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On My Oasis – Summer Seeds and Dahlias
Sowing, germinating and growing on has been problematic this year. I started 2016 with a plan. I had a list of vegetables I wanted to grow. I planned when to sow, how long they’d take to germinate, the dates to plant out and times to successionally sow. Has that worked? No!
The problem I’ve had – I don’t know about you – is that though all the seedlings started off well, cold, wet weather stopped them in their tracks. So they languished, ungrowing, awaiting a warm spell. And this meant trouble, because all that rain has encouraged slugs and snails ready to bite. So, I lost my first crop of cucumbers and squashes and beans. My peppers didn’t germinate, and then when they did a rogue chicken got them. My aubergines are growing….slowly.
With the garden centre having a 50% off sale today, I’ve decided to have a last ditch attempt. After all, the sowing periods on seed packets are a guide based on optimal conditions. We haven’t had those conditions. SO, though the gherkin, cucumber and courgette seeds say last plant May/June, today I’ve sown them. The same goes for a new batch of beans. I’ve also done another successional sowing of carrots. Last year I was still getting ripe tomatoes from the greenhouse in November, and we often have an Indian Summer in October now. Of course, now I’m doing this little test it’ll probably get cold early – sod’s law.
A few of today’s late sowings.
There have been some positives though. I picked a glut of broad beans and kale today to go with one of the chooks I killed on Saturday. The onions are also beginning to swell nicely, whilst the nasturtiums are doing their job and attracting aphids away from the vegetables.
Swelling onions.
Nasturtium ‘Tom Thumb’ is attracting aphids away from the veggies
A few veggies for this evening’s dinner….and some eggs.
I am happy to see some progress in the ornamental garden too. I’ve been taking A TONNE of cuttings, both to use for my own purposes and to sell. I’ve discovered the area of Plant Breeder’s Rights (PBR); a whole intricate area of legislation referring to the propagation of plants. I can completely understand that if you bring a new hybrid to market, you want to get some royalty for that plant to pay for the years of work. However, there seems to be an extremely inadequate system for governing this process. So, for now, I’m not getting involved, and propagating older varieties that are not included in the more modern PBR laws. I took a little video of some box cuttings.
The dahlias are also coming into life, though once again, the slugs seem to have got the first few buds. However, a few nightly stomps and their numbers are down so I’m finally getting some blooms!
Arabian Nights
An ‘assorted pack’ dahlia
Another ‘assorted pack’ dahlia
All in all it’s proving to be a funny year, with some plants romping away and others being extremely lacklustre. Now we’re into July, I really hope we get some proper sunshine though – this is Britain – the torrential rain will probably continue.
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