Seed germination - update 3

The table shows the number of days it's taken each variety, from seed sowing on 17th Mar, to germination of the first seed(s), and the total number of seedlings now up.

	Days	Seed(s) 1st day	Current total
Tomato Sultana (HP*)	8	4	8
Chili 'Meek & Mild' (HP*)	9	1	9
Chili 'Bulgarian Carrot' (HP*)	9	2	14
Chili 'Inferno' (HP*)	10	1	12
Chili 'Joe's Long' (HP*)	10	1	9
Tomato Ruby (ST**)	9	2	5
Tomato Tommy Toe (ST**)	10	1	6
Tomato Suncherry Premium (ST**)	10	2	4
Tomato Incas (ST**)	11	2	4

* Heated Propagator
** Seed Tray with clear plastic lid

Seed germination - update 2

I've changed the table format to show the number of days it's taken each variety, from seed sowing on 17th Mar, to germination of the first seed(s).

	Days	Seed(s) 1st day	Current total
Tomato Sultana (HP*)	8	4	7
Chili 'Meek & Mild' (HP*)	9	1	3
Chili 'Bulgarian Carrot' (HP*)	9	2	5
Chili 'Inferno' (HP*)	10	1	2
Chili 'Joe's Long' (HP*)	10	1	1
Tomato Ruby (ST**)	9	2	4
Tomato Tommy Toe (ST**)	10	1	1
Tomato Suncherry Premium (ST**)	10	2	2

* Heated Propagator
** Seed Tray with clear plastic lid

Seed germination

Of the seeds sown on the 17th March, here's the progress so far:

	Date 1st germinated	No. germinated	Total
Tomato Sultana (HP*)	25th March	4	7
Tomato Ruby (ST**)	26th March	2	2
Chili 'Meek & Mild' (HP*)	26th March	1	1
Chili 'Bulgarian Carrot' (HP*)	26th March	2	2

* Heated Propagator
** Seed Tray with clear plastic lid

Electric Picnic

That’s it so, have made a snap decision to go to Electric Picnic this year. The lineup looks great, it includes many I’ve been listening to over the last few months, Goldfrapp, Dawn Landes, CSS, The Breeders (again), Grinderman. I’ll just postpone the nightmares about camping… I wonder is it feasible to commute from Kilkenny each day, or am I missing the entire point of the festival? Tickets go on sale tomorrow.

Hedge news

Three years ago I planted a hedge in Rosslare, so whenever I go down (approx 3 times a year) I do a ‘health check’. This involves looking at each plant, seeing is it still alive, pruning out any dead bits, and pruning the more vigorous plants such as cornus (dogwood) and willow to give their neighbours a chance to get sufficient light and space.

As the previous post mentions, initially there were serious issues with waterlogging on the site, which did for many of the plants, some of which could cope with the windy conditions but not the wet. Drainage works were carried out in 2007, which has certainly helped. Plants that are thriving include sea buckthorn, wild pear, Rosa rugosa, Cornus, willow, and hawthorn, others such as crab apple, guelder rose, and phormium are slower growing but healthy.

I usually attract at least one observer, this time it was the two-and-a-half year old nephew, who played with the dog, which linked in nicely when he became interested in the plants. I showed him the dogwoods (red and yellow-barked), and the thorns on the wild pears and sea buckthorns. Later on I brought the one year old niece out and picked off the furry willow buds, which fascinated her. (Surely out of 9 nephews and nieces I’m bound to make a gardener out of one of them!)

Tomatoes, chilis, etc

No doubt this’d be a dreadfully boring list for many, but it’s handy way of keeping record; here are the seeds I sowed on Paddy’s day:

Tomato Suncherry Premium F1 (T&M*) – 12 seeds
Tomato Tommy Toe (T&M) – 13 seeds
Tomato Ruby F1 (T&M) – 5 seeds
Tomato Inca F1 (Dobies) – 5 seeds
Tomato Sultana** (Dobies) – 10 seeds

Cobaea scandens (Mr Fothergills) – 5 seeds

Chili ‘Inferno’ F1 (T&M) – 12 seeds
Chili ‘Meek & Mild’ (T&M) – 13 seeds
Chili ‘Bulgarian Carrot’ (Dobies) – 18 seeds
Chili ‘Joe’s Long’ F1 (Dobies) – 11 seeds

Tomatoes: 45 seeds
Chilis: 54 seeds


*Thompson & Morgan
** 3 seeds had germinated after a week (in the heated propagator)

New apple trees

Ordered a couple of apple trees from Feidhlim of the Bandon Apple Tree Project a few weeks ago. He sources the trees from Irish Seed Savers, who hold the Native Irish Apple Collection, with 140 different types of Irish apple trees. Feidhlim dropped the trees by yesterday, and as they’re bare rooted, I’ll need to get them in the ground as soon as possible. I got an eater and a cooker. Gibbons russet (on a M111 rootstock*), and Martins seedling/No surrender (on a M106 rootstock*). The following descriptions are from the ISSA website:

Gibbons russet
White-fleshed, sweet, pale yellow, strewn with russet dots and veins. Rounded fruit. Trees were common in Co. Dublin and Co. Meath. It was once listed as a cider apple in Tighe’s Survey of Co. Kilkenny. Noted as a popular local favourite. Very early for a russet. Dessert/Cider. Sept/Oct.

Martins seedling/No surrender
White, juicy, sweetish soft flesh. Large, round and uneven. Resembles the Ecklinville Seedling. In past times stored and eaten as they sweetened. Raised by James Martin of Co.Antrim. One of the varieties recommended in the 1904 Journal of the Dept of Agriculture and a class was provided for it in the Dublin fruit show of 1904. Also found in Co.Tyrone. Culinary Sept/Oct.


Both trees were supplied as one year old maiden whips, that is, with a single stem and no branches. A feathered maiden is a one year old tree with side branches. (Aren’t the terms just fab!)

Over the next couple of years I’m going to try training, and pruning, them as espaliers, that is, with the side branches trained horizontally against the west-facing fence. Here’s hoping.

*The rootstock determines how big the tree will grow, both M106 and M111 are semi-vigorous. You’d expect a tree grafted on to M106 and M111 to reach 12 to 15 ft.

Delia’s new leaf

I do love reading a good rant, and the foodies are up in arms.

Especially enjoyed the comment by japan:

what i don't understand is why everyone is so "disappointed"??!?!
deliah smith has always been a dreadful woman. i knew it from the moment some kindhearted bstard bought me her "one is fun" after my first boyfriend left me and the recipes within turned out to all be for two with the idea that you froze the other half. comforting it was not. an intelligent culinary solution to cooking for one it was not. ceremoniously dumped at the oxfam shop it was.
did no-one notice that her early recipes only looked delicious because the ingredients all cost more than an entire week's income support?
did no-one feel insulted by "how to boil an egg"?
does no-one else find the concept of straight women liking football decidedly suspect?
has no one noticed how her hair is really a tin helmet?
an awful woman is flogging truly awful ideas about cooking. so what else is news????

Gave in to the itch

Couldn’t wait any longer and sowed a few seeds on Thurs 28th Feb. Used the root trainers I got a couple of years ago, they allow the seedlings to form a longer, sturdier root ball before planting out. Just chanced some hardy annuals (nothing subtle about these!):

Calendula ‘Daisy May’

Calendula ‘Apricot Tart’

Sweet Pea ‘Cupani’

Sweet Pea ‘Horizon Mixed’

And you certainly get a quick return on sowing Calendulas.

Calendula ‘Apricot Tart’: Sowed seed on a Thursday, first seedling popped up on the following Wed (germination time: 6 days).
Sweet Pea ‘Cupani’: Sowed seed on a Thursday, first seedling popped up on the following Sat week (germination time: 9 days).
Sweet Pea 'Horizon Mixed': Ditto for sowing date, first seedlings on Mon 10th March (germination time: 11 days).

Here we go so, it possibly all hangs on the Texas and Ohio Democratic primaries for Hillary (or not). Some links:

How the Ohio and Texas primaries work

To women, so much more than a candidate

Hot demand for political gear in a hot race

Review of Uh Huh Her

Uh Huh Her

Up in Dublin at the weekend to catch up with the sisters and friends, and go to the Uh Huh Her gig in The Village, which was so enjoyable. The music didn’t totally blow me away (possibly lack of familiarity on my part), but I definitely like the direction they’re taking. They played a short, punky number (fecked if I know the name) which stood out, and a couple of other memorable ones. I was puzzled by all the talking in the crowd. Wimmin, why go to a gig and not listen to the band? But it didn’t distract me too much. Una and becs cover it as well. Naturally, Una was on the inside track ;~)

Rated 4/5 on Mar 04 2008

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