Too late for Brassicas/leeks?

Hi All.

Have decided to try and ensure some sort of all-year-round crops. The summer purple broccoli ("wok broc") I tried has produced a lot of leaves, but, dissapointingly, very few sprouting heads, whereas the single early purple sprouting plant is still going strong. So, as I have a tiny garden, I thought of planting some more early purple, and some winter and possibly spring cabbages.
I've got some Savoy cabbage seeds, which claim harvest Dec-Mar. Is it too late to plant them?
Similarly I've got some parsnip, leek and swede seeds. Is it too late?
Anything I need to do to ensure they get a good start?

With the price of food the way it is, I guess it's time to stop experimenting so much and get some staple crops in the ground (OK, except for the peppers/aubergines/okra in the greenhouse.....life has to be a *bit* fun )

Sorry for all the questions - It's still all fun, but I need to maximise veg all year round, so any tips are very welcome on what to plant to get all-year round veggies

cheers,
Dave

 

Hi Dave

Certainly not too late for sowing your savoy cabbages. Leeks may be interesting if you can give them some fleece protection during winter to help keep them growing. Nothing wrong with thin leeks; they will taste just as good as the exhibition sized ones.

If you don't have a glasshouse a very good way to extend your season for many vege is to build yourself a substantial cold frame. Have a look through my website and you may come across some helpful tips.

 

JWK - root vegetables are notoriously difficult to transplant. Why not sow them two to a small pot; keep the strongest seedling and grow it on in the pot for a while before planting it out - with care.
Keep them cool in the greenhouse.

 

Toilet roll tubes....not kidding.

Same for beans lettuce carrots etc. No root disturbance at all an no thinning out to do. Plant up inside and put out when ready.

Either cut them in half or even better kitchen roll tubes. I pack them into a seed tray, and just water the tray.

 

Thanks for the replies all... !

The toilet tube trick sounds very cool - it's good to re-use things. Cheaper too .

The one Veg I've heard can't be started in pots then transplanted well is Pak choi - certainly mine all bolted very quickly this year when I tried it. Do you think peat/cardboard pots would help minimise the risk of bolting if started in the G/h then transplanted, or is it more complicated than preventing or minimising root damage during planting out?

cheers,
Dave

 

Pak choi.

I can't help you personally as I have never grown it...but there are a few tips HERE

 

Thanks Tweaky!

Will sow some seeds now in fibre pots in the G/H and try to transplant later. FWIW, I ate the last of the 2007 sowings in early february this year - they're definitely winter hardy in this part of the world :-)

cheers,
Dave

 

No probs Dave. What does it taste like?

 

Hi Tweaky.
On it's own it's a sort of very mild cabbage type thing. It might be interesting to try with just butter and black pepper, as an alternative to cabbage......

A very nice classic chinese veg dish is made like this;
Wash and separate the stems from the leaves. Put some thinly sliced fresh shiitake mushrooms, (chestnut mushrooms work well too, but aren't quite so flavourful) a couple of teapoons of veg oil, a few drops of sesame oil, some dark soy sauce and some oyster sauce in a pan, and add the pak choi stems. A little grated/mashed garlic can be added now if desired. Fry quite hard, stirring frequently. When the stems become soft, add the leaves, and enough water to keep it from burning. Spinach or chard leaves can be added to bulk it out if you want a "greener" looking dish.
I often add a small amount of Toban Jian Chili bean paste (yum!) to give it a bit of a kick.

It's a nice accompaniment to a chinese nosh-out. It freezes well too.

I'm sure there are other ways of doing it - stir frys would work well, but the above is my fave. :-)

cheers,
Dave

 

Plantsman - thanks. Have re-read your cold frame stuff on your site. I've got some old single and double glazed panels lying around, so will try and find the time to build some coldframes before the frosts come. I've got a greenhouse, but it's always full march to december (I'm a sweet pepper/cherry tom addict )

JWK. I'll try some swede/parsnip planting in loo roll/cardboard pots too - will prob. go with what I've got - all year round swede, and tender and true parsnip. Fingers crossed!

cheers,
Dave

 

Cheers for the recipe, sounds much more preferable to laxatives.