Summer Distractions

I start by apologizing for the distance between my posts but Summer brings holidays, weddings and lazy days in the sunshine.

Well in the garden the weeds still pretty much have the upper hand if I'm honest but slowly I'm reclaiming the land, now the dandelions have gone to seed and planted themselves I have again dug them up, the main problem I have here is creeping buttercups which are buggers to get rid off, even with chemicals which I refuse to poison my soil with, so it's basically back ache or nothing.

I have had lots of progress in the tomato department, they have grown thick and very fast, until now I have only ever grown them in pots but they really are seeming to enjoy their free range life and the bees are doing a brilliant job of pollenizing them all. I'm now not just seeing little yellow flowers but little green tomatoes too. When I grow tomatoes I always grow too many for myself but it's great to hand out free food like this to friends and neighbors they'll love them so much more than supermarket stuff.

A week after my holiday in Wales I planted some butternut squash seeds and some more cucumbers, they grow great on windowsills with plenty of light and water. I can hardly believe the speed they grow and now just one month later I've had to separate them into bigger pots. Slugs and snails love cucumber plants as well as squashes so I'm keeping them covered for as long as possible so they'll have the best chance of winning the war with the beasties. Another problem was I planted them thinking for sure I'd know which was which but as it turns out the plants look pretty much the same at this stage.

 < Butternut Squash                                                                                     ^ Cucumber


I have also decided to plant up some flowers for my doorstep so bought some Nasturtiums from James Wong's range and some Phacelia I claimed for free from the Soil Association as they are supposed to be loved by bees. Nasturtiums as well as looking pretty go great on a salad as they have edible flowers which look lovely and colourful too. This is them not looking very colourful yet.


In other news my mum's eaten all the raspberries from my other plot outside her house and I've been handing out the herbs for free as they grow like wildfire. And I also have mini pepper plants growing on the windowsill and they are starting to flower so fingers crossed they do well this season.

Baby Birds

I love this time of year as everything springs to life, this year blue tits have nested somewhere roundabouts and I can hear their calls all day. The chicks have now fledged but mum and dad are still feeding them away from the nest. Although there should be plenty of food about at this time of year in the form of bugs and caterpillars I still choose to feed the wild birds peanuts and seed regularly. Really it's more for the parent birds than the youngsters as all that flying about looking after chick really takes it's tole so they need a quick place for a easy meal.

The chicks have been out and about for nearly a week now so the parents have brought them to the feeders too. I always make sure there's water for them too. Baby blue tits once fledged are the same size as the parents but have a yellow face rather than white, mum and dad look rather bedraggled now as they put all their energy into their chicks.

This is mum/dad and baby, you can see the parent's looking a bit un-kept. 

Oh and here's a coal tit who prefers seed to peanuts, it's always good to have a variety of food out, the collared doves love seed too. 

If you do have a garden no matter how big or small buy one of these feeders for under £20 from B&M or The Range, once the birds get used to it it's lovely to watch, and you may even get a squirrel.

Rhubarb + Seedling Update + New Bees.

Well Spring is well and truely under way and I'll begin this blog by letting you know I have now discovered Rhubarb, I know it's practically criminal but until the other day I had never tried rhubarb. I was put off by rumors of it being sour and strange but last week I was offered some from the onsite allotment so I picked a few stalks out of politeness more than desire to try it. When friends came to stay last week I bit the bullet and made them rhubarb crumble with a packet of oat crumble topping. It's so easy just boil rhubarb with sugar and water for 10 minutes, drain and add the topping and bake for 20 minutes. The results were surprisingly tasty but the rhubarb was not pick and attractive as the supermarket ready meals would have you believe but mainly a greeny colour with hints of pink. Just goes to show. Anyway I have now planted some rhubarb and am looking forward to my own Yorkshire Rhubarb in a years time (don't pick the first harvest the plant gets tired).

The seedlings are now moving along well and we have multiple money maker tomato plants, a sunflower, cucumber, lettuce, peas, mini peppers and very surprisingly a butternut squash seedling. The butternut squash was a experiment I planted 6 in all but squash prefer planting in Autumn and have a long growing period. After 2 months and out of 6 seeds just 1 has shot straight up so fast it must have took less than a week for it to touch the top of the propagator. In not very long many of the seedlings will be big enough to be grown on outside in the ground I an currently preparing for them.

Also after missing my little tree bee friends at my parents place I today discovered new neighbors on my patch. These critters were paying particular interest in the little holes made by old screws in my wall. My friend has suggested these are masonry bees, a solitary bee which lives in brick mortar. I believe they were carrying little clumps of mud to their new homes and arranging it, however I have sent this photo to the Bumble Bee Conservation Trust to confirm it for me, more info when I found out. If you want to do something to help bees in the UK sign the Soil Association's Petition to make the government listen to bee's plight and don't use un-natural pesticides and herbicides in your garden. Bees love fruit and veg plants but if you prefer lawns keep a unkempt corner of your garden where wildflowers can grow for bees. Bees are important to ALL life on Earth look after them.

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Spring Starting to Spring

Well the weather has arrived the bbqs are out and the sun has it's hat of hurray! And the signs of spring are everywhere. I spent yesterday at my local park because I heard the local wildlife had come out for spring and were getting busy in the pond. The rumors were correct, a corner of the pond sheltered by reeds was full of frogs and their spawn. Wow they had been busy froggies. I plan to add a pond to my garden, I don't expect masses of frogs visiting and having their young but any water source is valuable to all wildlife especially in the height of summer, I won't add fish to the pond as every Tom, Dick and Harry on this street owns a cat. Also fish need to be kept safe from ice in winter.

As well as the frogs the crocus beds were stunning. I plan of buy some crocus bulbs that flower in autumn, they are a different breed which produce saffron, a spice worth more than it's weight in gold.  http://www.suttons.co.uk/Gardening/Flower+Bulbs/All+Bulbs/Saffron+Crocus+Bulbs_MH2993.htm#230169. They're also great for bees and being late flowering they keep bees going through autumn.

My pots of joy and window boxes are looking good too. Mini daffs are out and looking fab just waiting on most of the big ones now, yes Spring is in the air.

PS The seedlings are starting to emerge and we have mushrooms on the way, more updates soon, in the meantime here's a dove that lives on the bowling green and eats at our bird cafe.

Sowing the Seeds of Love

Right the time has come to fill my windowsills with seed trays. Tomatoes and peppers need their head start in January/February so that when the frost has gone in March/April they're ready to go straight outside either in pots or into the soil in the sunniest place possible.

So I began with filling seed tray cells with 1 Gardener's Delight  tomato seed each, tomatoes are probably the easiest crop to produce with the best most satisfying results. In the other half of the tray I have sown 1 mini bell pepper seed per cell. I've had some bad luck with conventional pepper varieties as they seem to grow to a certain size when I have to pick them because if I leave them any longer they rot, but when I pick them and try them out they don't taste sweet just bland and boring. I have chosen this mini variety hoping they will take less time to mature and just like cherry tomatoes they will have more taste.

I have also put in a row of butternut squash seeds, according to the seed packet they shouldn't be planted till May but I'm really eager to see how they do as I've never grown them before as they take up alot of space. Mr Veg has a great recipe for a goats cheese and squash lasagna which we'd love to try with home grown squash. If the growing is successful I'll share the recipe.  

In another tray I have descended to put in more James Wong seeds I've never tasted before. These include Chinese Chives which are supposed to taste of roasted garlic, Microgreen Herbs which grow quickly like cress and go great in salads and on top of burgers. The final seed I've set off are Inca Berries which are cherry tomato sized yellow fruits that are supposed to taste of gooseberries, kiwi and pineapple, so really looking forward to tasting them. The great thing is once grown they should produce berries right into winter.

It's Been a While.......Sorry.

Hi Veggers, sorry it's been a while since my last post alot has been happening I've been on a couple of holidays and I've moved house. Don't worry the Urban Veg is still there and growing in my mum and dad's front garden. I now have a bigger and more challenging plot (photos later).

So for an update on the existing veg we've had many many many cherry tomatoes off our 6 plants, more than me and mum can eat. I've got some juicy looking peppers nearly ready for picking. The leeks are doing well as are the little turnip I'm hoping they along with parsnips will be good for Christmas. Parsnips taste sweetest after the frost has got to them.

Also we have electric daisies which I tried the other day and must say are a acquired taste, nasturtium which the caterpillars took a fancy to are now in bloom and the cucamelons are fattening up and should be ready soon.

On a downer the sweetcorn just didn't do well, it went to seed and on the plus side is now feeding the birds, lucky birds.

Apologies also for the image quality my big camera wasn't to hand.

A Note on Recycling.....Plus James Wong update.

I've found over time in the garden that things really don't have to cost much and when I'm not in Pound World (or Pound Land) or ebay I see things around that come in very handy in the garden and the best bit is it's all free. My latest ingenious find came when I realized the cucamelons I started growing after James Wong's tips were starting to trail, they needed something to climb. I used canes but they were out grown in a couple of days. In the corner of the garden was a rather unloved sad looking pan stand which we put flowers on top of last year and tied the little greenhouse to when it nearly blew away.
I re-planted the cucamelons in bigger pots, put them on the bottom shelf of the stand then trained the vines up between the other shelves. Now they are growing happily, wrapping round the shelves and poles and we're hoping to sample their delights soon.




While we're on the subject the electric dasies are also doing their thing I haven't had any flowers yet but (apart from a little leaf munching) they're looking good. I planted them up in a old tub that you buy bird's fat balls in. Just melt or drill (me and power tools don't go) holes into the bottom for drainage and put some stones in before you cover with compost.




Also the Nasturtiums are doing well I lost one plant while I was on holiday but the other's going from strength to strength. The bees will love em when they flower.

Final note...The peppers are in flower. Yey!

Our many neighbours

The resent rain after the hot 2 weeks of sun have sent our wildlife into overdrive, we're now getting bees by the dozen, peacock butterflies and cabbage whites. Our Budlia or butterfly bush is in flower which help attract so much life. This is a Buff-Tailed Bumble Bee enjoying the Budlia plant ------------>

Our resident Tree Bumble Bees are also very busy with males hanging round constantly waiting for the busy passing females. We are now unfortunately starting to see the ill and dying members of the colony, this is only natural as bees like to keep their home clean and free of disease so the kick out the sick members. We are seeing the odd one on our garden path now.  They are however very happy with our flowering herbs especially the thyme.
This appears to be a big male on the thyme.








I've also seen my first Peacock Butterfly of the year in the garden, they are totally stunning. I snapped this one as it basked on the potatoes. ------->








And then we have a problem, I am a organic gardener with a love of wildlife and nature but unfortunately sometimes the wildlife just doesn't respect the veg and just goes munching straight through it. This is a cabbage white caterpillar, I found him munching massive wholes in the sweetcorn leaves. But don't worry I just picked him off and relocated him however I don't think the food will be as tasty. It's best with caterpillars and snails etc to just relocate them don't kill them as they're a tasty meal for the birds.

Just an update

After 3 weeks of scorching weather and one massive downpour the veg is getting exciting and there are more happy tree bees about as the herbs are in flower, soon the buddleia (butterfly bush) will be in flower too.

The tomatoes are now well on their way, I usually buy Money Maker Tomato seeds, they are quite reliable and give a good crop, at stages throughout their growth I pinch off lower leaves and stems as the plant can then focus more effort on fruits.

They're now green and just need plenty of water and sun I have also caned them up as with the weight of the tomatoes and the heavy rainfall they're starting to droop, I don't want them to snap.









Next is the pea pods which are really starting to fatten, I'm not sure how many peas I'll get it will probably just be one serving but hey, as long as they taste as great as other home grown veg. Unfortunately my peas appear to be affected by a pest known as Thrips tiny black or brown bugs which hide under the leaves, they've made a mess of the leaves but they don't really touch the pods. They can be controlled with a organic insecticide spray.


While I've been gone the sweetcorn has grown nearly as tall as me but I'm not sure if it will crop well being in a container. I guess we'll just have                                                          to wait and see.

Summer Fruits

While on holiday my neighbor was more than happy to water my veg for me but never the less I was worried. The mid July temperatures soared while I was away enjoying the cooler coast. As it turned out on my return I had no casualties Yey!

                                                              Peas Beautiful Peas.

In fact what I had was sweetcorn plants nearly as tall as me, pea pods dangling like gems, strawberries and LOTS of raspberries. I'm actually stunned at how the plant took off when I took it from the pot it had been in for 2 years and put it in the ground, within a couple of months it must have doubled in size.

I'm now getting fruits daily with the first harvest giving me a punnet with fruits nearly double the size of tasteless supermarket fruits. Yummy! I'm now waiting on blackberries to follow for a summer fruit salad.

             Tip for tasty Strawbs:- Water them a couple of times with sugar water for super sweetness.

Being arty with the produce + giving them a wash.

Our New Guests

I haven't blogged in a while as I've been at the rather more cloudy East Anglian coast. However on my return I find I have new neighbors, a queen bee appears to have chosen our sparrow terrace (a bird box with 3 holes for sparrow families) as the perfect home for her tribe.

Upon researching our new guests we found them to be Tree Bumble Bees (Bombus hynorum), who like to inhabit holes in trees or nest boxes. They are none aggressive (one flew into my camera lens and went happily along it's way)

They were only discovered in the UK in 2001 but they are a welcome foreigner as they are pollinators, bees prop up life on earth and keep the human race in food, a very important species I am proud they chose to live with us.

It seems they were attracted by The Veg, and why not it's very attractive veg as well as wildflowers growing on the motorway embankment and the other flowers round the garden like lavender. What's fab about bees is the ladies rule the hive so the queen and workers are all women and men just linger outside the door hoping for some action. This is a pic of a hopeful Mr Bee.

I'll be keeping a keen eye on these little lodgers over the coming months.

Enjoying the Lavender, eat up little bee. For more info on attracting bees or helping their conservation see http://bumblebeeconservation.org/get-involved/gardening-for-bees/

A Pointer from Gino D'acampo

This is a quick post just to get down on paper a interesting growing tip I heard on "Lunch with Gino and Mel" apparently Rocket grows best where the air is dirty. As they act like an air filter. Sort of like mussels in the sea or river filter dirty water and grow big. Apparently Rocket grows best next to motorways, dirty air is what gives the peppery taste.

So I'm thinking Rocket is perfect for the Urban Veg Grower because of the dirty city air, if it gives out clean air it can only be good for the environment.

Salad Potatoes are on the Menu.

I've been watch my potatoes grow in their bag, they grew there successfully last year, but just a week or so ago they started to go a bit wrong. Potato plants are usually lush and green and when they produce little flowers (white or purple depending on breed) it's time to harvest. But these plants started to look very unhealthy 2 out of 4 went brown and sagged and the other 2 just looked a bit sick. So because I go on my hols next week I decided to pull them and give something else the space. Below is a photo of the sickly plants.

Happily in the time they've been in they produce a little crop of salad potatoes which I'll enjoy later.

In other news the sexy carrots pictured here with Quorn Sausage and peas were delish and Mr Urban Veg will be putting what's left in a pie.

Sexy Carrots.

Today I decided to pull my carrots after noticing they were going to seed. One set of carrots were in a trough (I knew all along was too shallow but had no other containers). The others were in a potato bag (should've been ok).

There's really not much more I can say about them but well look at the pictures. At least they all have nice personalities, even though they're unpealable. Oh well that's my salad topping sorted for later and mum's veg to go with chops.

My Royal Subjects hehehe

Now everything's starting to go mad in the garden, I spent 1 night away from home and something new emerges =0. Yesterday I came home from the fella's and found the strawberries were popping exciting EEEEEEE! I most look forward to strawberries, I'm hopping the raspberries and blackberries catch up so I can have a nice summer fruit salad.

Also shooting up are the spuds, I have a patio bag out front to grow them in and a bed out the back (which we keep having to pull the dog out of). You know I really can't remember when I planted the ones in the bag but I should be expecting them to flower soon.

The latest crop I've tried this year is peas, last year I grew beans which was silly because I don't like beans. So yeah I'm currently trying to train them up a cane wig wam but it's windy and some are finding it hard to grip, they need to grab the canes so they don't grab each other and pull themselves down.

Another plant that's fairly new to me is the sweetcorn, the Royal Consort likes his sweetcorn so I have to make an effort to please him
 I accidentally killed it last year very early on so I'm
paying extra attention to it this year, I've got 5 stalks at the mo growing happily in a bag. Lets keep it that way =).

Tomatoes are doing well as they always do in pots in the sunny front garden, last week I spread them out into 3 troughs, 3 plants each. Today I nipped off the extra shoots at the bottom of the plant so they can put more         energy into fruits. 

Also doing well in the little cold frame are the pepper plants, turnips and a little grape vine I bought cheap hopping when I move out I'll grow have more space to grow it up a pergola. 

Also out there is a little fig bush, spring onions, beetroot (not doing so well), leaks, goja berries and carrots which I went a bit overboard with.

                                          G Dog is not impressed with the lack of biscuit plants.