Tag Archives: comfrey tea

Blossom End Rot What Is It and What To Do About It

Blossom End Rot What Is It and What To Do About It

Many gardeners are affected by blossom end rot, and it’s heart breaking to see your tomatoes inedible due to this damage. Don’t despair, it’s not all doom and gloom, and in most cases it’s an easy fix. So read on to find out how to identify it and how to deal with it. What Is The Blossom End? The blossom end is the end of the fruit furthest away from where the stalk joins the plant. It is literally the end the blossom was attached to, and that’s where we get blossom end rot. What Is Blossom End Rot? Blossom… → Read More

zucchini Turning Yellow And Rotting

zucchini Turning Yellow And Rotting

Sadly this is a common problem and you’d be a very fortunate gardener if you never suffered this at some time. Don’t despair, things will improve and once you understand the problem you can start to solve it. So read on to see what you can do about zucchini (courgettes) turning yellow and rotting. Why Are My Zucchini Turning Yellow? There are a few answers to this question, some are more serious than others and some have easy cures. So the easiest and obvious one is there are yellow varieties of zucchini and if this is the case you don’t… → Read More

How To Grow More Strawberries

How To Grow More Strawberries

Ask any strawberry grower what they would improve if they could and they will probably say… More fruit. Here in the UK we have a short fruiting season between frosts so it’s crucial to get as much from each plant as we can. Read on to find out how to grow more strawberries. Let’s start with the basics, because if the foundations are right then everything else should just fall into place. How To Grow More Strawberries Strawberries need free draining soil, full sunshine and to be sheltered from the wind. As with all plants the soil is the most… → Read More

Winter Squash Companion Plants

Winter Squash Companion Plants

All plants benefit from growing in companion with others, and winter squash are no exception. Below are the best winter squash companion plants I have found to increase yield, health and vigour of your plants. Although they are called winter squash, this relates to their storage ability and not to when they should be grown. Winter squash are grown at the same time as summer squash ( zucchini, patty pans, courgettes etc…) but can be saved to consume during the winter. Whereas summer squash will not store because their skin does not harden enough to keep the inside fresh. So… → Read More

How To Grow Peppers And Chilli Peppers

How To Grow Peppers And Chilli Peppers

I have had a few people ask me for the best way to grow peppers and chilli peppers lately, so this post is my answer to those questions. I’ll take you through the whole process from seed germination to harvesting. Here’s the best way I’ve found for how to grow peppers and chilli peppers. How To Germinate Pepper And Chilli Pepper Seeds Peppers and chilli peppers grow best in hot climates, so it’s best to give them some heat to start them off. There are 2 ways to do this, the first is to wait until the soil in your… → Read More

How To Grow The Tastiest Tomatoes

How To Grow The Tastiest Tomatoes

How To Grow The Tastiest Tomatoes No matter how many gardeners you talk to, they will all have their own preferences as to which variety of tomato is the best to grow. I have heard so many stories that if I had any it would make my hair curl. 🙂 So in answer to the question how to grow the tastiest tomatoes let’s  break it down to basics. The Secret To Growing Tasty Tomatoes As with all crops the first thing is to get the growing medium right. If you’re growing outside add plenty of well rotted manure or compost… → Read More

The Number One Secret To Growing Great Plants

The Number One

Ask any gardener the secret to growing and they will all give you a different answer, but here is the number one secret to growing great plants. This is of course my own personal belief but it is based on years of gardening experience. Good Soil Having good soil is an important factor in growing great plants, the soil is where the plants get their nutrients from so of course good soil is a necessary element. This is why every season I add well rotted manure and fresh compost to my soil. Adding compost and / or manure will improve… → Read More

The Easiest Way To Grow Sweetcorn In The UK

the easiest way to grow sweetcorn in the uk

The Easiest way to grow Sweetcorn in the UK. That sounds like a definitive statement, that’s because it is. I have tried many different ways to grow sweetcorn and this is by far my most successful. How To Grow Sweetcorn When I started growing vegetables I was advised by many “experts” not to waste my time with sweetcorn as it needed longer, hotter summers than we get in the UK. I spent my formative years as a greengrocer and throughout late Summer and early Autumn I used to sell British grown sweetcorn, Which tasted incredibly sweet so as soon as… → Read More

Do Tomato Plants Benefit From Garden Lime and Epsom Salts

DO Tomatoes Plants Benefit From Garden Lime and Epsom Salts

Do Tomato Plants Benefit From Garden Lime and Epsom Salts? Well I don’t know so it’s time to do some research to see what effect, if any adding these products to the soil when planting tomatoes has. What Is Garden Lime? Garden Lime or Ground Limestone with the active ingredient Calcium Carbonate is used primarily for vegetable crops to balance the soils PH levels. The PH levels indicate how Acid or Alkaline the soil is and can be determined by means of a simple test kit available at most garden centres. Too far to either end of the Acid/ Alkili… → Read More

How to help plants to grow organically

How to help plants grow organically

As you know if you follow my posts, I like to grow my food organically. That doesn’t mean I don’t use fertilizer, I do but obviously I use organic fertilizer. So with that in mind I thought I would share with you the various feeds etc… I use on my plot. So how to help plants grow organically. How to help plants grow organically All plants need feeding at some point during their growing cycle. I usually feed mine when either they are in flower or, in the case of brassicas, when they look slightly off colour. The only vegetables… → Read More