To chit or not to chit?

Depending on which spuds you like, sprouting them early may not be necessary

As an unapologetic science geek who finds trawling through the data of agricultural trials fascinating, I am forever curious as to whether age-old horticultural techniques are actually supported by good evidence. One of the most commonly debated is that of chitting potatoes. So, with thousands of home-growers across the country starting to do this right now, I thought I’d take a look at what the science says.

Chitting potatoes is the traditional practice of placing seed potatoes in a light, frost-free spot in late winter to encourage sprouting. The argument is that this process artificially elongates the growing season, resulting in an earlier crop and greater yields. However, for home-growers low on space this can mean windowsills covered in egg cartons of shrivelled-looking spuds which, aside from not being exactly ornamental, can take away prime “window front” real estate for growing seedlings. So does this claim really stand up to the scientific test?

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from Property | The Guardian http://bit.ly/2E1LSl0
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The man who put romance back into roses for Valentine’s Day | Allan Jenkins

Try David Austin’s colourful, fragrant and repeat-flowering roses for something personal, surprising and original on the 14th

Valentine’s Day, when unromantic people splurge on overpriced roses and expensive restaurants. It doesn’t have to be this way. Roses don’t have to come in red buds and straight stems, they don’t have to smell of desperation. For this we have to thank David Austin, the rose guru, who died at 92 on 18 December last year.

Mr A, as his staff knew him, brought romance back to roses, creating the English Rose, a marriage between fragrant Old Roses and the repeat-flowering Hybrid Tea varieties which had largely replaced them before the young son of a Shropshire farmer decided to change all that.

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from Home And Garden | The Guardian http://bit.ly/2tcRcMp
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The man who put romance back into roses for Valentine’s Day | Allan Jenkins https://t.co/BrHQYdJtIy Solicitors & Estate Agents In One Just £899 + vat .. https://t.co/eLmKfiYyW9

The man who put romance back into roses for Valentine’s Day | Allan Jenkins https://t.co/BrHQYdJtIy Solicitors & Estate Agents In One Just £899 + vat .. https://t.co/eLmKfiYyW9 (via Twitter http://twitter.com/conveyandmove/status/1094479356569812992)

The man who put romance back into roses for Valentine’s Day | Allan Jenkins

Try David Austin’s colourful, fragrant and repeat-flowering roses for something personal, surprising and original on the 14th

Valentine’s Day, when unromantic people splurge on overpriced roses and expensive restaurants. It doesn’t have to be this way. Roses don’t have to come in red buds and straight stems, they don’t have to smell of desperation. For this we have to thank David Austin, the rose guru, who died at 92 on 18 December last year.

Mr A, as his staff knew him, brought romance back to roses, creating the English Rose, a marriage between fragrant Old Roses and the repeat-flowering Hybrid Tea varieties which had largely replaced them before the young son of a Shropshire farmer decided to change all that.

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from Property | The Guardian http://bit.ly/2tcRcMp
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Broad view: at home on the water’s edge in Norfolk

Built on the site of a sinking bungalow, this contemporary home has incredible vistas across the Broads

As a child, architect Patrick Michell loved messing around on the water. His grandfather, who had served in the navy, retired to Old Hunstanton in north Norfolk, so Patrick’s family would come up and visit, spending time by the coast. Such fond memories played a part when Patrick and his wife Claire, also an architect, started to think about building a holiday and weekend house for themselves and their own young children, Rae and Margo.

“The water and the idea of messing around with a dinghy were a massive draw,” says Patrick, founder and principal of Platform 5 Architects. “There was a bit of Swallows & Amazons to my childhood and we always used to go sailing when we were on holiday. So when we started looking for a site and we found this I could instantly see all these possibilities for that kind of fun, family holiday lifestyle, and building something new that fitted in with that.”

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from Property | The Guardian http://bit.ly/2Gvu7we
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Broad view: at home on the water’s edge in Norfolk https://t.co/Ux55TzS0UN Solicitors & Estate Agents In One Just £899 + vat .. https://t.co/eLmKfiYyW9

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