About Me

Hi I'm JAMES 60 and married with three daughters all left home now, daughters that is not the wife.I enjoy Gardening /Football and working on my Farm.The picture above in the header slot is where i live and work.

Saturday 29 November 2008

Something new for 2009

I like to try something new most years and i have started to get ready for next year a site for growing a couple of Marrows, it is on the area where i have previously grown my Gooseberries, i am in the process of digging them up and moving them to a different position near to where i have some Raspberries and the hope is i can put up some caging over both to see if i can keep the birds from pinching most of the fruit, as this year they went with 90% of the crop.


The Marrow i,m hoping to grow is Table Dainty as i believe it can be grown of the ground and not take up quite as much growing space as some types, the ground will get a good covering of FYM and compost dug in by the end of the year and we will see how it goes if i can get a few good sorts it will give me a chance to try it at some shows next year where they are quite a popular class. I have been trying to find out how high they grow and how much support they will need of the Internet but as yet i haven't had much luck so i will just have to use some strong rails to be on the safe side

3 comments:

Simon (Smithyveg) said...

Hi James,

If you look at this link you'll see how I grow my marrows so that they hang down rather like cucumbers. This stops the coarse foliage scratching the skin of the fruits and also makes the colour even all round. If you grow along the ground you will get a side that is discoloured

The best show variety is Blyton Belle. If you'd like some I can send you some seed as I have some direct from the guy who raised it.

Simon

http://smithyveg.blogspot.com/2008/07/marrow-update.html

Veg4Show said...

You will need a very sturdy support system. The wind is a major factor and the marrows weight itself.

There are many ways of doing this but i prefer to grow them up about 6ft at an angle and then trail them straight across the structure avoiding most of the wind. I suppose I have about 12ft in total, but you can stop the marrow when you like really. I tend to pick off all the marrows at the bottom and select my best from the top.

Canes, strong sting and netting will make a decent job. This year I will probably trail them first half up the netting so the marrow can get a really good hold and then allow the marrows to hang down at the top section along canes or string.

Trail from a young age ensuring the stem and leaves are growing in the right direction or it will twist and snap ruining the crop. Table dainty can trail a long way so the bigger the better really.

James (Digtoplant) said...

Thanks for suggestions Simon / Liam. Very helpful