2022 - What I sowed today

You probably know that I tend to fill my garden with flowers, leaving just a bit of room for toms and chillies.
However I think I’d better ration the flowers and get some salad crops going. Just read this in a gardening magazine .....
“Joe Shepherdson of the Cucumber Growers’ Association said that British arable farmers faced “huge price increases across the board”, which had led to many delaying, or cancelling, their growing season. Typically the UK produces 80 million cucumbers a year but this year only 30 million will be produced.

“Similar decisions are being made by farmers in Holland and Spain, countries where the UK sources salad ingredients, which will result in a significant drop in European production and an inevitable surge in prices for shoppers.

Lee Stiles, head of the Lea Valley Growers Association in Essex, which produces three quarters of the UK’s pepper, cucumber and aubergine crop said that only half of its farmers had planted so far this month, which meant that production would halve”.
Note to mods — if this is plagiarism and not allowed, please remove it.

Sounds dire FEW, I've a mind to get the sowing done. We are all going to end up in a different world than we're used to. Thanks for the warning. I'm assuming the reluctance to sow greenhouse crops is the escalating heating costs. I know our gh heater used to cost 17p per hour but on the new contract will be 25p an hour, all but 50% increase. To a commercial enterprise that would be untenable.

A farmer I watch on Youtube says he usually spends £25k a year on fertiliser. This year it'll be £42k, next year closer to £100k. He grows wheat and oil seed rape, amongst other things.

I've just sown our greenhouse tomatoes. Outdoor ones and plants for other people will be sown at the start of April.

I sowed some Dahlia "Bishop's Children'. I've grown these before and left the tubers in the ground over winter, but I noticed they had all disappeared after several years so decided to replenish my stock.

I also sowed my last tomatoes, "Green Zebra" and a mystery yellow grape tomato I was given.

I found a bar stool so I can sit down in the potting shed. I got loads sown today:
Helleborus Orientalis "Best Colours"
Dierama "Blackbird"
Anemone "Leveillei"
Geranium Albanium
Aubretia "Cascade Red"
Venidium "Zulu Prince"
Suvorov's Limonium
Clematis Tangutica
Clematis Viorna
Eryngium Apanium "Superbum"
Clematis Fusca
Clematis Serratifolia

I've actually sown all the veggies that I need now, apart from leeks and maybe onions... until it gets warmer and it's time for the curcurbits and squashes. It's lovely to get into the flower box with real gusto for a change!

Did the weekly sow list yesterday -
Beetroot di Chioggia
Agastache
Prairie patch in the meadow
Cucumbers 5 from a mixed Kokopelli-semences.fr variety pack
Gherkins ameliore bourbonne
Turnip Milan
Tromboncino Albania
Basil lemon, Thai & neopolitan
Coriander
Honesty
And sweet peas

Sowed Asturian Tree cabbage, Cape Gooseberries, Black Russian Tomatoes and Craigella tomatoes.

Today Kale, coriander and basil.
Then Pansies, marigolds and sunflowers.

Kale - Emerald Ice
Cress - Greek Olympus
Beetroot - Bulls Blood
Tatsoy - Emperor's Savoy
Basil - Aristotle
Onion - Yellow Sweet Spanish
Grass - Briza Maxima