THE END OF 2011 IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER

No doubt  there are a lot of gardeners who will be casting there thoughts on how well or what they achieved in this year which is about to end. I have noticed that a few gardeners have already started planting early and i think it is because they enter quite a few shows  and need to get there vegetable  seeds to germinate early so as to get them at a certain size and weight. I my self did sow a few onion seeds  and the reason is because they were seeds which i had from a onion which i put to seed in 2010. The onion was called ailsae so it is going to be interesting to see what the outcome will be. I will post  pictures at a later date.  On to the weather now and as most gardeners will remember we had a very cold winter last year and that made things like fruit trees stay dormant for a very long time before the started to bud  but i get the feeling that it will not be the case this winter because the weather is and has been very mild, so lets keep our fingers crossed that it stays that way. Although i am not a big veg grower or a big show man i would say that i have won many garden shows with  flowers and onions but not to the standard as to what  is required in the county shows . It is my intention to have a go in 2012  ,i might even challenge the boys in the midlands and even the yorkshire boys ha ha. HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL.  

SEED PURCHASED FOR 2012

Made a final decision re to what to grow in 2012 and now have all the seed i need.
ONIONS
1 unwins exhabition onions x 20
2 kelsae x 12
3 own ailsae seed x 8 sown on 6-11-11 now at the crook stage
4 marshalls show master depending on space

Tomatoes
1 Ailsa cgraig
2 goldstar
3 shirley
4 gardeners delight

Runner beans
1 unwins white lady

Carrots
sweet candle stump
exhabition strain long

Just a bit of info on 2 items.
re to the showmaster onions i must say that it is a very good onion for eating an more so i think does very well for showing. Over the years i have had them get to 5lbs with tlc like you all do with other onions, so depending on the space i will purchase a few plants. You might say that if they are that good why do i not just grow them , Answer is i like to try all sorts when i can.
It was not to long ago you could get the onion sets from marshalls but as you might know they do not sell them any more.
The other bit of info is that i have had very good results with unwins white lady runner beans, i do think they might be good for showing (OPINIONS WOULD BE APPRECIATED) by all you top showman. I have found that they are stringless and the lenght is about 10-12" long and straight. The end for now.

This years tomatoe plants

As promised, this is my tomatoes that i grew this year, on the right is goldstar and on the left is shirley. It is the first time i grew these two sorts but must say i am very pleased with the results

SUCCESS WITH MY OWN SEED FROM AILSAE ONIONS GROWN IN 2010

Yes i have been successful with the germination of seeds that i had planted on the 6-11-11. The seed i used were the seed i got from a 20" bulb which i grew in 2010. It was in 2009 when i purchased the ailsae seed from exhabition seeds. The 8 seeds that are through are now at the crook stage so i will be transplanting them in a few days time. Apart from the ailsae onions i will this week end plant a different type but only about a dozen as i have not got a lot of room but we shall see how things turn out. Now i will say that in october i planted 12 unwins exhbition seeds and they are nowabout 12" tall whith a good looking stem. now i dont know how they will fare but unless you try you just dont know. I will put some photos of them on the blogg later and you will all be able to see for your selves. For many years i always grew marshall showmaster and to be very honest i think they are a good onion for show and also eating. The only problem now is that marshalls do not sell the sets but they do sell the plants. I am a bit cautious about buying plants because you do at times get some that has not been growing long enough to be taken out of the ground and transported, but there you are that is only my opinion. It is nice to have an opinion but it is also nice to get other peoples opinion especialy from people who are experts at gowing oinions for showing. Re to growing onions from seed i use a jemp propagator which i have had for about 25years now and it is still going strong as to the lighting i use a fish tank lighting system which uses a 4watt bulb and yes it does the job. The propagator will hold 3 trays of seeds or pots if you wish to use instead. As stated erlier on will post photos later.