Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 57 Entries. Thursday, June 27 View Page Hello diary 2024! Still struggling a bit here, trying to fix things at a new house, plus getting a veg patch underway. A few more things growing this season, but a few things I hoped for just left out. But let’s focus on the wins for now… Start them young… wide head sunflowers grown and cared for by my 8 year son for competition at Malvern   Thursday, June 27 View Page Early cantaloupe sowing - targeting a UK cantaloupe competition (thanks Tony!)   Thursday, June 27 View Page And a later sowing. Still much soon than Tony, but the milder UK weather I think will string everything out a bit. Timing is for a late Sept show, so it’s a bit of guess work as never tried to time them before   Thursday, June 27 View Page And some later tomato sowings   Thursday, June 27 View Page Giant aubergine   Thursday, June 27 View Page Long chilli. Thanks Graham. First time grower of these, so timing here a bit of a mystery at this stage   Wednesday, July 10 View Page Cantaloupe sowing from 1st June, aiming for end Sept. Growing fast, but timing is going to be very much dependent on weather. Pictured is the 76.12 Prochaska.   Wednesday, July 10 View Page A cull to be made on a second sowing 76.12 Prochaska ~ 15th June.   Wednesday, July 10 View Page 74.28 Prochaska, from 1st June sowing.   Monday, July 22 View Page My 8 year old son’s wide head sunflowers for Malvern; flower heads starting to form. His weekly job of feeding will be later today. we’ll also need to bolster supports soon.   Monday, July 22 View Page Plants - 76.12 Prochaska pictured - sown 1st June, have put on a spurt of growth with a sunnier spell. Some baby female flowers appearing. Aiming for end Sept.   Monday, July 22 View Page First open female flower; fingers crossed for pollination and other plants following suit   Monday, July 22 View Page First year trying long chilli   Wednesday, August 7 View Page UK cantaloupe plants now a good size - this plant off the 76 - sown perhaps 10 June, with 2 melons now set. Cold nights tho (10.5c last night), means pollinated melons - perhaps a week or so - are sulking at an inch and a half or so. Pruned ends and willing them on, but growth is stubborn with the cold nights. Extra heating has failed as it keeps tripping the circuit board on extension.   Wednesday, August 7 View Page Pretty much all bloom/fruit selection done now. Best tomato megabloom suffered with ber after hot spell. Other selections further behind - some tomatoes will be first truss, but timing of show (Malvern, 26 Sept use) likely means picking before fully ripened.   Wednesday, August 7 View Page Aubergines pruned less than most, looking healthy enough - hope that converts to fruit size. Just one to make a final selection on.   Wednesday, August 7 View Page Long chilli at about 5 ft, some now set.   Wednesday, August 7 View Page My son’s wide head sunflowers starting to bloom; they seem rather tall for wide heads. Thought I had timed these alright but wondering now if too early. We will see!   Wednesday, August 7 View Page Big stem on the tomato I pulled that had BER. Seed was off one of my own, but parent of that was 9.65 Porkchop. Thanks again for the seed Porkchop - it’s a gift that keeps on giving, even if this particular fruit didn’t cross the line.   Wednesday, August 7 View Page A few tomatoes with first trusses (trying) to aim for end Sept show dates. Will have to see how weather fairs   Sunday, August 11 View Page Cantaloupe plants a fair size now. Have pulled plants not yet set (as timing for end Sept show) to focus. Bit of job trying to trim tertiary growth shoots but trying. Two 76 plants and a 58 growing now.   Sunday, August 11 View Page Cantaloupes are slower to get going here in UK; this is the best but still prob a few weeks olds. Fruits set on the 76 (x2) & 58. Currently running second pollination back ups and keeping them on for now.   Monday, August 19 View Page Long chilli coming along; I think some around 32cm (photo at angle). Have bean meaning to thin these chilli down to just a few per plant but concentrating on other things means it’s a job I just didn’t get around to (so far)   Monday, August 19 View Page One of my son’s wide head sunflowers down from high winds.   Monday, August 19 View Page Three still up tho. He’s been feeding them weekly, but we need additional support now for the heads - and likely, something to stop water pooling in them. Age 8. Start them young!   Monday, August 19 View Page A few giant tomatoes set; still very early days. Much later than I usually do them. But trying to time for a show, vs “just grow them” and register with GPC early tomatoes.   Monday, August 19 View Page And another. A mix of Domingo genetics, but most trace a linage back to 11.65 Faust, 9.06 brown, 9.65 porkchop. Historically I’ve tended to be BZ heavy with a few Domingo, but it’s very Domingo heavy this year.   Monday, August 19 View Page Ups and downs with the UK grown cantaloupe, and maybe on borrowed time. One of the plants runners collapsed suddenly, and since died off so about 1/3 of foliage has gone. I’m guessing fusarium/melon wilt? If so - while the rest of the plant hasn’t collapsed, I’m guessing it and other plants may be on borrowed time. Is seed now likely infected, not to be used in future seasons? And what have folk found useful in these circumstances? E.g. grafting in future seasons. For the moment it’s still pushing along a cantaloupe tho.   Monday, August 19 View Page This one on the plant with a dead runner. About 78 ott. Seed was the 76.   Monday, August 19 View Page This one a different plant but also off 76 genetics. So far, the runners intact. 78.5 ott   Monday, August 19 View Page Lastly one off the 58. Ott 72.   Tuesday, August 20 View Page Aubergine (Eggplant) plants with a fair bit of foliage - it’s more usual to trim to single stem but I let more stems grow. There are two plants here spaced about 3 ft apart   Tuesday, August 20 View Page Fruit chugging away. no real depth to the fruit yet, but time yet…   Tuesday, August 20 View Page …assuming pesky little buggers (wood lice?) don’t add more holes, or the existing holes become sites for soft rot and infection before weigh off.   Tuesday, August 20 View Page Coming along, again no real depth but time yet.   Monday, August 26 View Page Spent today ‘thinning the uglies’ on the long chilli. I know I should thin more, but only so much time in the day. If time allows I’m coming week, I’ll thin more. I’d gladly take tips on keeping growing tips pinched - which I’d normally do on veg to direct growth - given these are so vigorous!!   Monday, August 26 View Page Post prune. One if three plants   Monday, August 26 View Page Example chilli length. Yet to really select   Monday, August 26 View Page Another, longer.   Monday, August 26 View Page Trued to rig up support for my 8 year old sun’s wide heads. This one it turns out had already cracked the stem, which isn’t great. Just the weight of the head and high winds. But it’s still 3.2m up (10/11 feet) which I wasn’t prepared for. Learning for next year.   Saturday, September 7 View Page Arg. Another aubergine dmg - 2.532kg. Woodlice have pestered this fruit for an age, and eventually rot set in. Still had some growing to do too (although forecast cool temperatures would have tempered how much tbh). I could go off these with my track record for dmg this season and last!   Saturday, September 7 View Page Pah…rot spot.   Saturday, September 7 View Page And pic of the culprit eating/burying in another hole   Saturday, September 7 View Page And pic of the culprit eating/burying in another hole   Monday, September 23 View Page A biggie bites the dust, just ahead of Malvern show. Dmg at 3.506 kilograms / 7.729 pounds - soft spot developing. Uk record currently is 7.84lb. Dull, overcast and high humidity- it’s a sucky time of the year trying to hold veg for a show (Malvern). A lot less on peak growing and ripening, and more just trying to stop mold. Would have done better earlier in season. Var=Megadom. Seed 6.31 Faust (8.36 Strickler)   Monday, September 23 View Page Bottom view   Monday, September 23 View Page Measuring   Friday, September 27 View Page A good end to the tomato growing season; delighted. A new uk record at 8.19 lb, and winner of the heaviest tomato at the UK Malvern show. (Hopefully up on GPC tables later)   Friday, September 27 View Page And another win for heaviest three tomatoes. 8.394kg total (18.5lb) - doesn’t include the heaviest, a different set.   Friday, September 27 View Page Top five tomatoes this season then: 8.19 lb, 7.73 dmg, 6.98, 6.6 dmg, 6.13 lb. Pictured were some of the rejects for the Malvern show.   Friday, September 27 View Page Second in the long chilli   Friday, September 27 View Page And my 8 year son claimed his first red card on the wide sunflower in the 5 to 11 year old category. Wow.   Friday, September 27 View Page And to top it off a fab day, I lifted the winners belt for Canna’s cantaloupe contest, setting a new UK and EU record at 60.84 lb, 27.6kg. With not one, but two cantaloupes of identical weights!! Most of all tho, the best bit about today was to chat and meet with fellow growers, who make the contest and show what it is.   Friday, September 27 View Page Off the 76.12 Pro   Friday, September 27 View Page Also off the 76.12 Pro   Friday, September 27 View Page The title belt. It’s coming home with me on Sunday! How cool is that!?   Friday, September 27 View Page The title belt. It’s coming home with me on Sunday! How cool is that!?