The breanthus are still continuing to crop quite heavily but we will be leaving some flowers uncropped for the Open Day. The spray carnations are just starting to show some colour and we should have a number of stems ready for the first.
The Zinnias have undergone a complete transformation and now have a mass of vigorous, tall, strong stems which have developed from the side shoots. By week 30 there were enough stems to begin vase life tests and the first results should be available in a couple of weeks time.
We have also harvested the first stems of Eryngium which have proved popular with some of the packers. However, a couple of the varieties have gone down with severe Alternaria leaf spot which will need to be addressed when the crop is grown commercially.
The sunflower trial is now showing colour and there are major differences in the height of the varieties. It will be interesting to see what happens to the second planting now that we have some rain at last!
The blacked out aster ericoides now have some good sized buds on most varieties with a couple showing a bit of colour. Our routine spray program has kept powdery mildew at bay in the tunnels but we are now starting to see a little bit developing on the outdoor crop.
We should have a lot for you to see at the Open Day on the first of August and look forward to seeing you there.
