Its hot, hot ,hot!

Things continue to grow rapidly at the plot. The potatoes are nearly ready to dig. However the two trial digs so far have proved pretty fruitless. The Desiree tubers are still small and need a little more growing time. The early epicures are looking sickly. I think they may have potato blight the leaves are yellowing and the tubers are pretty non existent!


The peas and beans are still producing despite the blackfly on the beans. The tomatoes are growing reasonably well but the cucumbers keep getting eaten by slugs!


The cherries and blueberries are forming so have been covered up to stop the birds eating them!



I've sown some more carrot seed and rainbow chard. I'm also starting to think about other things we need to get in so they crop in time for Christmas dinner. Its only 6 months away you know!!



Bindwind is still enemy no. 1! it spreads so quickly and entwines itself around everything - beans, peasticks, raspberry canes its hard to see some of the beds there is so much. Still can't decide how to kill it off . I really don't want to use weedkiller but its very timeconsuming clearing some every visit. And even then it grows back as soon as we have some rain!

Things are ready to pick.

Time has been rushing by and we've been so busy planting. hoeing, watering and constructing that the blog has been seriously neglected. Anyway a quick catch up on progress to date. The play area for the babe is fab and being well used; the sand pit is a huge hit. But strangely there is less sand in it than when it was constructed. Can't believe she has eaten that much!!! The swing is a favourite too and keeps her in the same place for more than a minute!

Eveything including the weeds is growing vigorously, so lots more hoeing needs to be done to get back on top of things. We have been harvesting peas and broad beans for about 2 weeks now and the beans are beginning to run out. We've had lots of black fly on them this week but it hasn't caused any long term probs.

The peas are delicious and the babe is helping to pick them eating them pods and all before they make it home to be cooked!

The shed at the beginning of the month was not a pretty site. Its better since I tidied it. ( This photo was taken before !) I must take another one before it gets untidy again.

About time!

Well I've been so busy at the plot that the blog has been rather ignored for the last month or so! There's so much to do! The weather is gorgeous and the weeds ( and some of the veg!) are growing rapidly. So a quick update or what I've been doing instead of writing this...

We have been given some onions grown from seed and they are looking healthy. The garlic is growing well the in-laws weeded it when they were staying at the beginning of the month. I've either of them are reading this please pop back soon the weeds have grown again! The potatoes are all up and I have earthed them up a couple of times but probably didn't need to as the weather has been so warm. The rhubarb is growing well and the blueberries are flowering -

hopefully the birds won't eat the berries this year I'd better cover then over soon...

Some of the raspberries that I moved in the winter are beginning to shoot again but some look terminal perhaps they were summer flowering and I shouldn't have chopped them when I did? Broad beans are flowering but have black spot on the leaves don't know if that means they are terminal too? The peas are looking ok and beginning to twine their way around the chopped off bits of raspberry canes.

I've planted lots of seeds; sweet peas, sunflowers, marigolds and even some dahlias. Most seem to be ok haven't transplanted any except a few sweet peas so far.

JB and JB cam over a couple of weeks ago and helped us to dig the final bed for this season. I'm trying to grow some pumpkin seeds ready for when they come over again and then they can plant them in this new bed. So far the seeds haven't appeared only a week and a half left for them to appear and get big enough for transplanting. Watch this space...

The growing season is upon us

The beds are nearly all dug. We had a productive weekend. Mr C took on ( well created!) the bed next to the pond which I had already decided was too challenging given it had a bramble in the middle of it. He took drastic and hopefully satisfactory action and chopped it off ( bet it grows back!!)

I planted my onion sets which arrived last week. They are really teeny tiny compared to the ones I had last year but at least they are organic and there are loads of them. Probably have to do successional sowings if I have enough space. I seem to be filling the plot up pretty rapidly. Took the maincrop pots and put then in the shed to acclimatise they look ready to plant but think I would really be pushing my luck - I bet as soon as they go in we'll have a frost!

Mr C planted some spring onions last week that had been in a seed tray in our cold frame at home since last summer! They died off and came back again a few weeks ago so we will see if they mature at the allotment.

Bought lots of edging rolls and weed control fabric to construct a play area for the babe. Then the sand pit can be installed and a swing. But I think the swing will be great for me to relax on between digging, hoeing and sowing.

Spring!

It really must be spring. There are lots of daffodils out as well as crocuses and various other things I don't know the names of!
The plot for the most part is still looking wintry though. Mr C, the babe and I spent a couple of hours at the plot on Saturday. JB and I were planning to do some digging yesterday too, but the weather was atrocious.
On Saturday we planted some more peas out, whether they will survive or get eaten or rot is anyones guess. I hoed a few beds and generally weeded a bit. The garlic is growing well, but the radishes are very slow to show. The sweet peas are beginning to germinate in the cold frame no idea when they should be planted.
I've ordered some onion sets from garden organic as well as tomato seeds, some wild flower mix (to go beside the pond) and some herb seeds because apart from the thyme the herbs aren't up to much.
Not quite sure where they are all going to go, really need to clear and prepare another seed bed so there is room.

Is it Spring?

It seems very warm for February. Mr C and I got busy on Friday repairing the fence which had fallen down and become overgrown with brambles. It's better but it's still a tatty fence! We had a bonfire whilst repairing the fence and the babe was very interested - lets hope she doesn't grow up to be a pyromaniac! I think it was the movement of the smoke she liked she certaintly wasn't near enough to feel the heat.

A few more beds have been edged with old floorboards from a clear out taking place a few roads away. Generally things are looking quite organised. We've even got some mushroom compost and made a heap. Some has been distributed to the raspberries and especially the rhubarb so I'm expecting huge growth!

About 3 more beds to be dug over the next few weeks and lots of things to be sown. The maincrop potatoes are ready to plant but I'm holding off for a few more weeks. If I plant them we're bound to get some hard frosts.

The peas in the cold frame will definitely need to be transplanted as only a few of those in the pea bed have germinated.

Wildlife

Not much to see but we did disturb a frog this week! It seemed to appreciate the rain more than JB and I!

Mr C has collected some more planks of wood in order to eventually create new boundaries round the plot and to edge the beds. But digging is still the main activity every visit!

Heavy Rain

Saturday morning didn't look too promising but by lunchtime the sky had cleared and it was quite bright. It was not to last however...

JB and I got to work on the old raspberry patch that we began to clear last week. We took loads of couch grass clumps and have begun to create a earth pile which might one day rot down and be of use or it might just get burned!

The old raspberries have been completely cleared, and we are gradually making the plot look a lot better. It won't be too long before we have reached the fruit tree line and then it will feel like a real achievement.

6 beds are now dug on the lefthand side of the plot; the first contains rhubarb and blueberry bushes. Bed 2 has got the parsnips and radishes in (no sign of growth despite the cloches). Beds 3 and 4 were filled on Saturday with the early potatoes couldn't leave then chitting any longer - the dining room was beginning to smell a bit strange.

Oh course the heavens opened and chucked it down once we had begun planting the pots but the job had to be finished. We got soaked and really it was far too muddy, wet and totally inappropriate for planting but it was fun and it needed to be done. The maincrops are chitting in place of the earlies now and they will be ready for planting very soon too. Probably should try to keep them back until at least March, but the weather looks set to be pretty warm so who knows.

Wonderful weather.

The weather was glorious didn't need a coat and got pretty warm digging. Had help this weekend. JB got digging and we successfully dug one new bed and started to clear the old raspberry cane bed which was completely over grown with couch grass.

Found a small slow worm basking in the sun but had to look it up to be sure what it was. I thought they were meant to hibernate so perhaps it is confused by the warm weather.

All the broad beans seem to be ok despite being nibbled by a few slugs and snails and some of the peas are evident. I'm definitely going to need to use some of those growing in the cold frame as there are quite a few gaps in at least 2 of the rows!!

We had a very exciting morning at Seedy Sunday at the Old Market in Hove. Wow so many people swaping and buying seeds, a lot of knowledgeable people too; felt very amateurish! Got some sweet peas seeds (can't only grow edible things) and some marigolds which are good to grow to distract carrot flies I think. Oh and had to get some Love in a Mist as it has such a great name - think its a good deterent for some bugs but can't remember what!

Managed to get husband, me and the babe all at the plot at the same time for just a few minutes yesterday! So we have a few more beds hoed, and some edged. Well Done Mr C.

Still needs more digging

Well not much achieved over the weekend at the plot. Serious digging is needed and its all a bit too much like hard work at the moment! Started to excavate a bramble but couldn't manange to find the beginning (or is it the end?) of the thing. So left it with a big hole around it. It's right in the middle of one of my new beds so might need a rethink on that...

Dug over a bed created before Christmas and tried to remove as much of the couch grass roots as possible - never can get every little bit. However decided some light relief in the form of planting was required so made it into a lovely seed bed and planted some parsnip seeds and added some radishes to mark the rows. Apparently this is what you do as parsnips are slow to geminate - presumably this stops you mistaking them for weeds or digging over the soil before they have had chance to appear?

Put down some of our cheap as chips polytunnels from Poundland (you guessed it only £1 each) to protect the radishes. We will see what happens.

Snow!

Woke up to husband shouting " You won't believe this!" Its snowed an amzing event here in the south. Only a few cms but none the less real snow. Goodness knows what the broad bean seedlings will make of it. Anyway too cold to investigate right now. I'm staying inside in the warm with the babe- or perhaps she should be eperiencing the snow might be a rare event now what with climte change etc!

More windy weather

It's still really windy! I went to the plot twice over the weekend. Both days the first job was to retrieve the poly tunnels from next door. I've had enough of that so one has been temporarily confined to the shed till the weather calms down. But the ones over the broad beans have had to be put back on because otherwise I'm sure they will die. The weather is supposed to be getting cold as Winter finally arrives somewhat later than usual so I hope the things in the ground don't get too cold.

Saturday was a digging day- there are photos to prove it! We've got 10 beds now dug and prepared for growing and 6 with things in already. The soil was quite heavy as it has been raining a fair bit over the last few weeks. But managed to dig it anyway.

Sunday I finished the bed off; tried to remove all the couch grass and its roots but that's no easy task! Then decided to hack at the rosemary bush which was very tatty and that led me on chopping down a hebe that was next to it. Turned into a decimate and destroy visit to the plot. The budlea (or is it budlia) also had a trim; well more of a serious chop. Hopefully it will grow back thicker and bushier, rather than looking too much like a tree. Hope it doesn't die as it's good for butterflies and other wildlife which are no doubt essential to kill pests and pollinate things. Time will tell!

Potatoes are chitting well - might need to be planted before the end of February so serious earthing up will be needed. Don't have to worry about that for a few weeks yet though.

Windy Weather

Its so windy! Sitting here wondering if I should venture to the plot to rescue whatever has blown away. Last time I was up there I had to retrieve the poly tunnels from next door where they were entangled in some brambles. No doubt they are getting shredded to pieces right now but I don't fancy facing the wind and rain.

Over the weekend the plan is to dig at least one more bed hopefully two if its not too wet so they can be ready for some more potatoes the leeks and the carrots. (eventually)

We've been keeping our eyes open for a greenhouse on freecycle one has just come up so we are hopeful it might be ours. I'm already dreaming about how it will transform the allotment and the delights we might be able to grow in it! Have to wait and see though.......

Pruning

I've attempted to prune the fruit trees. Didn't really know what I was doing so we'll just have to see what happens when they begin to fruit or not! The Autumn fruiting raspberries have been pruned too; right down to the ground following careful reading of at least 2 allotment veg books so fingers crossed for them too.

I've dug one more bed probably for the maincrop potatoes. The earlies are chitting right now in the dining room and look as though they will be ready to go in in the next couple of weeks. Hope this isn't too early?

I planted a couple of seed trays up with some more early peas and put them in the cold frame. Hopefully if any of the others are devoured by slugs I'll have some replacements.

We've cut some large yoghurt pots in half and used them to protect the broad beans as they are growing.

Seaweed

The seaweed started to smell pretty horrible! Its been added to the compost and chopped up lets hope it has benficial qualities. The sprouts and parsnips required for the Christmas dinner have now been ordered, so it is still possible that we might have our own veg for lunch on 25th December.
The broad beans are growing well, need to make some plastic bottle collars to protect them from the slugs though.
We've made some bird feeders from yoghurt pots and filled then with bird seed and lard- yum yum! The one in the garden has so far attracted 0 birds. lets hope the ones on the plot are more popular.
The fruit trees - the apple and the can't-quite-remember-what-it-is-tree both need pruning according to father-in-law better clean up those secateurs and get on with that ASAP.

Bought and found

We went for a walk on the beach a couple of days ago. It had been very stormy and lots of small planks and broken pallets had washed up on the beach. They were collected and stowed under the buggy somewhat precariously. All arrived home intact (baby included) and a return visit was planned for the following day to see if any more wood had washed up. A few more pieces were collected and some seaweed. The weed started drying out quite quickly so no time was spared in delivering it to the plot.

It has just dawned on me that if we are to grow veg for Christmas dinner we actually need to plant the necessary seeds! A quick additional order from the Organic Gardening catalogue will need to be set up. You can't have Christmas dinner without sprouts and parsnips can you?

The planting plan is taking shape. A giant wall planner has been purchased and various colour coded shapes and patterns added to it. Sowing and 'sowing under glass' (yellow), and orange for (roughly) when to plant out should help to keep things on track.

So its the New Year ...

Work has begun. The compost has been turned and some spread on the new raspberry beds. The potatoes have arrived and are awaiting a suitable container in which to chit them. The broad beans are shooting and already slugs have tracked them down. The early peas are under a polytunnel to keep them cosy; but no visible development yet.

The rhubarb has been moved to the fruit bed but it may already be too late - it looks rather rotten.