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Date Posted

Watlington, UK

Seed starting in about 4 weeks. I was wondering how people will be doing things differently to last year. Personally I have a list of about 70 improvements(!), most of them small, but the main ones are:
1 - keeping the plant warmer when planted outside for the first few weeks. I think cold nights can be especially harmful.
2 - aiming to lower the daytime temperature in the polytunnel during the hottest weeks by misting
3 - using a straw mulch with chicken manure underneath to create C02 as it decomposes. This will also reduce surface water evaporation, and any loss of N can be easily be supplemented in feed.

3/10/2020 5:27:27 PM

Eastern Pennsylvania

Just a heads up. About a decade ago I tried straw mulch and it worked good but invited rodents to the patch that were never there before. Although my two cats keeps the population in check they are still around in some capacity all these years later.

3/12/2020 12:46:47 PM

Watlington, UK

Thanks for the tip. I have a rodent problem already, and worse, moles! I'll just have to set more traps.

3/15/2020 3:42:39 PM