Page 28 - ALG Issue 3 2016

Regulars Q
ike Thurlow... &MA
Greenhouse lining up
A. It is true. It really depends on whether you will be using your greenhouse more in the summer or in the winter. Most of us only really want to grow summer crops like tomatoes, peppers
and cucumbers in our greenhouses. In this case it is best to align the ridge to run north – south because this will give a more even dispersal of light and warmth to the growing plants. Take care to site the door at the south end of the greenhouse to avoid chilly draughts from the cold north winds that blow during the winter.
If you are intending to use your greenhouse more during the winter then it is best to align the ridge running east – west, sitting the door at the west end to avoid the biting east winds blowing in.
A similar principle applies on the open ground. Tall crops should be grown in rows that run north-south so that the sun can shine on both sides of the plants. Shorter crops can be grown running east – west because the sun is able to shine evenly over them.
I have tried to select questions that may be
topical and cover most aspects of the vegetable garden/allotment. Allotment gardening covers a wide range of interests; if you want to include any other
areas of gardening please send your questions in.
Seed potatoes for baked potatoes
AThe ideal baked potato is white and uffy on the inside enclosed within a thin crisp skin. Most of the modern cultivars are too waxy to make good bakers and the skins are too thick and tough. The old fashioned ‘ oury’ cultivars make the best baked potatoes. The potato can either be round or oval, it is your choice. To grow large potatoes you need to remove all bar 2 or 3 of the sprouting eyes at planting time so that the plant can direct all of its energy into producing fewer but larger tubers. There are modern cultivars that have been bred to bulk up but that doesn’t guarantee you get the ideal baking potato. Don’t be tempted to over feed or over water the plants because it will produce an inferior esh.
Some suggested names:
• ‘Epicure’- The earliest potato can be ready by the end of June in some seasons.
• ‘King Edward’- Only when it is rst lifted. It becomes waxy later in the storage season.
• ‘British Queen’
• ‘Duke of York’- Waxy when rst
lifted, dryer later.
• ‘Edzell Blue’
• ‘Arran Victory’
• ‘Golden Wonder’- Keep into the
New Year before using.
QHi Mike, Are there any particular types of seed potato to grow if the desired result is a baked potato?
Suzie
28
Q. I’m thinking of purchasing a greenhouse for my vegetable plot. Is it true that there is a right and wrong way of lining it up to the sun? I can’t help thinking that I am being wound up by my gardening friends.
Paul