Getting Started with Growing Update
In this blog I plan on giving you an update on growing your on food. In my previous blog Getting Started With Growing I gave some insight into my Dad’s allotment and how he does things – at that time he was in the process of planting his potatoes. In this blog I will give an update on what other vegetables he is planting and the process he goes through.
First up is putting in Cauliflowers, Cabbage and Brussels Sprouts as seen below.
The process my Dad went through was to dig a small hole in the ground so your plant can fit perfectly in, then place the plant in the hole. Once you have the plant in the hole then press down on the soil for a few seconds.
- When planting your cauliflower try and pick a sunny place (if we go through a dry spell then it is good idea to water them every week to ten days).
- With the cabbage you have to start the growing process indoors then transfer them into the garden but make sure they are well watered before going in.
- Brussels sprouts require cool weather which is handy here. Don’t panic if they don’t come up quickly. They are slow growing so will appear around the autumn time.
Up next is broad beans. This is a similar process to enter the beans into the ground. Once you have your beans in the ground then it might be an idea to protect them from the wind like shown in the image below. One idea for your broad beans is to plant them in a pot then transfer them into your garden at a later date.
My Dad also planted his peas recently. The first thing to make sure of is that your soil is not wet or cold when you’re planting them. It is important that your soil is warm and dry so they don’t rot. Once your peas have been planted it is a good idea to protect them from the elements with some sort of wiring. You can see an example of what my Dad is using to protect his peas in the images below. To encourage good growth it is a good idea to water your peas at least once a week.
In my previous blog Getting Started with Growing I showed how my Dad planted potatoes, if you look closely enough at the image below you can see a little green leaf is starting to pop through the soil now.
My Dad’s allotment is next to a farm and as a result some Moles get into his patch and damage what he is trying to grow. If you have a similar situation then it might be an idea to buy a sonic like device that send out sounds to the moles but not to humans.
If you’re interested in growing your own food, why not book a place on one of Greener Kirkcaldy’s free Grow Your Own Workhops? They are running a programme of workshops over the year. See the events page for upcoming workshops. If you don’t have the time or space to grow your own food, you can still buy local fresh food as part of our Fife Food for Fife Folk project.
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