Quick crops for isolation

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Quick crops for isolation
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chez

Joined: 13 Aug 2006
Posts: 35935
Location: The Hive of the Uberbee, Quantock Hills, Somerset

Posted: Wed Mar 18, 20 12:04 pm Post subject: Quick crops for isolation
I'm planting some micro-greens for the windowsills this afternoon. Anyone else?

sgt.colon

Joined: 27 Jul 2009
Posts: 7380
Location: Just south of north.

Posted: Wed Mar 18, 20 12:56 pm Post subject:
I've never done microcrops, are they just a normal seed that you cut early? I did get a lot of my veg seeds done yesterday. Nice to see you Chez.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46247
Location: yes

Posted: Wed Mar 18, 20 1:41 pm Post subject:

sprouting seeds should arrive tomorrow, hooves crossed. good enough for shackleton, good enough for me to introduce as tunnel kit, good for times like now.
i planted onion sets for spring onions and maybe 30 full size ones later, mangetout at the back of those boxes to climb up the wall, assorted lettuce for cut and grow again.
i have peas and cucumbers to germinate and a few other things to pop in any bare earth as catch crops, radish are good cos the tops make good saag as well having radishes etc, same with peas, the young leaves are rather nice and pinching out gives an early crop and bushy plants.
this year everything is tried and tested for this yard so i am only growing stuff i know works well and fast.

as sensible dog walking is acceptable forage seems plausible so at this time of year there are tree buds, early vetches etc to be going on with and soon there will be enough salads than an hour foraging can feed 20 for a week.

Shan

Joined: 13 Jan 2009
Posts: 9075
Location: South Wales

Posted: Wed Mar 18, 20 2:21 pm Post subject:
Pak Choi grows pretty quickly.

tahir

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 45676
Location: Essex

Posted: Wed Mar 18, 20 3:04 pm Post subject:

sgt.colon wrote:

I've never done microcrops, are they just a normal seed that you cut early?

Yeah, a cheap way to do this is to buy pulses and spices in bulk:

Lentils
Mung beans
Peas
Coriander
Fenugreek
Mustard

as examples

derbyshiredowser

Joined: 11 Feb 2007
Posts: 980
Location: derbyshire

Posted: Wed Mar 18, 20 3:23 pm Post subject:
we have 200gms of cress seed some planted plus pea shoots growing.

Mistress Rose

Joined: 21 Jul 2011
Posts: 15998

Posted: Thu Mar 19, 20 6:59 am Post subject:
I have some cut and come again lettuce and spinach that are both good for young leaves, so may try some in a seed box this weekend.

sgt.colon

Joined: 27 Jul 2009
Posts: 7380
Location: Just south of north.

Posted: Thu Mar 19, 20 8:11 am Post subject:
Thanks Tahir, I'll give those a go.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46247
Location: yes

Posted: Thu Mar 19, 20 2:00 pm Post subject:
a kilo of quinoa and another of linseed plus smaller amounts of other sprouting stuff in store for when required, pretty soon probably the outside stuff is all rapid growth/harvest things and suitable for several time spaced plantings if i can find space

Nicky cigreen

Joined: 25 Jun 2007
Posts: 9887
Location: Devon, uk

Posted: Thu Mar 19, 20 9:29 pm Post subject:
I'm sowing lettuces - i sow a pinch in a pot, then prick out about 4 then use the rest as cut and come again, until they are no good. I have previously eaten leftover brassica seeds as microgreens - in fact maybe I will have a rummage in the old seeds and see if any left. pea shoots are fairly quick too - I might do some of them

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46247
Location: yes

Posted: Thu Mar 19, 20 10:30 pm Post subject:

peas and nasturtiums soaking until tomorrow , peas will go in propagator, n's dotted around in odd corners of tubs and pots where they can find a support to scramble and dangle on
i rather like green seed pods from nasturtiums pickled as capers and the flowers are tasty and pretty, young leaves are edible or nice depending on opinion

note to self must check shed for bag of dog fur to mulch for molluscs, i am not messing about with the slimey hoard and running out of wool pellets, im sure the shop has some but .....i recon a mix of dog and wolf fur might work along with beer traps as required, leopard slugs are tolerated if they eat bird frass and other slugs, the nematodes seem to have persisted in the environment by the slug spp mix but there are still plenty.
birds and mice are banned from seeded boxes with wire mesh or things go out when less edible to them than newly germinated seedlings

i need to do a bit of light arranging and pruning for fruit and birds to the bramble but it is due it anyway.

chez

Joined: 13 Aug 2006
Posts: 35935
Location: The Hive of the Uberbee, Quantock Hills, Somerset

Posted: Sun Mar 22, 20 11:24 am Post subject:
I may have done a Just Seeds order yesterday. Only essentials, obviously. But it was rather nice to feel justified in my purchasing

derbyshiredowser

Joined: 11 Feb 2007
Posts: 980
Location: derbyshire

Posted: Sun Mar 22, 20 7:39 pm Post subject:

dpack wrote:

note to self must check shed for bag of dog fur to mulch for molluscs, i am not messing about with the slimey hoard and running out of wool pellets, im sure the shop has some but .....i recon a mix of dog and wolf fur might work along with beer traps as required,.

Just said to Gail we need to save the dog fur as it sounds like a good idea and she pointed out that every time we hoover downstairs we get at least 2 Dyson cylinders of dog fur off the beasts. Great idea Certainly worth trying

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46247
Location: yes

Posted: Sun Mar 22, 20 8:51 pm Post subject:

the pellets of sheep wool seem to mulch down if you spread them and water them.

i will try to find the bag in a storage box in the shed and will report on how to get it to felt over the soil.

it worked well with the wool, at the mo i have a chink in the box mesh armour and 2 boxes are getting mousy attention, they dont like onions and give up after a couple but the peas in the wallside ones were a long shot anyway if they do get one line of those and i have plenty in the propagator

the mice have nuts and birdseed to attend to tonight so hopefully i will have something to reinforce tomorrow, the mice are family but have yet to develop the understanding that some things are given and others are for later.
a few years back we came to agreement on tomatoes, only when they are ripe and only one at a time

Mistress Rose

Joined: 21 Jul 2011
Posts: 15998

Posted: Mon Mar 23, 20 8:58 am Post subject:

Dog fur is more difficult to felt than wool. If you have any wool, even unusable woollen jumpers that are past any use, take the bad bits out of them (good bits can be reused for other items), tease apart a bit and mix with dog hair. Otherwise the way to felt is to put layers in opposite directions then rub and pound like mad with soap or washing up liquid and a very little water. Putting between two layers of cloth can be useful at this stage. If you just want pellets, form into a pellet larger than you want and do the rubbing like mad stage.

As far as peas are concerned, we were advised by our neighbour to start peas and beans indoors, and put them out only when they had grown on well. At that stage, the rats and mice are less interested, and if the remains of the seed are still there, the roots will take over and with any luck the plant will not be lost. If they are taking the growing part, then protection is the only way forward I would think.

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