Askett Nurseries - July 2010

Are You Growing Your Own?

By now , allotment holders and vegetable growers will be enjoying the  fruits of their Spring labour. The first potatoes have been harvested - is there anything as tasty as a bowl of freshly dug new potatoes smothered with butter and your own homegrown mint?  Beans - Broad, Runner and French will now be ready too, and it won't be long before the Tomato picking begins.

But, if you didn't plant out your vegetable plot earlier in the Spring, it's still not too late to sow some produce from seed, or plant out young veg plants.  Fast growing crops such as Radish, Beetroot, Spring Onions and 'Cut & Come Again'  Lettuces  will, at this time of year, germinate in a matter of days - and you'll be picking the results in less than a month.

Another great crop to plant at this time of year are 'Christmas Potatoes' - so called as if planted now, you'll be harvesting sweet young new Potatoes for your Christmas lunch. We've grown these Potatoes for the last two years, and the tip is not to plant them in the ground, but in a large tub. This means you'll be able to move the container into a frost free environment if the weather turns very cold in the Autumn.

For those who did get growing in the Spring, now is the time to feed, weed and tend the plants, and get the recipe books out to put your homegrown produce to good use.
And now we're on - so why not join us for all the latest news from Askett Nurseries.

Askett Nurseries - May 2010

After one of the coldest Winters in living memory, we've had a mixed Spring. March was cold, April mostly sunny and warm, then the first half of May chilly with frosts most nights. Each and every year gardeners are presented with new varieties of plants and innovative tools and gadgets - and each year the big garden centres try to sell their tender bedding plants a few weeks earlier in an attempt to tempt their customers into parting with their hard earned cash for plants that just should not be planted out before mid May at the very earliest.

It's very much the Christmas effect - in the big stores the festive season begins just after the August Bank Holiday - but there's one big difference with tender plants. Mother Nature. No matter what the corporate DIY stores and the garden centre chains say - a begonia or an impatien will not survive in a Princes Risborough garden when the night temperature dips to zero. Yes, it is frustrating when, in April we bask in sunny days and all assume that we are now in early Summer.

It's natural to want to fill those beds and containers with colourful geraniums and petunias - and indeed we did get some funny comments from customers in April and early May  when they discovered we had no bedding plants, yet all the big centres they had visited were bursting at the seams with marigolds and verbenas in full colour.

Real gardeners are a patient lot - one can't fight the weather -  next year, don't be fooled into thinking that just because bedding and vegetable plants are all available from March that it's safe to plant them out. There are plenty of other tasks to tackle in the garden in early Spring, and there'll be lots of time at the end of May and early June to get those tender annuals planted.
But now, the threat of frosts has gone - so do pop in and take a look at our huge range of bedding and container plants - and if you haven't started to grow your own vegetables, why not have a go this year?

There's still plenty of time to produce your own healthy, natural crop of vegetables, and we stock everything you need to feed the family!

see you soon,
Simon, Alison , Edith the Jack Russell and all at Askett Nurseries.

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Askett Nurseries - February 2010

The winter weather does seem to have been with us for ever - we've all had enough of this cold!  All gardeners are eagerly awaiting any sign of Spring.

We have our Seed Potatoes, Onions Sets and our full range of seeds and all propagation products - all ready for you to start growing your own vegetables. For some early colour, our first wave of primroses, polyanthus and pansies - all hardy - are ready too.

Next month we should have some news of a new, exciting venture at Askett Nurseries - more about that soon.

See you soon,
Simon, Alison, Edith the Jack Russell and all at Askett Nurseries.

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Askett Nurseries - January 2010

So, Christmas and 2009 have gone - welcome to 2010. And what a welcome!  Snow everywhere - and deep too. The nursery is under around 6" of the stuff as I write - but we have been able to clear our gates, so we're able to open. And a good job too - as we're selling coal, logs, Calor Gas and bird food by the truck load!  No plants though, unsurprisingly.

Normally at this time of year we would be ready for our delivery of Seed Potatoes - but due to the weather we have put our order back to the end of the month.

Hopefully, the snow will have thawed by then!
So keep warm - and we'll see you soon.

Happy New Year from
Simon, Alison, Edith the Jack Russell and all at Askett Nurseries.

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Askett Nurseries - November 2009

Now the clocks have gone back, the summer has officially ended.  Not the hot sultry season we were promised, although September and October were nice and warm.  Now is the time to tidy up the garden for winter - we have some great deals on leaf rakes etc - so there's no excuse not to get all those leaves collected and put on the compost heap.  There's still plenty of time to plant your spring bulbs - you can put your tulips in right up to Christmas.

As the weather has been nice and mild, there haven't been any frosts to polish off your geraniums and begonias yet - but they will come!  We are fully stocked with winter pansies, violas, primroses and wallflowers - all completely hardy, they will give you lots of colour throughout the dark, damp days to come.

We have all our winter fuel in now - coal, smokless, logs, kindling, Calor gas and paraffin.

See you soon,
Simon, Alison, Edith the Jack Russell and all at Askett Nurseries.

Askett Nurseries - October 2009

We had a splendid September, lots of sunshine and warm weather. This means that all of the summer bedding is still going strong - but it can't be long before the first frosts arrive.  With that in mind, our winter pansies, primroses and Autumn bedding are all ready - and there's still plenty of time to plant up all your Spring flowering bulbs.
This is a great time to improve the structure of your soil ready for next Spring - we have great deals on Farmyard Manure and Mulch n Mix - a good application now will really benefit your vegetable patch next Summer.
 
We are now fully stocked with our Winter Fuel - coal, logs, smokeless and kindling - and also this year we are stocking log baskets and fireseide accessories.
 
Our Craft Fair last month was a great success - do take a look at the photo gallery in our new Craft Fair section. Our next fair is a Christmas Special on Sunday 13th. If you are involved in a craft, and would like a space do give Amanda a call on 01844 274635.
 
See you soon,
Simon, Alison, Edith the Jack Russell and all at Askett Nurseries.

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