Gardening Help

‘Fresh is best’ particularly when it come to seeds. However if you have a surplus of seed that you can’t sow immediately they should be stored in a moisture proof container at a low temperature. A fridge compartment is ideal.

Storing Seed

• Although the majority of seed will remain viable for a year or two, when kept at room temperature, cold storage extends the life considerably.
• Never store seeds in a greenhouse or garden shed. The high temperature and humidity can kill off the seed in a matter of weeks.
• Seeds in foil wrappers should be left unopened until ready for sowing.
• Seed from seed exchanges or collected from your own garden should be sown as soon as practical.

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Variegated Poinsettia are interesting pot plants on sale around Christmas. After Christmas the price is much lower and a good specimen can last many weeks or months before fading away.

• There are now totally cream leaved as well as the more common red plants.

• The coloured leaves are really bracts that will change to green or drop off if not looked after.

• Poinsettia are susceptible to drafts and cold so should not be left on a windowsill or taken from a warm garden centre to a cold car.

• Do not over water but also you must not let the plant become totally dry or the bracts will be shed prematurely.

The above picture is of the same plant but taken using flash photography.

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You have tried ‘Sprouting Seeds’ now try their slightly older cousins the micro leaves.

What Are Micro Leaves

• Micro Leaves are salads and vegetables harvested at a very young and tender stage.
• Usually cropped at cotyledon or first true leaf stage.
• Think Mustard and Cress from your childhood.
• But expect stunning colours and intense flavour.
• Eating all the pent-up energy contained within the seed makes a health flavoursome addition to salads or sandwiches.
• Used and eaten whole, they take almost no preparation with very little waste.
• Generally eaten 7-15 days after sowing, but before they take on additional nutrient this fresh crop is simple to grow.
• Sow on an inert, moisture retentive substance and bring into full light when seeds have germinated.

Seed Selection to Try as Micro-leaves

• Celery, Rocket and a range of herbs.
• Lettuce and salad crops including Radish
• Basil, Broccoli even Mustard.
• Peas for tips or micro-leaves
• For a wider selection read pdf
• Read also Sprouting Seeds on Gardeners Tips

Reuseable and recyclable terracotta pots have been a staple in the potting shed for many generations.

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Black spot is an ugly and plant threatening, fungal disease causing problems with Roses.

Avoid Black Spot

• Keep the ground clear of any diseased leaves or plant matter.
• Burn affected leaves, do not compost as this just recycles the spores.
• Use clean tools or dip them in fungicide particularly those that contact the sap like secateurs or loppers.
• Buy disease resistant varieties of rose.
• Allow air to circulate. Black spot likes humid conditions so water carefully.
• Beware black spot can be transmitted from plant to plant.

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