Frustrated with bolting greens

Hi everyone,

I don't know if I'm doing something wrong or if I've just been unlucky, but I cannot seem to grow any leafy greens without them bolting to seed straight away. I put in rainbow chard last autumn which has just been sitting there over the winter. As soon as the weather warmed up it started to grow nicely for a few weeks...and then went to seed. But I guess that's not surprising given that they've been in the ground since autumn. But what is annoying is that the spinach and chard I only put in in spring are doing the same thing. Has it just been too warm? (Not that I'm complaining about the lovely weather recently.) Or am I doing something wrong?

Any advice?

Juli - feel for you - all my pak choi has done the same
Have you been watering enough?
If you pinch the flowering stalks out they may recover - worth a pop!

Its natures way im afraid, are the crops planted in full sun? if they are perhaps next time try a cooler semi-shaded position.
Some of my summer herbs and salads do the same if it gets too hot.

Just spoken to a friend from the village who has been growing veg for many years, she said you need to water more in this weather to stop bolting, basically in drought conditions the plant doesnt know if it is going to get more water and so ends its life cycle earlier by going to seed.

Tracedw - is it just me or does that seem a bit sad?! Poor plants

Thanks, yes that makes sense. They're in pots, and even though I have been watering them every day in this weather I suppose they do get hotter in pots and they are in full sun at least for part of the day. I'll just try again in a shadier spot, and maybe some directly in the ground as well.

My lettuce hasn't bolted yet, so that's good news, and my sugar snap peas and strawberries are looking good too, even if my sweet corn, cucumbers and courgettes aren't doing so well. And even my dwarf beans, which did so well last year, just don't seem to be doing much at all. But that's vegetable growing for you I suppose - always a bit unpredictable. It's just a bit disappointing when you grow seedlings from seed, tend them for weeks, and then plant them out and they just die or bolt or sit there not growing much at all.

On the other hand we've got lots of lovely flowers in the garden at the moment, which make up for it

If your crops are in pots then they will need much more watering than if they were in the ground, also plastic pots are better,clay will just take the water away from the soil.
Clay pots are lovely but unless they are quite large i would only use them for drought resistant planting or mediterranean herbs that like it dry.

If your crops are in pots then they will need much more watering than if they were in the ground, also plastic pots are better,clay will just take the water away from the soil.
Clay pots are lovely but unless they are quite large i would only use them for drought resistant planting or mediterranean herbs that like it dry.

They're in plastic pots