Things are looking great in there, most of the plants look strong and healthy and happy and will soon be ready to go out after any lingering frosts have passed. In hindsight, living here, where it is colder than in the South, I will start things off just a few weeks later as some of them are getting too big and I am trying to waste time before they can go in the garden.
Plenty of sweet peas, amongst other things. If there is a poor performer it is the lobelia but I do actually blame the compost. I usually just use a multipurpose from B&Q but this time I bought a special John Innes seed compost and, do you know, it is terrible, by far the worst compost I have ever used. It has ruined the lobelia because it clumped into rock hard piece and I am sure the roots have had great difficulty in pushing through. After 2 months they are still only half a centimetre and some are dead. Everything that I did in the multipurpose has thrived beautifully.
The daffodils around the apple tree are ready to burst forth which is going to look lovely.
And finally, tada, here is my new freezer.
Now I'll be able to find things and not have food frozen in lumps at the bottom, never to see the light of day.
Oooh sleek and stylish, my freezer is a sad remnant from the 80's.Nice to see your plants too, everything is dying off her in the Antipodes!
ReplyDeleteCheers, Francesca
Be careful of " greenhouse pleasure"
ReplyDeleteEveryone can see you
Don't throw stones, John.
DeleteOh my gosh, I can't wait till we get our greenhouse up... and I, too, am starting flowers from seed this year... and experimenting with different mixes.
ReplyDeleteI cant believe the John Innes performed so badly. Just shows that expensive isnt always the best.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Freezer!!
Nice to see your greenhouse efforts coming to flourish.
ReplyDeleteOne tip though for next year. I`d remove the bulbs from around the apple tree as they will sap the energy of your tree it needs to produce some apples for you. Fruit trees need clean, weed free soil around them. You should also never grow any other crops or grass near them. That`s an old advice my grandmother once gave me. She had always great sucess with her fruit trees and was also very knowledgable in correct pruning methods. Good luck with your gardening this year.
oh,that's a lovely freezer,makes mine look shoddy!and the daffy's around your Apple Tree should be pretty!lovely photo of your Green-house!
ReplyDeleteI usually mix one bag of John Innes seed compost with two bags of multipurpose compost for all my seedlings. I learnt the hard way like you when I used just John Innes one year and everything suffered.
ReplyDeleteJust mix two scoops to one small scoop as you are making up a compost mix on a tray.
Thank you, I did wonder about doing something like that so as not to waste it.
DeleteLove the new freezer - I'm trying to find a way to fit one in myself as they're so helpful.
ReplyDeleteI have green house envy .....
ReplyDeletemy seedlings are awful, stunted.
ReplyDeletefreezer looks like a right cracker
I got the cheap seedling compost from B & Q and I've got to say, I'm not best pleased with it. I am getting LOTS of seedlings sprouting.. just not all the ones I wanted! The rogue plants are quite pretty, so I have grown a couple on to see what they are!
ReplyDeleteI had that with the John Innes. Killed off all my lobelia but grew lots of unrecognisable things.
DeleteOf all the ones that I have tried, the best so far has been B and Q multipurpose. it seems to do everything, has a nice consistency and no rogue seeds.