Sunflowers Update

Sunflowers protected against slugs

Sunflower Seedlings Survive!

Fantastic! Our experiment of using cutdown milk bottles is working. Less than a week since our last update and our sunflowers are shooting up, unmunched, strong and healthy.  The bottle protectors have kept the slugs at bay allowing the little seedlings to get to a size where they will not be bothered by the slimy pests anymore.

We know slugs should be loved and are part of our wonderful food chain but we are only asking they don't eat all of our little seedlings. After moving from a garden where the grass used to look black in the evenings thanks to an over active slug population, we  were really looking forward to being able to grow things other than grass and ivy. 

We can't wait for the flower heads to start developing and for the birds to start using them for food.  Our strawberries are early so hopefully the sunflowers will be as well.

Nettle Fertiliser Works Brilliantly

Sunflowers protected against slugs with cut-down milk bottles

Also our homemade organic nettle fertiliser, made from nettles collected from the fields soaked in rainwater, seems to be doing the trick. These little babies have had two doses now and as you can see they really are coming on a treat.

Some of the sunflowers have grown out of the top of their protective tubes.  With these ones we have removed the tubes as we do not want to restrict later growth. Also we can now reuse the containers for the next batch of seedlings so that the whole patch will be covered in sunflowers.

If the sunflowers continue to be a success then next year we will make a bigger patch and maybe also create another patch elsewhere. 

Sunflowers and Slugs

Frog floating on flotsam in pond

Frogs and Slugs

We had hoped that by creating our sunflower patch in a sunny, south facing field, near to a pond inhabited by hundreds of hungry frogs  we would be safe from slugs and other night-time munchers. Some hope!

Even if they didn't eat the slugs, you'd think that the frog chorus 24 hours a day would keep slugs away, but unfortunately not a bit of it.

Organic soil taken from roots of fallen tree

Fallen Trees After the Tempest

We had planted the sunflower seeds in soil collected from the stumps of trees in our wood that had been blown over in the storm last year.  We are using this soil for all of our seeds and cuttings as we don't want to use potting compost that has added artificial fertiliser or that has been obtained in an ecologically damaging way.

Sunflower patch in field with deer proof fencing

Total Devastation

After carefully nurturing our seedlings in the cloche until they were a couple of inches high, we decided to transplant them into the freshly prepared bed, which is fenced in with reclaimed wire to protect the plants against deer, rabbits and hares. The 15 little seedlings were nestled into soft, weed free ground, lightly watered and left to take root.

The next morning we strolled out to see whether the sunflowers had grown overnight to be 6 feet tall, but instead …. Devastation! Complete annihilation! Not even stumps left to show were our beautiful seedlings once stood so proud.  Undeterred, we planted another larger tray of seeds and then scoured the internet for inspiration as to how we could protect our beautiful seedlings whilst adhering to our underlying ethos of only using organic methods and maintaining a frugal way of life.

From the dozens of blogs and articles on the internet two points shone out; slugs do not like to pass over rough surfaces and slugs tend not to like to climb (not true if you live in Milton Keynes!). Being rather short of broken sea shells and not wishing to add crushed glass to my flower bed, we decided to try and create a barrier for the seedlings. We needed something that would allow light and water in whilst creating a barrier to slimy insects, something that would give the seedlings a chance to grow large enough that they could withstand the odd nibble from a passing slug.

Sunflowers protected against slugs by cut-down milk bottles

Reuse is Better Than Recycling

It is then we hit upon the idea that instead of driving our recycling to the dump we could reuse some of it instead. After emptying the recycling sacks we found a large selection of water and milk bottles, cans and cardboard tubes. After cutting the tops and bottoms off the bottles and opening the ends of the cans a protective and ecological shield was placed around each of the seedlings.

Eureka! Two weeks on and not one has been nibbled and the plants are fit and strong! We watered the sunflowers last night with our homemade nettle fertiliser so we hope to see them put on a growing spurt.

A word of warning though, the clear water bottles cooked the seedlings so we would recommend sticking to coloured bottles.

How Far Apart to Plant?

Some may think we have planted the seedlings too close together. This is a deliberate move as we live on top of a hill, which is the only high ground for miles around. The result is that not only do we get terrific winds sweeping across the land making it difficult for any plant to stay upright, but the wind changes direction every few minutes, which makes it even more difficult. After some of our sunflowers fell in the wind last year we decided to follow the farmer’s practice of planting the plants close together so that the sunflowers support each other.

Sunflowers protected against slugs by cut-down milk bottles

Our intention is to harvest some of the seeds for eating and for planting next year, with the remainder left for the birds and other animals.

This year's seeds were taken from a small bag of bird seed bought from CJ Bird Foods for the birds in our old garden. Living in the town we regularly feed the birds however here we do want the birds to rely on bird feeders. We are give the birds a helping hand by planting bird friendly plants, leaving openings to the barn and adding nest boxes in strategic places though. We want to give them every chance for survival.

Nettle Fertiliser

Nettle fertiliser

Our aim with our old farm is to manage it both ecologically and economically.  The problem is that our soil here is fairly inorganic, with a layer of limestone overlaying a layer of clay, so getting fruit and vegetables to grow strongly is a challenge.  We are creating lots of compost to add in future years which should make the soil a lot better, but in the meantime we are making our own organic fertiliser.

To make this, you need to collect a wheelbarrow load of nettles (and don't worry if you get other plants, they won't harm).  Apparently, young nettles are better, but we've not been using the nettle fertiliser enough to know how much difference the age makes.  Then, you need to scrunch them up to damage the leaves and stalks, although they seem to rot down quite well without too much damage. 

Nettle fertiliser and compost bins nestled amongst the lilacs

Put the nettles in a container that has a lid, and then add water to cover them.  Make sure that the container is well away from your house or anywhere that you want to sit, because after 2 - 4 weeks it will stink like pig manure.  This is the sign that it is ready for use, but you don't want anyone with a weak stomach to help you.

Take off the amount of fertiliser that you need for an application, then refill the container with fresh nettles and more water.  I leave the old nettles in so that they keep rotting down, but others take theirs out and put them on the compost bin.

You need about 1 litre of nettle fertiliser for about 10 litres of water to make sure that the plants are not over fertilised.  We apply this every 2 - 3 weeks to replace one of our normal waterings.  We don't know for certain that the nettle fertiliser is working as we don't have a control patch, but after an application the plants do seem to put on a growth spurt.

The main element in nettle fertiliser is Nitrogen, which feeds leaf and stem growth.  Its use should be scaled back as the fruits start to develop and it should be replaced with a Potassium rich fertiliser.  We are hoping that the ash from our wood fire will provide this, along with the odd banana skin.