Growing Potatoes: 'Earthing Up'

In a previous blog we encouraged you to try 'chitting' - how are you getting on?  Here's how the official Haxnicks potato planter is doing - not bad, but we are sure you can do better, especially with this next piece of advice:

Tip: 'Earthing Up'
In terms of your Haxnicks Potato Patio Planter - this is the process of adding more soil around the stems of your potato plant to encourage the plants to produce more tubers.  Simply keep adding compost as the plants grow!

If you would like to win £100 and other Haxnicks goodies simply by growing potatoes - check out our Great Potato Gold Rush Competition.

Learn more about using Potato Patio Planters here

Don't forget to keep watering your Potatoes and let us know how you get on!

Grow Cucumbers in your own back yard!

In this months Gardener's World Magazine, there were a few of our products used in an article on outdoor cucumber growing.

Did you spot our aqua coloured Pots Naturally and fleece Easy Tunnel? 

Here are some more products to help you with your cucumber growing, whether sowing/planting outdoors, along the ground as suggested in GW, or climbing varieties inside the greenhouse...

GROWING OUTSIDE (trailing varieties): 


Victorian Bell Cloche

These fantastic plastic cloches are perfect for plants that belong to the plant family Cucurbitaceae, (which includes cucumbers, squashes and melons.) as they thrive in humid conditions.  The cloches make sure the young plants are protected from frost, and the ventilation shaft at the top helps prevent wilting/scorching.  Beware of using these in summer, as it may become too hot - use Net Easy Tunnels in order to provide shade and protection from hungry garden visitors.

GROWING INSIDE (climbing varieties):

3 and 6 Cane Patio Planters

Used with bamboo canes and CaneToppers, these planters are fantastic for tender climbing Curcurbits, and easy to move.  Use either long or short bamboo canes, depending on the height you wish your climbing cucumbers to reach.

Tomato Patio Planter

Our Tomato Patio Planters (in red, left) come with an attractive metal frame that allows tomatoes and cucumbers to grow within the structure giving continuous support throughout the plants life. TIP: Grow your climbing vegetables to the top of the growing frame and then cut off the tip, allowing the plant to concentrate it's efforts within the frame, giving you a bushier plant.

Soft Tie 

This ingenious invention can be used for many things - in this case, Soft Tie can be used to secure the stems of your cucumbers up vertical supports (such as bamboo).    The wire inside is coated in rubber - it's tough but won't damage your plants and so is ideal for securing the plant as it grows.

Good luck - and please send us your pictures of your cucumbers growing in Haxnicks products, we would love to see them and will post them up on this web site for all to see!