Month: June 2010

>Allotment 16- Sun, Water and weeds

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This week is scorching, there is a high demand for water and for some reason the weeds seem to grow as I watch. The cages are keeping the birds off the cabbages for now, my potatoes are in leaf, the onions are about 10 cms tall, and the first flowers are showing on my beans. The mixed salad is growing well but not enough to eat. Radishes are coming up well but the leaves seem to attract flea beetles so are full of holes.
 Pictures below show the current state of play and the strange cage constructions,

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>Allotment 15- Generosity

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>I am amazed by the generosity of allotment holders. Not only will you get a cheery wave and hello, free ( but not aways wanted) advise and an excuse to chat but there are gifts. I have been given, french and runner bean plants, purple sprouting and Kale and just recently a lot of pak choi seedlings which I love. If anyone has anything to excess they share it. With a bit of luck I will be able to do the same. Anyway- thank you to those who help others.

>Allotment 14- weeds

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>Spent Sunday afternoon weeding and hoeing. I am sure some of the weeds were back before I got to the end. The thistles and comfrey are the most difficult to deal with. Comfrey leaves grow before your eyes.
Put in some yellow carrot seeds, more salad, parsley and basil. Transplanted some rainbow chard. Oh yes, watered and watered . Plots very dry and exposed.
Looks like I should get some salad soon and some French beans now in flower.

>Allotment 12- Wind not water

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>The wind is blowing down the hill and has already blown one of the brassica cages away. On my daily watering visit I was able to capture it, make a few repairs and reposition it. The crows had not managed to get at the cabbages and the wind kept he butterflies away so no damage done.

We have not had any rain since last Thursday and I really need to water every day. The potatoes on plot 20A are in leaf, the runner beans, on 20 B are finally running up the canes, the shallots and onions are showing leaf. Some carrots seeds and rainbow chard is sprouting as is the mixed leaf salad. Other plants are coming on but slowly. Again it is cold around 18C so I imagine slow growth. However the thistles and comfry are sprouting everywhere as fast as I can hoe or dig them up. Homebase has run out of canes which I need for the french beans and the tomato plants both of which are rather windblown.

>Allotment 10- digging, rain and plans

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The new plot 20B is now over 2/3rds dug and already has my blackberry and tayberry bushes in place. As an experiment I put them into a buried container to stop them taking over. But will this stop them fruiting?
A nice neighbour from down the allotment hill gave me some runner bean plants – so these are now in and staked up. My courgette plans have also be put in and surrounded by a stone mulch.
I have lost three sweetcorn plants to a combination of not enough water and  being a bit heavy handed with their removal from the seed tray. Other plants seem to be surviving. Some radish seeds are sprouting as are the Chard.

The plan for 20 A is now like this

The plan for 20B is still being created but my Cypriot barber has inspired me with talk of Seeds of Italy. I ordered everything I could that said June was still a planting date.  Losts of rain over the weekend up to 2 June when the Sun seems to be out and it is warming up again. I bet the weeds have taken advantage!