If you are getting ready to sit down with a few seed catalogues right about now, then you might want to consider growing some heirloom varieties this year.
What are heirloom plants? They are plants grown from freely pollinated and collected seeds. Basically they are old varieties, usually at least fifty years old. Most modern seeds we find in the shops and catalogues today are hybrid varieties. This means they have been chosen, bred, and packaged up to deliver disease resistant, productive, and uniform produce. This seems like a great idea, but we are also at risk of losing out on our biodiversity, and some great tasting vegetables!
One of the nice things about growing heirloom varieties is that you can save the seed produced at the then end of the season to grow the same crop again the following year. This is a very economical way to grow your own!
If this has peaked your interest check out some of the following:
Articles:
Why buy heirloom seeds?
Growing Heirloom Varieties
UK Sites
Real Seeds--this is one of my favourites! Lots of seeds, info on how to grow and save seeds.
Vegetable Seed Store
Garden Organic--this organisation has tons of information as well as organic seeds, and some heirloom varieties
ThomasEtty--sells heritage seeds
Allotments UK--a wealth of information on growing your own
USA Sites
(I cannot vouch for any of these companies. I just did a quick Internet search.)
Seeds Trust
Seed Savers
Heirloom Seeds
Heirloom Acres Seeds
Bakers Creek Heirloom Seeds
Showing posts with label Gardening. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gardening. Show all posts
Thursday, 27 January 2011
Thursday, 20 January 2011
Choosing Raised Beds
Deciding to use raised beds in my garden,despite taking ten years of humming and hawing over it, was easy compared to choosing which system to go with!
The things that I need to consider include:
link-a-bord
linkabord
These are made of 98% recycled plastic. They say they will not break. They will last for ages. They come in five colours (I am favouring black). There are a large number of size variations available and hoops/netting as well. The sets can be stacked to make deeper beds,which is what I am looking for. If I move I can pick them up and take them with me. I would imagine they would have some resale value if needed. These are less expensive than many of the wooden and plastic systems out there. The company is well established, so if I like them, it is likely I can add to my collection year after year. I am not 100% sure I want plastic in my garden. But I believe that a product which will last for ages is good for the environment.
Wooden Systems
You can make your own fairly inexpensively with treated or untreated timber. Or you can look at some of these sites for their ready to build sets.
Harrod Horticultural I am looking at their "allotment" series, which is a value range.
Recycle Works Their beds slot together easily and they have good prices.
Green Fingers These folks have a bewildering array of beds available!
Make sure to look for FSC-accredited wood. All of these companies have a wide variety of types, sizes, and price ranges. Wooden beds which have been treated have some risk of leaching chemicals into the crops, supposedly. The untreated versions would rot within a few years. These systems can cost about the same as the plastic system above, but may only be guaranteed up to five years. Wood looks nice....
I have considered trialing a couple of different kinds. I will be pouring over these websites for the next few weeks and wrestle with my budget a bit...and let you know what I have decided.
The things that I need to consider include:
- price (!)
- price over time/how long they will last
- ease of assembly
- material
- size
link-a-bord
linkabord
These are made of 98% recycled plastic. They say they will not break. They will last for ages. They come in five colours (I am favouring black). There are a large number of size variations available and hoops/netting as well. The sets can be stacked to make deeper beds,which is what I am looking for. If I move I can pick them up and take them with me. I would imagine they would have some resale value if needed. These are less expensive than many of the wooden and plastic systems out there. The company is well established, so if I like them, it is likely I can add to my collection year after year. I am not 100% sure I want plastic in my garden. But I believe that a product which will last for ages is good for the environment.
Wooden Systems
You can make your own fairly inexpensively with treated or untreated timber. Or you can look at some of these sites for their ready to build sets.
Harrod Horticultural I am looking at their "allotment" series, which is a value range.
Recycle Works Their beds slot together easily and they have good prices.
Green Fingers These folks have a bewildering array of beds available!
Make sure to look for FSC-accredited wood. All of these companies have a wide variety of types, sizes, and price ranges. Wooden beds which have been treated have some risk of leaching chemicals into the crops, supposedly. The untreated versions would rot within a few years. These systems can cost about the same as the plastic system above, but may only be guaranteed up to five years. Wood looks nice....
I have considered trialing a couple of different kinds. I will be pouring over these websites for the next few weeks and wrestle with my budget a bit...and let you know what I have decided.
Raised Beds
Using raised beds can have a lot of benefits in the vegetable garden. Raised beds mean less digging because you do not walk on, and compact the soil. They result in better water retention, and temperature being slightly above the ground. For some, high beds are easier to reach. Raised bed gardeners also use close planting methods, which means less weeding, and a better use of space. Raised beds are great for both small and large gardens as well.
I have used raised beds growing up with great success. Here on the farm I have made some beds using some old bricks. But I am really struggling to grow decent crops with the soil here. It is really free-draining. Too free-draining. And despite years of adding manure and compost I just cannot get more than a few nice vegetables each year!
And I have decided to bite the bullet and order a raised bed system. I have been avoiding it for many years to protect my budget, but I have had enough. Since I have some really awful pernicious weeds---the only thing that seems to thrive here, I will be choosing a deep bed and using weed proof cloth as well.
I intend to fill the bed with compost, topsoil, and manure. An expensive way to go, but I would like to prove to myself that my poor yield is due to awful soil rather than my poor gardening skills! I will start with one or two beds this year as an experiment. I will try out some of my old beds as well and compare. If it works I will get more beds for next year.
I have used raised beds growing up with great success. Here on the farm I have made some beds using some old bricks. But I am really struggling to grow decent crops with the soil here. It is really free-draining. Too free-draining. And despite years of adding manure and compost I just cannot get more than a few nice vegetables each year!
And I have decided to bite the bullet and order a raised bed system. I have been avoiding it for many years to protect my budget, but I have had enough. Since I have some really awful pernicious weeds---the only thing that seems to thrive here, I will be choosing a deep bed and using weed proof cloth as well.
I intend to fill the bed with compost, topsoil, and manure. An expensive way to go, but I would like to prove to myself that my poor yield is due to awful soil rather than my poor gardening skills! I will start with one or two beds this year as an experiment. I will try out some of my old beds as well and compare. If it works I will get more beds for next year.
Friday, 14 January 2011
Square Foot Gardening
This is one of my favourite gardening books. It is amazing how much you can grow in such a small space. Mel Batholomew also gives such great tips for keeping seeds year after year, and watering etc.
I find it much easier to grow vegetables in beds instead of huge rows. With this method you grow what you need rather than simply emptying a seed packet down a long row, only to have to thin out later. So this method is less waste, less weeding, and there is less waste with the produce at the end. (Let's face it, summer squashes don't freeze that well). The other great advantage is that there is no annual digging involved! If you don't walk all over your vegetable patch, and compact the earth, there is no reason to dig it.
If you are new to gardening or trying to grow in a very small space,this is a very helpful book. And if you want to expand, you can do that easily too by creating more beds!
I find it much easier to grow vegetables in beds instead of huge rows. With this method you grow what you need rather than simply emptying a seed packet down a long row, only to have to thin out later. So this method is less waste, less weeding, and there is less waste with the produce at the end. (Let's face it, summer squashes don't freeze that well). The other great advantage is that there is no annual digging involved! If you don't walk all over your vegetable patch, and compact the earth, there is no reason to dig it.
If you are new to gardening or trying to grow in a very small space,this is a very helpful book. And if you want to expand, you can do that easily too by creating more beds!
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