judith
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Tell me about celeryHad a rush of blood to the head the other day and bought some celery plantlets from the garden centre. I've never grown celery before.
I know it is a bit late to be planting them out, but I'm assuming that half-grown celery will still be OK for cooking with?
The variety is a white celery, which is a bit annoying as I'm sure it said it was self-blanching when I bought it. As blanching sounds a bit of a palaver, results in annoyingly dirty celery and is likely to encourage slugs in my garden, is it absolutely necessary? I rarely eat celery raw, so I don't really mind what colour it is.
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LynneA
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Not too late to plant out - they well suited to being planted where potatoes have just been lifted. (Same for leeks).
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Fee
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Weird, I had a rush of blood to the head at the weekend and bought some celery plantlets too 
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Azura Skye
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I've planted my celery close to one another, as well as close to other tall plants to make a 'somewhat blanching' thing going on, as well as making them grow up and not outwards. So far they are doing well, mine are self blanching though - but just in case they aren't, I thought I should plant them close to oneanother anyways.
If you don't blanch them, you might get tough celery that I think you'd have a hard time having a chew on them - but if you don't eat it raw anyways perhaps this isn't really a problem...
I know that some celery I eat numbs my mouth, I wonder if this has to do with the amount its been blanched (or not).
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cab
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Better blanched, even if it is self blanching. A self blanching variety really does better planted close together, so you still kind of force it that way.
You want a good, wet soil. Forget all about this free draining malarkey that other veg enjoy, give 'em a near swamp. Dig out a trench, dig in some good well rotted muck, flood it, plant them into it, and water again. Either plant in a block (to 'self blanch) or in a row, tie newspaper hoops about them when they're tall enough and earth up.
Now, if mine ever stop sulking (first year they've ever done that!) then the fact that I allow rocket to self seed around them will be of benefit; the rocket gives a sort of cushion against frost, keeps them better into winter that way with minimum fuss.
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judith
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| LynneA wrote: | | Not too late to plant out - they well suited to being planted where potatoes have just been lifted. (Same for leeks). |
Oh, that's good. The label on the pot said I should have done it last month (which did beg the question why were they selling it this month!).
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Fee
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| judith wrote: | | LynneA wrote: | | Not too late to plant out - they well suited to being planted where potatoes have just been lifted. (Same for leeks). |
Oh, that's good. The label on the pot said I should have done it last month (which did beg the question why were they selling it this month!). |
Same here! I even enquired as to getting a discount seen as they should have been planted out last month, but they had none of it 
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judith
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| cab wrote: | | You want a good, wet soil. Forget all about this free draining malarkey that other veg enjoy, give 'em a near swamp. Dig out a trench, dig in some good well rotted muck, flood it, plant them into it, and water again. Either plant in a block (to 'self blanch) or in a row, tie newspaper hoops about them when they're tall enough and earth up. |
Hmm. I'm now wondering whether to go and dig them up again. I didn't bother with the trench business, but then my soil rarely has problems with drying out. I didn't realise it needed to be quite that wet though.
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judith
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| Fee wrote: | | Same here! I even enquired as to getting a discount seen as they should have been planted out last month, but they had none of it |
Nice try 
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mochyn
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I'll second Cab's 'swamp' comment. celery needs a reliably moist soil or an irrigation system.
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judith
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| mochyn wrote: | | an irrigation system. |
You mean other than "living in Wales"?
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mochyn
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| judith wrote: | | mochyn wrote: | | an irrigation system. |
You mean other than "living in Wales"? |
Oh yeah: the only time it's done well for us is in the polytunnel with the system on.
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judith
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Poo.
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cab
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| judith wrote: | | cab wrote: | | You want a good, wet soil. Forget all about this free draining malarkey that other veg enjoy, give 'em a near swamp. Dig out a trench, dig in some good well rotted muck, flood it, plant them into it, and water again. Either plant in a block (to 'self blanch) or in a row, tie newspaper hoops about them when they're tall enough and earth up. |
Hmm. I'm now wondering whether to go and dig them up again. I didn't bother with the trench business, but then my soil rarely has problems with drying out. I didn't realise it needed to be quite that wet though. |
If they're already planted, the I'd reccomend a damned good watering followed by a serious, rich, organic mulch. I wouldn't go digging them up.
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cab
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Yes, as much as you've got
I do fine here with it in arid Cambridge, and I'll bet that they get less watering than yours will get rained on.
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judith
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| cab wrote: | | If they're already planted, the I'd reccomend a damned good watering followed by a serious, rich, organic mulch. I wouldn't go digging them up. |
That sounds doable. I dug in quite a lot of chicken bedding compost before planting, so I'll give them another soak and pile some more on top.
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Soapnutter
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| judith wrote: | | mochyn wrote: | | an irrigation system. |
You mean other than "living in Wales"? |
It's just as wet in England at the moment.....  Where did summer go?
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Mary-Jane
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| Soapnutter wrote: | | Where did summer go? |
What is this 'summer' you speak of?
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Soapnutter
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| judith wrote: | | cab wrote: | | If they're already planted, the I'd reccomend a damned good watering followed by a serious, rich, organic mulch. I wouldn't go digging them up. |
That sounds doable. I dug in quite a lot of chicken bedding compost before planting, so I'll give them another soak and pile some more on top. |
Will add well rotted (and quite soggy) stuff from the bottom of the compost bin, if it ever stops raining here. Oldest child insisted we grow celery this year and I just kinda shoved it in a space for him.
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cab
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| Soapnutter wrote: | | It's just as wet in England at the moment..... Where did summer go? |
Not here it isn't. First rain of the week was this morning.
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