CULTURAL DIARY   2017

Ron Aldous

Growing Begonias My way

April

Hi folks I think it's time I let you all know how things have been going along with my begonias this last month. Well to begin with how has the weather been with you all over the last month ? With myself it's not been too bad, some light showers here and there with quite a few nice sunny days and feeling quite pleasant in the sun. Hardly any frost but some days having a bit of a niggly breeze, overall okay.
As I said in my last report I feel like I am a little bit ahead of last year, you will see that looking at the pictures with this diary.  My Multistems have all been selected and are down to four breaks on each one, the single stem (restricted) have also been selected.
The rest I'll grow for cut blooms,just for fun Ha Ha.

This year I had promised myself I would only grow 120 cuttings and be more selective ,that's gone all wrong, I finished taking my cuttings on the 28^th. March with 265, that's a lot more than I've ever took before!  My reason I have done so is I want to grow them Ian Donaldson's way to try and get bigger tubers so that I can reduce the number of quite big tubers, they take up so much room on the propagator plus having to use much bigger pots to accommodate them.

Barry and myself went up to Chorley to watch Phill Champion's presentation and three or four of the Scottish lads came down too, well done you. I really enjoyed it and I am sure every one that attended did so to, the only thing that was not so good was the low attendance. We should give more support to our speakers after all they have given up their time to make up their presentation  and time traveling to give it.                                                                                                               

Just a little diversion from the begonias I'm sure you will know by now that I have another love beside my Begonias and my wife of course which is Chrysanthemums,  This year for me has been the best start up I have had in years, it seems like all the effort I've put in has paid off.  I started off with only going to have 120 to finish with well tats gone up the pole.  I have instead got 225 all of them GOOD so I can't make myself throw any away and I'm going to grow them all.  I took a few up to our Chorley meeting to give away and another 60 to my Chester society I've done so well on my start up,anyway let's hope both the begonias and the chrysanths do the business for me this year, it won't be for the lack of trying.

I hope I haven't bored you begonia growers but don't think I will have.
I hope all of you will have a good seasons growing and those of you who grow to show the best of luck see you next month after my holiday in Menorca lovely lovely