Coffee pots

There is an issue sowing beans and peas. They don't like their roots being disturbed. So you either need to sow them direct, or do something else to minimise the disturbance. Now I've seen some people sow into rain gutters then they can simply slide the new seedlings directly into the beds. That a pretty good idea... if you have spare gutters.

Other people have tried the toilet roll centre method. Take a cardboard toilet roll insert, cut four slots one third of the way up then tuck the four tabs into each other. Fill with soil and you're ready to go.

A third option is to use newspaper. You can even buy special formers where you wrap your newspaper around a wooden dowel and then press the ends into a special cup which cinches closed the ends. I think these are way to expensive for what they are. So none of these methods really suit my setup.

But I do have something else. I drink a lot of coffee. In fact one of the first things I do when I get to the plot is stick the kettle on for a cuppa. But even when I'm at work I drink coffee from the canteen. Up until a year or so ago, they used to have plain cups and a separate coffee cup  holder made of cardboard to stop you burning your hands on the nice hot fresh brew. I kept the holders. In fact I kept lots of the holders. I'd been keeping them in the shed for a while, and it was while I was rooting around inside the shed where I re-discovered them. So I thought I'd put them to some use for my dwarf beans.

I took two holders and slotted them inside one another. The perforated folds were off set at an angle so this kept the holders in place. Then I tore another holder open along the seam and pushed that inside right to the bottom. Then I filled it with compost and planted the beans.

Now there are a couple of good points and bad points to this. Firstly the cardboard is recyclable, and they will eventually rot down. Secondly the cardboard will retain the water thereby keeping the moisture levels up.

For the downside, there is no real bottom to the pot. So if you're not careful, the compost may wash out. Placing them in a tray may help. Also because the cardboard gets soggy after a while, they can become fragile. So moving them afterwards requires some careful handling. Anyway, it's an idea. I'll let you know how they turn out.

Meanwhile, all this sowing is eating up space in the greenhouse. I really need to make some room. Time to clear out some of these strawberries that have been overwintering in here. Time to move into the new dedicated strawberry bed.

The two diagonal runs of strawberries are the two outside plant trays. I simply up-ended them and placed them in directly, then placed other single pots in and around them. I still need to build a proper cage to protect them from being dug up by Mr Fox and to stop the rats-with-wings (aka Pigeons) from getting at them. But for the moment I've replaced the spare wood planks over the top. That'll do for now.

There is still a LOT to do to catch up. Fortunately I work from home two days a week, so I can get down here in the evening to keep cracking on. It never ends.