Sorry.................

[chykensa]

Funny that you should post this just now lobeydosser, my wife and I are having an all-out attack on our garden, and are considering doing just the same as you with raised beds.
We used to grow quite a lot, but nasty neighbours who didn't entice us out into the garden to work, and a child, now grown up and getting ready to fledge (A Level results tomorrow!!!!), we are now planning what to grow from next Spring.
I delivered a portion of French Beans and purple Mange Tout to my MIL this morning on the way into town, and Runner Beans, although planted late, should be ready by the time we get back from holidays in a couple of weeks.

It's most satisfying, and quite the right thing to do, to produce your own veg. Nothing tastes finer than vegetables which were growing quite happily on the plant until 30 minutes before you eat them!!

[gill2009]

lobeydosser...I can hardly believe the difference from what it all looked like before...fabulous 

[Chrissie]

Wow lobeydosser, as gill2009 says, it really is looking fabulous

[lobeydosser]

Like chykensa, it is the idea of freshness that is enticing me towards growing my own. I have grown veggies and fruit before, but that was from a saving money point of view and really, with frozen stuff and little wastage, it is cheaper to buy from the shops than to grow it yourself.

200 square feet of raised beds will not produce all our veggie needs for the year, but it should give me some satisfaction of producing something worthwhile and give us a reasonable amount of fresh produce.

Once the greenhouse has heating and lighting, growing plants from seeds will also reduce wastage as well as extending our planting times.

But all this will take time and I honestly do not see us getting anything into the ground before next Spring.

To gill2009 and Chrissie, well it may be beginning to look fabulous, but lets face it, it could hardly have looked any worse in the beginning!!!

[chykensa]

lobeydosser - I have just bought this book for my wife, and she has read it twice in two weeks! It talks specifically about raised beds and double-cropping, one in spring and one in early summer, to get the most productivity from each bed. It also details the best varieties of each veg and includes detailed instructions about sowing, planting out and harvesting. Well worth the money!
All You Can Eat in 3 Square Feet

[lobeydosser]

Thanks chykensa.

I have just ordered one.

[chykensa]

I don't think you will be disappointed lobeydosser - I suspect that our copy will be well thumbed by this time next year!! We are considering getting a couple of the plastic trugs the book talks about to put on our south-facing deck to grow peas in, and I have a plastic tub which will be used for new potatoes next Spring too.
Can hardly wait until we can start sowing, and have yesterday turned all 3 of our plastic compost bins, and we have probably 2 bins worth of the good stuff to add to our beds once I have built them

[chykensa]

Get some onion seeds into the ground in September, and start some peas off in the greenhouse in pots; they can be planted out as soon as the soil starts to warm up to really extend your season. Once those plants have finished, get some lettuce or salad stuff to fill in the gaps.

[lobeydosser]

Hi chykensa, I doubt if I will be ready for any soil delivery until October or even November.

Although 3 of the 4 raised beds are built, I still have to rout and smooth down the tops so that I don't get skelves in me botty.
I then have to line the insides of the beds up to soil depth.

The rest of the winter will be taken over laying paths, preparing the soil and running in armoured cable to the greenhouse.

Oh, and I need to rig up 4 electric fences and hoop frames to control garden pests.

Whatever happened to the days when gardening meant a spade and a fork?

[Deleted]

this is all very well chykensa but what can you just grow in a grow bag on a south facing sill

Pre Kenwood I had a summer of tomatoes (Ma won't forget that - half way through making pizza they fell down - she was like tomorrow you'll get canes and my darling hydroponic cabbage ...

so yeah? Ideas?

[chykensa]

@johanino - chillis, tomatoes, even potatoes in a deep-enough tub. Salad stuff like lettuce, radishes, even small beetroot that don't need too much depth will work. If you are south-facing, you are spoilt for choice really.
Pop into a garden centre and have a look for dwarf varieties, you'll be surprised at what's available these days.

[Deleted]

I need to clear a windowsill for next year

[charliehorse]

@johanino
Standard chilli plants will grow quite happily on my east facing shaded by tree/shed window sill on the miserable and grey west coast, so a sunny south facing window should be no bother for lots of grow your own stuff.
Only limit is depth of the sill for pot size.

[Deleted]

I can fit a grow bag on my sills charliehorse....but the mini kitchen garden sill has been out of bounds for a few years since getting my care worker Kenwood chef

[TillyFTW]

I would be careful mate getting a grow on in ya own back garden. I do mine in the loft, gotta watch out for the 5-0