Help for my first plant?

Helen Clay

I’ve my New Year’s Resolution to finally grow something. 

This is what I want to grow but I’m not too sure on what soil it needs, what food or how often it needs it. I’m assuming I just keep the soil moist?

I thought I knew what I needed until I got the point of getting it, please help!

MuddyFork

I expect everything you need is in the box.  The instructions are clear on what you need to do.  They can be planted in the garden later in the year.

Lyn

what is it, it says on the box that it should have been planted last year, so if it’s a bulb it may well be very dried out by now.

Helen Clay

Oh... How would I know if they've dried out?

Learnincurve

Mouldy and shrivelled.  Don’t worry though, the bulb is the cheapest part  the set and you can grow any bulb in there to the same instructions 

Helen Clay

After checking them, I can assume they are now done... they're more of a fibrous shell Got to be more on the ball I see.

I have accumulated a few packets from GW & a few other mags, I best get on to sowing them

One last question, is there a general rule for feeding potted plants? I have no idea what I'm doing

Palaisglide

Helen, big question, if you get ten answers two may possibly be the same. It depends on your potted plant, where you intend keeping it and how warm the position will be. Some leafy plants need a cool place flowering plants may need a warmer place but all plants need to see the light some more than others, all plants need water some a lot more than others and most need extra feed now and again.

My advice would be visit your Nursery or Garden Centre and talk to a plantsman or women pick out a plant you can keep inside, House Plant, then read up on this forum by asking specific questions. We all had to learn, we all made mistakes, I am forever rescuing plants my Daughters think will stand in a corner and live their own lives, not so, they need nurturing food water moving now and then I say turn them once per day so they grow straight. Start small with something you can manage.

The usual answer to your question is make sure the plant is damp not soaking wet, dip a dry finger in to the compost if it comes up muddy hold off on the watering if it comes up dusty then water well your finger should have a few grains of damp compost on them. Add a liquid feed to the watering can as instructed on the bottle you can buy baby bio at any supermarket now and you add a few drops normally every ten to fourteen days. Good luck and keep asking we are happy to help.

Frank.

Dovefromabove

Helen ... good advice from Frank 

Also, if you've got packets of seeds it's still a bit early in the year to sow them (seeds will wait, bulbs won't)

Let us know what seeds you've got and we'll let you know when to sow them ... we'll make a gardener of you 

Helen Clay

Dovefromabove Thank you! I should probably mention that I have Dyslexia & Dyspraxia so things are going to have to be explained to me in plain English. For the near future I can only really grow in pots. I say this as some of the seeds I have I’m not sure if I can grow in pots.

 

Ok, here’s what I’ve got:

 

Tomato ‘Moneymaker’,

Lettuce – mix,

Spring onion ‘Barletta’,

Mint (this is in a metal bucket),

Kale ‘Westlandse Winter’

Chilli pepper  ‘Cayenne’

They are all propagator sets.

 

Broccoli ‘Raab 60 days’,

Lettuce ‘All The Year Round’ (Butterhead),

Rudbeckia ‘Gloriosa Daisies’

Spinach Beet ‘Perpetual Spinach’

Cabbage ‘Golden Acre (Primo II),

Cabbage ‘Greyhound’,

Iceberg Lettuce ‘Frisée de Beauregard’,

Californian Poppy ‘Carmine King’,

Cornflower ‘Black Ball’,

Sunflower ‘Velvet Queen’,

Radish ‘Mooli Mino Early’

 

That’s it. I have subscribed to GW magazine so I’ll have more then.btw, your name is amazing.

Helen Clay

Oh, I also found Cherry Tomato 'Red Cherry'.

Dovefromabove

Hi and thanks   my name is 'cos we're big Vic & Bob fans obviously ... plus when we moved here the garden was full of pigeons 

Unless you have a greenhouse I wouldn't be sowing any of those until the temperatures warm up a bit in March ... then I'd start off with a few of the cabbages, some of the Raab broccoli (which is a bit different our ordinary broccoli) and some radishes. 

The Californian poppies and cornflowers can be sown direct in the garden where you want them to flower ... I'd do that in April.  

Unless you have a greenhouse, don't sow the chillies and tomatoes until mid April, as you can't put them outside until after the last frost.  Start them off indoors on a bright windowsill and only sow a few because you'll need room on the windowsill for them all to be in their own little pots until you can move them outside in late May/early June depending on where you live

That's probably enough to be starting with, otherwise you'll over-face yourself and find yourself in a tangle of overcrowded leggy seedlings and get disheartened. 

This may be of help http://www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/grow-plants/how-to-sow-seeds-indoors/

What do others think?