British Expat Forum

We just happened to be walking past a hall where they were holding a church fete today. We probably wouldn't have bothered going in but they were handing out fliers about what was on sale: jams, cakes, plants, etc. Plants! Oh yes, let's have a look.

We half-filled the car boot for £11.50. The kindly man on the stall was most helpful and delighted to sell the stuff. It's a good start to an otherwise bare garden.

The plants look as if they've been lovingly raised from cuttings for the purpose of the fete. Seems like a good win-win situation to me. We got the plants and they got a contribution to their funds.

Our village has a plant sale every year with fantastic bargains and lots of keen gardeners, great idea!

Are you a keen gardener, Ellsie?

If so - there's plenty to do at our place.

Thanks,but I'm more of your trial and error gardener! I have been experimenting for the first time with fruit and veg with mixed results! My baby sweetcorn plants are as big as triffids with no cobs to be seen yet! The peppers have still to flower,the slugs got the cucumbers BUT we have had some strawberries and peas,the tomatoes in the hanging baskets are flowering as are the aubergines,and we have lots of lettuce and coriander! I have to keep it all out of the way of the tortoise though so everything is in pots or she would scoff the lot!
Normally I prefer a plant once and reappear each year garden but I have enjoyed this, so in your spare 5 mins you could pop in with lots of advice and a spade!

Sounds great, Ellsie.

I don't know anything about gardening. Living in Asia means that we can usually afford to pay someone to do it for us. Back here in London we're just trying to make the place presentable before selling.

That said, I was pretty quick off the mark to get a new herb garden on the go. There's nothing nicer than growing your own food even if it is just a few herbs.

I'm surprised to hear you're having such success with coriander. I've always found it difficult to grow - even in Thailand where it's grown in abundance.

The best success I've had was my cherry tomatoes in India. We kept ourselves and all our friends supplied for several weeks. They were lovely.

I never had success with coriander before,but this time I put it in a growbag and it's done really well!
Where are you in London? I worked there for a while in Soho(restaurant before anyone asks) and lived Slough / Windsor before we moved to the mids. Hope your house sale is going well, it seems to be picking up a bit here.

We're in the Sutton area - Greater London. I don't think I'll have the time here to put too much effort into the coriander. Never mind, our house-cleaner in Thailand is reputed to be a very good gardener so when we get back I'll see if we can work together on a few gardening improvements.

I left her with a load of seeds and a small budget in case anything was required. I'm kinda hoping to go back to something rather than nothing.

It was the opposite here. We came back to a wasteland - everything gone or destroyed. I hope house prices are picking up, but I've not seen much evidence of it here yet. We can't put it on the market yet - too much to do first, but we're getting there.

Why don't you come over to the Chinwags board and meet the rest of the gang? You don't have to hide in Clarkie's all the time - even if you're not an expat or planning to be one. Not sure whether you are or not.

Kay 8)

The likes of Church sales are excellent for buying plants, because they've usually been donated by keen gardeners who've raised them carefully. Ditto plant stalls at charity garden open days. Be wary, though of car boot sales, where "plants" are sometimes unrooted cuttings stuck in a pot the night before.

I've never had problems with coriander, either in Aberdeenshire or in Caithness, and neither place is its preferred environment! Fitivver, anyone having problems should try Cilantro, commonly known as leaf coriander, with virtually the same taste. It's hardier and less fussy, and grows like a weed.

And ellsie, like Kay says, pop over to Chinwags, or even drop into Ruggies. This wee board is a long way from mainstream BritishExpat . (And if you're not a has-been or wannabe expat, nae worries hen. Me neither)

Mike

Cilantro, eh? Well, that's my new thing learned for the day. I thought it was just the American word for the same thing.

The Americans think it is, Kay , and of course it is very closely related.

Mike