Do you grow your own fruit and veg?

7 years ago

It might just be me, but there's something romantic in the idea of growing your own fruit and veg and then using the harvest to make delicious homemade meals!

But while a nice thought, in practice it might not be feasible for all - if you planned to grow all your own fruit and veg the upkeep would be fairly time consuming, not to mention having to have a big garden or allotment space to be able to grow large quantities of the stuff!

Victoria 2 · More Info

So - do you grow your own fruit and veg? Would you like to? Share your thoughts below, pictures are encouraged of course!

I do

I don't

I don't currently but I would like to

Other - share below!

Featured Answer

Graham Green

7 years ago

I have successfully grown courgettes, potatoes, chilli's, broccoli, spinach, kale, rocket, spring onions. I have never successfully grown carrots to any good yield. Any ideas or hest practice?

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (16)

PRO
Potters Bar Paving
7 years ago
i dont but i should
Related Discussions
POLL: Do you bake your own bread?
Q
Comments (61)
I love making bread. Like someone else commented, it is very therapeutic. I have a bread machine which I use constantly. I also do some breads by hand. I make white bread for my other half, spelt loaves or wholemeal for me using a variety of seeds or honey, molasses, bran, oats etc. I also make bread rolls, croissant, baguette, tortilla (which takes seconds by hand and is then used to make wraps, enchiladas or quesadillas). I also make Pide (Turkish bread), roti chani(paratha), flatbread, roti, puri, bhatura, chapatti, Irish soda bread, dried fruit soda, boxy (an Irish potato bread usually eaten at Halloween), St Vincent bakes, Scotch pancakes, crepes, scones, pizza base, ciabatta and focaccia. I like Matthews Cotswold flour which I get in Aldi when they have it or on Amazon. I bought from Shipton Mill during lockdown as I had very little white and wholemeal flour left. They were excellent, reasonably priced as well. I had been struggling to find flour and Amazon had doubled the price of the Matthews ones and I couldn't get through to Matthews directly. I buy 12-16 kg at a time usually of the flours I use the most. I currently have about 10 different types of flours I am using. We never buy bread any more and my other half finds homemade bread more filling so he eats less and is full quicker. Even the dog comes running when I slice a new loaf. He only gets a few crumbs but he loves it. I would love to go on a bread making or even a pastry course as I want to learn more. One bread I haven't mastered yet is naan bread. I am wondering about buying a pizza oven as I think a standard oven can't do it is well. Or maybe I just haven't found the right recipe yet.
...See More
Do you let your pets sleep in your bed?
Q
Comments (52)
I used to allow my Burmese anywhere and the wake up 'boofs' - cat talk for running up the bed and patting me on my face to wake me to feed them - were lovely. Then I started showing and breeding & got more cats. I'd wake to find myself on the edge of the bed while they sprawled out over 7/8ths of it! Now they all sleep in the kitchen, but kittens are due next month and will be born in my bedroom. No doubt my 1st time 'mummy' will bring them onto the bed one at a time, and I just can't wait!!!!!!
...See More
POLL: Do you have a fireplace in your living room?
Q
Comments (50)
A flickering flame surrounded by ancient carved stone - Antique stone fireplaces add both character and a sense of place to any room, the knocks and bumps of the decades nay centuries, connecting hearth to home. Even with the advent of central and underfloor heating we crave that focal gathering point that a fireplace provides - a room without a fireplace? Nowhere to hang the picture, mirror or tapestry, no were to put your cards and certainly no place to hang your Christmas stocking!
...See More
At what age should children start doing their own laundry?
Q
Comments (9)
When I was living at home we had no washing machine and Mum did everything for me. Probably because I was young and thoughtless it didn't occur to me to do my own washing and ironing. That changed when I said my blouse wasn't ironed how I liked it, so Mum said do it yourself then. That was my first big wake up call and I'm quite ashamed of how I was back then. Probably because my only child was a boy I did his laundry till he left home at 18, he did nothing, no cooking DIY or anything, but he has turned into a very practical man who can do anything, a lot like his mother! Washing back then was a chore, mostly done by hand, but kids today opening the door of a washing machine and stuffing clothes in is no big deal, and no one seems to iron anything any more. Children need to learn to cook, that is most important thing parents can teach their kids.
...See More
Isidora Markovic
Original Author
7 years ago
That's very impressive @Graham Green. I've grown tomatoes and raspberries before, but never committed - in the same boat as @Potters Bar Paving!
Irene Spinks
7 years ago
I grow some but only small amounts. I love growing first crop potatoes in 2 galvanised dustbins, can't beat the taste of freshly harvested potatoes
nobleseneb
7 years ago
After living in a flat in town for many years, my partner and I moved to the suburbs n the summer of 2015.

Last February we constructed raised beds, grew tomatoes and courgettes from seed in the conservatory and, sticking to heritage and exotic varieties, grew lettuces, beetroot, cucumber, pearl onions and carrots, strawberries and of course, herbs. In September and October we made chutneys and preserves, and so even now in the middle of winter our meals often contain foods we've grown.

It's a rewarding hobby - and it cuts down on food miles. I'm not sure we've saved any money yet (cost of raised beds + top soil + irrigation system etc) but our food is tastier and, we know, 100% organic.

Oh, and a message for Graham Green: Resistafly is a good hybrid carrot for yield
bruket
7 years ago
I am planning raised beds at the moment. Any advice? Wish me luck!
nobleseneb
7 years ago
bruket - I'm only a novice myself, but we found our first crops did really well - probably because we used a good mix of topsoil and compost
Heather Welsh
7 years ago
Starting growing my own veg when we landscaped our garden and added raised beds a few years ago. Also have a tiny lean-to greenhouse which is good for starting things off but it's a bit too easy to forget about things I've put in there!

We have a crab apple tree which I've used to make crab apple chutney and jelly. I've grown potatoes, peas, courgettes, carrots, onions, raspberries, strawberries, spinach & salad leaves fairly successfully. Tomatoes & squash didn't go so well! I most enjoy growing things I can pick direct from the garden and eat/cook straight away. The peas and salad also look quite nice in the garden.

Our raised beds were filled with soil that was dug up from elsewhere in the garden (including lots of stones which seem impossible to remove and I'm now just considering as drainage...) & I dig in compost each year. I rotate the crops I can but I'm not sure if it really makes any difference. Slugs and snails are a problem! They don't seem to like red lettuce though so I have plenty of that!
nobleseneb
7 years ago
hw15 - thank you for the red lettuce tip - we too have slugs - and half bury jars filled with beer in the raised beds - the slugs love beer - and get sizzled and drown in it
Carl Hague
7 years ago
We don't yet, but we're starting this year!

Tomatoes are already starting to sprout and i have a poly tunnel on the way
Carl Hague
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
@graham-green81

Try carrots in sand
Sio O'Farrell
7 years ago
I grow everything now but didn't have a clue 4yrs ago . I went online for tutorials and the best one was Quickcrop.co.uk the guy on it knows his stuff and seems to have a video for each vegetable. learning videos were great..as I found out it wasn't as easy as I thought it would be.
R Barritt
7 years ago
carrots do well in deep boxes off the ground, so carrot fly miss them. easier to cover too.
k_sedgley
7 years ago
The wild ducks ate all the environmentally friendly slug pellets I had put down, the slugs then ate all my young courgettes. The rainy weather also took its toll and has I stood there in my wellies bogged down in the mud I decided to grow flowers. Praise to the farmers.
GardenFairyGodmother GFG
7 years ago
I grow alot of veg in pots using seed tape or seed mats. I found that things grown in borders usually end up as slug food. I don't have the space or time to make proper raised beds in the garden like Monty Don. But have grown beetroot, lettuce, radishes, carrots, chard, spinach, Pak Choi, Kohl Rabi, parsnips and tomatoes all in big pots. My potatoes were less successful I may have dug them up too early. I think the key with veg in pots is to grow quick growing crops to baby size rather than big cabbages or slow growing asparagus. Strawberries are in hanging baskets. Nothing worse than picking a big ripe strawberry with a slug half buried in it.
PRO
Harrod Horticultural
7 years ago
Harrod Horticultural specialise in supplying a vast range of raised beds in 3 different types of wood and metal versions along with fruit and vegetable cages and have a great beginner section on our website called How-To, to help get you started. Good luck with home growing everyone!

Do you grow your own fruit and veg?

Graham Green

Comments (16)

Potters Bar Paving

Related Discussions

Isidora Markovic
Original Author

Irene Spinks

nobleseneb

bruket

nobleseneb

Heather Welsh

nobleseneb

Carl Hague

Carl Hague

Sio O'Farrell

R Barritt

k_sedgley

GardenFairyGodmother GFG

Harrod Horticultural

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Do you grow your own fruit and veg?

Comments (16)

Related Discussions

Isidora MarkovicOriginal Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Isidora Markovic
Original Author