Posted by Sacha on February 13, 2005, 9:40 am
I think everyone who knows me also knows I don't 'do' veg. growing, so I
could well be preaching to the converted here. But Ray and I were chatting
over lunch and he told me about a tip from an old chap who worked for Ray's
family back in their Essex days. Old Tom taught Ray to plant seed peas
about a month before they could be sown outside. His method was to fill a
gutter about 6' long with compost and sow the seeds in it. During that
month in a glasshouse the seeds would sprout into nice, healthy, little
plants. When the right moment arrived, Tom dug a trench and carefully slid
the entire row of peas and compost into it, well advanced over those sown
directly into the ground.
Another one of Tom's tips was from the days before fruit & veg were imported
from all over the world and he learned it from the Head Gardener on some
huge estate. They would cut bunches of grapes with a 'T' piece of stem at
the top and carefully place the 'T' in a special kind of vase filled with a
solution of water and sugar, with the grapes dangling outside. Kept in a
cool outhouse, these would last until wanted for the Christmas table.
Another one I learned from Jersey farmers was to put new potatoes into a
crock or tin and bury them in the ground. Unearth them at Christmas and you
had 'new' potatoes for the festive table. I've never tried it and I've
always wanted to - one day!
And for those of us who had hail today - it's arrived here - Old Tom used
to say that if it hailed you'd have three days frost afterwards. We'll see!
I reckon that, given their combined ages, this wisdom from Tom must go back
nearly 100 years.
--
Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
(remove the weeds to email me)
Posted by shazzbat on February 13, 2005, 3:41 pm
> I think everyone who knows me also knows I don't 'do' veg. growing, so I
> could well be preaching to the converted here. But Ray and I were
chatting
> over lunch and he told me about a tip from an old chap who worked for
Ray's
> family back in their Essex days. Old Tom taught Ray to plant seed peas
> about a month before they could be sown outside. His method was to fill a
> gutter about 6' long with compost and sow the seeds in it. During that
> month in a glasshouse the seeds would sprout into nice, healthy, little
> plants. When the right moment arrived, Tom dug a trench and carefully
slid
> the entire row of peas and compost into it, well advanced over those sown
> directly into the ground.
> Another one of Tom's tips was from the days before fruit & veg were
imported
> from all over the world and he learned it from the Head Gardener on some
> huge estate. They would cut bunches of grapes with a 'T' piece of stem at
> the top and carefully place the 'T' in a special kind of vase filled with
a
> solution of water and sugar, with the grapes dangling outside. Kept in a
> cool outhouse, these would last until wanted for the Christmas table.
> Another one I learned from Jersey farmers was to put new potatoes into a
> crock or tin and bury them in the ground. Unearth them at Christmas and
you
> had 'new' potatoes for the festive table. I've never tried it and I've
> always wanted to - one day!
> And for those of us who had hail today - it's arrived here - Old Tom
used
> to say that if it hailed you'd have three days frost afterwards. We'll
see!
We had hail today. It came as quite a surprise, because it was sunny when I
went underneath the car two minutes previously. Still, I got the welder
unplugged in time so all's well.
Steve
Posted by Tim Challenger on February 14, 2005, 4:42 am
On Sun, 13 Feb 2005 20:41:38 -0000, shazzbat wrote:
>> And for those of us who had hail today - it's arrived here - Old Tom
> used to say that if it hailed you'd have three days frost afterwards. We'll
> see!
I had 3" of snow overnight, does that count?
--
Tim C.
Posted by Sacha on February 14, 2005, 5:34 am
On 14/2/05 9:42, in article
1108373858.55f8b6d7f1805c910972d2b966084534@teranews, "Tim Challenger"
> On Sun, 13 Feb 2005 20:41:38 -0000, shazzbat wrote:
>
>>> And for those of us who had hail today - it's arrived here - Old Tom
>> used to say that if it hailed you'd have three days frost afterwards. We'll
>> see!
>
> I had 3" of snow overnight, does that count?
I bet it does from where you are!
--
Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
(remove the weeds to email me)
Posted by Dave Poole on February 14, 2005, 4:37 am
As you know, I'm not a veg grower either Sacha, but I do remember
seeing this recommended by Percy Thrower on the original Gardener's
World many years ago.
>...They would cut bunches of grapes with a 'T' piece of stem at
>the top and carefully place the 'T' in a special kind of vase filled with a
>solution of water and sugar, with the grapes dangling outside.
Yes this is still a successful method of you have a glut of grapes and
a well ventilated house. We used to have a massive 'Muscat of
Alexandria' that gave wonderful crops. They would deteriorate if left
hanging on the vine, but remained in very good condition for quite a
long time if placed in bottles of sugar solution.
>And for those of us who had hail today - it's arrived here - Old Tom used
>to say that if it hailed you'd have three days frost afterwards.
Yes we had a few minutes of hail here leaving a bit of ice lying for a
short while. That frost didn't arrive last night though and I'm
pretty certain that we've seen the last of winter here on the coast.
Dave Poole
Torquay, Coastal South Devon UK
Winter min -2°C. Summer max 34°C.
Growing season: March - November
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> could well be preaching to the converted here. But Ray and I were