Pig Sty Avenue

Pronounced "lay-tar". I got these from the Real Seed Co ., whose (false) assumption that they were Russian is understandable as they came from the Moscow campus of the University of Idaho. And they were selected for their tendency to ripen over the short growing season of a northern latitude. I am late in sowing them, but according to this site, planted out in late May, they were producing fruit a month later . We'll see. It appears from this 2010 article that the University of Idaho has been working on short season tomatoes since the '70s. Ariel Agenbroad tells us she "gets a kick out" of producing tomatoes with names like Latah, which is the county in which the campus is situated. And so, let's see how it copes with a Glasgow polytunnel's climate.

Above , how it looked when set up. The "instant-collapsible" table is now heavy laden with seed trays. Below , the max/now/min thermometer yesterday afternoon. With the door open, it drops quickly to something like the ambient temperature. And 5.6C, well, that's what the ambient temperature is at night. Whether or not to try growing anything over winter is not a pressing matter, but I did consider getting a rabbit in a hutch in there, which would warm it just enough. Or something. 

Never mind the sorrel for now, the big news of course is the poly tunnel, which means I can begin to propagate from seed properly. I've sown a var. of tomato called 'Latah'; a var. of sunflower called 'china cat'; pipiche; wrinkled giant hyssop; and of course common sorrel. (I note that I grew french sorrel, back in the day , and recall it being one of the first plants I grew successfully.) I've headlined with the sorrel because it's on my mind this evening. For reasons which I cannot fathom - I wasn't drunk or anything - I planted it in a seed tray without holes , the sort one uses as a base for trays with holes in. It's germinated like crazy, but as i found this evening it's hard to water, from above, without washing out the seedlings. I could buy a small watering can, with a rose, but then I won't make this mistake again, so that would be a waste. Instead I'll prick them out asap. What with dogs and wood pigeons, I've succe...