What Do You Grow In Your Country

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Blue Sky

Joined: 30 Jan 2005
Posts: 7658
Location: France

Posted: Mon Apr 17, 06 7:05 am Post subject:

The growing season here (Central France) is much the same as Southern England as we are half way into "Massif Central" and therefore quite high up. So, yes we have to do the windowsill method. The summer is hotter and the winter is cold and harsh.

I've still not been successful with sweet peppers as I cannot seem to get an early enough start but maybe this year

We did well with chilis last summer so I'm trying 5 different types this time. They are all ready doing well.

Other than that, just thwe same old veg as everyone else for now.

Fruit-wise we have orange trees & kiwis growing in pots.

Just Jane

Joined: 16 Mar 2006
Posts: 140
Location: France

Posted: Wed Apr 26, 06 3:36 pm Post subject:

Hi

Here it is a bit hotter in summer and colder in winter than the UK and the switch from reasonably hot to cold (and vice versa) takes place quite quickly - for example it was resonably "summery" until the end of October then the ground was frozen more or less continuously from the beginning of December to the begining of March with snow on and off through March and since Easter it is something like aproaching summer (with April showers - and showers here also tend to be heavier than the UK)

I try and grow the usual range of veg (runner beans don't seem to do too well), soft fruit and have also planted young fruit trees to train as a hedge (apple, pear, almond, peach, plum and cherry). In addition in the garden I have a couple of olive trees (which are not looking too happy at the moment), kiwis, grape vines and this year am trying to grow lentils and cotton. Indoors (they go outside in the summer) I have bananas (yet to fruit), lemons and limes.

My biggest problem is my laziness on the watering front (and the refusal to use tap water on plants). I also find that my seeds are slow to start as french houses tend to have windowsills on the outside rather than the inside so my plants have to sit on the floor in front of the window and I keep the house has been faily cool since I ran out of wood for the fire!!!

tahir

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 45676
Location: Essex

Posted: Wed Apr 26, 06 3:40 pm Post subject:
I'd love to know how you go with lentils, I'm hoping to try them too. Is it a named variety you're growing?

Just Jane

Joined: 16 Mar 2006
Posts: 140
Location: France

Posted: Thu Apr 27, 06 6:24 am Post subject:
No its just the regular green cooking ones - they sprout ok for using as "beansprouts" so I thought I'd give them a go in the ground - I just soaked and planted them as I do for beans & mangetout

pricey

Joined: 28 Feb 2005
Posts: 6444

Posted: Thu Apr 27, 06 7:22 am Post subject:
It will be interesting to see if others in Europe have problems growing beans. what about other parts of the globe, can you grow normal runners? We have lots of Olive tree's that are looking sad as well, I think some are past their sell by date, and will have to come down, to be replaced of coarse.

trigfa

Joined: 06 Apr 2005
Posts: 189
Location: Llangernyw, North Wales

Posted: Thu Apr 27, 06 8:25 am Post subject:

simon wrote:

... and within the bog of eternal stench

Holiday cottages .... in France

Perhaps not the world's greatest advertising slogan

pricey

Joined: 28 Feb 2005
Posts: 6444

Posted: Thu Apr 27, 06 8:31 am Post subject:
I never noticed that.

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Thu Apr 27, 06 8:32 am Post subject:

pricey wrote:

We have lots of Olive tree's that are looking sad as well, I think some are past their sell by date, and will have to come down, to be replaced of coarse.

Can they not be hard pruned so they recover? I remember reading an article in Country Smallholding where a smallholder in Spain had their olives badly damaged by snow one year and an expert helped prune them and they grew back well.

pricey

Joined: 28 Feb 2005
Posts: 6444

Posted: Thu Apr 27, 06 8:42 am Post subject:
This maybe a option, but having seen them at different times of the year, some look to far gone IE: no leaves or anything. I will have to wait and see when we get out there, you can come and help if you want

thos

Joined: 08 Mar 2005
Posts: 1139
Location: Jauche, Duchy of Brabant (Bourgogne-ci) and Charolles, Duchy of Burgundy (Bourgogne-�a)

Posted: Tue May 02, 06 1:52 pm Post subject:

Summer days usually reach highs in the low 40s and winter minimums are between -10 and -20. Other than that, Belgium is wet, so hosepipe bans are unknown. Flooding can be a problem in low-lying areas, but you don't need much of a hill to be out of danger.

Perennials need to stand the winter lows, but annuals can be grown as in the UK, with the same degree of frost protection.

Of course, things are a bit different further east. The Ardennes are famous for having six months of biting cold and wet, and six months of winter.

mpprh

Joined: 23 Jul 2006
Posts: 2
Location: Languedoc, France

Posted: Sun Jul 23, 06 12:40 pm Post subject:

Hi

we are closer to Africa than to UK, so the weather is different ! Today is 39C, and forecast to get hotter. Barely a sprinkle of rain since March with little chance of more until the autumn. A hot June day from 2003 :

Xmas day :

Same year, but very rare (and shortlived) snow :

Relaxation :

We actually have higher annual rainfall than London, but the bulk of it falls overnight in 3 or 4 serious downpours rather than constant drizzle. We are said to have 300+ sunny days per year. It can freeze occasionally in winter, but the sun brings the temperature back up to 15C by 10.00. We have had 1 January breakfasts outdoors with 20C some years.

In the garden, we have potatos, strawberries, tomatos, green peppers, aubergines, oranges, figs, apricots, peaches, apples, cherries, nefflier, plums, almonds, olives, vine, arbousier, onions, coriander, verveine, mint, melons, lavender, etc.

We also have various palm trees that give strange fruit. Some taste like pineapple !

sally_in_wales
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 06 Mar 2005
Posts: 20809
Location: sunny wales

Posted: Sun Jul 23, 06 1:13 pm Post subject:
I'm not jealous, really I'm not....

Penny Outskirts

Joined: 18 Sep 2005
Posts: 23385
Location: Planet, not on the....

Posted: Sun Jul 23, 06 2:48 pm Post subject:
:sad8:

pricey

Joined: 28 Feb 2005
Posts: 6444

Posted: Sun Jul 23, 06 3:53 pm Post subject:
Hi mpprh, welcome to the site. The pictures look great, your garden sounds good to, do you use local seeds, beans etc.. or do you mail order some from England. Hope you have had a good look around and a good read, there is some great stuff on here, enjoy.

mpprh

Joined: 23 Jul 2006
Posts: 2
Location: Languedoc, France

Posted: Sun Jul 23, 06 8:59 pm Post subject:

pricey wrote:

Hi mpprh, welcome to the site.

The pictures look great, your garden sounds good to, do you use local seeds, beans etc.. or do you mail order some from England.

Hope you have had a good look around and a good read, there is some great stuff on here, enjoy.

Hi

We only source things locally. We've had no luck with stuff from colder climes - it doesn't grow bigger and quicker, it dies!. Well, except for an apple tree from our old garden in Belgium.

Forecast for tomorrow is now 39C (today was 38C). Still 35C at 21.30. Here is our live weather feed :

Peter

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