I emptied out the 4 pots of Casablanca on Friday evening having given them a week for the skins to harden. It was a good crop of small new potatoes but I did manage to secure 3 tubers about 5oz each for the local show in a couple of weeks time. I'm hoping the Casablanca growing in bags will be bigger come August but I was glad to find not a hint of scab on any of the tubers.
Casablanca is said to be a superior taste to other white varieties so tonight we had some of them boiled with a bit of barbequed lamb. My verdict? I still prefer Winston! However, with some courgettes this is my first real harvest of the season.
It was too hot this weekend to do anything too strenuous but I did manage to get my blanch leeks onto the next size collar, 13". With 2" of the leek below ground it gives me 15" and I may be able to get a total of 18" by the end of the season by unrolling the collar and turning it round the other way.
This was also the last opportunity to straighten any bent barrels before they get too thick to do anything with. By holding the barrel firmly and putting firm pressure against the bend you can straighten it before recollaring.
I don't know whether anyone else suffers the phenomenon of the leeks 'turning' after planting? I go to great lengths to make sure the leeks are planted 'square on' to the horizontal canes running alongside them in order to drape the flags over them neatly. But I always seemto get a few that turn meaning the flags are draped over the plants next to them and it makes it all a bit awkward, as well as ruining the effect of a neat row. Oh well. These are still the cleanest looking leeks I have ever had at this stage of the season. Thanks to regular blasts of Dynamec into the growing points I'm thrip damage free. If I had a polytunnel I guess I could throw a shit load of cash at buying some of those thrip predators that the organic Flowerdew mob go on about. The same ones that presumably fly out of the door along with your money?
And I also got the first three Carmen cucumbers planted up on the raised platform.I aim to run these along wires at eye level so that the cucs hang down away from the foliage to stop the skins getting marked.
4 comments:
I am interested to see how you attach your wires to the greenhouse framework Simon. My new greenhouse has all the glass clipped in place, rubbers seals on each pane etc. I can't seem to find any way I could attach wires to mine to train my cusumbers along, (although there is one small hole at the top of each of the vertical aluminum struts if that makes sense). Currently I have my tomato canes tied to these with string to avoid them toppling with the weight of any trusses (the tomatoes are in growbags so the canes can only be inserted to the depth of the bag.
These little chaps work wonders for me:
http://www.twowests.co.uk/TwoWestsSite/product/BPFS.htm
Thanks Richard,
They look interesting, not sure I quite understand the way it describes them as attaching though, but will take a look in my greenhouse again and try to work it out :)
Quick question re-plant support wire. Once I have my clips in place and need to stretch wire between them, what is the best wire to buy for the purpose? I have the flexible plastic coated green wire, but that isn't very thick in diameter and appears more suitable for plant ties etc (I would have thought). Would galvanised wire be better, or something else completely different?
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