DJBrenton wrote:
:: A couple of things... you might consider Armillatox if you don't
:: want to use Jeyes.
::
:: You also might want to cut the nettles for an aphid spray rather
:: than disposing of them. I'm about to make a nettle bed of all
:: things.
::
Hellsbells!
I'm inundated with them every year and every year they seem to grow taller -
this past summer seen them almost nine feet in height, they were towering
over the fence which is six foot high and there's an eighteen inch drop on
the other side of it!
How do you make a spray for aphids from nettles? - I seem to get whitefly a
lot in summer, especially in the GH.

Jaques d'Alltrades wrote:
:: The message
:: from "Phil L" contains these words:
::
::: Thanks to all who have replied...I wouldn't mind a grapevine but
::: how long do they take to get established and to start
::: fruiting?..where do I get them from? - what type?
::
:: Couple of years. And the type depends on what sort of grapes you
:: like, and what you want to use them for.

Eating and any type...I suppose if I had a glut I could make some wine but
I'd use other fruit as well and not rely completely upon the grapes, I've
made some excellent wines in the past, the best being nettle.

::
::: The tomato seeds are Ailsa Craig...I may try another strain so
::: that we have a variety but TBH, most of them will end up frozen
::: but they are still better than tinned when making curries,
::: chillis and my very own 'cheese & tomato dip' (and they are
::: easier to peel when frozen!)
::
:: Good flavour, Ailsa Craig, but reputed to suffer from greenback.
:: I've never noticed it though.
::
'greenback'?

::: I'm not using grobags because in the past, the fruit have split
::: when the compost gets slightly dry, the beds are easier to water
::: and will remain damp for longer...I can keep on top of the nettle
::: seedlings by digging them in.
::
:: Good thinking...

We live at the bottom of a fairly large hill and the soil is very sandy,
nearby there is a stream (about forty yards away)so the land itself seems to
stay fairly moist all year round

::
::: we don't like aubergines as there's not much flavour in 'em!
::
:: I can't stand the things.
::
My dad grew them years ago and no one liked them, I do like courgettes
though and I think I may have some seeds.

::: not big lovers of melons neither and I fear for the safety of
::: strawberries with our slug problem.
::
:: Oh, I like melons. I've never had a problem with slugs in a
:: greenhouse. Too hot for them.

Maybe they've been using the nettles/bindweed as cover?...I'll put some
pellets down or a beer trap in the next few weeks and hopefully remove some
of them.
::
::: I can get all the free manure I need from a local farmer so I'll
::: get on it this week and dig a few CWT into the beds at the same
::: time as de-rooting the nettles.
::
:: You know it makes scents...
::
::: I'm tempted with the capsicums if it's possible to freeze them?
::
:: Yes, but they won't be much good for salad use.

Just as well I don't like them raw then!...I only use them for cooking with
so I may give 'em a bash.

Cheers.

The message
from "Franz Heymann" contains these words:
"Jaques d'Alltrades" wrote in
message k...
The message
from "Franz Heymann" contains
these words:
"Jaques d'Alltrades" wrote in
message k...
The message

we don't like aubergines as there's not much flavour in 'em!

I can't stand the things.

There would appear to be a serious lacuna in your sense of taste.
Perhaps you should have it attended to. Then you will realised
that,
if properly prepared, aubergines are the nearest thing available
as a
substitute for beef bone marrow.

Lacuna widens then. I'm beginning to warm to it.

Stir-fry slices in duck fat.

Stir-fry veg and pieces of bacon, maybe, or better, pieces of
eight^H^H^H^duck.

--
Rusty
Open the creaking gate to make a horrid.squeak, then lower the foobar.
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/

The message k
from "Phil L" contains these words:

:: Couple of years. And the type depends on what sort of grapes you
:: like, and what you want to use them for.

Eating and any type...I suppose if I had a glut I could make some wine but
I'd use other fruit as well and not rely completely upon the grapes, I've
made some excellent wines in the past, the best being nettle.

Black Hamburg do well in a greenhouse, and are a pleasant grape.

:: Good flavour, Ailsa Craig, but reputed to suffer from greenback.
:: I've never noticed it though.
::
'greenback'?

A condition where the top of the tomato is streaked with green. It
doesn't spoil the tomato, but it doesn't look so alluring...

We live at the bottom of a fairly large hill and the soil is very sandy,
nearby there is a stream (about forty yards away)so the land itself seems to
stay fairly moist all year round

Well, by the sound of your nettles, the soil is very rich.

[aubergines]
::
My dad grew them years ago and no one liked them, I do like courgettes
though and I think I may have some seeds.

They don't need a greenhouse, though you would get some early ones that way.

[slugs]

Maybe they've been using the nettles/bindweed as cover?...I'll put some
pellets down or a beer trap in the next few weeks and hopefully remove some
of them.

You'll need to raise the temperature a bit and moisten everything. At
this time of year, your nasty slugs are hibernating in the soil or under
stones, bits of wood, etc.

--
Rusty
Open the creaking gate to make a horrid.squeak, then lower the foobar.
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/