Last year small pumpkins and patty pan courgettes were grown on the plot. Didn’t try this them this year. Firstly as the seeds failed, and second I wasn’t convinced about the small pumpkins and little gem squashes.
They all grew well, nestled amonst eight stalks of sweetcorn. The sweetcorn didn’t do so well. Grew tall, but the cobs weren’t that brilliant in the least.
So was I too quick to judge these squashes? I think I might try the space ship patty pan things again. Little gem didn’t quite have the flavour, and were beaten in the taste test by roasted sweet potatoes.
Will have to check the seed stasher and see what seeds i do have. The space ship shaped courgettes were certainly a good cropper. Except when you really don’t want to see another courgette.
I have had a very little success in keeping home sown seeds alive with the slimers attacking. For the last few weeks, I have been thinking of re-sowing, especially as there has been warm weather. So we are trying yet again with the winter squashes.
Today, I planted out the Atlantic giants so I felt a bit spurred in. These seeds are for the moment sat in the four tier blowaway. I shall leave them there over night, and then transfer then to the Wendy house which is boiling when warm.
I’ve been looking at these for a few days; wondering why they weren’t growing. So I had a check today. Turns out, it’s all a bit cold and damp. The one thing that has germinated is the crimson sweet watermelon. Have rummaged in the seed box and resown. Only one or two were summer squashes. Rest were winter squashes.
On the other hand:
These are the first cohort. We has assorted squashes and cukes in there.
The sun is out, the the wendy and poly are steaming warm, and I am still sore from planting potatoes. With today being the first of April, I thought I could rest a little and sow squashes and cucumbers. We have a frost until the end of may, that leaves approximately eight weeks during which these seeds will hopefully germinate and are likely to become triffids.
For the moment I have now sown a ghostrider, I fancied something of a break. A few additional varieties of winter squash have been sown instead. No small pumpkins either, I wasn’t particularly enamoured by sweet dumpling. That’s not to say mama H won’t encourage me to sow one. Many of these are sprawling varieties. Last year, there was success with the Cobnut butternut squash being grown up bamboo canes, rather than out across the ground.
The runners and riders:
soleil
astia
patty pan
yellow scallop
cobnut
winter butternut
crown prince
gourd small
cornells bush delecta
white serpent
striato di naploli
tondo di picanza
little gem
bush baby marrow
crystal lemon
marketmore
fem spot
There are quite a few varieties, but I do have a tendency to sow a large number. Besides, not all of these may actually germinate. Half of these are to be observed on a warmish window sill, the others will be in a unheated prop in the four tier blowaway. The 4TB does actually get quite warm now that it is warming up a little. I take solace in the fact that the celeary and the carrots sown in there are just starting germinate. The hollow crown parsnips have yet to make an appearance.
horticultural 'obbit 