Make your own luck (and muck)

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The other day we used the tip that Alan mentioned a few posts ago about adding some home-made garden compost into peat-free seed compost to give it a bit of added goodness. We looked at our compost heap thinking we’d have to clear the many layers of rotting vegetables, cardboard and egg boxes to get to the bottom and then remembered last year we found a way to the bottom from the side of the heap (above). All we did was move an old floor tile and voila we were rewarded with some fresh “Black Gold” (below), wonderful stuff!

We only put a few handfuls of it with the remaining peat-free seed compost we had left as we didn’t want it too nutrient heavy and kill the seedlings but just enough to make a difference. Once we mixed it up we filled one of the seed tray, tray lid and bottom set we got from a large DIY supplier (their name rhymes with T&Q) for the bargain price of £4. You can’t even get a pint for that sort of money these days.

In the tray went some self-saved seeds of sweet pea we grew last year, some jalapenos, the black moon tomato we got from Thompson & Morgan and also from T&M, “great stuff” peppers that grow to the size of a human hand! We’ll keep you posted when the seeds germinate and we’d love to hear what you’re starting off at the moment. Remember it’s only February.

What is (your) neem?

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The other week we were chatting with a gardener friend about those damn fungus gnats that in the summertme usually plague our plants on the kitchen windowsill. She recommended using some Neem Oil which we’ve never heard of before and brought some for us the other day. We have no idea if it will work, how it works and what you do with it apart from diluting it and putting it on your plants. Any ideas? Does it work and what’s the best way to use it? Do drop us a comment.

A garden related tune (even if the ground is frozen solid)

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A big thanks to our good mate Gerry Hectic for sending us this nice bit of laid back soul with love vibes, namechecking the plant also known as Rosa rubiginosa. It’s from Thee Baby Cuffs from San Jose, California. Nice tune Gerry!

Funnily enough we’re not that mad on roses here. Dahlias and vegetables yes but not roses sadly. Can we be converted? Punk or Reggae named rose varieties may make us think again. There’s a Rose Paul McCartney so why not a Rose Jimmy Pursey? If only the gardeners were united…

Some nice finds…

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This week’s great finds whilst scouring various second-hand/charity shops (AKA Thift Stores for our friends across the pond) in the south London area include all sorts of stuff. No reggae records sadly, but the first (above) is a very 1970’s picture sleeved LP from The Metropolitan Police Band called Dull it isn’t! All that’s missing is a picture of a “criminal” in a sheepskin coat being brought down by an alsation as they used to demonstrate at summer fetes and country shows all those years ago. Nice touch of the two tone graphics at the bottom.

The above is a wonderfully named band that were appearing at a 1970’s office function which was printed the back of a programme of said event. Is the track below from the same “Sounds Nice”?

And award for the best “Cockney saying used in a postcard” award goes to this one below from Pirgos in Greece from 1978. “Cor strike a light!” indeed!

Please send us your charity shops classics and we’ll post up the best. No pictures of Des O’Connor or Max Bygraves LPs please as a refusal often offends.

More good advice

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The other year we started some seeds off in some peat-free compost bought from a local supermarket which we thought was a right old bargain at the time. The seeds germinated and then stalled at the seed leaf stage, hung around for a couple of weeks and just withered away. We mentioned this here the other week and got some good replies about the same problem and also some great advice from Alan who mentioned he started mixing garden compost in with the peat-free compost and it seemed to work a lot better.
We mentioned the problem of peat-free compost to Thompson & Morgan’s blog who replied with some great info from their resident horticultural expert. She said…
“Well, what can I say? Not all composts are the same!
 
There is no problem with using peat-free compost for seedlings – I do it all the time. The National Trust has banned peat-based composts and successfully raises all its plants in peat-free mediums. Similarly, the RHS promotes the use of peat-free. The only thing with peat-free compost is that it requires slightly different management particularly as regards to watering. The surface of peat-free compost dries out quickly but it is often still moist underneath. Consequently, many gardeners fall into the trap of over watering plants growing in peat free composts, and this is especially a problem with seedlings which can quickly succumb to ‘damping off’ in over-wet conditions. From the description, this does sound like a case of damping off – affected seedlings quickly keel over and wither.  
 
When working with peat-free, it’s important to poke the top few inches of compost in the pot and check how damp it is underneath as surface dryness is not a true indicator. Cheap peat-free composts are full of cheap fillers and do not have the right texture balance to distribute water evenly. For the best results, use a peat-free compost that is specifically for seeds and cuttings. A limited number of plants need raising in compost with a low pH and so will do better in peat (e.g Meconopsis) but for the vast majority of seeds it is absolutely fine. Plants raised in peat-free may require a bit more fertiliser as peat-free compost has a tendency to ‘lock-up’ some nutrients.”
Brilliant stuff! Thanks a lot to Thompson & Morgan for letting us know more about peat-free compost. From now on we’ll be spending that little bit more on seed compost as someone once told us “there’s no such thing as a bargain” and they may be right!

A two tune Wednesday selection

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While doing a shortwave mix the other night we came across this duo we’ve never heard of before called The Secret Whistle. It’s a great name and turns out they’re from Portland, Oregon and they make some fine tunes. Here’s two here.

From Beatles to Bigfoot to Aetherius

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Here’s the audio of Imaginary Station’s From Beatles to Bigfoot broadcast last weekend via Shortwave Gold, a show full of the songs of Lennon/McCartney covered in a way you’ve never heard before. Also beatles soundalikes, plus UFOs, flying saucers and a Yeti Choir (*subject to availability). It’s a odd mixture but a very nice odd mixture featuring contributions from all of the Imaginary Stations crew.

At 14.04 mins in One Deck Pete brings you a UFO themed mix called “A pint of lager please Earthman”. The tracks are:
Tena Stelin – UFO
Jah Warrior – Unidentified Flying Dub
The other self – Men from Venus
The Psychedelic Aliens – Blofonyobi Wo Atale
Meridian Brothers – Guaracha U.F.O (No Estamos Solos…) (excerpt)

Big shout to Thompson & Morgan – Part 2

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A big thank you to Katie and all the team at Thompson & Morgan Blog for sending us over these new vegetable seeds to see how we get on with them. They look great, so this afternoon we popped 4 of the chilli seeds into compost to start off. Quick Fire is the variety and it mentions on the pack that you can get up to 100 chillies per plant! We’ll keep you all posted on how we get on with all of them. Cheers again T&M!

From Seed Tins to ex-Thompson Twins

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It’s February by a week, some earlier sown seedlings are growing, sowed seeds are starting to germinate and there are more seed packets to be opened.

In an earlier batch we started off in the heated propagator in the back room, we made sure we turned the heating off as soon as the seeds started to show through and then over a few days took the plastic lid off completely. The tray is lidless now by the back window and seems to be doing well. Most have germinated apart from the chillies that had “Sow by the end of 2023” on the front of the packet. We’re still giving them the benefit of the doubt though, they could be late starters or we could be a bit impatient.

And here’s a seed sowing musical accompliment from International Observer called Seedsavers Dub. It’s a nice bit of dub which if played to up and coming plants, will stimulate them (or so we reckon!)

Pirate Radio is good for your mind

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This afternoon we were wandering the streets around Borough Market and found that the Crossbones Graveyard & Garden of Remembrance which we had passed a few times before, was open to visitors. We didn’t know that much about the place but found out it was a pauper’s burial ground with 15,000+ bodies there. It’s a creative open space with shrines and a garden which is tended and staffed by volunteers. More about it here and here. Do have a look at the links as it’s very interesting stuff. Opening hours are Monday to Friday and some Saturdays 12-3pm.

On the outside of the fence which is adorned with ribbons and trinkets we found this card which led us to find out more about Jason ‘Angryness/Brimstone’ Fisher. There’s a wonderful little film on the weeklytales.com blog about Jason by his Dad, David “Dave 500” Fisher and also features a bit on Crossbones Graveyard too. If you love radio you’ll love this film which is at the top of the page here. Absolutely great stuff!