It's getting to that time of the year when you can plant pumpkins in the patch, and why not, look what they did for Cinderella! Firstly, be aware that we are not the only ones to like pumpkins, and...

It's getting to that time of the year when you can plant pumpkins in the patch, and why not, look what they did for Cinderella!

Firstly, be aware that we are not the only ones to like pumpkins, and some pests that live in the soil are drawn to them, so when planting, consider also having marigolds, nasturtiums or even corn as companions, as they can help deter the pests.

Your pumpkin patch will need to have room for them to sprawl and stretch out and should be located where they get between 6-8 hours of heat and sunlight a day, ideally in well drained, slightly acidic soil. Sandy soil is fine.

Add compost, plant the seedlings and cover with mulch.

Then just keep the soil constantly damp, but not waterlogged. Don’t water in the middle of the day, as it could cause burning. And Liquid feed every now and again.

When the pumpkins are a nice deep colour and the stem starts to dry out, it is time to harvest – but that is a little way off yet.

And now, what are these sand socks!

I have taken a leap of faith here – another one! I often get asked how to secure netting to the ground and keep birds and animals from crawling under it. Traditionally gardeners have used whatever they have hanging around – bricks and planks of wood seem to be the go-to material. Although these work, they are cumbersome to deal with and messy, especially around the veggie garden and on raised beds. I have spent the last 12 months trying to find a better solution, but there just does not seem to be anything around to do that specific job, so I decided to go out and get something made for that specific purpose.

Introducing our new heavy duty 1200 x 100mm, 450 gsm hessian sand socks Made for purpose, you can place these over netting and wrap the excess around them to SECURE the netting, STOP it flapping around and STOP birds and animals crawling under it. We have been trialing them out for a few months are they are great and easy to work with - see photo below.

I am hoping these will make life much easier and enjoyable.

Peter.

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