Home Grown 2015

[kelack]

Is anyone growing aubergines? Ours don't seem to be producing anything. They look like they're trying to flower.

Also, some of our tomatoes are looking a bit "scorched". The bottom halves are goinv black. Does anyone know what might cause this.

Both aubergine and tomato plants are in the greenhouse and we water them around 7pm every evening

Sorry @akr, I missed the tag you put on your kiwi for me. Ours is still in a pot but growing well. No flowers on it yet though

 

[Nod]

Sorry, Kelly, can't help with those problems. Besides, we've had just as much bad luck here!

Total failure on my part to sort adequate irrigation for the cucumbers back in June meant that they all died of thirst, although we did get 4 delicious fruits off them before we went away so not a total loss! A similar fate befell the seed grown toms but we bought a couple of plants that seem to be doing very well outside - one a beef tomato, the other a cherry, can't remember the varieties but both allegedly bred for flavour rather than heavy cropping and shape. Courgettes have provided plenty of fruits and continue to do so despite a fair bit of powdery mildew and a bit of virus. Must remember to strip all flowers and fruit off before we b****r off again next week - apparently that'll encourage the plants to produce new flowers which should hopefully mean plenty of fruits when we get back... (Famous last words!) The runner beans from last year's seeds are doing quite well, just started producing delicious beans and plenty more to come. The nasturtiums are pretty prolific too, although one container has been left for the blackfly to have - a sacrificial tub that gets sprayed every few weeks then left to become reinfested. Seems to be working and the other plants are flowering like crazy and are delicious! The chillis are doing OK. Not going to set the world (or any fundamental orifices!) alight in terms of fruits produced or heat but should start getting bigger once they're potted on again tomorrow. Poor Mrs Nod has had to suffer not having much patio to sun herself on again but does appreciate the produce that her sunning spot is producing!

 

[Mag1cp2x]

Also, some of our tomatoes are looking a bit "scorched". The bottom halves are goinv black. Does anyone know what might cause this.


Sounds like your tomatos have tomato blight. It's probably too late now but as soon as they start to show blight (going darker and darker from the bottom up) you should spray them with Bordeaux Mixture - if you can still find some anywhere as it's been replaced with a copper mixture. You'll probably need to spray at least twice.
Remove and burn all fruit that has gone as far as the black stage before spraying.
IMO it's not as good as Bordeaux Mixture as it was not as quick to work on my crop but it did the trick - I probably lost about 25% in the end.
It's halted it now with about half of the remaining crop still to harvest.
Remove and burn all fruit that has gone as far as the black stage before spraying.
One precaution against blight is when watering try not to get water on the plant especially not on the actual tomatos.
I tried aubergines for the first time this year but have now given up on them.
Cucumbers and chillis excellent.

 

[eeyore]

Had a loads of yellow courgettes, runner beans and green beans from our allotment. Tomatoes and purple carrots looking good. The pumpkin plants look healthy too.

 

[kelack]

Also, some of our tomatoes are looking a bit "scorched". The bottom halves are goinv black. Does anyone know what might cause this.


Sounds like your tomatos have tomato blight. It's probably too late now but as soon as they start to show blight (going darker and darker from the bottom up) you should spray them with Bordeaux Mixture - if you can still find some anywhere as it's been replaced with a copper mixture. You'll probably need to spray at least twice.
Remove and burn all fruit that has gone as far as the black stage before spraying.
IMO it's not as good as Bordeaux Mixture as it was not as quick to work on my crop but it did the trick - I probably lost about 25% in the end.
It's halted it now with about half of the remaining crop still to harvest.
Remove and burn all fruit that has gone as far as the black stage before spraying.
One precaution against blight is when watering try not to get water on the plant especially not on the actual tomatos.
I tried aubergines for the first time this year but have now given up on them.
Cucumbers and chillis excellent.

Ah thanks. So it appears it's not so much the over or under watering so much as the watering technique. We pretty spray the whole lot with the can. We took the plants with the black bottoms out completely. We've had quite a good harvest from the rest but probably lost quite a few plants.

Our courgettes have gone mad this year. And our beetroot. To the point where we are having to pickle it all. 6 jars and we've still got some to harvest

Our cabbage? Well that was a waste of time although it appeared to keep the wildlife away from everything else haha

 

[Nostromo]

It's not ideal to grow Toms and Aubergine's together, as they require different atmospheric conditions. Aubergines need moist soil and humid conditions. Whereas Toms need the air to be dry and hot. Watering Toms in the morning will increase humidity as the sun and heat evaporate the water in the soil.

 

[kelack]

Ah I see. We water the tomatoes in the evening so would we need to change that? Trouble is I think 5.30am watering might be a bit too early

 

[akr]

Is anyone growing aubergines? Ours don't seem to be producing anything. They look like they're trying to flower.

Also, some of our tomatoes are looking a bit "scorched". The bottom halves are goinv black. Does anyone know what might cause this.

Both aubergine and tomato plants are in the greenhouse and we water them around 7pm every evening

Sorry @akr, I missed the tag you put on your kiwi for me. Ours is still in a pot but growing well. No flowers on it yet though

Hi Kelly

First time growing aubergines also - bought as a small plant and put in a pot and simply watered from then on - soil was a mix of general earth and some tomato soil from those grow bags you get I decided not to use. . As for much of the garden, was away on holiday when we had the heatwave which was not ideal but everything seems to have bounced back now. Anyway, have one slightly eaten aubergine that from this angle looks like it has eyes...apologies for the camera flash ad picture quality of these!

Had 3 Kiwis fruit started from all the flowers I had (first time I got any). One 'dropped' off, the other looks a bit eaten and the other looks ok though not growing much. Still no food just water. I did give it a heavy trim which may have been a mistake...

Tomatos not sure if I might have blight also as they are a bit darker at the bottom. Got 4 dwarf plants I grew from seed that look a bit different now. When I went away during the heatwave, left 2 with nocover and 2 with cover on. Latter 2s upper leaves and flowers completely singed, so cut them right back and those are now a bit taller and just with small tomatos (I thought they were cherry ones but the other ones are too big for those...) You can see my 'greenhouse' cucumber plant that got a bit dehydrated but came back to life, 3rd cucumber growing.

One tomato on my 'bush' plant that is in a large container, nearly ready, plenty to come. On the right outdoor cucumber plant, had a few good cucumbers off it. Peas that I thought were done still producing.

Down to 3 pears from over 20, no plums or peaches from potted trees this year, hopeful on both for next year though. Plenty of courgettes, peas and runner beans now. Lettuce mainly all now in snail and slug heaven, large cabbage I let get eaten by caterpillars as the kids liked the caterpillars.

 

[Julie1979]

I've heard Wilkos and Poundstretcher are selling off their seeds cheaply. Could be handy if anyone wishes to stock up.

 

[frank]

View attachment 44411

Our back garden space is pretty limited due to main drying area being shared with 3 other houses though I do have section fenced off fo myself. Had decking put in which left no room for digging in plants. Bought a raised planter for the decking couple of months ago cos I missed my veg patch, best thing I've ever purchased as it saves my old back problems, no more bending over. I could have made one from old paletts and some 3x2 wood but I wanted it to look the part along with the rest of the decking.

As it was midway through the season when I purchased this what I could plant from seed was limited (no greenhouse) so I got plants from local garden centre which are coming along nicely.

I'm no expert on growing veg in containers, what seeds should I be looking to plant now for harvesting during winter months, anyone have a favourite list?

I think I'll get another raised planter the same to replace the wite table in the pic.

 

[Nod]

Seen those raised planters in garden centres but they've always been put together by slackjaws and seem rather wobbly. Hopefully you can tell me that when they're bolted together properly, they're good and sturdy, then I'll see if I can pick a couple up at the end of the season.

Spring onions (make sure they're a hardy variety) will grow through the winter, albeit quite slowly and there are assorted winter greens.

 

[frank]

Seen those raised planters in garden centres but they've always been put together by slackjaws and seem rather wobbly. Hopefully you can tell me that when they're bolted together properly, they're good and sturdy, then I'll see if I can pick a couple up at the end of the season.

Spring onions (make sure they're a hardy variety) will grow through the winter, albeit quite slowly and there are assorted winter greens.

Got mine from Vegtrug via Amazon, this 1.8mtr one is solid as a rock providing the assembly instructions are followed properly. Everything (at least mine was) is a tight fit and coachbolts on legs are last to be tightened. I put a touch of silicone around the plastic protectors at leg bottoms to stop rainwater going in and rotting the wood inside.