Tony Flanagan
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Nothing like a bit of beetroot!
Beetroot is a bit of a favourite with many of us and so easy to grow too! If you don’t have a lot of space, they do well in pots. Containers should be about 22cm(9in) deep and 22cm(9in) wide. Fill…
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Oh so simple salad leaves!
Seed companies offer so many salad leaf varieties these days and the good news is that you can be picking them all summer long and beyond if you sow little and often. One of the simplest ways to grow salad…
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Broccoli in 60 days!
This broccoli raab has been doing well in the polytunnel and is now coming thick and fast. I planted it in the autumn and have been picking it over the last few weeks. The great thing about it is that…
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Finger-licking peppers
Sowing seeds can be fiddly at the best of times. Chilli and sweet pepper seedlings aren’t too bad but even so I still find them tricky. What I find easiest is to lick my forefinger and then press gently on…
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Leggy tomato seedlings?
Oops. Wasn’t expecting that. Sowed some tomato seeds last Sunday, by Wednesday they were shooting upwards thanks to the heated propagator. Forgot to put the grow lights on so consequently they were looking a bit leggy. Not a problem if…
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Who needs a seed tray?
Within reason you can grow anything in just about anything. I tend to keep the plastic cartons that come with tomatoes and use them instead of seed trays – they have ready-made holes for a start and, as the seeds…
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Mudketeers Diary – Feb 12th 2017
Sowing chillies Spent Sunday morning sowing chillies, surely one of the best plants to grow. I love the shape of the leaves, the flowers and, of course, the fruit. And they come in such amazing varieties – grow for heat,…
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ANTONY WOODLAND GARDEN REOPENS FOR 2017
One of Cornwall’s most beautiful gardens, Antony Woodland Garden, reopens to the public on 1st March. Renowned as a haven of peace and tranquillity, the gardens are just a short ferry ride away from the hustle and bustle of Plymouth.…
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Growing broad beans under cover
If you have a greenhouse or polytunnel you can guarantee yourself a very early crop of broad beans in May Not only are broad beans delicious if picked young, they are easy to grow too. I usually grow a crop…
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Pollinating indoor strawberries
If you’ve been growing strawberries under cover, don’t forget you can help with their pollination It’s April and the strawberries in my polytunnel are starting to flower, which is great! However, although strawberries are self-fertile (which means they are self-pollinating)…
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Sowing Carrots
Here are a few tips you might find useful for sowing carrots The main sowing period is March through to June, though I have sown in July too with good results Don’t sow in soil that has been freshly manured…
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Carolina Reaper’: too hot to handle?
So why grow the world’s hottest chilli? Well, a bit like climbing Mount Everest, ‘cos it’s there! Well here’s a chilli that needs some careful handling…literally. The ‘Carolina Reaper’ is the hottest chilli in the world. Chillies are one of…
