Growing Vegetables

Mike

Member
Probably been discussed here before, but who 'grows their own' for the house?
Is it worthwhile, or is it a pain in the ass, when you can buy veg so cheap in the likes of Aldi etc?

A relation dropped a bag of their home grown spuds here during the week, nicest I've tasted in ages :yes:
 
Without doubt homegrown stuff tastes nicer than shop bought, but I just can't make the economics of doing it stack up.
Maybe if you have a large family it makes more sense but not to me who lives pretty much on my own.
Only other reason to do it is if that is what you enjoy and end up giving it away, such as your relation with the spuds.

I've got a damned big poly tunnel here, probably 8x30 metres (guessing, but it is big) and I have never even put polythene on it. A crying shame but I can't think of a crop that would make sense to grow.
I even spoke to the Romanians and asked if they would like to grow anything for themselves, they said it was easier and cheaper to go to the supermarket.
This is pretty much my job and i have a farm shop where i could sell anything I grow too.
 
not worth it here ,although we use quite a bit of veg you would have to be growing it to be ready at different times to eat it fresh so might as well get it from lidl .
carrots ,spuds and swedes I get from the neighbours anyway and just go and get them when wanted .I do like fresh green veg though and often think I should have some of that in the garden
 
My uncle grows veg for sale so we have our own supply of it if you like. Also has tillage. It's handy as I don't have far to go for it :001_cool:
I think that the whole 'grow your own veg craic' is catching on these days. A sense of self-sufficiency and all that for people.
 
I have a suspicion that as this economic crisis thingy develops it may well be almost a necessity to grow at least some of your own stuff. Self sufficiency is a good thing in my eyes and it makes sense to at least know how to do it if needed.
How can it be right that it's cheaper to buy from the shops than to produce your own?
In fact it isn't cheaper but for what it costs and the money we all have in our pockets it isn't worth growing your own. Should any of those things change is when it becomes worthwhile.
 
I think for starting out, it's better to growing what's easy to do. As a matter of curiousity, what in anyones opinion are the easiest vegetables to grow?
 
I think for starting out, it's better to growing what's easy to do. As a matter of curiousity, what in anyones opinion are the easiest vegetables to grow?

I'm going to say spuds and maybe some carrots. :001_unsure:
 
Runner beans have got to be in there somewhere.
All I do is put the seed in and keep the weeds down.
It is very rare to have to control anything on the plants. Aphids, red spider mite and sometimes a fungicide. These are only if needed and not very often they are.
 
we have been having that discussion here today so we were wondering if you have a bug planted here

we have a friend fairly large arable ,it was so funny ,watching him trying to guess what was what in my polytunnel ,although he's good on potatoes
we have been growing our own for years mainly because of taste although it has seen us though some bad times
49 pence packet of seed ,con produce 90 pounds worth of veg

i get a lot of complaints about taste ,
they don't taste like i remember ,
generally i have to explain it's not farmers faults
they tend to blame it on the sprays that are used .
people will also not want anything that has a mark on it or not uniform size(unless it's organic and they pay a fortune for it ) :confused1:,but they don't want sprays or fertilizer on it


i tend to explain it varieties that are used ,because they have to travel ,and you get people that pick up a box and shake them :scared:so they have to be tough veg :laugh:

it can stack up french beans from kenya 1.99 per 250g one plant will produce that and they are quite easy to grow
you've got to be able to cook and freeze as well although with different types you can get 8 months production out of most things
we don't bother with potatoes though loads of wire worm in the soil and cheap enough by the sack

chickens on farms were what we were really talking about as 4 chickens will provide for the house on next to nothing ,they could even be feed screenings off the combine ,and eggs are expensive now ,
although meat birds are much more expensive home grown than anything you will ever buy from a supermarket
 
Probably been discussed here before, but who 'grows their own' for the house?
Is it worthwhile, or is it a pain in the ass, when you can buy veg so cheap in the likes of Aldi etc?

A relation dropped a bag of their home grown spuds here during the week, nicest I've tasted in ages :yes:


Started again this year. Dug up about a third of the lawn, rabbit fenced it, and have grown new potatoes (delicious) beetroot (i have already pickled some for winter) carrots (bootiful) runner beans (not quite ready yet) courgettes, cabbage, french beans and lettuce.

Planted out some winter cabbage the other day. Going to set some more carrots this week, plus new potatoes so they will come for Christmas - just a few roots. I find it very relaxing, and now the bloody rabbits can't get to them, the veg are thriving!
 
Here's a good example.
My missus planted some tomato seeds and put them in my kitchen window. This means I have to look after them and if they don't survive she is going to be all upset.
For a start I'm not that keen on having to look after them and secondly I don't really eat many tomatoes.
They have grown and I have managed to keep them alive. Some have been planted outside into growbags and they are still alive too. There were some in my window still and they are now just starting to make their second truss. :lol:
Anyway, I just cut an old wooden barrel in half, filled it with compost and planted some more in that.
I reckon if I am lucky these will produce one maybe two trusses of fruit. From what I can see they are going to be tiny little cherry tomatoes. I did ask the variety and was told "little red ones" :001_rolleyes:

My point is, I have spent summat like Ă‚ÂŁ20 on compost and growbags for these tomatoes if they ever happen. I wouldn't have spemt half of that if I had gone to Marks and Sparks for them.
 
if you snap the side shoots off you stick them in the ground then you get more plants for free :laugh:
nothing in pots here chuck it in the ground
no house plants survive here as i cannot be arsed :blushing:
 
Parents grow some stuff but the slugs like them.

When I was a chap we used to grow spuds here for 3 households - in fact first drove a tractor on my own picking up bags of them but soon copped on that it was hard tack especially blight spraying.

Grow some lettuce and onions here.

Buy all the spuds of a local grower directly - have seen his spuds with 100% mark up in local shops.
 
If I fill the other half of the barrel with the rest of the potting compost I have, is it too late to plant potatoes?
I have some in my cupboard that are well on so off to a good start I reckon. :laugh:
 
If I fill the other half of the barrel with the rest of the potting compost I have, is it too late to plant potatoes?
I have some in my cupboard that are well on so off to a good start I reckon. :laugh:


Not too late. Be ready in time for Christmas.

Not kidding! Honest! :thumbup:
 
Without doubt homegrown stuff tastes nicer than shop bought, but I just can't make the economics of doing it stack up.
Maybe if you have a large family it makes more sense but not to me who lives pretty much on my own.
Only other reason to do it is if that is what you enjoy and end up giving it away, such as your relation with the spuds.

I've got a damned big poly tunnel here, probably 8x30 metres (guessing, but it is big) and I have never even put polythene on it. A crying shame but I can't think of a crop that would make sense to grow.
I even spoke to the Romanians and asked if they would like to grow anything for themselves, they said it was easier and cheaper to go to the supermarket.
This is pretty much my job and i have a farm shop where i could sell anything I grow too.

My other half ran a market garden, she used to grow salad crops (corn salad, orientals, spinach) during the winter and tomatoes in the summer in the polytunnels. they were very good for hens as well, it's a very healthy environment and you get spotless eggs. You put the hens in a section of the tunnel to build the fertility up then move them round in the next season.
 
As a bit of an educational thing with the 3.5yr old I decided to plant some letuice seeds. Just so she gets an idea about these things.

We have some big windows in the kitchen. So I planted up some pots, plonked them in the corner and hey presto. Three weeks later we were picking bits off to eat!
Tray to the left will be big plants. And middle are a quick growing variety that can be picked at and will keep re growing.
And spring onions to the right.
I keep thretening to move the livingroom into the spare beadroom and setting up a hudroponics system to grow them in front of the big windows there!!

Screenshot_20200423-225228_Gallery.jpg

Apparently its the tastiest letuice ever!!
 
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I posted some pics when we started. This was our covid garden last weekend. 6 ridges and a lettuce triangle.

We have:

2 ridges of potatoes.
Half of cabbage
Half of turnip.
Half of carrots
Quarter of beetroot
Quarter of garlic
One of onions (purple and white)
Small one half runner beans and half kale
Triangle of lettuce.

It should leave us self sufficient for veg from June to Christmas. We have had lots of arguments over it but the kids have learned so much from it. Have the cabbage and lettuce now covered with nets for protection and will have to get a cloche for to keep carrot fly away.

One ridge every week is what we made. Took about 2 hours for each one. Very satisfying work. Don't know if we will do more this year. I think this size of a veg plot is big enough for anyone.

Maybe look at a small polytunnel for next year to start seeds off and then plant neatly in rows into the ridges. It would be so much more space efficient.
White lines are lime to keep snails away
 
View attachment 76981

I posted some pics when we started. This was our covid garden last weekend. 6 ridges and a lettuce triangle.

We have:

2 ridges of potatoes.
Half of cabbage
Half of turnip.
Half of carrots
Quarter of beetroot
Quarter of garlic
One of onions (purple and white)
Small one half runner beans and half kale
Triangle of lettuce.

It should leave us self sufficient for veg from June to Christmas. We have had lots of arguments over it but the kids have learned so much from it. Have the cabbage and lettuce now covered with nets for protection and will have to get a cloche for to keep carrot fly away.

One ridge every week is what we made. Took about 2 hours for each one. Very satisfying work. Don't know if we will do more this year. I think this size of a veg plot is big enough for anyone.

Maybe look at a small polytunnel for next year to start seeds off and then plant neatly in rows into the ridges. It would be so much more space efficient.
White lines are lime to keep snails away
Nice job. Have you a net to cover the turnip?
 
We've two drills of spuds in, planted 3 weeks apart. random ones from the kitchen that we chitted.

have peas, mange tout, carrots and lettuce in the cold frame to be planted out this afternoon.

Will plant another batch in the frame today and probably plant some seed straight too.

Wabbit fence might be overkill, we had an issue a few years back where they cleaned us out, but they're not as prevelant at the moment.

(plus we need a gate)
 

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Edit. Just googled and found its likely to be frost damage? Had a frost last night.


Newbie to potato growing here. We've some in lick tubs in the garden for the first time.
Coming allong nicely but noticed some ofvthe leaves on the plants turning black.
Any ideas?Screenshot_20200512-200317_Gallery.jpg
 
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