Veg4Show

A few days ago my parsnips started to pop through the surface to my relief. Today they are all up in every station and have got off to a good start. Germination took 19 days which is pretty good going, I have also decided to test pinnacle this year and have sown two large barrels with 3 bore holes in each, we shall see how they get on compared to Gladiator.

My shallots are growing away fast now and the pots are full of roots with a lot of top growth, I will soon have to harden them off ready to plant out.

All my onions have been potted up into 3 inch pots now and are looking great and I should get some decent onions from them.

The greenhouse is full of flower plants from seed and my hanging basket plants so hopefully I can start to harden off all my hardy veg and make room for my tomatoes which I will be sown this weekend and next weekend.

This weekend I also intend to sow my long carrots, well fill the pipes up with sand and bore the holes adding the mix a bit at a time. I will alow the pipes to warm up for few days before planting, giving them a good water first and covering them with polythene.

Well this year is not going very well with what the loss of my leeks and now non of the celery germinating, things are getting worst. I have my fingers crossed that my parsnips come up, I see no reason why they shouldnt but doubts are creaping in due to a bad start.

The good news is; Medwyn is going to kindly send me 20 celery plants to help revive my season and give me a chance of at least having some celery. In the mean time I have sown some robinsons celery as back up's as I can not get hold of any "Ideal" from any local garden centre, I have no time to wait for postal delivery as its getting late as it is for my first show.

I hope things pick up.. let me guess next its going to be long carrot problems which I will be sowing end of March inside the tunnel.

My first sowing of Evening star was sown on the 16th February and my second sowing 22nd. They are yet to germinate and are currently sitting in my greenhouse on the warming bench. They should be popping up any day now?..soon?...we hope.

Pictures are two weeks old, but hey I will show you some later ones soon.

Onions at different stages: (Yes no one opened the greenhouse door on this day)







Threw all my Medwyn leeks away bar 6, will have to hope my Peter Clarke leeks get a move on.

Bit late on updating:

My parsnips have now all been sown inside my tunnel that I built myself from my old poly tunnel. The mix is the same as last year:

25 ltr top soil
15 ltr silver sand
25 ltr moss peat
100g susperhosphate
60g bone meal
150g sulphate potash
200g lime
150g calicified seaweed
150g seaweed meal

The pipes are 6.5 foot this year and I have also planted about two weeks later than normal. I have some pictures but they are 3 weeks old so the tunnel looks a lot different from this picture now as it as the side vents complete.