2024 - What I sowed today

My beans have rotted so I'll have to sow again. I always make the mistake of overwatering

My beans have rotted so I'll have to sow again. I always make the mistake of overwatering

That's the problem I'm having too - I'm blaming it on the coir as its difficult to judge when its wet  enough.

What I do with beans is chit them in a sheet of moist kitchen roll, then once they sprout, I plant them in compost (or straight outside if warm enough) and don't water until I see shoots.

I've never had much joy with "chitting" - I think I'm too generous with the water. You've reminded me of a third way I did have some success with though!. Fill a plastic bag with just damp compost, bung in the beans, mix them in, seal the bag and wait until you see signs of life through the plastic. I'm going to try that today!

Sounds like a good plan Garrett. Funnily enough I had sown a challenge pumpkin in apot which didn't show so I put the pot on a high shelf in the sunny greenhouse intending to throw it out and reuse the compost, at least 10 days ago. Now the bladdy thing has sprouted! Sometimes neglect helps

I've never had much joy with "chitting" - I think I'm too generous with the water. You've reminded me of a third way I did have some success with though!. Fill a plastic bag with just damp compost, bung in the beans, mix them in, seal the bag and wait until you see signs of life through the plastic. I'm going to try that today!

Done! A big handful of saved Hunter beans (a couple of years old) in one bag and some Courgette seeds in another bag plus some of the same courgettes in a pot, sown as usual as a control. All 3 are in a heated propagator in the bedroom where I can say Goodnight and Hello in the morning to them. 

Sowed cucumbers as the first didn't work. Found the new pack of trombas (replacing the odd squash that I found out was not tromba as advertised, if anyone recalls my woes) and sowed a couple seeds. This is the third or fourth year I've wanted to grow them, so wish me luck

Summer climbers day:

Tropaeolum peregrinum aka Canary Creeper
Ipomoea lobata aka Spanish Flag
Ipomoea purpurea Grandpa Ott aka Morning Glory

These grow so quickly I usually leave them to sow later, they soon catch up.

I've put beans to chit as well as resowing. At this rate if they all pop I'll be overbeaned as usual

After sowing beans in bags, I sowed another 60 beans in another experiment. I had a module tray with tiny modules, the sort that teeny weeny seedlings arrive in, when you think you've bought something a lot larger!. Each module was just large enough for a bean. I put some compost in each hole, added a bean and covered them over with a bit more compost. Gave them some water and put them in a cage in GH3.