The greenhouse is ablaze with colour as our growing season really begins to take off.  We could do with lots more sunshine to warm the young plants that are up in the field, but at least we are not having to worry about them not being watered as Mother Nature seems to be doing that very well on her own at the moment.

We have the Eden Projects Plant Sale this Saturday so as well as harvesting for their kitchens three times a week, Emma and Jasmine are busy putting the last minute touches to our young plants that we have been growing for the sale.  Lavender, mint, oregano and basil are some of the plants we will be selling alongside our salad trays filled with lettuces, spring onions and mizuna, We also have some young runner bean plants that were started off in the greenhouse.  We hope that the weather will be kind to us and that we meet up with lots people and raise some more money for the project.

We have been very fortunate to have one of our services users parents make a donation to the project that has enabled us to purchase a weed sprayer for the field.  Those dastardly docks will not stand a chance when faced with Emma and her new machine.

Two new service users have joined our group since our last blog.  Jasmine and Phyllis, both seemed to have settled in really well and are enjoying the work.  What’s very strange is that there seems to be a far stronger smell of men’s aftershave and deodarant in the morning than there was before they started…. Mmmm funny that!!!!

Emma’s tip:  We grow a lot of herbs here at the nursery both for our veg bags each fortnight and to sell to our customers.  They are great crops to grow at home especially basil, coriander and parsley.  Start them off in cell trays and when large enough prick them out into larger trays or pots.  You can sow these in succession, a few at a time every few weeks.  Keep them watered so that they don’t dry out and be patient with parsley as it is slow to germinate.

We would like to congratulate Ken Radford, Manager, for being included in The Independent on Sunday’s Happy List, dated 22/4/12.  This is a list which names 100 outstanding people who they recognise as someone who gives something back to society rather than take and who has made a considerable difference in changing peoples lives for the better.

We have also heard that we have been invited to the National Trust’s Octavia Awards ceremony which is being held at St Martin’s in the Field, London on 23rd May, for which Ken was nominated for by the Eden Project.  So we will have to wait and see if he wins.  A very exciting time for the Project.

We have started to plant the pumpkin seeds for the Eden display team.  These are planted in compost with the tip of the seed just, then covered with gravel and lightly watered and kept in the warm greenhouse until they are ready for planting in the field.

We have also been very busy planting out our red cabbages and filling the polytunnel with our spring onions.  Sean and Matt, who planted the onions, have invented a new aftershave – essence of spring onion….. mmm don’t think there will be many takers for that one!!!

Emma’s tip:  You may have read that carrots can be hard to grow because the soil needs to be just right, sandy and light, no stones and the dreaded carrot fly will finish them off anyway.  Well in theory this is correct but there are ways around these problems. and home grown carrots taste nothing like the supermarket specimens that you can buy.  So the easy way to grow them is in a large pot or container (with drainage holes) that is hig up off the ground to avoid the carrot fly.  Luckily the silly blighters fly close to ground level, so that takes care of them.  Fill the container with stone free light compost and sow your carrots.  Keep them welll watered. Happy carrot munching!

To donate to People and Gardens text SPUD16 £5.00 (or your amount) to 70070

Easter has been and gone and left us with lots of bunnies at the nursery, thank goodness for the bunny proof fence we have around the field, our crops of spring onions, parsley, parsnips and beetroot that have recently been planted would make a very tasty feast.

The greenhouse is awash with colour, the salad leaves and herbs are growing really quickly due to the lovely sunshine we have had lately.  It doesn’t take long for the small seedlings to start busting out of the seed tray. 

We have now started harvesting salad produce for the Eden Project’s kitchens and Cafe three times a week.  This will continue during the summer months. 

We will be taking part in the St Austell flower festival on the 28th April, we will be outside the Eden Cafe in town.   We will also have a stall on the 12th May at the Eden Project’s main site for the Plant Sale and then be there again for the Olympic Torch Day on the 19th May, so please if your around come along and say hello and meet the team.

Emma’s tip for this mammoth seed sowing month!  If it’s possible try and bring indoors some compost at least overnight to warm up for all your seed sowing.  You can also do this with a watering can of water as well so those seeds and seedlings don’t get so much of a shock.  Don’t forget April can still be cold so if you have some young plants already planted our remember to cover them with some horticultural fleece.  Happy gardening…

We have harvested our first crops of mizuna and rocket for the veg bags this week, not only do they look good they taste fantastic.  Our harvesting for the Eden kitchens and other outlets will also be starting in the near future.

Watering in the greenhouse in this hot weather is being done early morning and late afternoon as the sun is quite hot and the young seedlings need lots of TLC.  We now have over 2,000 – 20 and 35 litre pots, either planted or ready for planting.

The black plastic strips have all been laid in the field now and two full rows of parsnips have been planted.  Our battle now is keeping the rest of the field ‘dock free’.  We now have our very own Dock Busters.

Emma’s tip for this week is: Here at Watering Lane we obviously grow a lot of veg but most seasons we do like to sneak in a few sweet peas too. The scent from these colourful little beauties is heavenly.  They like a deep root run so give their roots plenty of space and try not to disturb the roots too much when transplanting them into their final position in your garden or pots.  Then when they flower just pick, pick, pick! And they will flower, flower, flower!

We were really pleased to hear that Ken Radford, Manager, has been nominated by the Eden Project for the National Trust’s Octavia Hill 2012 Award. 

Ken has worked tirelessly over the last 14 years to make the People and Gardens C.I.C. project what it is today.  His commitment and enthusiasm to all aspects of project can be seen by all who attend, whether they are working with the group or as a visitor to the site.

If you would like to help Ken be recognised for the dedication he has shown to all who attend the project please vote for him at http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/octaviaawards/

He is nominated under the ‘Growing Hero’ category.  Voting closes at midnight on Arpil 9th.

Thank you.

Please ask your friends to vote too.

Emma and some of the guy’s have managed to start laying down rows of black plastic for planting some of the crops, not only does this keep the weeds down but it will also warm up the compost beneath ready for the young seedlings.   We will be planting 2 rows of parsnip seeds today directly into the field.

The rhubard has responded to the couple of days of sunshine and warm weather that Cornwall has had recently and is coming on leaps and bounds.  It looks like we will have a bumper crop this year which will be fantastic for the veg bags.

The greenhouse is becoming filled with young lettuces, mizuna, rocket, parsley, basil and other herbs and is a sensory delight, the smells, colours, textures and taste are wonderful.  Everyone can see the rewards of their seed planting now.

Our volunteers, Jackie Buckingham, Sue Jackman and Jan Coles have been amazing and we would not have been able to have achieved so much without them, so thank you very much ladies, your help is greatly appreciated.

Emma’s tip:  Don’t be fooled by March’s weather, although there may be some bright days, they will be followed by biting winds and frosty nights.  If you are lucky enough to have a greenhouse or even a polytunnel you can begin to sow some salad crops, celeriac and early cabbages.  If these spaces aren’t available you can always use your windowsills.

Last Friday we spent a great day at Trevalon Community Farm.  Mark Simon and his team showed us around the farm and provided us with a lovely lunch.  Mark also showed us how to take willow cuttings and replant them alongside one of their walls.  We have invited Mark and his team to come and join us at the Nursey later in the year.

The greenhouse is beginning to be filled with lots of colour from the new plants: four different types of parlsey, mizuna, baby leaf lettuces, rocket, basil and lots of herbs.  Jackie, one of our volunteers, James T and Sean have planted our first lot of spring onions in the polytunnel this week.

Farmer Rob came and prepared the field for us so we have been able to start to lay the black plastic in the field so that it will warm up the compost ready to take the new crops. 

It has been a veg bag week and Emma and James measured and packed the mushrooms and tomatoes this week.  The bag also contained potatoes, leek, onions, carrots, swede, cabbage and a cucumber.  We had to deliver 75 bags this week. 

Emma’s tip of the week:  As the weather warms up, so does the soil.  Time to really get sowing all those vegetable seeds.  It’s the month to plant your onion sets but if you only have a limited space I would recommend planting some shallots.  Their flavour is milder yet finer than the plain white onions and they’re expensive to buy!  “Matador” or “Red Sun” are two recommended varieties.

An incredibly busy week. 75 veg bags packed and delivered without hiccup.

Sean and Darren have been working hard to dig over the rhubarb plot. Everyone else has been sowing seeds, planting and filling pots in block 1. We have sown spring onions, basil and lettuces and planted lettuces and mizuna. 8 tons of compost has been used which is amazing. We’ve also planted and moved outside 8000 tulip bulbs, 6 per 3 litre pot. Our group need to work in a very structured way and it’s humbling to see people work with such determination and then than us for giving them such a good day.

Jan Coles joined us as a volunteer this week and we are very lucky to be able to access her professional expertise. All of our volunteers are incredibly nice people and we are priveleged to have them with us.

Emma’s tip this week is to go home early if you can! She also recommends getting all your seed trays and pots sterilised to prevent dormant diseases from developing.

On Wednesday our new Cold Storage Unit arrived at the Nursery.  It wasn’t an easy task to get the unit into place as we had to dismantle part of a fence so that the lorry could get into the correct position.

Only a couple of hours earlier Sean, Darren and Kenny were busy preparing the area and had to check that the sleepers for the unit was level.

We were all so excited about this as it is the first of the items that we have on our wish list.  It means that we can now harvest our salad crops everyday during the summer as they will be able to be stored at the correct temperature.

We have also cleared and renewed the compost around our rhubarb crowns and finished digging over the squash and gourd beds.

Emma’s tip this week: If you are a fan of runner beans or courgettes start trench composting!  Make a trench under the spot where you want your crops to grow and line it with some cardboard and kitchen vegetable waste.  Top it off with the soil you removed to make the trench and it will soon start to break down.  Don’t forget where it is though.  These crops are extremely hungry and need plenty of feeding.  A great idea is to actually plant a courgette into your compost heap and watch it grow!