Growing garlic is both easy and satisfying: it's well-suited to both the first time gardener and the more experienced. A haul of freshly harvested garlic is a beautiful thing, especially when the out
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In case you are new to vegetable growing, I feel I should point out that tomatoes need heat throughout their lifecycle, both to germinate and grow healthy seedlings and to produce ripe fruit. Growers
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I know I have looked at soil and plant feeds a number of times over the years but, for the benefit of new growers, I think it may be helpful to cover it again today as we prepare our gardens for a new
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Tomatoes are one of the most rewarding crops for the home gardener to grow, simply because their flavour is so much better than their shop-bought cousins. Tomatoes grown for the supermarket shelf hav
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Tomatoes can be grown in containers like pots, planters, growbags, and hanging baskets, they may not be the easiest plant to grow at home but they are definitely one of the favourites. There are many
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Pumpkins have a special appeal for both adults and children, especially at Halloween. The carved pumpkin outside the front door - or being carried house to house as a lantern - is an established trad
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Growing Peppers
Peppers and chillis are expensive when bought in the shops so growing your own is an economical exercise which also brings great pleasure. They are tropical plants and therefore appr
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Lettuce is a favorite in the garden because it is relatively easy to grow, is one of the first crops that can be planted, and is one of the first crops to yield in the spring. It doesn’t take a lot o
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When you’re just starting on your food-growing journey, it’s probably best to be a little selective about what you’re planning to grow. There are some food crops that can prove to be surprisingly dif
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So, the other week, I had an email from a customer asking for advice on what soil mix to use for planting fruit trees in containers. It was a simple question which should have resulted in a quick r
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Q - My tomato leaves are yellowing but they seem to be producing good fruit, do I need to feed them?
This question we received from a reader is a very good one, because I think many people assume tha
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Whatever style of greenhouse you opt for - whether it’s a ‘lean-to’, a compact house or a larger one - it will open up new possibilities for you and extend your growing season. It’s also a very pleas
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Unlike other countries in the world, we just don't get the weather to grow chilli peppers successfully outdoors. It is possible but the results and cropping levels aren't as good. From my own persona
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I'm not sure what the weather is like where you are but it has been dry in the Quickcrop garden for the last week which means the soil is dry enough to work. As you probably know, digging saturated so
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Fruit trees and bushes are planted in the garden with the intention of being around for the long haul, providing harvests for many years. In return for this supply of fresh fruit they require regular
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The cauliflower is not the easiest of the brassica family to grow but a large white cauliflower with tight white curds is a thing of beauty and producing one a source of much satisfaction. Variety is
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Cabbage is a demanding plant from the amount of nutrients it needs and the space it takes up in the garden. It really is easy to grow if you feed your soil properly to begin with and take precautions
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A comprehensive article on How to grow Artichokes (Jerusalem variety). Artichokes area very easy crop to grow but be careful as they are very hard to get rid of once established! Delicious r
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Cabbage is a demanding plant both is the amount of nutrients it needs and the space it takes up in the garden. It really is easy to grow if you feed your soil properly to begin with and take precau
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Lovely long slender stems, this variety makes a lovely, tasty baby leek for harvesting from mid summer onward. The flavour is no less impressive when eaten full size in the autumn.
The leek is a
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Last week the blog included some tips on starting a new vegetable garden and, judging by the emails I received (thank you), a number of you found it very helpful (fantastic!). With that in mind, I
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Claytonia is also known as winter purslane or miners lettuce, it tastes quite like spinach and is full of vitamin C. It is a tough, cold resistant salad for growing in the open to crop from October un
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The trick with growing celery is to take a lot of care sowing your transplants, making sure the plants never get stressed or pot bound. When planted out remember celery is originally a wetla
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Courgettes are easy to grow with two plants producing ample courgettes for most families. Courgettes are best picked small for best flavour, these plants are also very prolific so don't worry there
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How to grow red kale, the variety we use most often in our nurseries is Red Russian, this is a frost hardy variety with a sweeter taste than other kale.
A wonderful addition to the winter garden
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Raspberries are one of the most popular summer fruits and are very easy to grow. Different training techniques mean raspberries can be grown in gardens of any size and in containers.Preparation
R
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O.K., so you've managed to produce your own seedling plants or have bought in some promising looking specimens. You have hardened them off and are ready to put them out into your garden (or in the ca
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Beetroot is one of my best friends in the garden as we get so much out of it: using it for juicing, grating it for salads, roasting, baking and - my favourite of all - pickling.
This crop has recentl
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Choose a sunny open site in which to plant your rhubarb crown as rhubarb does not grow well in shade. November is the perfect time to plant a rhubarb crown. Make sure the site is weed-free and dig
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We had a number of questions recently on polytunnel growing: particularly whether polytunnels are worth the investment and whether it is true that they enable year-round growing, so I figured I might
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Onions are one of the most popular vegetables for growing in home gardens and are one of the first crops of spring. They can be stored over winter thus making a versatile crop. They are used in a h
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How to Grow your own Runner Beans from seed or seedlings with this step by step guide including plant maintenance, pest and disease control and harvesting. All this growing beans information is als
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Blueberries are delicious and extremely high in antioxidants which is why it is regarded as a super food. Plants are easy to grow provided you use an acidic or 'ericaceous' compost.
Site and S
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Gooseberry Bushes
How to grow gooseberries. Ranging from huge, juicy, red dessert fruit to tiny, sparkling, golden drops of sweetness, gooseberries are a great, easy to grow choice. This section als
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Blackcurrants are easy-to-grow bushes that produce bunches of dark purple to black fruits in mid-summer. They have a tart flavour, are an invaluable source of vitamin C and can be used in pies a
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Perpetual spinach is actually a chard (beet family) but is very similar to true spinach in flavour. We prefer it as it is much easier to grow and far more vigorous than true spinach. It also has the
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Parsnips are easy to grow members of the cow parsley family. This family includes carrot, dill, fennel and parsley among others. These seeds tend to have a short period of viability, so new packets
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'Brigitte F1' has to be the best and most reliable brussels sprout variety with fantastic results every time. We recommend using an F1 hybrid sprout like Brigitte because the sprouts stay closed lo
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When most people hear the word 'broccoli' this is the crop that they will see in their mind's eye. The large green heads, made up of tightly packed florets, are popular with beginner gardeners and ve
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Broad beans are the simplest thing to grow. They are hardy and produce a large crop of delicious beans. I prefer to pick them young for a sweeter bean which are lovely tossed into a salad. You can ea
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Swede is one of the easiest vegetables to grow and is well-suited to the novice gardener. They also crop over a very long time because they can be left in the soil throughout the winter.
Swede
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'Cavolo Nero' or 'Nero Di Toscana' is the only kale grown in Italy, simply because it is by far the best tasting kale. Its large strap like leaves are fantastic in a stir fry with excellent taste a
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Soil and Site
Any moderately fertile moisture retentive soil is good. A sheltered semi shade position is ideal.
Rotation
Oriental salads are part of the brassica rotation
Sowing
Orientals
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Know Your Broccoli!
In Italian the word broccoli means 'little sprouts'. It is part of the Brassica family of vegetables, which also includes cauliflower, cabbages, Brussels sprouts, turnips and many
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Squash plants are closely related to cucumbers, courgettes and marrows, and are a member of the same family, curcurbit. Squash plants come in a variety of shapes and sizes, and include butternut sq
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Sowing French Bean - Climbing
Recommended varieties: Cobra.
You can sow climbing french beans indoors from the middle of May to plant out later or sow outdoors at the end of May. Be aware that Fren
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Get the soil conditions correct and carrots are one of the easiest vegetables to grow in the cooler climates. Incorrect soil conditions lead to misshapen carrots - these may well cause a chuckle when
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The trouble with pots and planters made from ceramic or stone is that they are heavy (extremely heavy if we're talking about stone), and can split in a heavy frost. From our point of view, they are a
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Tatsoi is an oriental mustard green and is also called spinach mustard. Its a popular salad green in Aisan cuisine.
Soil & Water
Tatsoi greens prefer rich, fertile soil with a pH of 6.0-7.5 and p
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Peas are well-suited to cooler temperate climates. In fact, when temperatures exceed 20C (70F), most varieties of peas will stop producing pods.
Peas are part of the legume (Latin Leguminosae) f
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