Niche 'Salad Crops' selection product reviews

Having a similar 'green thumb' ability to that of a hermit crab usually, I was a little hesitant about getting stuck into this whole 'DIY Garden' concept, but after reading up on 'Companion Planting' (Where you use naturally symbiotic methods of planting instead of pesticides and artificial fertilisers) and solving a codling moth issue by planting clumps of Lavender around the base of the apple tree... I figured "This can't be TOO tough..." so away we went to grab handfuls of Niche Seeds.

Following the directions on the packets is easy enough, as all the basic facts are laid out as clear as day. Simple, easy to follow directions, often suggesting best-practice products for maximum growth. Best sprouting, planting and harvesting times are clearly stated, so even a gardening-dunce like me was able to figure out when was the best time to plant... but as with all things, Mother Nature can sometimes interfere in even the most straight-forward plans... as I found out when unseasonally heavy rain flooded and washed out my raised garden, taking an entire 'review' crop and all the topsoil with it.

This proved quite a set-back, as in some cases I had used the entire packet of seed. However, a quick jaunt up to the nearest gardening outlet soon refreshed my stock, and I was able to replant most of the test crops. Alas, by this time I had missed the planting window for some types, so they will have to get reviewed next year sorry. (Gives you yet another good reason to visit the site again!)

After a couple of months, the resulting crops were quite impressive in most cases. The Spinach was succulent and tasty, without the bitter tannin tang I find in many supermarket varieties. The tomato plants thrived, and look to give a fairly good crop. I pinched a couple of the really early fruit and found them to be quite sweet, but I am waiting out for the bumper crop still on the vines. The lettuces did really well, providing me with a huge crop of salad-stock, along with the cucumbers. In a month or so, I am looking forward to making my favourite pickled tomato, cucumber and onion salad. -drool-

Alas, a couple of the varieties didn't do so well, but I honestly put that down more to the abused soil than the fault of the seedcrop itself. In particular, the capsicum plants failed to adapt to the soil condition. Later testing showed a hefty content of acidic clay emerging about 30cm below the surface, which tainted the groundwater. The excess rain raised the watertable to the point that this poisoned the poor little sods, since they were in a ground-level garden further around the fenceline. We'll be trying these again in pots next year, so stay tuned for those results.

Overall, a very impressive result from Niche Seeds, despite a few environmental issues curtailing the experiment. Again, no real fault of the seeds at all, more to do with a steep learning curve for me, and a lot more work needed to prepare suitable garden beds. If in doubt, seek professional advise to get the very best results from your Niche Seeds.