Tag Archives: chitted seed spuds

And lay the binbag on the ground

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Over the last couple of days we’ve been out with more bin bags and the remainder of the seed potatoes so much so there’s no more left to plant. We are still very early with planting (the great Joe Maiden RIP used to say Good Friday was the traditional seed potato planting day) so let’s hope the weather is on our side and if it’s not, we’re hoping the bin bags do their job!

And for no reason at all here’s a gem from Creation Rebel, the title of the classic LP Dub from Creation. First heard here on a tinny transistor radio played by the great John Peel.

Change up business

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After work yesterday we did a little bit of de-weeding down the “wild bit” at the bottom of the garden. It looked alright during the height of its wildness over the last few seasons (above) but now looks pretty unkempt come this time of year.

We had an idea to keep the back of the area (that doesn’t get that much sun which is the main problem) still a bit wild and go back to growing some vegetables at the front. More on Bill Shimmers’ wonderful wildlife ponds that influenced us to make our own low-tech versions using the odd Dutch pot and large margarine tub that are plonked in the wild area here.

Once we cleared the front of the area and seen in plain terms what we had to play with so to speak, we popped down the nearest B&Q and got a bag of seed potatoes (Maris Piper of course!) for just over £4 and will start the chitting process over the weekend. We may even start a couple off under the old window frame we found in a skip years ago. The pic below is what we had growing in there a good few years ago (spuds, onions, broad beans and strawberries.)

Remember it may be cold and rainy and there my be the odd frost to come in the post but if you get out there now and make a start, that’s one less job for you once the garden heats up and all hell breaks loose. It’s strange as once it starts, it’s mid-summer before you know it.

The soundtrack to writing this post is last Monday’s Rhythm Doctor’s Waiting Room from IDA Radio. There’s some great stuff as always on the show including Brian Eno/Jah Wobble from the 1995 Spinner LP (the one with a spanner on the cover). Well worth a listen on a chilled Saturday morning.

The seedy side of swapping

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We at Weeds like to mix it up when it comes to getting our seeds. We purchase them from our local garden centre, have more than a fondness for a ebay “vegetable seed job lot” (if it says “rare” or “unusual” then all the better) and do we love a seed swap. What’s nicer than passing on something you got a few of and exchanging them for something else.

Organised seed swaps are fun events to attend, you’ll meet like-minded people (great for exchanging gardening tips and information) and you’ll probably bag yourself something that you’ve never thought of growing before or some heirloom/heritage varieties you rarely come across.

One of our favourite seed swaps was in a pub in Hither Green on a Sunday night; a small crowd of gardening enthusiasts gathered to drink, chat horticulture and flick through boxes of interesting looking seed packets (some customised and hand-decorated, much more interesting than your average pack). That’s how a Sunday evening should be spent rather than having to put up with the likes of Highway and Antiques Road Show.

We never like to go to one empty handed and try to bring things as interesting as possible, these have included: chitted seed spuds, Egyptian walking onion sets and a couple of packs of night scented stock as we’re always trying to turn people onto growing those.

Once at a seed swap we saw a girl (dressed in a steam-punk style) pull out of her pocket a list of “what she had” consisting of 2 double-sided typed A4 sheets. Her black gothic style rucksack (with metal bits and all sorts) was filled with tons of numbered “dealer bags” full of seeds which came complete with home made labels and even sowing instructions. That’s a bit over the top for us here but that’s how passionate people are!

Sort of related are the annual potato day/seed fairs arranged by Pennards plants that combine a seed potato sale, heirloom/heritage seeds and sometimes have a seed swap section. Have a look at www.potato-days.net for your local one.

So save your own seeds this year (there’s lots of sites online that’ll give you pointers on how to do it) or see what you may have left over in your seed tin and next year have a look on google/facebook/twitter for a seed swap near you and go down and participate and see what you can bring home! Why not make a weekend of it and go to the big annual Seedy Sunday in Brighton (Sunday February 3rd 2019). Also have a look online as there’s numerous sites that encourage the art of seed swapping without even leaving your own home. Good luck! #onaseedswaptip