Not always what they’re cracked up to be – Part One
This is when the cracks start to appear. Well, perhaps not with the very first frosts, but as winter progresses, and the frosts become harder and…
One day, I will be the organ grinder – Part Two
“the Organic Gardening Catalogue offers a mouth-watering range of organic seed. Within this stock list lurk many old and almost forgotten varieties of vegetables, with their traditional disease resistance and flavour. Yes, all those good, tasty veggies your granny used to grow, but which are out of favour today because they are not uniform and pleasing to the undiscerning eye, and do not conform to the rigid standards of the supermarkets.” Mike Clark makes a persuasive case for organic gardening.
One day, I will be the organ grinder – Part One
“Commercial pressures in my previous life prevented me from adopting the organic way of gardening (and indeed life), though no doubt this may be seen as an excuse. But it is a fact of life that while on a personal level the whole concept of organic gardening is, among all its other benefits, extremely cost effective, in the commercial world it is still a prohibitively expensive option.” Mike returns to one of his favourite topics – organics.
Never underestimate Number Twos
“The average garden is seriously deficient in humus and organic matter. We work our plots and borders year after year, expecting them to perform to our ever increasing demands with the occasional addition of some chemical fertiliser to which the manufacturer appends the epithet ‘Miracle’, or similar.” Mike talks a pile of crap! Why is natural compost so much better than artificial fertilisers? Read on…
No flies on my carrot – Part Two
“In summary, the long ones are fine if your soil is ideal. Otherwise stick to the stump rooted varieties.” Mike wraps up his two-part look at how to grow your own carrots with an overview of the varieties, how to look after them while they’re growing, and how to store them.
No flies on my carrot – Part One
“Since all the gardening programmes on the telly tell you to do things way in advance of the optimum time, ‘cos each wants to be first; and the Garden Centres stock plants well ahead of season for the same reason, to steal a march (March!) on their rivals; why should I be any different?” Mike goes back to his roots with an exposé of how to grow champion-standard carrots.