Cheapo raised beds

[niemeyjt]

If you have a polytunnel or greenhouse, dry things in there - onions as well as squashes.

[L Austin France]

If you have a polytunnel or greenhouse, dry things in there - onions as well as squashes.

We've an 8 x 5m tunnel & do that but still have problems with potimarrons.
Gave up growing onions when we discovered Johnny Onion sells large sacks of Roscoff Rose onions at our local market at a very reasonable price. In fact we gave up growing most things outdoors except spuds & salad stuff due to the huge weeding problem & concentrate on Toms, chillis & peppers in the tunnel.
There's only two of us & only so much we can eat. It was becoming obvious that all growing efforts were mostly benefitting our neighbours & it was easier to buy frozen.
The veggy patch has been covered in huge polythene baches for years now & is easy to maintain.

[exile]

I have to agree that Butternut squash keep well and pumpkin does not. Another keeper - not as good as butternut - is spaghetti courge. Cut in half scoop out the seeds and fill with a bolognaise type meaty stewy filling. Cook in the oven for up to an hour. The courge breaks down into soft spaghetti like "strings". Eat direct from the courge skin.

AS for things like potatoes and onions even peppers I have to agree with @L Austin France. The only varieties we now grow are those we cannot get easily in the markets (super or otherwise).

[Blaze]

@L Austin France We're pretty much the same and stick with spuds, toms, chillis and peppers, and lettuces. Any other veg comes from the two farms nearby.
We do the bache thing too - keeps the soil moist, easy to work and gets rid of weeds.
@exile Ah, spaghetti marrows .... we all grew them on windowsills in London in the early 70s !

[Headers]

Last year I used an old sheet to bâche one of my raised beds. It worked really well for the courgettes.
The other box I used bags of compost and put tomato plants in them. They worked reasonably well but I was plagued with animals burrowing about. I am having a rest this year and growing nothing. I would like to go away more and with no neighbours nearby who can water things for me I see no other option. Luckily we have a really good farm shop about 5 minutes drive away so I won’t starve.

[Mangetout]

I grow butternut squash every year and I still have a dozen from last year. They stood brilliantly as long as you harden them off well and keep them somewhere dry, cool and dark.