pots. two reasons 1, 2 little boys who love to dig and 2, a small garden.
Good luck with the planting let me know how it goes.

Chichi on "Seeds"

Chichi — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 08:42:28 +0000

Hi thanks for your responce. I will give it a go. Whats the worst that can happen. Do I have to do anything to them before hand or just pop then in a propergater?
Chichi is a pet name given to me by my parents. My real name is Rachel, as a child it was shortened to rache (ray che) with the emphisis on the 'E'. The 'ray' was dropped which left Chi. In my teens this was lengthened to Chichi. Only my family tend to call me this now, but I have always used it for forums and such like. Not very exciting. Sorry. I have no idea what it actually means. Hope I'm not insulting anyone!!! LOL

helena on "Keeping Chickens"

helena — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 13:17:21 +0000

Hi tonyj. I also want to keep chickens and am looking at this. could the owngrown people who do this owngrown site give us some more information??

TonyJ on "Parsley what's left of it"

TonyJ — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 16:55:06 +0000

I've had the same problem and think it is probaby slugs although I didn't think they went for parsley much. There seem to be stacks (all sizes and types) around this year due to the wet weather. I put down some slug pellets and some protection which seems to have let them get growing again

TonyJ on "Keeping Chickens"

TonyJ — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 16:49:52 +0000

Having seen the little bit about chickens on this site, I've decided to keep a few but have no idea what to do and there is not much information here to help me apart from the cage size. Starting with basics, how many chickens do i need for 12 to 15 eggs a week and what size cage do they need? Do i also need a cockerel or can it be just hens?
Which breeds are best? I am sure I can read books on the subject but some personal help to get started would be appreciated.

lindyb on "Seeds"

lindyb — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 14:01:29 +0000

yes. I started my first veg garden 4 years ago and last year started using some of my own seeds. Only a few - runner beans, broad beans and a couple of chillis. i think somewhere on this owngrown site they mention sowing your own seeds in the case of a few vegetables. however............ for some reason my failre rate was quite high, maybe coincidence or more likely i just didn't do it quite right so I have gone back to buying the seeds and will have another go at using my own when I'm more of an expert!
Out of interest, what does the name Chichi mean?

welshleek on "New vegetable garden"

welshleek — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 11:15:38 +0000

Hi Chichi

Slowly is the short answer but i can see some results! Every time i start the rain pours down. I've dug up most of the weeds and the stones, rubbish etc are being cleared so hope to start planting in a week or so

Chichi on "New vegetable garden"

Chichi — Sun, 01 Jul 2007 15:14:29 +0000

Hi,
I'm just about to embark on growing some veggies too. Was wondering how it was going?

Chichi on "Seeds"

Chichi — Sun, 01 Jul 2007 15:12:23 +0000

Hi Everyone,
This may seems like a really silly question but can you grow the seeds straight from your fruit and veg, If so how do I do this?
As you may well have guessed I'm new to gardening, but would really like to have a go at growing my own veg. I know it's not easy and would really appreciate some help.
Thank you
Chichi

veggie1 on "Whitefly"

veggie1 — Sat, 23 Jun 2007 15:03:26 +0000

Anyone got any good ideas for controlling whitefly on brassicas? I had the problem last year and didn't solve it and it is already back again this year strongly

johnp on "New vegetable garden"

johnp — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 15:16:49 +0000

Safest to dig them up and spend a little time making sure most have gone before planting or sowing anything. digging of course brings more seeds close to the surface so more weeds will spring up but your plot is a very manageable size so shouldn't be much of a problem.

welshleek on "New vegetable garden"

welshleek — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 07:41:30 +0000

I've just moved to a new house with a small garden but enough room for a vegetable plot about 3 by 5 metres which is now covered with weeds, rubbish and stones. i know nothing about growing vegetables so it is a start from scratch job. The rubbish and stones will be cleared but what do i do with the weeds? Can i use a weedkiller (and which one) or is it best to dig them all up?

sue2 on "Parsley what's left of it"

sue2 — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 13:10:45 +0000

Hi everyone! I'm a complete novice and starting with a few herbs outside my back door. the parsley grown from seed was doing really well until last night. About 5 cms tall and then this morning nothingh but a few stalks. I can only think it was a bird but there was no trace of any loose bits on the ground. Can anyone tell me?

BarbaraL on "Garlic growing"

BarbaraL — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 12:45:41 +0000

i had the same problem a couple of years ago when first trying to gropw garlic. i was told the soil was too wet and none will even start in those conditions. i was also told to use bulbs recommended for growing in the UK so use a specialist supplier. you may be lucky with bulbs from a supermarket but you may also be unlucky. one supplier doing mail order is the Garlic Farm on the Isle of Wight but there are plenty of others

midlander on "Weeds in compost heap"

midlander — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 07:55:48 +0000

What happens to all the weeds included in the garden waste now collected by the councils? Is everything shredded and left to break down properly or is it treated in some way to kill the weeds?

johnp on "Weeds in compost heap"

johnp — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 16:12:54 +0000

Burned or otherwise disposed. they say the heat in a compost heap kills the weeds, seeds etc but i reckon many remain and must remain around the edges where there is little heat and the stuff only partially decomposes.

sue on "Weeds in compost heap"

sue — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 14:04:18 +0000

should weeds be put on the compost heap or burned (i am in an area where i can have a bonfire)?

veggie1 on "Garlic growing"

veggie1 — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 13:48:38 +0000

I tried growing garlic for the first time planting the cloves last october. Not one grew. the large and healthy looking bulbs were bought from a supermarket. Is it the variety (unknown), conditions or somwething else that caused this? I'd like to try again this year as i see them working properly on this owngrown site.

LindaGreen on "White butterflies"

LindaGreen — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 13:41:55 +0000

Thx i'll try that. netting gets in the way of everything and i keep on having to free birds that get themselves trapped

johnmcnally on "White butterflies"

johnmcnally — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 11:59:49 +0000

Never tried it but was told nasturtiums grown nearby keeps them away. Why don't you want to use netting?

LindaGreen on "White butterflies"

LindaGreen — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 09:21:29 +0000

Apart from netting, does anyone know of a way to keep the white butterflies away from cabbages, sprouts etc? I think there is probably something that can be grown nearby that repels them.