Well no gardening today as the temperature was set to reach 40 degrees celcius by mid day.
It is now 12.30pm and it is 39 in the shade!
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Thursday, June 21, 2007
First Tomatoes......
The first of the tomatoes were ready for picking today.
The results of the spraying have really been inconclusive.The only ones that have suffered, and a few have died, have been the ones that I did not spray with anything....so I suppose it proves spaying with something, whether a vinegar or oil and bicab mix, can help in the early stages.
The rest I have stopped spraying now and we will have to see what happens.
These were delicious though...and as always...with no chemicals added!
The results of the spraying have really been inconclusive.The only ones that have suffered, and a few have died, have been the ones that I did not spray with anything....so I suppose it proves spaying with something, whether a vinegar or oil and bicab mix, can help in the early stages.
The rest I have stopped spraying now and we will have to see what happens.
These were delicious though...and as always...with no chemicals added!
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Morello Cherry Liquor
Mike and I started the cherry picking....and what a crop!
We were amazed at the amount.Here we have over 10 kilos of fruit and there is about another 4 kilos still on the tree.
We will make jam with most of them.
Some of our neighbours like to make juice , so that was a couple of kilos accounted for.
One neighbour has suggested an easy liquor.
If it turns out to be a success I shall post the recipe!
We were amazed at the amount.Here we have over 10 kilos of fruit and there is about another 4 kilos still on the tree.
We will make jam with most of them.
Some of our neighbours like to make juice , so that was a couple of kilos accounted for.
One neighbour has suggested an easy liquor.
If it turns out to be a success I shall post the recipe!
In 30 degree heat and no rain......
This year I am experimenting with some UK seeds again.
Last year most of the seeds from the UK either failed or did very badly against the local varieties.
The courgettes were an unusual success so I am trying again.On the right are UK while on the left are local BG seeds.
Last year, and the same for this, the UK ones fruited a few days earlier however when the heat of the day gets to 30+ they seem to suffer the most.
You can see from these pics here....
UK variety below.....
BG variety holding up better in the heat....
The melons are a little slow in growing this year and will need so much water I shall probably only keep on a couple of plants.I am very late with these.I did plant out in Early May however I think it was so dry that I had not one seedling show.
This time I am trying a shadier spot and watering on alternate days....
The pumpkins are just coming through and later along with the melon seedlings I will thin to 2 plants in each grouping.
Again watering alternate days and keeping the soil around them broken up and slightly piled up.
How they all manage in these temperatures still amazes me!
Last year most of the seeds from the UK either failed or did very badly against the local varieties.
The courgettes were an unusual success so I am trying again.On the right are UK while on the left are local BG seeds.
Last year, and the same for this, the UK ones fruited a few days earlier however when the heat of the day gets to 30+ they seem to suffer the most.
You can see from these pics here....
UK variety below.....
BG variety holding up better in the heat....
The melons are a little slow in growing this year and will need so much water I shall probably only keep on a couple of plants.I am very late with these.I did plant out in Early May however I think it was so dry that I had not one seedling show.
This time I am trying a shadier spot and watering on alternate days....
The pumpkins are just coming through and later along with the melon seedlings I will thin to 2 plants in each grouping.
Again watering alternate days and keeping the soil around them broken up and slightly piled up.
How they all manage in these temperatures still amazes me!
Wednesday, June 6, 2007
Tomato blight
The whole region seems to be suffering from this.
It appears that due to the mild Winter and strange changes in temperature here through the Spring the virus has spread wildly.
Our crop as yet is surviving but I fear its only a matter of time.
I am trying some natural preventatives -
on one patch-
4 litres water, 1 tbsp baking soda, 2 1/2 tbsp veg oil and 1/2 tsp washing up liquid.
I am spraying early morning every 7 days.
on a second patch-
vinegar and water mix
and a control patch with no treatment...
I will update on my progress....wish me luck!
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
Cherry picking....
It will soon be time to pick the cherries, another few days and they will have turned a beautiful deep red almost black.
This year the tree has produced about 3 times as much fruit as last year.I think this is mainly due to the fact that this year it has been left totally undisturbed.
Again like everything else in our garden we have not treated it or sprayed it with anything.
The black cherries make excellent jam though take a little extra sugar...
yuummm!
This year the tree has produced about 3 times as much fruit as last year.I think this is mainly due to the fact that this year it has been left totally undisturbed.
Again like everything else in our garden we have not treated it or sprayed it with anything.
The black cherries make excellent jam though take a little extra sugar...
yuummm!
Thursday, May 31, 2007
First harvests....
Here is the garden as it looks today.....
Last year the neighbours had us planting absolutely everything......whether we liked it or not! This year we have grown what we like in large quantities, sensible you might think.
The garden would not be what it is today though had it not been for them.We learnt so much last year from them all, being novices in the garden their help and advice has been, and still is, invaluable.
Now though a little more confident things have moved on and we find we are sharing our hints and tips with them, even though some of them they find rather strange.....
May brought our first harvest of spinach ,peas and strawberries.
I love it here...gardening seems so easy..so much so than in the books!
Take this for example...one packet of 200g peas...plant in February...leave for 3 months...harvest 12lbs of peas...that's it!
I like it simple and aim to keep this diary the same way.
Today is strawberry picking again.We have 3 patches and have so far picked over 20lbs of fruit.We use no chemicals or artificial fertilisers on anything we grow.
Most of them we have made into jam, compote and juice to see us through the Winter, which thankfully seems so far away.
Today we pick to give to the neighbours.Its been very dry here and lots of crops have struggled due to the lack of rain.
There is only one problem with giving here in Bulgaria and that it you have to be prepared to receive more than you give...
Strawberries galore!
Last year the neighbours had us planting absolutely everything......whether we liked it or not! This year we have grown what we like in large quantities, sensible you might think.
The garden would not be what it is today though had it not been for them.We learnt so much last year from them all, being novices in the garden their help and advice has been, and still is, invaluable.
Now though a little more confident things have moved on and we find we are sharing our hints and tips with them, even though some of them they find rather strange.....
May brought our first harvest of spinach ,peas and strawberries.
I love it here...gardening seems so easy..so much so than in the books!
Take this for example...one packet of 200g peas...plant in February...leave for 3 months...harvest 12lbs of peas...that's it!
I like it simple and aim to keep this diary the same way.
Today is strawberry picking again.We have 3 patches and have so far picked over 20lbs of fruit.We use no chemicals or artificial fertilisers on anything we grow.
Most of them we have made into jam, compote and juice to see us through the Winter, which thankfully seems so far away.
Today we pick to give to the neighbours.Its been very dry here and lots of crops have struggled due to the lack of rain.
There is only one problem with giving here in Bulgaria and that it you have to be prepared to receive more than you give...
Strawberries galore!
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