A Little Late Season Diversion

One of my favourite aspects of gardening is spotting the varied wildlife that makes its way onto the plot, whether my tiny backyard, my half allotment or the market garden. The 'goodies' and stars of this year include bees, ladybirds and their larvae, robins and fluffy baby robins, peacock butterflies, swallows, toads and frogs. The 'baddies' have amongst their forces rabbits, ants, onion-set-pulling birds and, of course, the never-ending hordes of slugs which are revelling in this wettest of wet weather.

 

Organic practices in growing and gardening emphasise the importance of encouraging and welcoming beneficial creatures into the garden and creating (or rather, not destroying) habitats to help maintain a natural balance and so create a healthy growing environment. It has always been my intention to create a wildlife pond in the market garden but it's been way down on the list for a long time now.

 

 During my preparation for winter polytunnel planting I've disturbed a number of tiny frogs when pulling up the grass along the back edges. There's a fine toad who lives under a sheet of material below one of the benches. There are also a number of slugs and snails in there - relatively easy to control as long as regular patrols are carried out! So this week I decided to amalgamate my desire for a pond with my requirements for natural pest control and made a mini pond inside the polytunnel. It's quite a small space, about 15m x 10m, so growing space takes priority. However, I found a spare corner, dug a hole about 60cm in diameter and 20 cm deep. The hole was lined with some spare polytunnel plastic, weighed down around the edges with bricks. I filled it with rainwater (freely available!), added full and half bricks for different levels in the pond and finally placed a useful plank for easy access or exits. Two oxygenating plants will be added next week, hornwort and European frogbit, or pennywort. The plants will also provide some shade and hiding places I hope.

 

 

I must have done a good job because the following morning, less than 24 hours, later my mini pond had its first resident! I don't know how to breed frogs but I'm hoping nature will take its course and I'll have frogspawn in the spring to make a froglet army to send out into the world of slug overlords.....! But to be honest I'll be more than happy to just have a little pond with a frog or two enjoying the watery environment. It's already my autumn/winter picnic spot of choice.

 

 

Late summer: time to ruminate.

That mid-August feeling of tired weary slowing down. In a good year the hot dry weather makes it an attractive proposition to sit and watch, maybe take time off, relax for a little while. To have a brief respite from sowing and planting with attention turning to spotting the treasures lurking amongst the lush green growth. A good time for reflecting on the previous few months before sowing and planting for winter and spring harvests begins, as well as planning for next year's crops. What's been good, bad or indifferent. What to avoid next year. How to do it all better (weather permitting....).


Also a time for personal reflection and assessment and planning for my own future. Am I doing what I really want? I seem to be running to stand still, if not slip backwards. I'm not so naive to think that immediate results and success are possible after such a short time but have I just spent 3 years studying to be in this situation? Have I started off on the actual right path that will lead me to my destination? If not, is it possible to adjust things into a position where I am, and where I can continue to develop myself, my skills and my business. Not to mention developing my bank account.....

I like growing vegetables, that's what led me to study horticulture in the first place. However, at present I'm not enjoying it because it takes me away from doing what I want to concentrate on now - growing British cut flowers. The flower side of things hasn't taken off in the way I would have liked as I've had to spend most of my time prioritising veg boxes, leaving little time for  planting, tending, promoting and selling. So something has to change or my business isn't going to be viable and I'm going to get fed up.

So I'm taking the initiative, not sitting back and waiting and not just plodding on but going on the lookout for a way in which I can do what I want and be what I want. After all, there's no point in changing your life and still settling for less.

Who will buy .... ?

Poised for imminent relocation

I'm now, at long last, in a situation where I have a decent supply and variety of flowers in the cutting garden. They look great blooming en masse but I haven't sown and planted so much for my visual delectation. So I need to start selling more than I currently do. This throws up all sorts of problems and questions such as what, how, where, to whom, and for how much!



General selling options for flower growers as far as I can see are: direct to customers either as individual orders or at markets and fairs; wholesale to market or florists; to shops as bunches for resale; to establishments such as hair salons, bed & breakfasts, restaurants/cafes for prettifying their premises. All of which give different levels of returns, of course.

Early summer mixed bunches ready for sale

The options for me personally are individual sales or selling large amounts to shops or other businesses. I had wanted to grow flowers that would be suitable for florists but - due to a degree of naivety on my part - that isn't going to happen this year in the way I had hoped. Florists want excellent vase life and excellent quality; there is wariness about buying from a local grower, it seems, as the florists I've spoken too like the guaranteed longevity that comes from buying imported flowers. I've been told that Dutch tulips last far far longer than British grown, for example. When a florist's reputation and therefore trade are at stake these kind of things are important. In addition, I simply don't have the production technology to compete in this area. I have sold some stems to a freelance florist who wanted cottage garden type blooms for a situation where vase life wasn't an issue. So that side of potential sales will need either rethinking or dismissing. Similarly, selling to wholesale flower markets isn't going to be realistic yet as I don't have the space to grow in large enough quantities and anyway, I want to grow a wide variety of annuals, perennials, bulbs, woodies, foliage and dried flowers.

I have to concentrate on finding retail outlets to sell on bunches or places who want to use fresh flowers on their premises and on getting my name known in the local area for direct sales. These may be the most difficult options as I have to do all the legwork, getting posters and flyers out into the world, passing on business cards, giving away freebies to friends and visiting what I think are businesses who fit the customer profile. Many people say how pretty the flowers are, how interesting the business sounds and wish me good luck but 99.9% of the time the compliments don't translate into sales, regular or one-off. Which is a little disheartening. It doesn't help that the product has such a short shelf life, I suppose. However, last week I had two orders for bouquets, one from a previous business card & freebie recipient and the other from a person who'd bought a bunch of my flowers at the local shop I sell to. Which is more than a little encouraging!

A precious direct sale! 

I suppose to be truly competitive and enter the market I will need my own website and may need to offer flowers delivered outside of the local area. At the moment I can't imagine getting into that complicated territory! However I must mention the Flowers from the Farm website. I'm a member of this organisation and as such have a page with my details and information on. It's been well worth the membership fee as the vast majority of orders and enquiries have come after people have visited the site. Obviously someone who wants what you're selling and has sought you out is more likely to buy as opposed to me approaching endless not-quite-interested-enough businesses.  It's those who want local grown British flowers versus those who want cheap supermarket flowers. At present I've provided buckets of flowers for one wedding and have a potential 4 more lined up with enquiries starting to come in about next spring too. Unfortunately owing to the poor growing season this year I've had to turn down a few early requests as I didn't have what was needed at the time. And it seems that once you've had to turn someone down they don't call back.

A wonky stemmed bunch posing by the back gate

The other major dilemma is how much to charge. It's all very well looking up current wholesale prices and going in a little cheaper but I think it's worth stopping for a moment and considering what I'm actually competing against. Again, the flowers on wholesale markets are from large scale commercial growers which are on a completely higher level than my flowers. That's not to put my flowers or myself down, it's just a fact. My casually loose, occasionally wonky-stemmed flowers are just different - beautifully different though. The bunches I make up are stunning in the sense that they are so unusual compared to supermarket bunches. But is that beautiful difference worth charging for? Well, yes it might be, as long as people - enough people - are prepared to pay....

I also have to consider the market I'm selling to. My corner sweet shop takes a few bunches of sweet peas two or three times a week for which I charge a minimal price because it's no effort for me to deliver and because it's a local corner shop - people don't go in to spend big money. The wholefood shop likes stocking my flowers because they're attractive outside the shop but there is a limit to how much the shopkeeper is prepared to pay because he knows how much he can sell a bunch of flowers on for. In direct sales it's hard to know what to charge. I'm not a florist so I can't charge florist prices and anyway, the point is that I am a local grower selling to the local area. It may well be that I underprice and overfill but so be it! I'd rather people were happy with getting value for money and maybe that will encourage word of mouth growth of business.

While I ponder on all this, this song from the distant past seems suddenly relevant : If I grew them, who would buy my sweet red roses?

Wetness, Weeds and Wildlife



A fan of wet weather earlier today

Now then, I don't mind a bit of rain. The gently persistent rain that falls overnight so that flowers and vegetables wake up refreshed and revitalised so that I don't need to spend valuable time using valuable water outside. I'd even be friendly towards a shower or two at tea time so that plants don't go to bed thirsty. But gallons of the stuff falling down semi persistently - and interspersed with the odd sunburn-hot day - has effects which, frankly, rub me up the wrong way. I'm talking about weeds growing at alarming rates while I'm not looking - yes, you thistles, and you grass. And although I do like my cauliflowers not drying out and my cabbages hearting up nicely I do not like those slimy fat creeping little creations commonly known as Bloody Slugs (that's the polite name obviously). However, as plenty has been written on the subject over the last month. I would just like to put out the message that my preferred method of dispatch is snipping in half and chortling over the guts spilling out. Keep off my radishes too - apparently people aren't keen on buying pre-nibbled produce. (Although personally I think the occasional surprise discovery within a lettuce adds a note of authenticity....)



Lovely strimming dear!

I must admit that I have been feeling overwhelmed the last few weeks. I seem to have lost control of things. At times I just haven't known what to do first - sowing, planting, weeding, slug and pigeon damage limitation, grass cutting, trying to make some money out of all of this..... There has seemed so much to do and only me with a limited amount of time to do it in. But as with most problems, they are manageable if broken down into small tasks and tackled one step at a time. That's the theory behind the advice of certain 'helpful' people of my acquaintance anyway! My problem is that I look at the entire plot, see all the problems that need tackling and all the jobs that need doing immediately and panic! But taking that helpful advice seems to have been beneficial. After two and a half weeks of strict prioritising, realistic list making and allocating jobs to days I think I can see a little chink of light getting closer and a little bit of order reappearing. And of course I must mention that my helpful friend is a dab hand with the strimmer too......thank goodness!



To end on a positive note then. It's been lovely this month wildlife spotting around my plot. I knew I had frogs in the big polytunnel but I've also seen one in the new small tunnel. While moving some weed prevention carpet last week I was delighted to see a fine fat toad camping out underneath - even more so to find a finer fatter bigger specimen just next door. Bees are regular visitors to the comfrey, borage and alliums - hopefully they'll find the bean and squash flowers when they appear too. My favourite discovery has been masses of ladybird larvae in the polytunnel - all over leaves of turnips, cucumbers and tomatoes - which bodes well for a high ladybird population shortly. And finally my new best friend Bob Robinson, a robin who must have the hungriest and/or largest family ever, as over the two days I spent weeding my roots bed 'he' was constantly coming down to gather big beakfuls of goodies. However Bob was kind enough to sing me a few catchy little numbers from time to time, so I thought that was a pretty good deal.

Turn off the pressure cooker, I'm done!

It's been a little while since my only two posts. Well, I've been busy, see! I've finally come to the end of my part time Foundation Degree in Horticulure, a three year trek involving one very long day at college once a week and several long evenings every week working on assignments and studying. Two exams in the last fortnight and I'm free at last!

I have to admit that I didn't actually mean to get involved in such a long hard process. I only wanted a bit more practical knowledge so I could work my allotment better and do something a bit interesting. I went to a college open day to find out about a Diploma course I think. But the degree course was suggested and it seemed a good idea at the time......

I have mixed feelings about finishing college. On the one hand it has been all consuming, stressful and just damn hard to perform to the standard I expect of myself while also working part time, raising two children and running a house. [The housework fell by the wayside a long time ago, incedentally. I wonder if I will be able to get back into it. Anyway.] But the routine has, I think, been a real support and help. It took me an initial three years to pull myself into some semblance of togetherness after ending my long term relationship. Then these last three years have seen further change and uncertainty in my personal and work life. I think going to college has been my raft in a choppy sea, something solid to cling on to. I hope now that I've found some safe, solid ground to haul myself on to, stand tall and stride off to explore this new place I'm in. Just hope there aren't any Wild-Eyed Greater-Spotted Gnashnanglers hiding in the undergrowth. Well, not too many of them.

So thanks, the Universe, for sending me to college. It's been a complete pain in the ass but then again, no pain no gain!

In other news:

The HDC/National Cut Flower Centre Conference

A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to attend the first Cut Flower Conference in Spalding, Lincs. [The land of daffodils and cauliflowers as far as the eye can see. With the occasional field of tulips.] This came about through my membership of Flowers from the Farm. Gill Hodgson started the group in an attempt to create a network of British cut flower growers, and to make available advice and marketing resources for such people. I'm part of a pilot study, the results of which will hopefully be used to provide other would-be growers with help to start up and/or develop their businesses providing British cut flowers to all and sundry.

One of our activities was the day at the conference. It was a real privilege to be invited as the event is geared towards bigger commercial growers. We had the chance to visit some mega glasshouses full of hydroponically grown tulips and stocks about to flower. This was a real eye opener for me as a very small scale and highly amateur grower. We saw the trail grounds of the National Cut Flower Centre which weren't very colourful in April but we were given information on last years trials and heard about plans for this year. Amongst other crops, they are researching varieties for use as British grown woody perennials and shrubs for cutting - something I'm very interested in getting into.

The conference itself had speakers from the HDC, Sainsburys, Kolster BV (the Magical Hydrangea nursery!) as well as presentations on LED light developments, disease control in flowers and optimising cut flower manual harvesting - again, all aimed at the big growers but full of interesting and relevant information for little people like me. My personal highlight though was John Dole from North Carolina State University speaking about the US cut flower industry and, again, perennial and woody cuts trials. [He reminded me of Mouse from the Tales of the City TV series - but that might have just been his moustache.] I believe his book on the subject is pretty spot on. I'm going to treat myself to it if I graduate! Which brings me back to where I started this blog post.

And finally....
My assistant hard at work bagging kale and salad leaves.

Lettuce


 



Freckles



 Lettuce is one of the sections in seed catalogues that I find myself poring over, trying to decide just which of those fine looking heads will make it into my neat little rows of green and red frilliness.  I like them all really, from the flimsy floppy butterheads to the stern serious cos and romaines, and all that comes inbetween and off to each side. I like the fact that lettuce can be sown weekly for most of the year and I like starting off a batch of hardier types to sit nicely over the winter. All year production is entirely possible, with cloches or a polytunnel. Lettuce in winter is a crisp, refreshing alternative green to cabbagey kale or parpy sprouts.



I'm sure that lettuce will be an invaluable weekly item in my veg boxes, either sitting pretty as a whole head or turned into a bag of multicoloured, multitextured, multiflavoured leaves. Cutting a whole head frees up space for more salads, but there's something sneakily satisfying about giving a quick trim to a block of lettuce because in a week or so I can go back and cut it again! I do like a plant that gives so much value for money.

 




Hardy winter varieties, first to be picked

 

So far this year I've sown Arctic King and Winter Density first of all, back in the depths of February. Today I picked the first of these leaves for some salad bags. Coming up fast behind them are Webbs Wonderful, a faithful relic from last year; Kriska, a pretty light green frilly leaf, and Little Gem, which needs little introduction. For some splashes of colour I have Freckles, which I've long wanted to try and is looking as good as its name; Marvel of Four Seasons, a fine red leaved butterhead; Concorde, a beautiful oakleaf in a bronzy red and a Provencal Mix which includes corn salad, sorrel and chervil  for a little bit of piquancy.

  



Marvel of Four Seasons and Freckles in the polytunnel



 I don't have a recipe as such, I just mix, wash and pack the leaves available on the day. For a surprise element there will shortly be olive leaved rocket added to mixed leaves, or flat leaved parsley, coriander, baby chard and spinach.  Winter salads will be perked up with further spicy oriental greens, mizuna, mibuna and a touch of mustard to liven up the colder months.

But for now it's a case of regular sowings followed by regular planting out, wither in the polytunnel or under fleece outdoors - just to be on the safe side. I'm looking forward to pulling off the covers after the last frosts to reveal my slightly wonky rows of beautiful salads.

  



 







April Fool........?

As of today, April 1st, I am officially self employed as a market gardener growing vegetables and cut flowers on around an acre of rented land. I've worked on part of the land for just over a year, managing a staff of one (myself) and trying to get the best results from the resources available. So it seems like an elaborate April Fool's trick I'm playing on myself. I can honestly say I've never wanted to have my own business, not full time and not as my sole source of income. I'm not the kind of person who takes big risks or has the drive to be successful at any cost. I don't have an Apprentice-style speech prepared to impress people. I'm humble, modest and extremely self-deprecating. I like working independently but I also like the safety net of having someone else in ultimate charge - as long as our ideas mesh of course. And it goes without saying that I like a regular wage and paid time off!

However, as I am discovering as I go through life, circumstances force decisions which in turn create consequences. Sometimes when my back is turned the collective threads of fate, destiny and decisions made have knitted together to pull me onto a new path. I've found myself on several new paths over the last few years, so what's the harm in willingly walking along one more.

I have the enthusiasm - or is it obsessiveness - but need the finesse. I know I can work hard. I have some knowledge and some skills but need the memory and intuitiveness for sucessful growing. I need to refine myself from being a bumbler who sometimes gets a lucky outcome to...well...what is the alternative to being a bumbler? To grow from an amateur into a professional. To be brave and to be bold. It's time to stop joking around.