What are you growing?

DominicJ · Post by **DominicJ** » 16 May 2011, 14:14

Redcurrants become crumbles, sometimes flavoured with the rather lighter cropping blackcurrants, gooseberries, raspberries ect.

Cherries are just eaten, looks like a crop of 200 this year.

2 As and a B · Post by **2 As and a B** » 16 May 2011, 14:34

Reminds me, I must go check the local cherry trees before the birds get at them. No one else seems to bother picking them. I don't know why not; they make a really tasty compote, had with yoghurt.

My own cherry tree produces delicious dessert cherries - and this year it has actually produced some!

DominicJ · Post by **DominicJ** » 16 May 2011, 14:53

Mines produced every year, but this is the first "proper" crop.
I do hope it keeps this rate of growth up

postie · Post by **postie** » 16 May 2011, 18:48

foodimista wrote: Any news?

Yes, I have news...

But it aint good.

The other half did look for them, but the chances are they'd been moved to a field and all got burnt on a bonfire last Saturday. Apparently that's what they were being stored for. Bloody criminal if you ask me.

If you want, I'll take a close up picture of the hinge structure, you might be able to rig something up that'd work just as well.

2 As and a B · Post by **2 As and a B** » 16 May 2011, 19:14

postie wrote:Bloody criminal if you ask me.

+1!

Post by **kenneal - lagger** » 17 May 2011, 15:57

It wasn't even Guy Fawkes Night! Haven't they heard of ebay? There's not a lot that you can't make some money from on ebay.

postie · Post by **postie** » 18 May 2011, 21:59

kenneal wrote:It wasn't even Guy Fawkes Night! Haven't they heard of ebay? There's not a lot that you can't make some money from on ebay.

There was some kind of mass scouty-leader thing they did last weekend, and they'd been "donated".. and designated as firewood along with loads of pallets..

Sometime over this weekend I'll get a close up shot of the hinges and how they fit together, but the basic idea can be done really simply in scrap wood I think...

woodburner · Post by **woodburner** » 19 May 2011, 09:03

postie wrote:as promised earlier, the raised bed contraptions we snaffled for free.
First pic shows the single bed, and further up, 2 singles slotted together to form a deep bed.

And folded...

Those are stackable pallet sides. I got a load of them when I worked at Ericssons. I use them for storing nets of logs in. I wouldn't use them for raised beds as they are too valuable for other uses, and when in contact with soil they rot quickly. How do I know....................................?

Good for temporary cold frames though.

Post by **kenneal - lagger** » 19 May 2011, 16:16

If anyone can get any of those you could always protect them with something like the paint used in this article

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/ga ... -beds.html

Swedish paint, Beckers’ Trasfasader in a lovely flat matt pale gold colour, bafflingly called Guldockra (www.beckerspaints.co.uk).

I presume they do a range of colours.

woodburner · Post by **woodburner** » 21 May 2011, 20:14

I see Beckers suffer from the greenwash affliction. I question their claims of exceptional eco-friendliness since their paints are acrylic, ie plastic from mineral oil. (Unless someone knows different). Why not use something plant derived? Linseed anyone?

RenewableCandy · Post by **RenewableCandy** » 21 May 2011, 23:20

What about Pinotex/Sadolin? I seem to remember they have wood oils in them?

woodburner · Post by **woodburner** » 22 May 2011, 07:11

I suppose if you are after a rot stopper, it must be toxic to the organism you are trying to stop. Therefore difficult to describe as eco-friendly. Eco-honesty would be nice instead of marketing hype.

I have reduced the rot rate of my compost bin pallets by scorchng the wood with a blowlamp. This changes the surface nature of the wood and makes it more difficult for the fungi to get into the wood. Same as brown ends from charcoal production.

postie · Post by **postie** » 22 May 2011, 12:38

woodburner wrote:I wouldn't use them for raised beds as they are too valuable for other uses, and when in contact with soil they rot quickly.

ah, maybe that's why they were with a load of pallets!

And maybe they will rot, but as they were free and i don't have any other use for them, they'll do as a stop gap. I'm reckon if I get two growing seasons out of them, I'll have found/scavenged enough wood to have replaced them.

Potemkin Villager · Post by **Potemkin Villager** » 22 May 2011, 12:42

hardworkinghippy wrote:

I won't do a list but I've got a lot of stuff in the garden this year - all I need now is some water....

Talking of water how are things looking up in the sunny south east.....

Endless sun and showers here which is great for the weeds

JohnB · Post by **JohnB** » 22 May 2011, 16:34

postie wrote:And maybe they will rot, but as they were free and i don't have any other use for them, they'll do as a stop gap. I'm reckon if I get two growing seasons out of them, I'll have found/scavenged enough wood to have replaced them.

My plan when I had raised beds made out of floorboards, was to round the edges of the beds off so they didn't need edging, when the boards rotted.