Hartley Magazine
The first two days of January have shown us just what a lottery the weather has become. New Year’s Day it was howling wind and torrential rain, today is the start of a cold ‘snap’. Both potent reminders of the joys of owning a Hartley Greenhouse, as you can start sowing from early January, whatever […]
When it comes to gardening, climate change means a revision of expectations and ideas. These days, an unheated greenhouse provides useful protection for tender crops for longer than ever before. When October frosts were the norm, you wouldn’t even consider leaving chillies to ripen in the greenhouse but now it is more commonplace. Keep checking […]
Clear autumn leaves from gutters as they start to fall. Prevent downpipes from clogging by putting a pan scourer in the hole at the top, then clearing the debris as it backs up, from time to time. Collect rainwater in a waterbutt, when it is full, water at the base of fences under the eaves […]
It’s a busy time in the greenhouse. Sow courgettes, climbing and dwarf beans, chard, beetroot, salad onions and tender herbs including basil and coriander. ‘Harden off’ and plant outdoor pumpkins, melons and tomatoes and courgettes in their permanent positions once the danger of frost has passed. Plant courgettes into organic rich soil, trough slits in […]
Sow celeriac, spinach and turnip in modules early in the month. Use peat free seed or finely sieved multipurpose compost; larger seeds like peas and beans can be sown in straight multipurpose compost. Sow half-hardy annuals including climbers for ornamental outdoor displays. Like all greenhouse grown plants, they need ‘hardening off’ ready for transplanting once […]
Peaches and nectarines flower early in the year when there are few insects about, so hand pollination is the only way to ensure a good crop. It works best after two or three dry warm days when most of the flowers are open. When the time is right, there will be a dusting of pollen […]
From February onwards, it is time to sprout (or ‘chit’) new potatoes and the first big sign that the gardening year has started. Put your potatoes in a tray or egg box with the ‘rose’ end, where all the buds are, at the top, keep them at about 7C (45F), then, after four to five […]
Happy New Year! Here’s to fabulous crops, few pests and many pleasurable moments pottering in your Hartley greenhouse. With the wet weather, there is no better place to shelter as you check your plants. If you haven’t done so already, a water butt to collect rainwater from the roof is a ‘must’ and can be […]
This image is a testament to climate change! Harvest any crops which remain in the unheated greenhouse. Start Amaryllis bulbs into growth as soon as you can, watering sparingly at first; just trickle a little tepid water around the bulb, increasing the amount as the bud appears. Once it is growing strongly, keep the compost […]
With it is warm and sunny, sow trays, pots or old growing bags with ‘cut and come again crops’ to harvest through autumn and into winter like Land cress, oriental salads, like pak choi, mizuna and mibuna greens, lettuce, lamb’s lettuce, carrots for seedlings, chicory and radish. You can also use what’s left from earlier […]
If you’d like to eat new potatoes at Christmas (or earlier), it is time to plant them now, when late season, second early potatoes, stored in temperature-controlled conditions are sent out from late July to early August. They can easily be grown in pots. Stand two or three tubers on a 12.5cm layer of multipurpose […]
Once tomatoes have set their fourth or fifth truss of fruit, cut off the main stem one leaf above the terminal truss, so the moisture and nutrients are focussed on swelling and ripening the fruit. Tap the open flowers around mid-day when the pollen is dry to encourage further pollination and tie the stems to […]
