Vegetable Growing 2021

Discussion in 'Edible Gardening' started by JWK, Jan 5, 2021.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. shiney

    shiney President, Grumpy Old Men's Club Staff Member

    Joined:
    Jul 3, 2006
    Messages:
    61,003
    Gender:
    Male
    Occupation:
    Retired - Last Century!!!
    Location:
    Herts/Essex border. Zone 8b
    Ratings:
    +117,308
    I'm still picking over 5lb runners per day but some plants are producing very little and a few are dying. Still plenty coming on others but not much in the way of flower.

    The French are still rubbish apart from a few Blue Lake that have now decided to get themselves into gear. Bridgwater are still cropping like mad and picked well over 2lb yesterday.

    Blackberries still cropping and it's better to wear a crash helmet to walk under the apple trees. I can't remember having seen so many windfalls (and non wind dropped ones) this early in the season. It's possible that it may be because the trees are so heavily laden. A similar problem with the Williams pears but not the others. I'm raking up well over 10lb a week. The wasps love them. :rolleyespink:
     
    • Like Like x 1
    • Scrungee

      Scrungee Well known for it

      Joined:
      Dec 5, 2010
      Messages:
      16,524
      Location:
      Central England on heavy clay soil
      Ratings:
      +28,996
      Marrow on 'Plant' A is now just over 36" long at 41 Days After Pollination, still lightish green and continuing to grow, but it is skinny at only 12" diameter. (2nd smaller marrow on plant aborted)

      IMG_20210909_092951798_HDR.jpg

      Marrow on 'Plant B' is now just over 35" long at 37 DAP, still lightish green and continuing to grow, but at 14" diameter will now be the heaviest. (again, the 2nd smaller marrow aborted)

      IMG_20210909_093349526.jpg


      With 14 Days to staging exhibits at Malvern and now growing 1/2" a day, both marrows could be over 100lbs by 23rd September, not nearly big enough to get anywhere, but maybe big enough to avoid embarrassment alongside ones up to double that weight. They could stop growing in a few days, Powdery Mildew is appearing (been spraying with diluted milk), weather might be dull and cloudy most days, or heavy rains might cause a growth spurt and split it.

      The 3 marrows on 'Plant C' have been left uncovered to ripen for seed saving. This is the heaviest one, but I've neglected them and concentrated on the other 2 plants.

      IMG_20210909_093849315_HDR.jpg
       
      • Like Like x 5
        Last edited: Sep 9, 2021
      • shiney

        shiney President, Grumpy Old Men's Club Staff Member

        Joined:
        Jul 3, 2006
        Messages:
        61,003
        Gender:
        Male
        Occupation:
        Retired - Last Century!!!
        Location:
        Herts/Essex border. Zone 8b
        Ratings:
        +117,308
        We're not bothering with show veg and flowers because the local show is not on. :noidea:

        The runners have gone peculiar. On noe of the Shineyframes the crop has increased :scratch: by 70% but they have suddenly started to go lumpy/seedy and the edges are going red. Obviously coming to the end of the season but not seen this increase before. The other Shineyframe is still producing smooth beans with no red edges. I've put the sprinkler on them as it is well over a month since it rained.

        Apples still dropping and I binned 60lb that had gone rotten. Another 45lb were usable with judicious cutting. So friends are coming round for a lot of them (windfalls are freebies but some still put a small amount in the charity box).

        Blackberries still producing but small because of lack of water, but very sweet.
         
        • Like Like x 2
        • Scrungee

          Scrungee Well known for it

          Joined:
          Dec 5, 2010
          Messages:
          16,524
          Location:
          Central England on heavy clay soil
          Ratings:
          +28,996
          Af few more pickings of beans:

          6lbs 12ozs on 4th Sept

          IMG_20210905_090350756.jpg

          4lbs 8ozs on 6th Sept

          IMG_20210906_150627575.jpg

          and 6 days after the 6lb12ozs pick,
          on 10th Sept, another 8 lbs 12ozs, that's 20lbs in 6 days.

          IMG_20210910_173040144_HDR.jpg

          All from 24 plants that originally had a dual purpose of growing a long one for the village show, plus letting loads run to seed to replenish my stock that ran out this year. As the village show was cancelled, I turned them all over to seed production. So all these for eating are mainly a bi-product of that seed production. The long pods I left to go to seed in late July are now yellowing, shrinking and should be harvested this month. I hate waiting until October for runner bean seeds to ripen in cold, wet and frosty weather.
           
          • Like Like x 3
          • Scrungee

            Scrungee Well known for it

            Joined:
            Dec 5, 2010
            Messages:
            16,524
            Location:
            Central England on heavy clay soil
            Ratings:
            +28,996
            Today's picking of French beans, nearly two x 2 gall buckets full.

            IMG_20210911_130148222.jpg

            Not bad for the second picking from a patch sown with a 99p packet of Premier Seeds Safari french beans.
             
            • Like Like x 3
              Last edited: Sep 11, 2021
            • Garrett

              Garrett Super Gardener

              Joined:
              Aug 19, 2021
              Messages:
              144
              Gender:
              Male
              Location:
              England
              Ratings:
              +770
              My first ever cucumber "tasty king F1".

              IMG_20210911_144721795_HDR~2-01.jpeg
               
              • Like Like x 5
              • Scrungee

                Scrungee Well known for it

                Joined:
                Dec 5, 2010
                Messages:
                16,524
                Location:
                Central England on heavy clay soil
                Ratings:
                +28,996

                Was it grown inside under cover or outside?
                 
              • Garrett

                Garrett Super Gardener

                Joined:
                Aug 19, 2021
                Messages:
                144
                Gender:
                Male
                Location:
                England
                Ratings:
                +770
                Outside. I don't have a greenhouse but the seed packet said it could go outside so I thought I'd try it.

                Very easy to grow and I have seeds left over so I'll try again next year but I'll make sure to sow much earlier than I did this year.

                My tortoise enjoyed it.
                 
                • Like Like x 3
                • Scrungee

                  Scrungee Well known for it

                  Joined:
                  Dec 5, 2010
                  Messages:
                  16,524
                  Location:
                  Central England on heavy clay soil
                  Ratings:
                  +28,996
                  That was last Thursday, 5 days later and it's now 39" long. If it keeps that up it'll be around 45" long on the 22nd when I intend cutting it before taking to Malvern Show on 23rd. Think/hope it's probably already over 100 lbs.

                  IMG_20210914_120957138_HDR.jpg

                  But there is a potential problem. It is curved and has a hollow underbelly, with a crease underneath where it has a good chance of splitting. I've eased it onto its side as much as I dare so it's weight isn't resting on just the ends and stressing out that crease. I'm also not watering today, as combined with heavy rain that might cause a growth surge and split it. It appears to be pushing the foam sheet it's sitting on forward as it grows so I'd better check the front if that for obstructions that could cause the marrow to buckle and crack.

                  Any damage disqualifies it from entry. Hope there's not a nasty crack down there :fingers crossed:. Might have to make some sort of stretcher arrangement to transport it.

                  IMG_20210914_121040795_HDR.jpg

                  The other bigun is 40" long, but skinny and not so heavy.
                   
                  • Like Like x 2
                    Last edited: Sep 14, 2021
                  • Scrungee

                    Scrungee Well known for it

                    Joined:
                    Dec 5, 2010
                    Messages:
                    16,524
                    Location:
                    Central England on heavy clay soil
                    Ratings:
                    +28,996
                    That's a decent size outdoor cucumber.
                     
                  • Scrungee

                    Scrungee Well known for it

                    Joined:
                    Dec 5, 2010
                    Messages:
                    16,524
                    Location:
                    Central England on heavy clay soil
                    Ratings:
                    +28,996
                    My runners refuse to stop producing

                    IMG_20210916_153446180.jpg

                    I started removing the driest of pods for seed saving before it rained a couple of days ago. They've got 290 seeds inside them and there's more pods to come.

                    They are so fleshy they take ages to dry out, so it's good get them in before it gets wet and cold, go mouldy and the seeds inside start sprouting. Might even encourage more for eating to come on.

                    Longest bean this year was 27", which could have been much longer if I only let 2 long beans grow per plant and 1 per truss, but our village show was cancelled and I went all out for seed production with beans for eating as a byproduct. As seeds of this variety sell for £1 each, this is probably my most valuable crop this year.

                    IMG_20210916_161111600.jpg

                    My heaviest marrow is now 40" long, it's been growing 1/2" a day for so many weeks now there's probably no need to keep measuring it, other than to check it's still growing. Diluted milk spray seems to be keeping the powdery mildew at Bay.

                    I rather expected it to continue growing closer to the July - August growth rates I'm used to, but daily growth halved in September, so I need to plan for getting them off to an earlier start next year for a national September show.
                     
                    • Like Like x 3
                      Last edited: Sep 17, 2021
                    • Scrungee

                      Scrungee Well known for it

                      Joined:
                      Dec 5, 2010
                      Messages:
                      16,524
                      Location:
                      Central England on heavy clay soil
                      Ratings:
                      +28,996
                      Still can't prevent some sprouting in the pods no matter how early I let them go to seed

                      IMG_20210919_070709716.jpg
                       
                      • Like Like x 1
                      • Informative Informative x 1
                        Last edited: Sep 19, 2021
                      • Scrungee

                        Scrungee Well known for it

                        Joined:
                        Dec 5, 2010
                        Messages:
                        16,524
                        Location:
                        Central England on heavy clay soil
                        Ratings:
                        +28,996
                        My fourth one of these full of french beans, all from a single 99p packet of Premier Seeds Safari french beans.

                        I could probably have got more, but I sow 2 or 3 seeds per module to reduce the growing area required at the expense of a reduced crop.

                        Not many left on them now, soon to be lifted and replaced with garlic.

                        IMG_20210922_073325314.jpg
                         
                        • Like Like x 5
                          Last edited: Sep 22, 2021
                        • Scrungee

                          Scrungee Well known for it

                          Joined:
                          Dec 5, 2010
                          Messages:
                          16,524
                          Location:
                          Central England on heavy clay soil
                          Ratings:
                          +28,996
                          Typical, the day after I entered it in Malvern Show last week it stopped growing. Can't understand it, the marrow was still youthful with pale green shiny skin and could have put at least 25lbs more if it had carried on growing at 1/2" a day until today when I cut it.

                          But it's still very heavy. I managed to lift an 83lb marrow into the back of my car by myself few years, but I needed help to get this one in. As it's an odd shape, estimating the weight is too difficult, and with that (weak?) crease underneath I wont risk getting it on hanging scales under my weighing tripod.

                          I'll have to wait until tomorrow to find out.

                          IMG_20210922_145320565_HDR~2.jpg
                           
                          • Like Like x 3
                            Last edited: Sep 22, 2021
                          • Loofah

                            Loofah Admin Staff Member

                            Joined:
                            Feb 20, 2008
                            Messages:
                            12,393
                            Gender:
                            Male
                            Location:
                            Guildford
                            Ratings:
                            +21,173
                            Good luck!
                             
                            • Like Like x 1
                            • Agree Agree x 1
                            Loading...
                            Thread Status:
                            Not open for further replies.

                            Share This Page

                            1. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
                              By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
                              Dismiss Notice