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Growing Your Own Fruit and Vegetables

We grow our own fruit and vegetables for our meals for as much of the year as we can. Without a greenhouse we have to buy shop food in the winter months but in the spring, summer and autumn we often have enough to share with family and friends.

Read about growing your fruit and vegetables here on my growing your own food pages.

Friday 11 March 2011

Planting the first early seed potatoes

Today I 'took the plunge' and planted two rows of my  first early seed potatoes.

 I could have waited, but time pressures have forced the decision to be made. The weather has been mild here, mostly apart from one over night frost and I am prepared to earth if necessary to protect them when they emerge. I have planted them the traditional way by digging a trench. In the past I have tried the method where you just dig a hole for each seed potato and drop it in, but it does not work so well for potatoes in my sandy soil.

I have finished planting two rows and will be also planting a few in containers.

In the UK the further South you are the earlier you are able to plant your seed potatoes, but when you plant them depends on the weather conditions in your area. I needed to make an early start this year, so fingers crossed that the weather will not suddenly turn wintry later on.

In one potato trench I am experimenting with a method from an old organic gardening book, which involves the use of leaves in the trench. I thought this might be useful to help retain moisture, but it is just an experiment.

Another tip from the old book on growing vegetables organically is to put comfrey leaves in the bottom of the trench when planting the seed potatoes. I might try this with the main crop ones when I plant them later in the season, as by then I might have some comfrey leaves to cut, no sign of them at the moment. 

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a healthy potato plant in flower

a healthy potato plant in flower
photo of potatoes in flower

home grown carrots.. grown from seed

home grown carrots.. grown from seed
photo of my first bunch of carrots 2009

Even a small batch of mixed fruit can be useful

Even a small batch of mixed fruit can be useful
Home Grown Fruit can be made into delicious compote