Just to let you know that there are a couple of pictures from the Open Day on our Facebook page. Unfortunately we were so busy we didn’t manage to get many snaps but these two give you a flavour of the day. Thanks so much to everyone who came and made it such a great day, and espcially to the volunteers from Children’s Hospice South West for helping things go so smoothly.
Archive for category News from Suttons
And the winner is..
Aug 13
It’s time to announce another winner of a £25 Suttons Gift Voucher for their contribution to our social media channels – and the winner is MuddyBoots for their many and varied contributions to the forum. Thanks, MuddyBoots, a £25 gift voucher is on its way to you.
Open Weekend beckons
Aug 13
The Trials Ground Open Weekend starts tomorrow and it feels a bit like Christmas Eve in the Suttons office! Well it’s more like the day before visitors arrive – we’re frantically sweeping, cleaning and weeding; making sure that everything looks presentable. The weather is fine today and we’re optimistic (ever optimistic) that it stays good for the weekend.
Our Open Weekend is your chance to take a sneak preview of all the tempting new vegetables on trial and the colourful delights and scents of a vast array of beautiful flowers.
The weekend is in support of the Children’s Hospice South West which we’re delighted to continue to support.
Help ladybirds to help us
Jul 26
Ladybirds are natural predators of aphids
Ladybirds are an attractive sight in any garden but they are also a great help to gardeners because they are a natural predator of aphids such as greenfly, blackfly and whitefly. So here’s a simple tip to help your plants to survive and thrive – when you see a ladybird in the garden, pick it up and place it in your greenhouse or on your roses, fruit trees or anything you’re worried about. It will make itself at home in no time and hungrily devour the pests.
And don’t forget that you can attract more ladybirds with a Ladybird Tower or a Bug Box.
Recycling in the Garden
Jun 18
I’ve just come across this handy guide for recycling in the garden on the Recycle Now website and thought it was interesting.
Trials Ground Open Weekend
Jun 18
We’re pleased to announce that this year’s Trials Ground Open Weekend will take place on Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th August 2010. It’s your chance to take a sneak preview of all the tempting new vegetables on trial and the colourful delights and scents of a vast array of beautiful flowers.
The weekend is in support of the Children’s Hospice South West which we’re delighted to continue to support.
You may have all read last week that Blueberries have overtaken Strawberries to become the nations top selling fruit. This provoked a discussion in our household: What is a Blueberry? Where do they come from? Are they native to Britain? Do we know them under a different name? Blueberries are native to North American, so do not grow naturally in Britain, however they are a relative of the European Bilberry and have been grown in Europe since the 1920’s.
Blueberries are one of our ‘superfoods’ as they are an excellent source of vitamin C – just one serving contains about 25% of our daily requirement. They are also a good source of dietary fibre, and an excellent source of manganese, which plays an important role in the development of bones, and in the metabolism of protein, carbohydrate and fat. They also have one of the highest levels of antioxidants of all the fruits and have been shown to lower cholesterol in pigs!
But perhaps one of the biggest reasons why they have grown so popular is because they taste so good and are so versatile. Make them into Jam, put them in cakes or muffins, add a handful to your breakfast cereal or just eat them raw – every way is equally delicious.
Blueberries are very easy to grow. Just select a sunny sheltered site, fill a pot with ericaceous (acidic) soil and water well from the spring onwards. The blueberries will be ready to pick when they are a deep blue colour and fall easily away from the bush.
The two other fruits in the Suttons healthy berries collection are the more unusual Goji and Honeyberry.
Goji Berries, a native of China are nutritionally rich, containing beta-carotene, Vitamins C, B1, B2 and other vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and amino acids and the dried berries can be eaten raw or cooked. Their taste is somewhat similar to that of raisins.
The Siberian Honeyberry is member of the honeysuckle family. With a very similar in taste to Blueberries (though perhaps even sweeter) with the same high levels of antioxidants.
At this time of year broad beans are just starting to germinate, however many gardeners have problems with birds pinching plants as they start to emerge from the soil.
This is inevitable as there is not much food around for birds at the moment and they see an oppurtunity! However to keep your broad beans safe from birds use garden fleece when you sow them. Prepare the soil ready for seed as usual and sow your chosen variety and then cover the seed bed with garden fleece (making sure you weigh it down around the edges or it will fly off!) The picture below is when the beans are most vulnerable to bird damage :
Then two weeks later the beans are strong enough to be able to uncover them and start preparing their supports:
As well as making sure the beans are safe Toby has been making supports for the sweet peas he has planted:
And the rhubarb that was forced on earlier in the spring is looking really good:
And this month’s winner is…
Apr 15
We’ve been a bit slack with the prizes lately so I was really pleased when I logged in today to see a fantastically comprehensive review of a Garland Super 7 propagator by Enrich100. Thanks for the review, a £25 voucher is on its way to you.
This week at the trial grounds Toby is cutting and mulching his green manure. Sown in the autumn in the tunnel and outdoors this mustard has lots of benefits to the soil. The mustard has got very tall and is ready to be cut and dug into the soil.
The mustard has got very tall and is ready to be cut and dug into the soil. The pictures show the process of ‘activating’ this manure. When the mustard is cut and mulched with the lawnmower it releases a gas, it is very mild and when it is rotovated into the soil the gas kills pathogens and bugs under the soil. It also rots to create an organic matter to feed the soil as well as clean the bugs out! Mustard is very worthwhile in greenhouses or tunnels at home and available all year round from Suttons.
PINCH OUT SWEET PEAS
To get really strong sweet pea plants this year you need to pinch them out now, Toby has given a little demonstration below:
As well as rotovating in the tunnel this week Toby and the team are busy preparing all the ground outside for sowing all Suttons trial vegetables and flowers this year, the compact tractor that they use makes life a lot easier:
