How Does Your Garden Grow?

[OJCar]

Nobody wants sweaty slugs...

 

[Kram]

The French will eat anything.


@Onoff did you try the slug egg eating nematode things?

 

[Onoff]

The French will eat anything.


@Onoff did you try the slug egg eating nematode things?

Nope. Nor will I ever. I'm worried about them getting into my brain and eating it.

Some on here use them I know and look what it's done to them!

 

[DanZac]

The French will eat anything.


@Onoff did you try the slug egg eating nematode things?

I tried the Namatodes one year on the allotment and I dont really think they made much of a difference. I think you need to get them down at the right time and in the right conditions to be effective, and thats never going to happen here.

Expensive experiment as far as I was concerned and I've not bothered again. Not many slugs around this year with the hot, dry weather, so global warming seems to be more effective than Nematoads.

 

[Kram]

There are millions of them here. I dont think the hot dry weather bothers them, soon as its wet, theres a flood of the slimy things!
So perhaps they did have an effect?

I have been meaning to try them although I dont grow veg, currently only a cherry tree in my garden.

 

[Kram]

Nope. Nor will I ever. I'm worried about them getting into my brain and eating it.

Some on here use them I know and look what it's done to them!

Too late?

 

[Anguz]

There are millions of them here. I dont think the hot dry weather bothers them, soon as its wet, theres a flood of the slimy things!
So perhaps they did have an effect?

I have been meaning to try them although I dont grow veg, currently only a cherry tree in my garden.

I used them 2 years ago... didn't seem to do anything at the time. But not seen hardly any this year

 

[Kram]

They eat the eggs rather than the slugs, so I'd expect it to be quite a delayed effect. No idea how long a Frenchman lives though?

 

[Onoff]

Creosote. One of the quintessential smells of an English summer along with a good bonfire. Don't tell me the world would be a better place without them.

 

[Greeves246]

Lifted the last row of potatoes yesterday, as they were first earlies it was a little overdue. Will have to store them for a few weeks so need to cure and box up. Was an interesting experiment but I don’t think I will repeat next year as being on my own I can’t eat them fast enough and main crop potatoes whilst being able to store for longer periods are cheap to buy anyway. It’s the same problem with most veg, did tomatoes a few years ago and couldn’t give them away. Not sure what to put in the raised bed they were in, probably begonias as they have grown much bigger in the other bed than they did in pots.

 

[DanZac]

Was an interesting experiment but I don’t think I will repeat next year as being on my own I can’t eat them fast enough and main crop potatoes whilst being able to store for longer periods are cheap to buy anyway.

I can't argue with this because it's true. But somehow, a home grown potatoe tastes like a potatoe, whilst a shop bought one tastes of nothing. Most notable when freshly dug and lightly boiled.

Most home grown stuff is the same. Strawberries, Cucumbers and Tomatoes all taste totally different to the tasteless, insipid, floppy, (or rock hard) shop bought offerings.

 

[Dapph2]

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Despite what it says on the packets I've often sow individual seeds in my bottomless seed tubes ( one per tube ) and germinate them in the green house , heated propagation bed or if the weather is 15 oC or above outside . It requires regular looking at and as soon as a seed germinates and shows through the growth medium it is taken out the seed tray and put in with other now growing seedlings in a different tray .

Each tube has it's own seed label with date and description of plant so it matters not where it is put . My growth medium is now sterilized by steam and boiling water by me & I now put slug pellets in the seed trays after one disastrous year when purchased in a seed sowing medium turned out to be riddled with microscopic black slugs which ate every seedling as they emerged .

PS
Apologies for the bad spelling in my earlier post I was a bit under the weather & suffering with severe shoulder pain yet again .

 

[Dapph2]

What's the best way to use peanut shells in the garden? My old man would always chuck them in the compost. SWMBO refuses to as it makes the compost "sharp" according to her. Same with eggshells.

It's got to the point we now have his 'n her's compost bins.

I've read they can be used as a slug deterrent but worried the smell and odd lost peanut will attract vermin. I don't want to faff washing or roasting/toasting them etc. The same with eggshells. My gut is straight in the compost bin, leave plenty of space around the bin and let the vermin run the gauntlet with the cats.

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Stick them in the blender for a 10 second whizz around then add hot water to the pulp then put them in the compost , same with eggs shells . Though teaspoon sized parts of egg shells are very beneficial to the garden as worms love to eat the very thin albumen ( egg white still in the shell and lay their eggs on it as it is excellent food for baby worms . I often lift our Dalek composter lids and see loads of worms feasting on the inside part of eggshells .

 

[Slowcoach]

Lifted the last row of potatoes yesterday, as they were first earlies it was a little overdue. Will have to store them for a few weeks so need to cure and box up. Was an interesting experiment but I don’t think I will repeat next year as being on my own I can’t eat them fast enough and main crop potatoes whilst being able to store for longer periods are cheap to buy anyway. It’s the same problem with most veg, did tomatoes a few years ago and couldn’t give them away. Not sure what to put in the raised bed they were in, probably begonias as they have grown much bigger in the other bed than they did in pots.
View attachment 506393

Is it worth planting something like raspberries which are a bit longer term and you can grow however many plants will give a sustainable amount.

 

[Dapph2]

Lifted the last row of potatoes yesterday, as they were first earlies it was a little overdue. Will have to store them for a few weeks so need to cure and box up. Was an interesting experiment but I don’t think I will repeat next year as being on my own I can’t eat them fast enough and main crop potatoes whilst being able to store for longer periods are cheap to buy anyway. It’s the same problem with most veg, did tomatoes a few years ago and couldn’t give them away. Not sure what to put in the raised bed they were in, probably begonias as they have grown much bigger in the other bed than they did in pots.
View attachment 506393

Par boil for 3 min quickly cool in iced water then drain pat dry and bag in one or two meal portions , then bac vac pack if you have one and deep freeze them , use in soups or thin sliced ( before packing ) with a bit of butter as sauté potato in butter or as a home made Rosti with fine chopped onions , bacon as potato patty's , use smoked bacon for a more enhanced flavour instead of buying expensive lardons .

 

[Dapph2]

Is it worth planting something like raspberries which are a bit longer term and you can grow however many plants will give a sustainable amount.

Be aware that Raspberries send out small close to the host plant underground runners and if you don't annually dig a spade deep along each row of plants to sever the suckers they can easily get out of hand. My brother was astonished when his plant pot plant that he put in a tub and took suckers from turned in to a two foot wide band of raspberry plants from a single row of 15 plants after three years of neglect .

 

[Onoff]

Stick them in the blender for a 10 second whizz around then add hot water to the pulp then put them in the compost , same with eggs shells

Too much mucking around for me I'm afraid. I'll just crumble them by hand.

 

[Dapph2]

Here's an off the wall one. Slugs don't like salt right? Salt is sodium something or other.

I went round the rim of the salad "barth" with a natural stick deodorant. Will it work or will it attract them in droves Citronellol in it too which I believe is in insect repellent candles.

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Keeping slugs & snails out might not solve the problem till you exterminate their eggs in your bath tub .
I suggest you think of using a slug ( Found in nature so as natural as can be ) nematode to get rid of them , follow the instructions exactly & use a fine rose watering can to apply them , as well as use up any left over mixture around other plants .
Two applications of slug nematode saw my beds slug free of four or so years
.
This year because of other problems & commitments I have let my raised beds go feral whilst I'm doing other major works & caring for my lass who was suddenly stuck with level 6.5 MS last year & is struggling with it this last year.

 

[Dapph2]

Too much mucking around for me I'm afraid. I'll just crumble them by hand.

Oooh you roughy toughy.

 

[Onoff]

Keeping slugs & snails out might not solve the problem till you exterminate their eggs in your bath tub .
I suggest you think of using a slug ( Found in nature so as natural as can be ) nematode to get rid of them , follow the instructions exactly & use a fine rose watering can to apply them , as well as use up any left over mixture around other plants .
Two applications of slug nematode saw my beds slug free of four or so years
.
This year because of other problems & commitments I have let my raised beds go feral whilst I'm doing other major works & caring for my lass who was suddenly stuck with level 6.5 MS last year & is struggling with it this last year.

Nope. Neem oil or nothing. I refuse to use nematodes.