How many of ye have kitchen gardens?

Oldtree

It worries me no end when less and less people know how to manage our land for food production, and more and more of the young people who do... leave to manage lands in other countries.

moy83

Oldtree wrote: »

It worries me no end when less and less people know how to manage our land for food production, and more and more of the young people who do... leave to manage lands in other countries.

You're right , even alot of the country boys wouldn't know how to grow stuff for their own table now if there was a scarcity of food in this country .

moy83

moy83 wrote: »

You're right , even alot of the country boys wouldn't know how to grow stuff for their own table now if there was a scarcity of food in this country .

How many farms now have a "Kitchen" Garden? It used be the job of the housewife, along with the hens. Most farmers wives are working now, so don't have time, I suppose. I can remember a few in my area. They used be sectioned off with a neat box hedge and onions, carrots, lettuce, cabage, etc were grown for the house.

Sam Kade

moy83 wrote: »

You're right , even alot of the country boys wouldn't know how to grow stuff for their own table now if there was a scarcity of food in this country .

I'm sure if that situation ever arose people would quickly adapt it's human nature

Reggie.

[Deleted User] wrote: »

How many farms now have a "Kitchen" Garden? It used be the job of the housewife, along with the hens. Most farmers wives are working now, so don't have time, I suppose. I can remember a few in my area. They used be sectioned off with a neat box hedge and onions, carrots, lettuce, cabage, etc were grown for the house.

Have the hens and have to get round to the kitchen garden sorted for herself. Get ted hounded to do it. She only asked me 2 years ago.

Conmaicne Mara

Reggie. wrote: »

Have the hens and have to get round to the kitchen garden sorted for herself. Get ted hounded to do it. She only asked me 2 years ago.

We had the hens conversation here lately. Her plan was get hens, have me build hen house and mind them. Oh and cheap eggs.

We're not getting hens :cool:

Oldtree

Sam Kade wrote: »

I'm sure if that situation ever arose people would quickly adapt it's human nature

That may well be over time, but as 90% of our food is already imported only the "fittest" will survive to adapt.

Sam Kade

Oldtree wrote: »

That may well be over time, but as 90% of our food is already imported only the "fittest" will survive to adapt.

Back in the 70's early 80's my family were almost self sufficient the accountant couldn't figure out how a family of 5 could live on £10/week for food.

awaywithyou

Deleted User wrote: »

How many farms now have a "Kitchen" Garden? It used be the job of the housewife, along with the hens. Most farmers wives are working now, so don't have time, I suppose. I can remember a few in my area. They used be sectioned off with a neat box hedge and onions, carrots, lettuce, cabage, etc were grown for the house.

When I was in secondary school... We used to have a competition that involved having a vegetable garden of your own... The teacher running it would come around during the summer and judge everyone's plot.... I won it 3 or 4 yrs in a row... Brilliant experience and unlike others including my brother I looked after my own plot from start to finish!

Oldtree

Sam Kade wrote: »

Back in the 70's early 80's my family were almost self sufficient the accountant couldn't figure out how a family of 5 could live on £10/week for food.

Most families in Ireland would not have the land necessary to be self sufficient.

moy83

Oldtree wrote: »

Most families in Ireland would not have the land necessary to be self sufficient.

Not with their lawns covered in decorative stone and decking . There are some old timers in town here and they have brilliant veg gardens without and inch wasted . Its class to look at them compared to flowers I think .

Oldtree

moy83 wrote: »

Not with their lawns covered in decorative stone and decking . There are some old timers in town here and they have brilliant veg gardens without and inch wasted . Its class to look at them compared to flowers I think .

Let them eat flowers...!

They would need to have about 5 acres and "garden" 365 to get to self sufficiency for a family.

Conmaicne Mara

I read somewhere before that the best veg to grow was, surprise, surprise, the most expensive to buy. That it was a bit pointless, in financial terms, to grow spuds at home considering all the work that goes into them.

moy83

Oldtree wrote: »

Let them eat flowers...!

They would need to have about 5 acres and "garden" 365 to get to self sufficiency for a family.

It would be a stretch for most families to be self sufficient nowadays alright and you will buy your veg probably cheaper in a supermarket but there are lessons to be learnt from growing a bit all the same .
I dont do much myself because I dont have the time but the father grows , spuds , cabbage , carrots, tomatoes , and other bits and pieces . Its nice to let the kids know how much goes into producing food and to appreciate it .
I grow a heap of raspberries , still eating last years jam

Reggie.

moy83 wrote: »

It would be a stretch for most families to be self sufficient nowadays alright and you will buy your veg probably cheaper in a supermarket but there are lessons to be learnt from growing a bit all the same .
I dont do much myself because I dont have the time but the father grows , spuds , cabbage , carrots, tomatoes , and other bits and pieces . Its nice to let the kids know how much goes into producing food and to appreciate it .
I grow a heap of raspberries , still eating last years jam

He grows it and you liberate it



For the Kids of course

Oldtree

yep same here, I involve the kids from start to finish and they love it. I think its important to know where food comes from. When I lived in London I saw an article about kids in the city thinking that apples came from the supermarket and they just didn't have a clue.

moy83

Reggie. wrote: »

He grows it and you liberate it



For the Kids of course

Im trying to liberate farm , house and savings from him but im only really succeeding in getting his veg

sandydan

moy83 wrote: »

You're right , even alot of the country boys wouldn't know how to grow stuff for their own table now if there was a scarcity of food in this country .

you have a point but, to grow veg as we do, we followed our parent's example, its not long ago when farm retirement schemes came into being that inspectors from dept came round to check who was tending the veg plot at top of road,(plenty letters reporting in file) so a lifetime of valuable experience went to the grave sadly,with young couples struggling to pay mortgages off farm jobs became normal practice (unofficially) as tractor suppliers to contractors and wives taking up day jobs to fund ESB etc-around here, babysitting became just that, not helping granda set & water the ingions , the lettuce, cabbage, beetroot, spuds and other veg that more frequently appeared in mammy's shopping bags so the experience was never passed on, years ago our grandparents showed gardening to us as youngsters running around ,it kept us out of mischief and educated us "accidentally" and was some thing to show our cousins from abroad when holiday time came round.progress how are you,its so easy to be critical without examining our lifestyle i think.

sandydan

Oldtree wrote: »

Most families in Ireland would not have the land necessary to be self sufficient.

true, but a lot have followed TV programmes showing plots in frames and it has become quite popular in this and other areas,i think it was Dermot Corrigan who championed the partial self supply idea and even for some, myself included who struggled because of soil condition or type it was away of utilizing some plot of otherwise waste ground , made frames and filled with soil seaweed farmyard manure etc can grow lettuce ,courgettes ,beetroot, carrots and flowry early potatoes, i have no problem with late variety but earlies would be like soap and not much bigger than marbles, advised to deep dig ground to aid drainage due to hard pan, great results ,but its costly,have completed about 18 acres,
anyone tried growing spuds in a barrel,supposed to yield great never tried it yet

Kovu

Oldtree wrote: »

It worries me no end when less and less people know how to manage our land for food production, and more and more of the young people who do... leave to manage lands in other countries.

(Moved From ''Farmer seeks Jobbridge Labourer'' Thread)

Oldtree

I have seen Bob Flowerdew growing spuds in old tyres

There is no substitute for homegrown, worth it for the taste alone.

mf240

Is the local deli couter closing?

Kovu

mf240 wrote: »

Is the local deli couter closing?

Yea......I didn't really know what to call this thread:o:p

syklops

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

We had the hens conversation here lately. Her plan was get hens, have me build hen house and mind them. Oh and cheap eggs.

We're not getting hens :cool:

"mind them"? Their not a group of teenagers. Build a hen house and a run and they mind themselves.

Conmaicne Mara

syklops wrote: »

"mind them"? Their not a group of teenagers. Build a hen house and a run and they mind themselves.

Until they get red mite, or scaly leg, or start pecking each other, or magpies or foxes or rats move in, then I have to be around morning and night to put them in and let out.

Yep, mind themselves they do.

mf240

syklops wrote: »

"mind them"? Their not a group of teenagers. Build a hen house and a run and they mind themselves.

That allright untill they decide to have a hen party.

Reggie.

moy83 wrote: »

Im trying to liberate farm , house and savings from him but im only really succeeding in getting his veg

Keep at him

Reggie.

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

Until they get red mite, or scaly leg, or start pecking each other, or magpies or foxes or rats move in, then I have to be around morning and night to put them in and let out.

Yep, mind themselves they do.

Let them out in morning. Close door at night and if red mite appears just scatter some powder around the chicken hut. Very little work involved

Conmaicne Mara

Reggie. wrote: »

Keep at him

Dunno, I reckon the ould fella has him figured, got him hooked into work for a few veg, just enough slack on the line to keep him fighting

Reggie.

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

Dunno, I reckon the ould fella has him figured, got him hooked into work for a few veg, just enough slack on the line to keep him fighting

Simple auld cossan or cute auld lad which is it moy

Genghis Cant

I used to garden, but since I retired and took a teen Thai bride I can't seem to find the time. :^)

sandydan

Genghis Cant wrote: »

I used to garden, but since I retired and took a teen Thai bride I can't seem to find the time. :^)

well it looks like you got your priorities right :pac::pac:

Reggie.

Genghis Cant wrote: »

I used to garden, but since I retired and took a teen Thai bride I can't seem to find the time. :^)

Why what do you be at

Kovu

Reggie. wrote: »

Why what do you be at

Lamenting the fact that he ordered out of the ladyboy catalogue.;)

Sam Kade

Oldtree wrote: »

Most families in Ireland would not have the land necessary to be self sufficient.

Of course not I never said otherwise.

Genghis Cant

.Kovu. wrote: »

Lamenting the fact that he ordered out of the ladyboy catalogue.;)

I didn't read the small print, it's a pain in the hole. (literally :-) )

Reggie.

Genghis Cant wrote: »

I didn't read the small print, it's a pain in the hole. (literally :-) )

Too much info

Kovu

Genghis Cant wrote: »

I didn't read the small print, it's a pain in the hole. (literally :-) )

:eek:

Anyway, I harvested this for dinner today. Yummmmmmm:D

moy83

Reggie. wrote: »

Simple auld cossan or cute auld lad which is it moy

Whats a cossan ?

Reggie.

moy83 wrote: »

Whats a cossan ?

A young fella

Kovu

Reggie. wrote: »

A young fella

It's garsún in Irish:P

moy83

Reggie. wrote: »

A young fella

Ah yes garsun is what we would call that . I've been called worse than simple

Username John

I think you can buy veg for as cheap as you could grow it?
I accept that home grown would be fresher, and often taste better.

Unless you're into it, then i dunno is all this grow your own all its made out to be. There's a bit of work keeping on top of a veg garden.

I think time is a big issue for people these days - like a previous poster said, a lot of people work off farm now. By the time you're home, and have the normal farm jobs done, there isn't much free time for any sort o gardening left I imagine

Genghis Cant

.Kovu. wrote: »

:eek:

Anyway, I harvested this for dinner today. Yummmmmmm:D

What variety is it?

I'm a big fan of purple sprouting, huge cropper.

Oldtree

.Kovu. wrote: »

:eek:

Anyway, I harvested this for dinner today. Yummmmmmm:D

Your's is bigger than mine

Kovu

Genghis Cant wrote: »

What variety is it?

I'm a big fan of purple sprouting, huge cropper.

The green kind. (The kind where I pick up any packet that says broccoli on it):pac:

Oldtree wrote: »

Your's is bigger than mine

Ah poor fella, must be hard for a man to admit that!!!

KatyMac

Grow peas, onions, carrots, tomatoes, soft fruit, apples. Gave up on spuds as they took a lot of time and not much out of them. Also supply the locality with rhubarb. In return a neighbour supplies me with eggs.

GrandSoftDay

Don't have one this year but normally have spuds, carrots, parsnips, cabbage, onions, leeks, broccoli, cauliflower and sprouts. I normally till it and make the drills and the auld fella looks after it then. Notice a huge difference in the carrots in particular compared to what you get in the shop. Not sure if the spuds are worth the hassle with blight and the amount of ground they take up. Easy enough get good spuds locally too. Wouldn't mind growing some strawberries either!

Charliebull

Genghis Cant wrote: »

I didn't read the small print, it's a pain in the hole. (literally :-) )

Could you not dehorn her

Username John wrote: »

I think you can buy veg for as cheap as you could grow it?
I accept that home grown would be fresher, and often taste better.

Unless you're into it, then i dunno is all this grow your own all its made out to be. There's a bit of work keeping on top of a veg garden.

I think time is a big issue for people these days - like a previous poster said, a lot of people work off farm now. By the time you're home, and have the normal farm jobs done, there isn't much free time for any sort o gardening left I imagine

Pulled the planter beds apart this spring, set them up a few years ago for herself and they were used once and muggins here ended up looking after them,
would plant more if I had the time, we use to have a few acres of spuds when we were young, dug by hand, sprayed by hand and cultivated by hand, oh the memories:eek:

Reggie.

Charliebull wrote: »

Could you not dehorn her



Pulled the planter beds apart this spring, set them up a few years ago for herself and they were used once and muggins here ended up looking after them,
would plant more if I had the time, we use to have a few acres of spuds when we were young, dug by hand, sprayed by hand and cultivated by hand, oh the memories:eek:

So That's why you have a bent back

munkus

Genghis Cant wrote: »

I used to garden, but since I retired and took a teen Thai bride I can't seem to find the time. :^)

You could be cultivating crabs