Sunday 13 May 2012

Sunny but not much warmth


Saturday was a lovely sunny day but it still wasn't particularly warm especially out of the sun and in the cool breeze.

On the plot we have eventually managed to sow some carrots. This year we’ve used some ground cover fabric to try and overcome the rapid growth of weeds under the environmesh. 
I didn't know whether to lay strips of fabric between the rows of carrot seed or to cut holes in the fabric and form seed drills in the spaces. In the end I decided on the later, thinking it might be easier to hold the fabric down.
So this is how it looked once our carrots were sown. There are 4 different varieties sown Early Nantes, Flakkee, St Valery and Autumn King. Actually sowing the seeds took only a few minutes but preparing the fabric took quite a while however, if this system proves successful I'm hoping to be able to reuse the membrane next year at least. I know this is a lot of trouble to go to for carrots but we have really missed not having a supply of tasty carrots over winter. The ones bought in the supermarket just don’t compare. There’s a little space left at the end of the bed where I may sow some more carrots without the fabric just as a comparison to see how the two methods compare under the same weather conditions.
Finally the whole area was covered with environmesh to protect from the dreaded carrot root fly. Using enviromesh is the only way we have managed to control this pest. 

1 comment:

  1. I agree, Martyn. After finally harvesting some decent carrots last year, the supermarket bought ones just don't taste of anything in comparison. I thought it was quite cold yesterday, though the sun was shining. It must be the chill factor in the wind.

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