12 responses |
Vivian starts with ... Hi all, I have a peculiar problem with ny veggie patch. We created the veggie patch last yr (pic attached) and all was well. Veggies grew well, I had an abundant of herbs, salad, pumpkin, etc This yr all the seeds are kinda stunted. They would germinate then stay like that for a few weeks. They grow very slow or not at all and at the end of the 12 or 14 weeks I either have a tiny tree or a miniature version of the veggie I'd hope for. I live in Sydney. The seeds either come from the left over from last yr or from Bunnings this yr, exp 2015. I water them everyday, give them fertilizer once in a while, i.e. Nothing different to last yr. The seeds are: pumpkin, salad, brassia, raddish, spinach etc The only difference is that my MIL over the winter dug out all the old soil, put a layer of black weed mat underneed the veggie bed and created a number of smaller beds, then put new soil down (about 30cmdeep) with the black mat as divider (sorry not a good description) I struggle to see why this would be the problem as the mat has holes for the water to escape. My miniature veggies din't have much roots at all. Any idea anyone?
| About the Author Vivian 2160 1st February 2014 11:11pm #UserID: 8227 Posts: 15 View All Vivian's Edible Fruit Trees |
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Jantina says... Taking out all the soil and putting in other soil is a big change. Why take out the old soil when vegies were doing well? Where did the new soil come from , does it hold water? Is the new soil peat based which once dried out becomes water repellent etc etc etc. If your seeds last year were hybrids then (if you mean you saved your own seed) results could be variable this year (no guarantee seeds from hybrids will be any good but that does not explain your across the board failure. My money would be on there being something amiss with the soil. | About the Author Jantina Mt Gambier 2nd February 2014 3:34pm #UserID: 1351 Posts: 1272 View All Jantina's Edible Fruit Trees |
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| About the Author JohnMc1 Warnervale NSW 2nd February 2014 6:50pm #UserID: 2743 Posts: 2043 View All JohnMc1's Edible Fruit Trees |
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Vivian says... Thank you Jantina My seeds are all store bought, so prob not because of them The soil my MIL put down were from garden centre, in bags for vegetable and herbs. We also use them last yr but only as the top layer, not the whole way through like this yr. My MIL is of the opinion that doing this (dividing the patch into beds with dividers and black mat underneath will help keep weeds out and help retain moisture in the soil. I'm tempted to remove them all but b4 I upset her hugely I want to know if there are any other possible causes I havent thought of. | About the Author Vivian 2160 2nd February 2014 6:56pm #UserID: 8227 Posts: 15 View All Vivian's Edible Fruit Trees |
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| About the Author Vivian 2160 2nd February 2014 7:08pm #UserID: 8227 Posts: 15 View All Vivian's Edible Fruit Trees |
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| About the Author Vivian 2160 2nd February 2014 7:11pm #UserID: 8227 Posts: 15 View All Vivian's Edible Fruit Trees |
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| About the Author Vivian 2160 2nd February 2014 7:13pm #UserID: 8227 Posts: 15 View All Vivian's Edible Fruit Trees |
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JohnMc1 says... I'm wondering if the weedmat, being 30cm deep, is blocking the roots from getting down to where most of the serious water is draining to/through? Your garden soil might be extremely well drained, You could always dig down to the weedmat to see how damp/dry it is above the weedmat. That is, if I'm understanding your description correctly. | About the Author JohnMc1 Warnervale NSW 2nd February 2014 7:46pm #UserID: 2743 Posts: 2043 View All JohnMc1's Edible Fruit Trees |
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| About the Author MaryT Sydney 2nd February 2014 8:20pm #UserID: 5412 Posts: 2066 View All MaryT's Edible Fruit Trees |
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| About the Author Brain Brisbane 3rd February 2014 11:29am #UserID: 6289 Posts: 638 View All Brain's Edible Fruit Trees |
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Upper mountains says... Soil is something living and if you treat it well it becomes better every year. You must get the weed mat out, produce compost, plant comfrey which is a good mulch, get every organic matter you can get and you will have a thrving garden. A good beginners book is maybe Jackie French the wilderness garden. | About the Author loewenzahn Katoomba 3rd February 2014 10:01pm #UserID: 8357 Posts: 60 View All loewenzahn's Edible Fruit Trees |
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| About the Author Vivian 2160 4th February 2014 10:34pm #UserID: 8227 Posts: 15 View All Vivian's Edible Fruit Trees |
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| About the Author MaryT Sydney 5th February 2014 5:55am #UserID: 5412 Posts: 2066 View All MaryT's Edible Fruit Trees |
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