The Good Life

The Cutting Patch

2012-02-17T09:56:00.000Z

I've tried for the last couple of years to grow a cutting patch at the allotment, flowers which I can cut and bring home for the house. I love seeing flowers in the garden but hate to cut them for indoors so this seemed to be the perfect solution. It hasn't quite worked out though, as once the growing season gets going, I tend to devote most of my time to my veggies. Space is also a concern as starting vegetables from seed can take up quite a bit of room on the windowsills, starting flowers off too just adds to the problem of where to put them. This year I'm going to try direct sowing the flower seeds. Sarah Raven's Kitchen and Garden catalogue can be really inspirational. I just love the Amethyst and Sapphire Cut Flower Mix bouquet on the right hand side, and the information states that the seeds can be scattered in a sunny corner of the garden, sowing this way would certainly alleviate some of the problems I have when growing cut flowers. I shall go through my stash of flower seeds and see which ones can be sown this way.

One must have flower, which is perfect for cutting for the house because of it's wonderful scent, is the sweet pea. I didn't get round to sowing any last year and I really missed them. I've still got my red onions and shallots to pot up so I shall make sure that I sow some sweet peas at the same time. I'm hoping to get round to doing that this weekend, but it's my son's birthday on Sunday so I may run out of time. It'll get done soon though.

I only have one flower border in my garden, and that's not very big. I planted it up three years ago with native flowers, but some of them have now outgrown their space. This year I want to revamp this area. Bilbo Waggins from The View From Bag End left a comment on one of my earlier posts which really got me thinking. She told me that the late, great, Geoff Hamilton had suggested going to a nursery once a month and buying something for the garden which is in flower, then you'll have flowers in your garden every month of the year. I think that's a great tip and one which I'm going to take on board, I keep saying that I need more colour in the garden in winter, so doing this will really help.

Yes Peas

2012-02-10T10:44:00.000Z

The variety of pea I've chosen to grow this year is Hurst Green Shaft. I grew this variety last year and was very pleased with them, they grew well and tasted delicious. Last year was the first year that I've sown direct, and I was pleased with how well they germinated and grew so I shall do the same again this year, though I may make an early sowing in pots to be transplanted. I'd like to grow more peas this year than I usually do. I did manage to freeze some last year but they didn't last long so I'm hoping to get a bigger harvest this year. With this in mind, I sent off for the Yes Peas! recipe booklet. It contains twenty one different pea recipes, and some of those are vegetarian so there's something for everyone, providing you like peas. I quite fancy Peas and Goat's Cheese Stuffed Mushrooms and Spicy Beef and Pea Patties, but there's plenty more in the booklet to get the taste buds tingling. If you'd like a copy of the Yes Peas! recipe booklet for yourself, it can be ordered from the Yes Peas! website. There's also other recipes on the website as well as lots of information.

The onions which I started from seed aren't doing so well. They're very straggly because I left them on the windowsill after germination, whereas I should have really moved them to the unheated conservatory or porch. It's just too warm for them where they are, and this is encouraging weak growth. I think I shall start over and sow some more this weekend while it's still early enough.

We had more snow fall last night, though not as much as last weekend. The problem now is that the original snow hadn't melted, so we're walking on fresh snow on top of compacted, frozen snow which makes it extremely slippy. I took Archie for a walk this morning and nearly went flying, I don't know how I managed to stay upright. It's very cold today but there's no more snow forecast, so that's good.

Hedging My Bets

2012-02-04T16:25:00.000Z

I've already got two blueberry bushes but I've hardly had anything off them for the last couple of years. I'm going to repot them in to some fresh ericaceous compost to see if that will rejuvenate them, as well as giving them a mulch of coffee grounds. Whilst I was shopping this morning, I decided to pop in to Wilkinson's to have a look at their gardening section, as you do, and I happened to come across this blueberry plant for the princely sum of £3.18. Many plants which are bought like this look like sticks at first, but this already has some new growth so I won't shock it by putting it outside straight away. After being potted up, it can live in my greenhouse until the weather improves. I'm hoping that now I've got three plants, each will be pollinated better and I'll get more fruit.

My shallots, which I bought from my local nursery last week, are also waiting to be potted up. I've gone for Sante again, they did really well for me last year. I also bought a few red onion sets. I've gone for a variety which I've heard many people mention they grow, Red Baron. I love red onion in a salad, but I've never grown them before.

I wasn't long in Wilkinson's, but when I went in the weather was cold but fine. By the time I came out again, there was already a fine layer of snow on the ground. Since then, the snow has continued to fall and we've got quite a covering now. It wasn't predicted to start snowing until early evening so it came sooner than expected, and there's no indication that it's going to stop anytime soon.

More Veg Seeds

2012-01-29T18:54:00.000Z

There were only a couple of things left to get off this year's seed list, squash and cabbage. I don't often use mail order for seeds, simply because I begrudge paying the postage, but I've heard lots of good reviews about More Veg so I decided I'd give them a go. Postage wasn't bad actually, only 95p if the order is less than £7.50, or free if your order is above this amount. They also do packets containing a smaller number of seeds, so you're not paying for seeds which you won't use. I was impressed by the speed of the delivery. My order was placed last Monday afternoon and the seeds were with me on Wednesday, you can't ask for quicker than that. The order came with a handwritten compliment slip thanking me for my order, I thought that was a nice personal touch and I shall definitely use this company again. The squash I decided on was Uchiki Kuri as I've had recommendations for this and Blue Kuri as I quite faniced a blue skinned variety. The cabbage I've gone for is Advantage F1 as it seems a good all round cabbage and very versatile, it can be sown more or less throughout the year. The seed packets came with good instructions and even hints and tips on how the vegetable can be cooked and eaten.

The Big Garden Birdwatch which is run by the RSPB has taken place this weekend, but as well as being out and about, I've had other commitments which prevented me from taking part this year. I don't think the birds will have minded though, it's been a bit quiet on the bird front in my garden this past week, perhaps they knew what was happening this weekend and were already in hiding. Let's hope they come back this week now it's all over.

The weather was supposed to be getting colder this weekend, and I thought the forecasters had got it wrong as yesterday was a gorgeous warm, sunny day, but it's turned really cold today, I do hope that snow isn't on it's way.

Buds Fit To Burst

2012-01-25T12:46:00.000Z

Everywhere I look, I'm noticing buds waiting to burst open. It's just a matter of time before the trees will be fully clothed in their leaves again. I'm beginning to wonder though if the mild winter we've had so far will have any affect on the garden when spring arrives, especially if we get some hard frosts before then. It seems that plants have been tricked in to thinking that spring is here already, and they're getting ready for the season ahead, but some hard frosts could then put paid to their spring season altogether. The photo is of buds on my cherry tree, but my blueberries have buds on too, and it's only a couple of years ago that a frost wiped out that year's crop. I'm hoping that the same thing doesn't happen again.

I finally got round to sowing my onion seed - Bedfordshire Champion on Sunday. My windowsills are now in use and won't be cleared of seed trays until the sowing frenzy has subsided at the end of spring. I've sown the seed in trays with a propagator lid, but no heat. I've also sown some broad beans - Bunyards Exhibition. This is the first year that I've grown broad beans. I remember hating them when I was a child but I thought it was time that they were given a second chance, afterall, I hated runner beans and French beans too, yet they're one of my favourite vegetables now.

I'm not only noticing buds waiting to burst open at the moment. This morning was glorious, sunny, still and quite warm, so I took Archie on a long dog walk and was amazed at the number of bulbs which are pushing their way through the soil, everything from snowdrops to daffodils. I think there's going to be a riot of colour soon.

Winter Blooms

2012-01-22T10:33:00.000Z

Each year, I say I'm going to plant more things in the garden which will give me some winter colour, and each year I never get round to it. It's been quite an exceptional year this year, in that many summer flowers have lasted right in to winter, and many spring flowers are already blooming, so there's been quite alot of colour around this winter. I can't remember when this primrose last stopped flowering, it's certainly flowered without a pause for the last year, though it's looking a little bedraggled at the moment.

We've got blustery winds mixed in with rain again today. I can't remember a time when the weather's been so windy for such a prolonged length of time, it scares me to death and I got little sleep again last night. I'm wishing that the weather forecasters had been right and we'd had snow instead.

I'm hoping to get the first sowing of the year done today. As I'm growing onions from seed rather than sets this year, it's time that they were sown to give them a fair chance of growing to a decent size. That will be the extent of my gardening for today, I'm not braving the winds for anything else.

Slow Growing

2012-01-18T11:15:00.000Z

You may remember that I sowed some carrot seed in containers to overwinter in the greenhouse. This is the stage they're at at the moment, very small. To be honest, I forgot all about them, they've been residing outside until I suddently remembered to move them in to the greenhouse when the frost struck at the weekend. I'm hoping that when the warmer weather comes in spring, they'll begin to grow again and I'll end up with an early carrot crop.

I'm going to have a go at growing some early potatoes too. My seed potatoes are set out and chitting at the moment, but in the next couple of weeks I'm going to start a couple of tubers off in a container wrapped in fleece in the greenhouse to see if I can get an extra early harvest of potatoes. It's worth a try.

After a very mild start to winter, we had four frosts on the go from Saturday onwards. It's warmed up again today, no frost in sight, and rain is forecast for the rest of the week. One of the weather reports yesterday suggested snow in my part of the world at the weekend, though I think they've revised that prediction now, I hope so anyway.

On A Cold And Frosty Morning

2012-01-15T14:07:00.000Z

Yesterday morning, we had our first proper frost of the year, followed by the second today. We've only had a couple of very light frosts previously, which haven't really touched the ground. Hubby has been to the allotment today to fetch some veg and he managed to dig up some parnips. The top couple of inches of earth were frozen but other than that, the ground wasn't too hard. I think that winter might finally be on it's way.

I'm really pleased with my cabbages this year, though Hubby brought the last home with him from the allotment today. I'm unsure of the variety as the seed was sown in a hurry after my original seedlings were eaten by slugs, and I never got round to labelling them. I shall certainly grow more next year so that they last longer in to winter.

Hubby also brought home some purple sprouting broccoli from the allotment. It's not supposed to be ready until about February, but I started harvesting it in November. Perhaps it will slow down a little now that the frosts are here.

The Year Of The Sweetcorn

2012-01-12T09:39:00.000Z

I made last year The Year Of The Carrot. I'd had trouble getting carrot seed to germinate, never mind getting any carrots to the harvesting stage, so I concentrated my efforts on this vegetable with some success. I've still got some in my freezer waiting to be eaten. Before I had my allotment, I grew sweetcorn in containers in the garden and was very successful with them, but since I've tried to grow them on the allotment, I haven't had any success at all. Looking back at how well I did with my carrots last year after declaring 2011 the year of the carrot, I've decided that 2012 will be the year of the sweetcorn and I shall make an extra effort in getting them to grow. I've chosen Sweet Bounty, which is a Super-sweet, F1 variety. Now I just need to get them to grow, though I won't be sowing them just yet.

This year, I'm having a go at growing onions from seed rather than sets. Christmas Day was always the traditional time to sow onion seeds as apparently, the longer the growing season, the larger they'll be when it comes to harvesting them. I haven't sown them yet, so with this in mind I'd better get my skates on. Perhaps this weekend will see the first sowing of the year.

We've got gales here again today. I was woken up in the early hours with winds whistling round the house, and I'm sure I heard a few people's wheelie bins being blown over. It's calmed down a little since then, so I'm hoping that there's been no damage.

Spudulicious

2012-01-08T18:27:00.000Z

I haven't looked back at my blog to find the exact dates, but I think I'm a little earlier than usual in buying my seed potatoes. One of the reasons is that I knew what I wanted to buy this year. I grew Arran Pilot, a first early variety, last year and was really pleased with them so I'd already decided that I'd grow them again this year. They boil really well, that's something which I've found a challenge with other varieties, many of them turn to mush. The colour of the flesh is lovely too, it stays really white. I've decided against growing any maincrop potatoes this year, and shall be growing my Arran Pilots in containers in the garden. I've always done really well growing my potatoes this way, and it will free some space up for other things at the allotment. Another reason for me buying them early is that because I'm growing them in containers, I'll be able to get some planted a little earlier and start the containers off in the greenhouse so that I get an early harvest.

I think I've mentioned previously that we very rarely have a roast dinner on a Sunday, preferring to have one on a Monday as well as other days during the week. Hubby popped down to the allotment today to harvest some veggies for the week and came home with a cabbage, some parsnips, which are incredibly straight for a change, and some leeks. There's also more purple sprouting broccoli nearly ready for harvesting as well as some cavolo nero and curly kale. I'm really pleased with the harvests which the allotment has given us this winter. We've still got veggies in the freezer waiting to be used up too.

We've had some terrible weather here over the past week, high winds as well as driving rain and hail. I was worried about what we might find at the allotment when we ventured down there, but Hubby reports that everything but the brassica netting was intact. He found the netting from over the brassicas a couple of plots down, but has managed to retrieve it and it doesn't look damaged, so we've done well. I know other people haven't fared so well in the gales so my thoughts are with them. Let's hope we've seen the back of the storms now.

Bee House

2011-12-31T12:01:00.000Z

My Christmas presents usually contain something for the garden, and this year was no exception as Hubby bought me this lovely bee house. Although it's ceramic, the design is based on the original straw or wicker skeps which have been used for centuries to keep honey bees, though this is for Bumble Bees. It comes with hints and tips on how to attract bees to nest in the house so I shall be siting it at the back of my border in February and keeping my fingers crossed. It would be great if I could get some bees to nest in it, I'll certainly let you know how I get on with it.

I hope everyone's had a wonderful Christmas. Thank you for all the good wishes you left on my last post. The parsnips which I dug up from the allotment were delicious served with our Christmas dinner.

Thank you to everyone who has visited my blog this year, and those who have also left comments, they're very much appreciated. May I wish you all a happy, healthy and peaceful New Year, and all the best for the 2012 growing season.

Merry Christmas

2011-12-24T12:26:00.000Z

Why oh why didn't I go to the allotment to collect my Christmas veggies on Thursday? Instead, I left it till yesterday when it was raining cats and dogs and I got thoroughly wet through. Unfortunately, my sprouts just aren't good enough, so it's shop bought for another year, and my leeks are just far too small, so all we've ended up with for our Christmas dinner plate from the allotment is parsnips. They'll be delicious anyway.

As you can see, Archie is already in the Christmas spirit and is waiting for Santa Paws to arrive.

Wishing everyone a very merry Christmas.

Leeks

2011-12-19T11:24:00.000Z

It's a good job that I've got plenty of leeks at the allotment as it would seem that I'll need to use quite a few at a time as they're so small. It's not the first time that my leeks haven't grown very big. I always start them off in a plant pot, but I think I'm leaving it too late before planting them out. I think I'll try transplanting them earlier next year and see if that makes a difference. This photo was taken a few weeks ago so they may have grown a little more by now.

I shall pop down to the allotment at the end of the week to see what veggies we'll be having with our Christmas dinner. I'm hoping that there'll be home grown sprouts on my Christmas dinner plate, but time will tell.

The weather has certainly turned colder just lately. I know many people in different parts of the country have experienced snow already. I'm starting to wonder if we're going to have a white Christmas again like we did last year.

Giveaway Winner

2011-12-15T12:12:00.000Z

I'd like to announce that the winner of my giveaway is Lorna Watson from The Green Lady blog. The book will be winging it's way to you, Lorna, just as soon as you let me have your address.

Thank you to everyone who took part in the giveaway. I'm currently reading another book which I will offer as a giveaway prize at a later date so watch this space.

Liebster Award

2011-12-12T16:58:00.000Z

I'd like to thank Mum from Mum's Simply Living Blog for awarding me the Liebster Award. This award is given to blogs with less than two hundred followers, though I think this number has increased whilst it's being doing the rounds, it used to be one hundred followers.

The award comes with a few rules.

1. Copy and paste the award on your blog.

2. Thank the giver and link back to them.

3. Choose five blogs which you would like to pass the award on to and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.

I'd like to pass the award on to the following five blogs.

I know that many people don't accept awards, so I don't want to put anyone under any pressure, especially at this time of year when it's so busy. I think it's nice to be able to recognise blogs which you enjoy reading though, so do take a peek at my nominations.

Thanks again for the award, Mum.

Don't forget to enter my giveaway if you haven't already done so. You have until 14th of December to leave a comment on my giveaway post.

Brussels Sprouts

2011-12-08T10:36:00.000Z

I've tried a couple of times previously to grow Brussels sprouts without much success, but it looks as though I might manage to taste a few morsels this year. They can be quite hard to grow, producing opened leaves instead of those which are tightly packed. One of the reasons this happens is that the soil in which the plant is grown is too loose. It needs to be firm, so I make sure that I really tamp the soil down around the plant, though it hasn't made any difference in previous years. They're still a little on the small side yet, so I'm hoping that the winds that we're forcast don't blow them over or damage them in any way before they have a chance to develop. I don't need to grow many, there's only me in our house who will eat them. I don't think you can have a Christmas dinner without some sprouts on the plate.

The allotment is suffering from neglect at the moment. It's always busy at this time of year with Christmas preparations as well as other things taking priority over our time. I haven't managed to get all the winter digging done so it looks as though we'll be digging in spring instead, all my good intentions have fallen by the wayside yet again. The only thing we're visiting the plot for at the moment is to harvest.

I'm pleased with our veg stocks at the moment. At the allotment, we've got cavolo nero, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, curly kale, parsnips and leeks. There's onions and shallots in store. In the freezer there's mange tout, runner beans, French beans and carrots. We've still got the two pumpkins which we didn't get round to carving for Halloween which I haven't done anything with yet. We've got enough veg to see us through for a while yet.

If you haven't already entered my giveaway, don't forget to do so. You have until 14th of December to leave a comment on my giveaway post.

Book Giveaway

2011-12-01T10:55:00.001Z

I've recently read Digger's Diary - Tales From The Allotment by Victor Osborne and really enjoyed it, so I thought I would offer it as a giveaway prize on my blog.

The blurb can tell you what the book is about much better than I'm able.

In a wild landscape of unkempt vegetation and higgledy-piggledy sheds, criss-crossed by tiny paths like secret jungle tracks, lies Victor Osborne's inner-city allotment. Here, along with fellow 'diggers' like the Ace Cultivator, the Birdman and even the Hon.Sec. himself, he grows everything from Brussels sprouts to sweet peas, not to mention greengages and tayberries. In this fascinating and charming chronicle of a year in the life of his own patch, he shares with us the highs and lows of a multi-ethnic gardening community in which status is determined not by your income but by the standard of your produce (especially at the Annual Show), and in which a night's unseasonal frost can ruin everything...

If you would like to be in with a chance of winning the book, please leave a comment on this post. The giveaway will run until 14th of December after which time a winner will be chosen at random. I'm happy to post worldwide.

I also have a giveaway running on my Through The Keyhole blog so pop over there to be in with a chance of winning.

Good Luck.

Cavolo Nero

2011-11-27T13:38:00.000Z

My cavolo nero is still going strong. I've got three plants which I've been picking from throughout the summer, yet there's still plenty to harvest. One problem I always seem to have with cavolo nero is whitefly, I think I'll have to plant some marigolds close by next year as this should keep the whitefly away. I do net the cavolo nero to keep the Cabbage White butterflies off them, but my netting must still be allowing the whitefly to pass through, I think only Enviromesh would keep them out, but it's very expensive so I'll have to rely on companion planting.

Another plant which is doing really well is curly kale. There wasn't room in my brassica cage for the plants so they haven't been netted at all, but they haven't had any damage to them. I don't think the pests like them. I've picked a good bunch for tea, it's a vegetable which all the family enjoy.

I nearly got blown away when I visited the allotment today, the winds are really strong. The temperature has dropped too, though we still haven't had a frost, could it be that winter is finally on it's way?

Hanging Around

2011-11-22T11:37:00.000Z

I moved my tomato plants out of the greenhouse a couple of weeks ago in order to have space in there to overwinter my tender plants. I've been a bit lazy in actually emptying the tomato plants out of their pots and disposing of them, they've been hanging around in the garden waiting for me to get my act together. Whilst I was in the garden this morning, I noticed that the few green tomatoes I left on the plants are starting to ripen, who would believe that they'd be doing that at this late stage? I don't hold out much hope of any more ripening though, you can tell by the photo that we've got a grey, damp day again today, there isn't much light never mind sunshine.

I've had a subscription to Gardeners World Magazine for quite a few years now. I've decided that when my year is up this time, I'm not going to renew it. I do enjoy reading gardening magazines but I'm finding that I just don't have the time to read each issue properly , there's two issues here which haven't yet been opened, so it's a bit of a waste of money subscribing. I actually find that reading gardening blogs is more enjoyable than a magazine anyway, especially blogs which you follow. It's a bit like a serial, tuning in for the next episode, plus there's two way communication with blogs, something else which I prefer.

I didn't manage to get to the allotment at the weekend so I must make more of an effort to get down there this week. Time is running away with me now and I know I'm not going to get everthing done before winter sets in, though I'm not letting it stress me, what gets done gets done and what doesn't will be left until spring.

Cauliflowers Fluffy And Cabbages Green

2011-11-19T17:28:00.000Z

I haven't grown any cauliflowers this year, but my cabbages are lovely and green. I've never been very successful at growing cabbages, the slugs usually get them before I get chance, but it's looking very hopeful this year. They're starting to heart up now and should be ready to harvest before long. I don't seem to have had as much slug damage this year, I suppose that's one of the good things to come out of the dry weather conditions this year.

My Brussels sprouts are just beginning to produce some buds along the stem. This is another crop which I haven't been very successful with in the past, though it's too early yet to predict if I'm going to do any better this year. I always keep the soil firm around the plants but the sprouts are still never up to much. It would be nice to have home grown on my Christmas dinner plate.

We've had a lovely bright day here today but I didn't get chance to go to the allotment as I've had other commitments. I'm hoping for similar weather tomorrow so I can pop down there then.

This Year's Failure

2011-11-16T10:59:00.000Z

There's always something which does spectacularly badly on the allotment. This year it was the turn of butternut squash. I haven't grown this before, and I don't think I'll bother again. There was only one squash produced on the plant and it only grew to the size of a tennis ball. I've captured it's good side in the photo, the other side has a couple of holes in it where insects have had a feast. I would like to grow squash though, so next year I'm going to have a go at one or two other varieties. As I'm not growing potatoes on the allotment next year, I'll give the potato bed over to them. I'd love to hear if you've got any particular recommendations of varieties to try. I'd like to grow some which will store well over winter.

I've been out to the greenhouse this morning to check on the strawberry plants which I mentioned a few posts back. I'm pleased to report that they've all recovered from their time in transit very well, every single one of them has sprung back in to good health and have produced some new shiny green leaves. I've got high hopes of a good strawberry harvest next year.

I had a visitor in the garden a few days ago, the first robin I've seen there this autumn. We get lots of sparrows and starlings, a couple of blackbirds and the odd pigeon, on a regular basis. I'm making sure that I'm feeding them all regularly so that they know where their food source is when winter comes, especially if snow's on the ground and food is hard to come by. I love watching the comings and goings, the feeders are well used and there's always something to see.

Purple Sprouting Broccoli

2011-11-13T17:24:00.000Z

I've tried growing Purple Sprouting Broccoli in the past but it got stripped bare by hungry pigeons before I got to taste it. I wasn't going to let the same thing happen this time so it's been netted from the offset in my brassica cage. I didn't realise just how tall this grows though, it's making a bid for freedom, trying to find a gap in the top of the netting through which it can escape. The plants are producing their heads early, I shall be tasting some this week, though it's a plant which usually produces it's harvest in the new year. I suppose this is another plant which is confused by the weather this year.

I still didn't manage to source any pansies for my hanging baskets this weekend. It's a job which I shall definitely do in the next week, time just seems to be passing me by at the moment.

We've had a really miserable day today. We haven't had any rain but it's been damp and grey all day. It hasn't been ideal gardening weather so I didn't do any, I really need to get motivated and get the plot dug over for winter.

Parsnip Experiment

2011-11-11T09:01:00.000Z

I dug up the first of the parsnips at the weekend, and delicious they are too. I've always started my parsnips off in pots and then transferred them in to the ground once they'd germinated, but this year I thought I'd try sowing them direct. My soil contains quite a few stones so I decided that I would sow them the same way as I do my carrots and channel out a trench which is then filled with multi purpose compost before sowing the seed. This gives the parsnips some soft earth to grow down in to rather than hitting stones and forking. The seeds are quite large which enabled me to space them out evenly, avoiding the need for thinning out later. I also started some seeds off in pots, as I have done in previous years, and transplanted them once they had germinated. The two parsnips on the right are the ones which were transplanted. As you can see, they started off well having nice wide shoulders, but they must have forked just as soon as they were transplanted, after hitting stones in the ground. They also suffered from a bit of canker but it was only skin deep and didn't affect the flesh at all. The three parsnips on the left are the ones which were sown direct. They've still forked but not before growing a little longer than the others. I think I need to dig my trenches a little deeper, so I'll try that next year. They still tasted good, and there's lots more in the ground to last through winter.

I usually plant some hanging baskets up with pansies for winter but I haven't got round to it this year. I must make an effort to take a trip to the garden centre or nursery otherwise I'll regret not having a bit of colour around when we're in the depths of winter. I choose pansies as they stand up to the cold and wet weather really well. They were covered in a foot of snow last year yet they still survived it and went on blooming all winter.

We've had a bit of a grey week here, though it's stayed mainly dry. We still haven't had our first frost, and the grass continues to grow. I thought it had had it's last cut a few weeks ago, but it's actually in need of another one. I wonder if it will stay dry long enough now for the lawnmower to come out again.

Blue Skies

2011-11-06T17:06:00.000Z

I planted some borage at the allotment two years ago and I haven't been without it since. It's a prolific self seeder and the bees love it. I've been at the allotment today and have done a little work, though there's still plenty more to do. The borage plants got pulled out to enable me to get some of the beds dug over. I want to get as much digging done as possible before winter comes as the frosts will break down the clods of earth making the earth more workable when spring arrives. Anything for an easier life.

We've had some real downpours over the weekend. There was heavy rain on Friday night which lasted right the way through to Saturday evening. I'm glad we hadn't planned to go to a bonfire. I thought the weather was finally changing, yet look at the gorgeous blue sky on the photo I took today. Perhaps our first frost is still a little way off.

The pumpkins which I wrote about in an earlier post got a reprieve. It turned out that my daughter had a drama rehearsal on Halloween so we didn't end up carving them after all. I think I'll have a go at making pumpkin soup.

Tatty Plants

2011-10-30T16:11:00.000Z

You may remember that I bought some new strawberry plants - Flamenco, which are everbearers, at the start of the year. I potted them up intending to plant them out at the allotment once I'd prepared a bed, but I'm ashamed to say that I never got round to it so they're still residing in their plant pots. I had intended to purchase some other strawberry plants too as the ones at the allotment were coming to the end of their productive life. That's another job I didn't get round to, however, the ones at the allotment did ok again this year. I've now pulled all the old plants up so I really need to have some more ready for next year. I came across an offer on the Gardener's World website of twelve Sonata strawberry plants for £4.50. I ordered a pack myself and ordered a pack in hubby's name too. They were delivered in a bit of a sorry state, though mail order plants often look this way when they're delivered but they soon pick up. I've potted them up in to generous sized pots, as you can see, and they'll now stay in the greenhouse over the winter to recover from their ordeal of being sent through the postal system and to establish themselves. I'll plant them out along with the Flamenco strawberries when the weather begins to improve next year.

I've noticed lots of wasps around over the last week or so. I don't remember seeing them around this late in the year before, certainly not in the numbers I've seen this week. I wonder if they're another thing which this mixed up weather has confused.

The clocks went back last night which means there's even less time to spend outside in the garden or at the allotment now. Hubby often has a trip to the allotment when he gets in from work, but as it will now be dark at that time the after work visits will cease until March when the clocks go forward again. I suppose it's now time for the winter hobbies to start up again.

They Won't See Us Through Winter

2011-10-24T18:29:00.000+01:00

Hubby went to the allotment today and has now dug up the maincrop potatoes - Maris Piper. I wasn't expecting great things from them for a number of reasons, it was late when they were planted, the dry summer wasn't ideal and there wasn't much top growth. All things considered, I still wasn't quite prepared for the small amount which hubby brought home with him, just a little under ten pounds. The seed potatoes cost more than I could buy ten pounds of potatoes for in the greengrocers. There were a few more than these but they had been eaten, and some of the plants didn't have anything underneath them at all. I've made the decision that I'm not going to grow potatoes at the allotment next year. Instead, I will grow early potatoes in containers at home, as I did this year, and the potato bed at the allotment will still be kept in my four year rotation plan but instead of having potatoes planted in it, it will have sweetcorn and squash.

I was really pleased with how my cherry tree performed this year, we harvested plenty of cherries from it, more than I ever expected really as it's grown in a container and I thought that might prevent it from producing so well. Now that I've seen how well it's done, I'm happy to try another fruit tree in a container. I thought this time I might try an apple tree. There's so many varieties to choose from so I've got lots of research to do, but it's a fruit which we all like so it makes sense to have a go at growing our own. I know a container grown tree won't produce a huge crop, but it will be good to have a few home grown apples to eat.

The beans at the allotment have finally finished producing now. They've done so well this year and there's plenty in the freezer for the coming weeks. It was worth making a late sowing as we got a late harvest, though we may have sown them a little too late had it not been for the heatwave we got at the end of September. All that's left at the allotment now is parsnips, leeks and brassicas.

Halloween Pumpkins

2011-10-18T11:10:00.000+01:00

These pumpkins don't look very scary now but I'm hoping they will do so by the time Halloween comes round. I only grew one pumpkin plant and this is the fruit which it produced, one pumpkin is smaller than the other but it's still large enough to carve. As a child, it was always swedes which we carved, and tough going it was too. It's much easier to carve a pumpkin.

I was pleasantly surprised on Sunday to find that I was able to harvest some climbing beans from the late sowing I made. I suppose the mini heatwave helped them along, though how long they'll go on producing for depends on the weather. There's still plenty of runner beans being harvested too.

The weather has certainly turned much colder this week. I was wearing my summer jacket and flip flops when I took Archie for a walk this morning and I came home frozen. It's definitely time to dig out a warmer jacket and boots.

Ladybird Ladybird Fly Away Home

2011-10-16T13:10:00.000+01:00

The allotment has been neglected this weekend in favour of tidying up the garden. The jobs which had to be put off last weekend because it was raining finally got done, the rabbit hutches were moved down on to the patio for the winter, the garden had a general tidy up and even the grass got a final mow. I make sure that I don't tidy the border up too much though as the birds like to forage for seeds and the insects need somewhere to sleep over winter. The ladybirds were out with us enjoying another sunny weekend, though the temperature didn't rise to the same height as it did a fortnight ago.

A job which I didn't get round to doing is sorting out the greenhouse. The tomato plants have finished producing now so they need to be removed and the greenhouse needs a thorough washing down which will help to remove any nasties which are hiding in there. I'll be able to move my tender plants in to the greenhouse for winter as I'm sure it won't be long now until we get our first frost.

Although I haven't done any jobs at the allotment this weekend, I do need to pop down there this afternoon to see what needs harvesting. I'm amazed that I've still got beans to pick, and I know that there's a couple of pumpkins that really need removing from the plant now. I shall carve them for Halloween.

It's That Time Again

2011-10-12T11:32:00.000+01:00

It's the time of year when our allotment rents are due. My plot is just over half the size of a full sized plot and for the past two years I've paid £20. This year the rent has increased to £24 which I still think is a bargain. Other allotment sites in our area have water charges added to their rent, but as we don't have water on our site, we're not charged for that. There's plots which haven't been used at all this year, yet there's lots of people on the waiting list. I don't know people's personal circumstances, but in my opinion, if they're not going to use the plot they should allow someone else to get some use out of it. I remember being on the waiting list and seeing overgrown plots not being tended, it's so annoying.

I have two Phalaenopsis, Moth Orchids, and they're both just throwing up a new flower spike. This will be the fourth time that they've come back in to bloom. I always thought that Orchids were hard to take care of, yet all I do with mine is water them once a week and cut off the flower spikes once they have faded. I've never fed either of them yet they keep rewarding me with new blooms. They'll be in flower again for Christmas.

I can't believe how dark it is, both on a morning and on an evening now. The days seem to have shortened so quickly this year and the clocks haven't even gone back yet. The drizzly days don't help either, there isn't much light through the day and I'm having to turn the light on to enable me to see if I'm reading something. We're only just out of summer yet I'm longing for spring already, it's going to be a long winter.

The Last Of The Tomatoes

2011-10-09T16:17:00.000+01:00

This is the last pickings of the tomatoes for another year. It's very rare that I buy tomatoes from the supermarket, they always disappoint when you're used to the superior taste of home grown, so it will be the best part of another year before I get to taste a tomato again. The Tangellas have been my star tomato this year. They've got a fantastic taste, and I've had a huge harvest from them. The Gardener's Delight grew very leggy, even though they were grown in exactly the same way as the other two varieties. The first tomatoes I harvested from the plants were extremely small, but they did eventually give me some decent sized ones. I was very impressed with San Marzano last year, yet the five shown here are the only tomatoes I have harvested off two plants this year. They developed blossom end rot earlier on in the year, a sign of erratic watering. It was around the time that we took our fortnight's holiday, so I wasn't too concerned, but the plants just haven't produced many tomatoes at all. I shall try a different plum tomato next year, I've already got the seeds.

I had intended to plant lots of daffodil and tulip bulbs at the allotment this autumn ready for cut flowers for the house in spring. I feel like I'm so behind with everything at the moment though so I'm going to leave that for another year. I think it's more important to spend my time getting the allotment in order before winter sets in rather than using the time to plant bulbs. I do feel a little downhearted though, I always mean to be more organised at this time of year yet I never am.

I had made lots of plans for getting jobs done this weekend, but it's been so miserable that we've spent time indoors instead. We had continual drizzle yesterday, certainly not allotmenting weather, and today isn't much better. I think autumn is finally here.

Winter Crops

2011-10-06T10:48:00.000+01:00

I didn't have much growing at the allotment last winter so I wanted to rectify that this year. My brassicas are doing particularly well at the moment, the cabbages are just starting to heart up and the sprouts are just starting to form on the Brussels plants. I've also got purple sprouting broccoli, calabrese, cavolo nero and curly kale. There's lots of top growth on my parsnips so I hope there's lots of growth underground too, they're mine and my daughter's favourites. My leeks are still rather small but there's plenty of time for them to grow, and there's lots of them so we won't be without. I've also done an experiment and sown a couple of containers of carrots. As you can see, they're still very small. I'll move them in to the greenhouse when the weather gets a little colder, though I don't think I'll be harvesting them over winter, I'm hoping that they'll give me an early crop next year. I've sown potatoes in containers over the last few winters but I never got round to it this year, so that's one thing that will be missing on our Christmas dinner this year.

I'm hoping for some gardening weather this weekend as I need to do lots of tidying up in the garden as well as moving the rabbit hutches down from the grass on to the patio. The hutches are moved on to the grass in spring so that the rabbits can be let out in to their runs when the weather is fine, but the grass gets so waterlogged in winter that it's such a hassle to look after them there, so we move the hutches on to the patio for the winter months. The rabbits seem to enjoy this arrangement as they get lots of attention each time one of us either comes or goes through the back door.

After last week's heatwave, the weather has taken a turn for the worse. I've just taken Archie for a walk and I've nearly been blown off my feet, it's so windy. We've had rain overnight, but that's cleared up now and the sun is trying to make a breakthrough. It's still very cold though.

Ripe Peppers

2011-10-03T12:09:00.000+01:00

What a long growing season my peppers have needed. The seed were sown on the 20th of February and the peppers have only just ripened. I've grown two varieties this year, California Wonder, which is a bell shaped pepper and is on the left, and Corno di Toro Rosso, which has a tapered shape, and is on the right. The California Wonder are extremely small and I've managed five peppers on the one plant. The Corno di Toro Rosso peppers are a much better size, but there's only three on the plant. I grew two different shapes to see if one ripened quicker than the other, but as you can see, they've both ripened at about the same time.

I'm still picking bagfuls of runner beans and there's still plenty more to come. Hubby picked some more beans from the first sowing of climbing beans yesterday which I think will be the last of them, though there's some small beans just starting to come on the second sowing so we might just have enough time to get a harvest from them before the frosts come. We also harvested the last beans from the second sowing of the dwarf French beans.

I've been hanging on for an Indian summer and just when I'd given up all hope of getting one, we had a mini heatwave. I should have been doing some jobs at the allotment this weekend, but instead, we made the most of what will probably be the last hot days of the year and had a couple of trips out. Jobs at the allotment will wait for another day.

Saving Seeds

2011-09-26T12:24:00.000+01:00

I don't save many of my own seeds. Last year I saved some Tangella tomato seeds, purely because it's not that easy to buy them, there aren't many places which stock them. This year I'm having a go at saving some seed of the mange tout which I grew. These are Robinson and Stephens, which are actually peas, but they can also be eaten as mange tout. They were kindly given to me by Bilbo Waggins from The View From Bag End. I left the pods on the plants to dry, and now that I've snipped them off, I shall leave them a while longer just to make sure that they're thoroughly dry before removing the seeds. Fingers crossed that they germinate for me next year.

I was very sad last week when I came across a goldfinch in the back garden. It was laid on the grass as dead as a doornail. I've no idea what it died from, a cat certainly hadn't had it, it looked so perfect. Poor thing. I've never seen a goldfinch in the back garden before, I've seen them on a few occasions in the front garden.

It's a lovely bright sunny day today. I've been holding out for an Indian summer after the miserable summer we've just experienced, but it's been so cold lately that I'd just about given up all hope. That is until the weather forcasters told us that the temperature is set to rise this week. Perhaps we'll get our Indian summer afterall.

Know Your Onions

2011-09-20T12:07:00.000+01:00

These are just a few of the many onions I've got drying out at the moment. They're Turbo which have been grown from sets, and they've done really well this year. There's some quite large ones. We don't use very many onions in cooking so they'll easily last us through the winter months. Next year I'm going to have a go at growing from seed and I've got a packet of Bedfordshire Champion at the ready.

After the gales we had at the beginning of last week, I was expecting to find lots of damage at the allotment. I'm pleased to report that everything was fine, even the bean wigwams were still standing, and we're still picking lots of beans from them. The late sowing of dwarf French beans are now producing, though I think we were a little too late with the second sowing of climbing beans, I don't think they're going to come to anything.

I've eventually got round to sorting out my seeds. I've been quite ruthless putting aside any which I know I'm never going to sow, or any which I've got duplicate packets of, and they've been taken to hubby's workplace for anyone who wants them. There was a full carrier bag full. I made a list of the things I want to grow next year, and headed back to Wyevale for any seeds I was missing. I managed to get everything on my list from the packets offered in the 50p per packet sale, and the total savings I've now made on buying reduced seeds this year stands at £50.01. Not bad.

Carrot Success

2011-09-13T15:54:00.000+01:00

You may remember that I named this year the Year of the Carrot. I've never grown carrots successfully on the allotment yet, I manage to grow round stumpy ones in containers at home, but I really wanted to get some growing at the allotment. I've never even got them to germinate in the past. When we took on the allotment, we inherited an old bath which had been left on our plot, and hubby has put it to good use this year filling it up with old compost and sowing some carrot seed in it. Meanwhile, I sowed some carrot seed in the bed which had been allocated for my root vegetables this year. Well, the biggest success has been the bath. The picture is of carrots which have grown there, all different sizes, shapes and colours as hubby sowed all different kinds, he can't remember which varieties though now. The carrots which I sowed in the ground did grow, so I've had a success of sorts, though because I didn't cover them with fleece, they were decimated by carrot root fly. I'm not too bothered, at least I got them to grow, and I know what to do next year now, though I'll definitely be utilising the bath again.

As I've mentioned before, I'm really pleased with my Tangella tomatoes. They've produced a very good yield and are still cropping now. My Gardener's Delight were very leggy and produced tiny tomatoes early on, but are now giving out some decent sized ones. The San Marzano have suffered from blossom end rot and haven't given one edible tomato yet, though there's some ripening at the moment. I might end up with half a dozen this year. I don't grow a huge amount of tomatoes as I only grow them in my 4X6 greenhouse and have already decided that I'm going to grow some outdoor ones in the garden next year. I was telling hubby's auntie that I want to make some soup and sauces next year, and she kindly popped round with a bag full of tomatoes for me from their allotment. I shall turn these in to soup.

Hurricane Katia was forcast to hit our shores yesterday, and it's certainly given our area a battering. Part of the garage roof over the road from us blew off yesterday and my greenhouse is in bits. Archie, the dog, was frightened on his walk last night as the street lights were out, and temporary road signs were following him down the street being blown by the wind. The rain has started now too and it's being driven by the wind. I haven't been to the allotment so I don't know if there's any damage there, I hope my bean wigwams are still standing.

What A Bargain

2011-09-08T10:21:00.000+01:00

I always visit Wyevale Garden Centre at this time of year as they reduce all their seeds to 50p per packet and I stock up ready for next year. The seeds I bought this year should have cost me £42.14, I saved £35.64. Amongst the seeds are five types of tomato. One of the varieties I've chosen is Ferline. I've grown this before and it has good levels of blight tolerance, which will be more important to me next year as I plan to grow some plants outdoors. I also stocked up on Gardener's Delight, a favourite variety. The other three varieties are ones I haven't grown before, Black Cherry, Gold Nugget and Pannovy. All these tomatoes can be grown outdoors.

I also bought some onion seed, Bedfordshire Champion. I've always grown onions from sets but thought I'd have a go at growing them from seed next year. I've heard people say that they get a better crop from seed rather than sets so we'll see, they'll have to do well to improve on this year's harvest.

Other seeds which I purchased, which are new varieties for me, are carrots - Resistafly and Sweet Candle, dwarf bean - Purple Teepee, salad onion - Furio, and cucumber - Swing. I haven't ruled out another trip there once I've checked my seed box and see what I'm missing.

They're Coming Thick And Fast

2011-09-05T13:07:00.000+01:00

I'm picking beans like there's no tomorrow. I've got dwarf French beans, climbing beans and runner beans and they're all producing very well. I also made a second sowing of dwarf French beans and climbing beans of which the dwarf French beans are just starting to flower, but the climbing beans are still climbing at the moment. I hope there's enough time left to get a crop from them. Beans have to be my most successful crop, they've never let me down, but have consistently given a plentiful supply every year I've grown them. I've never grown broad beans, I remember not liking them when I was a child, but I'm going to give them a chance next year and grow them for the first time. Who knows? My tastes might have changed.

I found another cucumber hiding in the greenhouse yesterday, that brings my tally for this year off three plants to three. To be fair, I haven't gone out of my way to look after them very well, I've really left them to get on with it, but still, three off three plants is pretty poor. I must try harder next year.

We've been out and about all weekend, making the most of the last few days of the school holidays. We've been really lucky with the weather, avoiding any rain apart from when we were driving home on Saturday evening. Today is a different story though, it's sunny at present but it's windy and we've had some downpours this morning. I'm still trying to hang on to summer for a while longer, but I think it's in vain.

What a whopper

2011-09-01T12:27:00.000+01:00

I've never grown marrows before, but last year, after finding some overgrown courgettes which I'd missed when picking, I decided I'd use them to make stuffed marrow. It was a hit with hubby so I decided to grow the real thing this year. This is the first one we've had off the plant and we haven't used it yet. I've heard that it does taste different to courgette so I'm just hoping that we like it.

I've been reading of courgette gluts on many blogs but my plants haven't really got going this year. They're just starting to produce a decent amount now so perhaps the glut is to come. The Firenze courgettes which I grew in containers have given up the ghost, they've been a washout producing a few tiny courgettes before giving in. I've got yellow and green varieties at the allotment and both are now producing well.

It's always at this time of year that my thoughts turn to next year. Already I'm weighing up what's done well and what hasn't and what I'll grow again next year and what I won't. My mum and dad are moving in a fortnight and we're inheriting their freezer, so one thing I definitely want to do next year is grow more things to freeze. I already freeze some things, but even though we've got one of those American style fridge/freezers, there isn't enough space to freeze much. The new freezer, even though it's only small, will give us extra space to store gluts for winter use. It'll be nice to be eating from the allotment right the way through winter.

Bargain Plants

2011-08-28T22:59:00.000+01:00

We had a trip out today to the Yorkshire Dales, and whilst there, we visited a candle making workshop. Outside the workshop were some plants which were for sale and an honesty box for payment. I love coming across plants for sale in this way, you can pick up some real bargains, and that's just what happened today. I came away with an Alchemilla Mollis and an Astrantia, each costing just £1.50. I'll pot them on in to larger pots and wait to plant them out until next spring. You can read about the rest of my visit to the Yorkshire Dales on my other blog, Through The Keyhole.

I've made the decision that I'm definitely going to have a go at growing tomatoes outdoors next year. I'm not going to grow them at the allotment for fear of blight, but I shall grow them in containers in the garden. I now need to do some research as to which tomatoes grow well outdoors, so if any of you have any recommendations I'd be happy to know.

It's been an extremely wet week compared to the summer we've just experienced. I had hoped to lift my onions this weekend, but I'll put it off a while longer to see if the rain stops. If not, I shall have to find room for them in the greenhouse until they're dry. I should have been weeding at the allotment this weekend too but I've put that off in favour of some trips out. Any excuse.

How Long Till Christmas?

2011-08-25T14:24:00.000+01:00

I couldn't believe my eyes the other day when, along with my monthly RHS The Garden magazine, this RHS Christmas Book & Gift Selection brochure dropped though my door. It's still August for goodness sake. We may not have had much of a summer but we're still four whole months away from Christmas. It won't stop me leafing through it though, and I will make a mental list of the things I would quite like to find at the bottom of my Christmas stocking. I've had some great gardening presents bought for me over the last few years, I always appreciate something new for the garden.

I popped to the allotment last night to harvest a few things and noticed that my onions are just about ready to be lifted. They've done extremely well this year and some are quite large. We don't use that many onions in cooking so we'll be able to provide my mum and dad with plenty too. I love to have an excess of produce as it feels so good to share it with friends and family.

The beans have now started to produce and we're getting a good amount to harvest already. We made some follow up sowings too of which the dwarf French beans are just about to flower, so we should get another later crop, but the climbing beans are still, well, climbing, so I hope there's enough time left for them to produce some beans. We should be eating beans for weeks to come.

Arabian Night

2011-08-22T14:15:00.000+01:00

I bought four different varieties of dahlia at the start of the year. The plan was to grow them on the allotment, but I never got round to allocating a patch of ground to them. Time had run away from me before I decided that I had better get them planted in to containers in the garden, or else all would be lost. This variety is Arabian Night and it's just come in to flower. One variety has been totally eaten away by slugs, and the other two don't look near to flowering at all. It's a lovely late addition to the garden so I shall save the tubers to replant next year, hopefully not so late.

I'm still emptying out my containers of first early potatoes - Arran Pilot. They've given a fantastic crop this year and I'll definitely grow them again next year. The maincrop potatoes at the allotment - Maris Piper haven't put on much top growth at all. Time will tell if there's anything going on under the ground, though I'm not holding out much hope.

It's bad news on the sweetcorn front. They didn't look like they were going to make it when they were planted out, so it's not a total surprise, but it's a bit of a disappointment as I haven't harvested any sweetcorn since I've had the allotment. They were started off on time and grew well in the plant pots, but they were left to languish for rather a long time before we got them planted out. I will make every effort next year to grow some decent sweetcorn as you really can't beat the taste of fresh picked corn cooked within minutes and devoured with lashings of butter.

My Favourite Tomato

2011-08-20T15:54:00.000+01:00

Ever since I've been growing tomatoes, I've tried a new variety every year. I was so pleased with the tomatoes I grew last year that I decided to grow exactly the same varieties again this year, so this is the first year that I don't have a new variety to try out. A friend on one of the forums I read sent me some Tangella seeds last year and I tried them for the first time. I loved them, but because they're a heirloom variety, it's not easy to find anywhere which sells the seeds so I had a go at saving seed for the first time myself. I'm pleased to report that I had 100% germination with them, so I've got fruit again this year, and they're just as delicious as I remember. They've got a very fruity taste and are extremely juicy. They give a very good yield, in fact I can't think of anything bad to say about them. I'll be saving seed again this year for sure, they're my favourite tomato.

Unfortunately, the other two varieties I've grown again this year aren't doing so well. San Marzano is a plum variety and I enjoyed them cooked last year. This year they've developed a bad case of blossom end rot. This is where the bottom of the tomato develops a black patch, probably due to erratic watering or lack of calcium, but as I was away for a fortnight and relied on my dad popping round every couple of days, I'm going with the watering. Hopefully, now that they're getting a consistent amount of water, they'll recover. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

The third variety I'm growing is Gardener's Delight. I've grown these for many years and they've never let me down, until this year. I knew I was in for trouble when the plants grew very leggy at the start of the season. They were grown exactly the same way as the other two varieties, started off indoors then moved in to the greenhouse which wasn't heated. They had plenty of light and very little heat so I don't know what caused them to grow this way. This is a cherry variety of tomato, but a cherry would look huge in comparison to most of the tomatoes being produced on my plants. There's plenty of tomatoes on the trusses, they just don't seem to be growing.

I'm considering having a go at growing some tomatoes outdoors next year. I did grow tomatoes in containers outdoors before I had my greenhouse, so I don't know whether to go down this route again, or have a go at growing some at the allotment. I'll still grow some in the greenhouse as I do now, but as my greenhouse is only 4X6 I don't grow many plants. There's only me who eats tomatoes in our house, but I'd like a few more than I'm getting at the moment, and would ideally like enough to have a go at making some sauces and soups.

I've been meaning to mention in my last couple of posts that Bilbo Waggins from The View From Bag End has very kindly offered to send some of Ollie's Sunflower seeds to any of my readers who would like to grow some. If you look back a few posts, you will see my post about Ollie's Sunflowers. Ollie was Bilbo's Bearded Collie and he sadly passed away in August 2009. You can read about the connection with the sunflowers in my post of 25th July 2011. If you would like some seeds to grow this sunflower, you can contact Bilbo through an email link on her profile.

The Year Of The Carrot

2011-08-18T10:33:00.000+01:00

I'm so determined to successfully grow carrots this year that I've adopted a few different methods to ensure a positive outcome. You may remember that at the start of the season I sowed some seed for a stumpy round carrot variety in a container. That worked out and the carrots grew well. I've also got some carrots growing in the ground at the allotment. I've never got seed to germinate there before, and they look to be doing well, but you can never tell what's going on below the ground until you pull them so I'm still keeping my fingers crossed. Hubby's little project this year has been to utilise an old bath which was left on the plot when we took it over. He's drilled some holes in the bottom for drainage and filled it up with old compost from used containers as well as compost we had left over from last year. As you can see from the photo which was taken before we went away on holiday, the carrots which he decided to grow in there look to be doing ok. We may be lucky and be successful with all our methods of growing carrots this year.

I've got some gorgeous gladioli in a vase on my windowsill at the moment. Hubby's uncle always keeps me in flowers at this time of year and when the gladioli finish, the chrysanthemums start. Gladioli are such long lasting flowers and they're so bright and cheerful. I know they're not everyone's cup of tea but I love them.

I haven't made it down to the allotment since the weekend. I'm still ploughing my way through all the washing and ironing that holidays produce, but I'm hoping to get down there over the next couple of days to get some much needed weeding done.

Everything Survived

2011-08-16T14:10:00.000+01:00

We're back from our holidays and I'm pleased to report that everything survived while we were away. My dad came round every couple of days to water my tomatoes and there were a few ready to pick on my return. We went straight down to the allotment when we got home on Saturday just to have a look how everything had fared whilst we'd been away, but we were short on time so hubby went back on Sunday to harvest everything which was ready. As you can see, I had the obligatory courgette turned marrow ready to harvest, which will be stuffed with mince and tomatoes for a meal later in the week. The yellow dwarf French beans have started producing and were delicious with our meal last night. The cavolo nero is still going strong and I'm still getting small quantities of calabrese. There's loads of beetroot ready to harvest, but hubby left most of it in the ground and brought just four home for the time being. There was a small cucumber ready for harvesting, my first one of the year, they haven't done very well at all. I'm still harvesting first early potatoes from the containers, they've done great this year. I left the shallots drying whilst we were away, these are just a few of those we harvested, there's a bag full ready for use.

The climbing beans and runner beans are covered in flowers and small beans are just beginning to form so it shouldn't be long until we start to harvest those too. We put in another late sowing of climbing beans and dwarf French beans a few weeks ago so I'm hoping there's enough time left for them to produce more beans for us this year.

We had a wonderful time in Cornwall and Devon, though the weather was mixed. It didn't stop us from doing anything though, and we've heard that the weather back here in Yorkshire was worse, all that rain has made the weeds grow at the allotment so I really need to tackle those.

Snack Size

2011-07-28T12:29:00.000+01:00

When I look through seed catalogues, I notice more and more seeds being sold which are suitable for growing in containers. Having grown edibles in containers myself before taking on my allotment, I know you don't need a huge garden to grow at least some of your own food. I decided I would have a go at growing some courgettes - Firenze in a container this year. This is one of those varieties which is billed as ideal for growing in containers. I've grown Hestia runner beans in containers previously. This is also a variety which is especially suitable for growing in containers, but I wasn't very impressed with the amount of beans I got from the plants. I was much more successful planting normal runner bean seeds and giving them some canes to grow up. I'm afraid that I'm of the same opinion with these Firenze courgettes. I have previously grown normal courgettes in a container with great success, whereas the ones I have just harvested from my plant are extremely small. I've grown lots of things in containers before I got my allotment, all regular varieties, and was thrilled that most things did extremely well, even things such as sweetcorn which I thought would need a much larger growing space. My advice would be to give anything a go, I've found that most things work, just so long as you give them a little extra attention, especially making sure that the container doesn't dry out.

It's a lovely day today so I shall take a trip to the allotment. I need to harvest anything which is ready as we go on holiday on Saturday for two weeks. Let's hope the gorgeous weather we've got today continues.

Ollie's Sunflower

2011-07-25T14:44:00.000+01:00

The sunflowers I've grown this year are very special indeed. Let me tell you all about them. Earlier on this year I mentioned that I was going to have a go at growing mange tout for the first time. I received an offer of some seeds from Bilbo Waggins from The View From Bag End. The seeds were Stephens and Robinson, both of which are actually peas but can be used as a mange tout, and both have performed very well. Enclosed in the parcel were some Ollie's Sunflower seeds which I've felt very privileged to be able to grow. Ollie was Bilbo's Bearded Collie, a once in a lifetime dog, and he sadly passed away in August 2009. On that very same day, a bird sown sunflower bloomed for the first time in Bilbo's garden. She collected seeds from the plant and whenever she sends seeds to anyone, she also includes some of these sunflower seeds in the parcel too. What a wonderful way to keep Ollie's memory alive. If you'd like to read about Ollie, you can visit Bilbo's blog via the link, and you will find the label for Ollie down the right hand side.

I got my leeks planted out yesterday, there's fifty four of them in total, so they should see us through the winter months. We also planted out another sowing of dwarf French beans and climbing beans. The first sowing are just starting to come in to flower now so this second batch should extend the season. I'm hoping to be able to freeze plenty. I also lifted my shallots and they're now drying.

All the brassicas which I sowed a few weeks ago have been devoured by slugs. I'm having lots of trouble with the little blighters this year. I was hoping to have plenty to plant out for winter, so I'll have another go at sowing them this week, though I might be a little late now, only time will tell.

Sunday Harvest

2011-07-22T20:01:00.000+01:00

It's great to be bringing plenty home from the allotment again. It gets to that time of year when more than one or two things make their way in to the trug and on to the dinner plate. Last weekend I picked the first of the cavolo nero, beetroot, and calabrese of the year, and there were also more mange tout and peas which were ready. For our meal on Monday evening we had Beef Bourguignon with home grown potatoes, carrots, calabrese, mange tout and cavolo nero, you can't get much better than that. It was all very tasty and there were four empty plates at the end of the meal.

I'm still not sure if the sweetcorn is going to make it. After languishing in their pots for far too long, they were planted out late at the allotment. They're very yellow at the moment so we'll have to see if they stop sulking and put on some growth.

The shallots look to be ready to pull. Their tops have started to die back, so it's time for them to be lifted. They seem to have done very well, each set having produced lots of shallots, though a couple did try to flower. I'll remember to use those first as apparently, they don't store as well if they've bolted.

Didn't Make The Cut

2011-07-17T13:02:00.000+01:00

I've always had great success growing my cut and come again lettuces in containers. I find they grow well and are clean when leaves are taken, and up until now have been free from any slug damage. I wonder what's different this year. Have those pesky slugs just realised that they're able to climb in to my containers and devour my delicious lettuce at will, or are other factors involved? It's not only this lettuce which has been decimated but the whole lot. I suppose I'd better resow.

The first sowing of peas are still producing well, and I've even managed to get a batch stocked up in the freezer for use later. The second sowing is coming along well too. I'm impressed with the taste of this years variety, Hurst Green Shaft, and I shall definitely grow them again.

My blueberry harvest is going to be very poor this year. I think I can see about twenty berries on the two bushes and they're just about ripe now. At the end of the season I shall repot them and replenish the ericaceous compost in the containers. This, and a mulch of coffee grounds, will hopefully give the plants a much needed boost and enable them to put on a better show next year. I was looking forward to some blueberry muffins.

Peas

2011-07-11T12:13:00.000+01:00

There's some lovely fat pods on the pea plants now, so we picked a batch at the weekend ready for tonight's meal. There's more pods just starting to swell, and a second sowing which is a little way behind, so plenty more to come yet. I've also eaten my fair share popped straight from the pod and in to my mouth, the best way to eat them in my opinion. I never grow many peas as there's really only me who eats them. The rest of the family will have a token few on their plates, but they're usually still there at the end of the meal. As I only grow a small amount, I'm able to net them. This prevents the pea moth from laying her eggs in the flowers which results in maggots inside the pods, urghhh.

The sweetcorn has finally been planted out. It's taken all this time to dig a bed ready for them, I really must be more organised next year, though I say that every year. I don't know if it's too late for them now, but at least they've got a chance of growing, they wouldn't have had any chance left in their pots.

I've just pulled up more of the stumpy carrots to have with our meal tonight. I'm really pleased with them, one container will give all four of us four or five servings each. They're ideal to use whilst waiting for the ones at the allotment to be ready, so well worth growing.

Delicious Strawberries

2011-07-05T15:16:00.000+01:00

I love this time of year when the strawberries are producing well. We've got another great harvest this year, in fact, I'm going to have my first go at making jam. I never got round to planting out all the plants we took from runners last year, nor the everbearers which we bought at the back end of last year and potted up. They're all producing, though they're still stuck in their pots. I'll make sure they get planted out at the end of summer or beginning of autumn so that they can get established before winter sets in. I'll also pull out all the old plants from the strawberry bed at the allotment, they won't do much in the way of fruiting next year.

I didn't get any jobs done at the allotment at the weekend, though I did go down there to harvest some strawberries and mange tout. We spent some time sowing seeds for winter crops, spring greens, purple sprouting broccoli, kale and chard, as well as sowing some more stumpy round carrots in a container and some more spring onions. I'm hoping there'll be enough time left for them to grow.

I emptied out another of my potato containers yesterday. There aren't as many potatoes in the containers as I've had in the past from other varieties, though the potatoes are bigger on the whole. I will definitely grow this variety, Arran Pilot, again though, they're absolutely delicious, nicer than any I've grown before. They stay firm when boiled and have a wonderful tasting pure white flesh. I've been eating them with butter and mint. Heaven.

Tasty Lunches

2011-07-01T16:16:00.000+01:00

At last, my spring onions are ready. I've been enjoying them in sandwiches with cheese all week, though they can also be used in cooking as well as being eaten raw. I grow spring onions in a container rather than at the allotment, they seem to do better this way. These are White Lisbon, a variety which I usually grow as they've always grown well for me. There's plenty more where these came from, though I've fallen down on my successional sowing again. I'll get some more sown this weekend for a late summer harvest.

The cherries are ripening well now, I picked a bowl full today and there's still plenty more on the tree. I know it's not loads by some standards, but the tree is only small so I'm more than happy with this year's crop.

I've just noticed the first tomatoes on the plants. I'm growing Tangella, San Marzano and Gardener's Delight, and the first ones are on the Tangella. They weren't there last time I looked, there's always something new to discover when gardening.

Cherry cherry

2011-06-29T09:24:00.000+01:00

This is the third year that I've had my Stella cherry tree. In it's first year I got the grand sum of one cherry from it, though it was utterly delicious. Last year three cherries ripened but the birds got to them before I did so I missed out. This year the tree has started producing much better and this was my first haul from it at the weekend. The cherries don't quite fill a teacup, but there were twenty ripe cherries with lots more still to ripen on the tree. I'm really pleased that I've netted the tree otherwise there'd be no cherries to pick, I saw a magpie trying to poke his beak through the netting this morning to get to the ripe fruits.

The mange tout which I picked at the weekend were delicious. I've never grown them before, in fact it's not something I buy either, but we came across them whilst eating out and hubby asked me to grow them. I couldn't say no, he's only started eating veg since I've had my allotment so I'm only too pleased to take requests from him. Everyone seemed to enjoy them so it's definitely something I'll be growing again. I'm looking forward to the Kent Blue starting to produce as they're supposed to be very tasty.

Hubby finished weeding the onion bed for me, so with one less job to do this week I should have time to get the leeks planted out. I always start my leeks off in plantpots, lots of seedlings to one pot, then separate them when it's time to plant them out. It's always worked fine this way for me. I intend to have more things to harvest over winter this year, so I also need to think about what needs sowing.

Dinner's Sorted

2011-06-26T16:37:00.001+01:00

We don't very often have a Sunday dinner. I don't like spending Sunday in the kitchen when everyone's home, so we have roasts midweek instead. Tomorrow we're having roast beef and Yorkshire puddings, so whilst we were at the allotment today I picked the first of the mange tout to go with it. The purple ones are Stephens and the green are Robinson, and the seeds were kindly sent to me by another blogger. Strictly speaking, I believe they're actually peas, but they can be eaten as mange tout. I'm looking forward to trying them. When we got home from the allotment I pulled up the first of the carrots which have grown in a container. These are Paris Market 5, a stumpy round carrot which are ideal for growing in containers as they don't have long roots. I decided to go the whole hog and emptied out the first of the potato containers. These are Arran Pilot and I'm quite pleased with the amount I've got from one container, especially as they've only been growing for just over ten weeks. I'm sure our Monday roast will be delicious with these accompaniments.

The weather has been gorgeous today so we spent some time at the allotment. I've finally got the dwarf French beans planted out, along with the courgettes, squash, pumpkin and marrow, though I didn't quite finish weeding the onion bed. It was far too hot for weeding so that will have to wait until this coming week.

Going to the allotment was a real family event today. Not only did my son and daughter come with us, but we took Archie with us for the first time. He was really good and sat on his rug whilst we got on with everything. Pop over to my Through The Keyhole blog to see what my son found whilst picking strawberries.

Weedy Plot

2011-06-24T11:00:00.000+01:00

I managed to get to the plot on Monday afternoon as planned, but just look at the weeds which greeted me. I found time to weed some of the onion bed whilst I was there, but I'm hoping to get the rest of it done this weekend. I haven't seen a weather forcast yet so I hope it's going to be fine. My shallots look to be splitting nicely though, there should be a decent harvest.

I got my climbing beans and runner beans planted out against their wigwams, but the dwarf beans are still in the garden awaiting their turn. That's another job I really have to do this weekend. The courgettes are also still in their pots, even though they've started flowering, so they'll be going out too.

I've got quite a few cherries on the tree which are looking nearly ripe. I threw some netting over to stop the birds from feasting on them and it's certainly paid off, so I'm looking forward to tasting the first of them this weekend, perhaps it'll be a little treat after my plot visit.

Slug On My McKana

2011-06-20T12:37:00.000+01:00

I've found loads of these horrible little slugs on lots of my plants this last week. The rain has brought them out of hiding and now I'm finding them all over the place. This one is on my Aquilegia McKana Hybrid. I grew this from seed and forgot all about it until I found it languishing in a pot, so I popped it in to the border and it's now flowering. It's always exciting when a plant grown from a mixed packet of seeds comes in to flower. Until that time you've no idea what colour it's going to be. I'm quite happy with this one, though I do still prefer the purple Auilegia Vulgaris which has been in my border a couple of years. I hasten to add that the slug was removed and disposed of.

I didn't manage to get to the allotment at all this weekend due to other commitments, so I'm hoping to get up there this afternoon. It's high time my beans were planted out. The wigwams are already in place so it's only a matter of planting them around the base. I've also got my dwarf beans still in pots so I'll get them planted out too.

My tomatoes are growing well since they were potted on in to their final pots. They really need tying in to their canes again but hubby has gone off to work with the twine in his car, so that job will have to wait until later.

Blog Award

2011-06-17T11:20:00.000+01:00

It's always nice to receive awards for my blog, so I'd like to thank Bluebell from At Home In The Country for bestowing the Kreativ Blogger Award up on me.

I'm supposed to reveal ten things about me which you don't already know, but I've done so many of these in the past that I feel you all know me so well already. Therefore, I'm going to break the rules and not reveal anything today, however, if you really want to read ten random facts about me, a trawl through my past posts will reveal all.

Another rule I'm going to break is how many blogs I pass the award on to. I gather that I should give the award to ten blogs, but being the rebel that I am, I'm going to nominate only one.

So, without further ado, I'd like to pass the award on to Louisa at The Really Good Life. Her blog has the tag line Where growing, frugality & good living come together. Do take a look at her blog as I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

My thanks go again to Bluebell for this award, I'm truly grateful.

Ready To Flower

2011-06-14T19:21:00.000+01:00

We spent Sunday morning moving everything out of the greenhouse so that I could get my tomatoes potted in their final pots and moved in to their final positions. As you can see, the plants are just starting to flower so it really was time that this job was done. I've got two plants each of three varieties - Tangella, San Marzano and Gardener's Delight, and I can just manage to fit these in my small 6 foot by 4 foot greenhouse. Six plants provide enough tomatoes for us as there's only me who eats them. My son will occasionally pop a sun warmed cherry tomato in his mouth, but that's about it. They don't know what they're missing.

I had intended to spend Sunday afternoon at the allotment, but the weather had other ideas. It started raining at lunch time and didn't stop all day. It was quite heavy at times so it will have given everything a much needed watering, including the weeds, I bet it's a jungle when I do get down there now.

As well as the tomatoes coming in to flower, there's a couple of flowers on my pepper plants and the first of the courgettes is just about to bloom too. Roll on the harvests.

A Stella Haul Of Cherries?

2011-06-10T14:37:00.000+01:00

This is the third year that I've had my cherry tree. It's a Stella, which is a dessert cherry and self fertile. Two years ago it produced one cherry, which was delicious. I was hoping for better things last year but it still only produced three cherries, which the birds got before I had the chance. Things are looking up this year. The tree is covered in green cherries, and as you can see, they're just starting to ripen. I shall drape some netting over the tree soon to prevent the birds from taking them.

I shall be turfing out all the plants which are still residing in the greenhouse this weekend. My tomato plants are starting to flower so it's time that they were set in to their final positions. I think tomatoes are still my favourite thing to grow. I love watching every stage of their growth, from sowing the seed to popping the first sun warmed fruit in to my mouth. My greenhouse is only small, four foot by six foot, so there's little else I can fit in it over the summer months other than my tomato plants, though I'll find some room for my peppers.

It looks like a couple of my courgette plants are going to come in to flower soon as they've got plenty of buds on them. I'm growing a variety, Firenze, which is ideal for containers as it produces high yields of small courgettes throughout summer. I have kept this variety in the garden, but have another two varieties for the allotment. I can see me being overrun with courgettes this year but I don't mind as I love them.

A Thug

2011-06-05T16:43:00.000+01:00

I didn't get round to sowing any sweet peas this year. I always intend to start some off in autumn but I don't think I've ever managed it yet. Spring comes and I think to myself, oh well, there's still time, but this year I didn't even manage that. I love having sweet peas in the house as they smell gorgeous, and it's the one plant in the garden which I don't mind cutting because the more you pick, the more flowers are produced. I'm not totally without sweet peas though as a couple of years ago, hubby's uncle gifted me a cutting from his perennial sweet pea plant. I planted it in my border thinking it would look lovely climbing up an obelisk. I totally underestimated the strength and vigour of this plant. I've never yet had a nice display from it. It scrambles madly up the obelisk pulling it over in it's haste, and I find new bits of plant popping up all over the border. The flowers are very pretty, as you can see, but I really have to rethink it's position for next year as it's spoiling my whole border.

I intended to spend quite a bit of time at the allotment over the last week, but with it being half term, and nice weather to boot, my plans were thwarted. Instead, we had some lovely days out, and by the time we got home each day it was too late to do anything else. You can read about our days out, including a trip to Roundhay Park where the Leeds City Council Chelsea gardens are on display, on my Through The Keyhole blog. We managed to spend some time at the allotment yesterday and today and I've finally got my maincrop potatoes - Maris Piper in the ground as well as most of my brassicas.

The onion bed was covered in weeds when I got to the allotment yesterday, so my first job was to set to and get it sorted out. I started by pulling up all the more established weeds, and then ran a hoe over the smaller weeds. It looked a bit messy afterwards, but when I got there today the bed had settled again and it looked very neat and tidy. No doubt they'll all be back again by next week.

It's Nearly Time

2011-05-27T10:06:00.000+01:00

Look what I found at the allotment on Sunday. It's nearly strawberry picking time. If truth be told, I've already picked a few strawberries from plants in the garden which were overwintered in the greenhouse, but it won't be long until I'm picking from the allotment too. I hadn't even netted the allotment ones, the netting we used last year was no good, I'd left it in place too long and when I came to remove it, it had got tangled up in all the new growth and ripped as I pulled it off. When I realised that some strawberries are beginning to ripen I hotfooted it to my local nursery and bought some new netting, I don't trust those pesky birds to leave my delicious fruit alone.

The sweetcorn which I sowed in plantpots nearly two weeks ago are growing well. I sowed thirty seeds and twenty six have germinated, this will give me a block of five by five plus one spare, that's plenty for us as there's only me who eats it. The beans which I sowed have been slower in germinating and are only just beginning to do so now, though they've been residing in the greenhouse whereas the sweetcorn are on a windowsill in the house. It just shows the difference that a little heat makes.

The schools break up for half term today and hubby has also taken next week off from work. I'm hoping to spend some time at the allotment as my to do list is getting longer and longer. I haven't even got my maincrop potatoes in yet, and there's all the brassicas to plant out too. Fingers crossed for some fine weather.

A First On The Allotment

2011-05-22T19:52:00.000+01:00

This is the third year I've had my allotment yet it's the first time I've got any carrots to germinate. I don't know why this is, perhaps it's because the ground has been worked for a couple of years now. I dug out a small trench which I filled with multi purpose compost and the seeds were sown in to this. I've ensured that the seeds have been kept watered on those days when there hasn't been any rain. I've tried to sow thinly to avoid having to thin out, but plenty have germinated. I'm taking a chance and not covering them with fleece, only time will tell if I'm being foolhardy. I've just got to get them to grow now.

It isn't only the carrots which have germinated, even the parsnips have done so, and in record time too. Sometimes they can take weeks to start showing. I sowed them exactly the same way as I did the carrots, though it was easier to sow thinly as they're bigger seeds. I definitely shouldn't have to thin them much. I mentioned in an early post that I'd also chitted some parsnip seed and sown them in to plantpots to plant out later. Well they're just starting to put some leaves above the soil now so they'll be planted out very soon. It's important not to delay this job otherwise the tap root will hit the bottom of the plantpot which will cause the parsnip to fork. It will be interesting to see whether the direct sown parsnips or the ones from chitted seed do best.

I wanted to get my tomatoes potted on today but it's so windy that I couldn't chance doing any such jobs outside. I daren't even carry the plants from the greenhouse to the kitchen in case a gust of wind snapped them in two on the way. I'll leave that job for later on in the week.

It's Raining It's Pouring

2011-05-16T10:32:00.000+01:00

Well, it isn't now, but it was yesterday. The rain was in for the day so I didn't make it down to the allotment, but I did get my beans and sweetcorn sown. I've started them all off in plantpots to be planted out later. Sown yesterday were climbing bean - Blue Lake, dwarf beans - Safari and Sonesta and sweetcorn - Applause. I also sowed some radish - French Breakfast and lettuce - Salad Bowl. The runner beans will be sown some time this week. Incidentally, the photo is of my Aquilegia which I planted in my border. This year I have a self sown variety which has popped up in the front garden which is pink in colour. I don't like it as much as this rich purple one.

I mentioned previously that I've sown some parsnip seeds direct at the allotment. I'm not totally sure they'll germinate, so to hedge my bets I have chitted some seed and planted them in to plantpots to be planted out later. This involves laying the seeds on damp kitchen paper and waiting for them to sprout. It's important not to let the paper dry out, this can be achieved by placing clingfilm over the tray you're using, or do as I do and use a plastic container which has a lid. Once the seeds have sprouted I plant them in to plantpots and once they have a couple of leaves I plant them out. It's important not to keep them in the plantpot too long otherwise the tap root will hit the bottom of the plantpot which will cause the parsnip to fork.

I'm looking forward to my lunch today. I'm going to have a cheese sandwich with some salad leaves included. This will be the first of my harvests this year, the salad leaves that is, not the cheese.

Waste Not Want Not

2011-05-09T09:51:00.000+01:00

I planted out four rows of onion sets the other week and still had loads left over. Rather than them going to waste I have planted them up in pots and shall pull them small to use as spring onions. They could also be pickled. I noticed they were selling bags of onion sets at half price in Wilkinsons at the weekend, a bargain if you haven't already bought some. I planted my onions and shallots at the end of May last year and they produced a decent crop, though it's always better to get them in earlier to give them a longer growing period.

I got my peas - Hurst Green Shaft planted out yesterday along with some mange tout - Kent Blue and climbing peas - Stephens and Robinson, which can be used as mange tout. These had all been started off in modules. It was a little breezy yesterday but I had to go ahead and sow my carrots - Tendersnax, parsnip - Tender and True and beetroot - Boltardy before it got any later. It will be a first for me if the carrots germinate.

We had rain overnight on Saturday, the first we've had for a long time, which made the ground a little easier to work with yesterday. It's sunny again today so if we don't get any more rain I'll have to pop up to the allotment each evening to make sure the seeds I've sown don't dry out.

Black Is Black

2011-05-04T12:31:00.000+01:00

I'd like to thank everyone for all the good wishes you have sent for my dad, it's very touching and means a lot. He's doing well at home and everything seems to be going according to plan with his recovery. After collecting him and taking him home from hospital on Sunday, we nipped off to RHS Harlow Carr where they were having a plant sale. I can never resist buying, even though I don't really need any plants at the moment, so I came home with dianthus - Early Bird Stardust and, the plant in the photo, viola - Roscastle Black. I don't think any flowers billed as black are truly black, this is more of a very deep purple, but stunning all the same. I've just got to find somewhere to put them now. You can read more about my trip to RHS Harlow Carr on my other blog, Through The Keyhole.

I had hoped to sow some carrot and parsnip seeds at the allotment on Sunday evening, and then again on Monday, but it's been so windy that I thought the seeds being so small might blow away. I do need to get them sown though otherwise I will be without parsnips again this winter. Hubby did manage to get some wigwams up though which he's pleased about, he doesn't think it looks like an allotment without some structures about the place.

We all still need to be on our guard as some parts of the country suffered a frost last night. We managed to avoid it here but I shall be moving my hanging baskets and other less hardy plants back in to the greenhouse if there's the slightest chance that a frost might hit. I hope nobody had any damage done to their plants by last night's frost.

Growth Spurt

2011-05-01T20:09:00.000+01:00

I have grown my tomatoes differently this year to previous years. Usually, I start the seed off in a heated propagator and then prick the seedlings out and keep them on a windowsill indoors. As the weather has been unusually hot this year, I moved the seedlings in to my mini greenhouse, which is inside my normal greenhouse, as soon as they were pricked out. I've noticed that their growth has been much slower than in previous years, but the plants are much sturdier. They were potted on last week in to larger pots and since then I have noticed that they've had a growth spurt. I expect this is because the new compost will have fresh nutrients for the plants to take up.

My first early potatoes have now been earthed up in their containers, they're about half full now. I'm having to make sure that they're well watered as containers dry out much quicker than the ground does. My main crop potatoes are still waiting to be planted in the allotment.

I had hoped to spend quite a bit of time at the allotment over this long weekend but my dad had a heart attack on Wednesday evening so we've been busy hospital visiting since then. He gave us quite a shock but I'm pleased to say that he's come home today so I might get to spend some time there tomorrow. Needless to say, I haven't managed to visit many blogs since then, but I'm hoping to catch up with all your new posts in the next couple of days.

On The Menu

2011-04-27T13:22:00.000+01:00

It won't be long before strawberries are on the menu again. These are on plants which grew from runners last year. I potted them up and they've been in the greenhouse over winter, though they're outside now waiting to be planted at the allotment. My original strawberries at the allotment will be three years old this year, so they'll start to lose their vigour. Strawberries only produce well for three or four years so it's worth taking runners from them to create a new bed.

I used to spend quite a lot of time and effort growing bedding plants for my hanging baskets and for containers in the garden. For the last couple of years I've bought plug plants from the local nursery. They've been very small when bought and I've potted them on and grown them on until time to be planted out. This year I've cut down further still and have decided to fill my hanging baskets with only one flower variety, Impatiens or Busy Lizzies. I bought the small plug plants a few weeks ago and they've been potted on once. On Sunday I decided to pot up my hanging baskets, they've never been done so early but this lovely weather has spurred me on. The plug plants cost me £3.50 for forty and they've filled three hanging baskets and two wall baskets. I don't think I could have grown from seed any cheaper. They're hanging outside now, but I shall watch for predictions of frost so that I can move them in to the greenhouse. I've noticed many people have already got bedding plants in their borders which I fear won't survive if we do get another frost.

After a long Easter weekend just gone, we've now got another long four day weekend this week to look forward to. I've got lots of things which need potting on, but I'd also like to spend some time at the allotment so I'm hoping that the weather holds out. I hope you all enjoy your weekend whatever you're up to.

They're In

2011-04-24T17:13:00.000+01:00

I managed to spend some time at the allotment today. I've come home because I'm shattered, it's hard work doing anything in this heat, but Hubby is still down there preparing more beds for me. I managed to get my shallots - Sante, and onions - Turbo planted. As you can see, I started my shallots off in pots in the greenhouse, and they've already got plenty of top growth as well as great root systems. I didn't plant my onions and shallots until the 16th of May last year, I was very late, but they still produced a decent crop and I hadn't started them off in pots either so I'm hoping for an even better harvest this year.

The first early potatoes - Arran Pilot which I planted nearly two weeks ago in containers seem to be doing well. They had been well chitted and I can already see some foliage peeking through the compost, they'll need earthing up soon. I'm hoping to get my maincrop potatoes planted at the allotment during the next week.

I hope you've all enjoyed the Easter weekend, it's made such a change to celebrate Easter in the sunshine, I remember many wet Easters in the past. We went out for a walk this morning and came across a male Orange Tip butterfly. I wouldn't have recognised it if it hadn't been for Flighty of Flighty's Plot mentioning that he'd seen one last week. It had fluttered off before I managed to reach for my camera so I'm afraid there's no photo. I hope you all enjoy the rest of the Easter holiday whatever you've got planned.

A Perfect View

2011-04-22T21:50:00.000+01:00

This is the view from my bedroom window at the moment. Outside is a lilac tree and it's just come in to bloom, providing me with a gorgeous perfume whenever I open the window. We had a lilac tree in my childhood home, but it's blooms were much paler than these. This tree was planted before we moved here seventeen years ago.

I'm determined to spend some time at the allotment over this weekend. Today, we spent the day in the Yorkshire Dales, you can read about it on my other blog, Through The Keyhole, and tomorrow, hubby is playing cricket, but I need to allocate some time to getting my shallots and onions planted, as well as getting the strawberry bed dug over so that I can get the plants which are in pots planted out.

I'm pleased to note that the seeds which I sowed a fortnight ago have just about all germinated. Courgettes, marrows and pumpkins are all large seeds and so are there seedlings so it won't be long before I have to pot them on. It's all go in April and May.

Worth Every Penny

2011-04-20T11:32:00.000+01:00

You might remember me telling you back in March that I'd bought a blackcurrant bush from Lidl for the princely sum of £1.49. It looked very much like a twig back then, but did have a few green buds showing. I planted it in a pot as the ground wasn't ready for it to be planted at the allotment and just look at it now. I'm not expecting much fruit from it this year, but it's nice to see it growing so well, and it just goes to show that you don't have to spend a fortune to grow your own.

I wish the same could be said of my blueberries. Last year, the flowers got frosted and I got very little fruit, so I was determined this year to watch the weather forcast like a hawk and take appropriate action if a frost was forcast. I really don't think I'll need to worry too much as there are very few flowers on the bushes this year. I'm wondering if a little light pruning might be in order to remedy the situation for next year, though most things I've read say that blueberries need very little pruning. Perhaps I should try repotting them at the end of the year, that can't hurt.

Good Friday and Easter Monday are coming up so we've got a nice long weekend. The weather forcast is good so we should be able to spend some time outside in the garden or at the allotment, maybe we can take a trip out too.

Pond Ups and Downs

2011-04-17T19:38:00.001+01:00

It's nice to see that not all my pond plants were a victim of the cold winter. This is Caltha Palustris - Marsh Marigold and it's bright yellow flowers bloom over a long period. It's not only plants which succumbed to the snow and ice. Whilst giving the pond a bit of a clean out last week, we came across a dead frog. He probably tried to spend the winter at the bottom of the pond, with fatal consequences. Our pond is very shallow and will freeze right to the bottom. I feel very guilty and will now cover the pond in autumn after ensuring any frogs have vacated it beforehand.

My first early potatoes - Arran Pilot got planted in their containers earlier in the week. They're in the garden at the moment but I'll move them in to the greenhouse if a frost is forcast. My maincrop potatoes - Maris Piper are still chitting whilst I get their patch prepared at the allotment.

In my post on 28th March I mentioned that my everbearing strawberries - Flamenco hadn't done so well. I had emailed Thompson and Morgan and they were sending replacements but not until October. Well, a couple of days ago a parcel arrived with another dozen strawberry plants inside. Hubby has potted them up in to a container for the moment but I hope to get them planted outside soon. They probably won't do as well as the originals this year as they were potted up in to plant pots in autumn and have already got flowers on them even though they're still not planted out.

At the end of my last post I compiled a list of things I needed to do. I hoped to have had more crossed off after this weekend, but the sad fact remains that the only thing yet crossed off is planting potatoes, and even then it's only the first earlies which I've got round to planting. Yesterday, the cricket season started at our club so I've lost both hubby and son for at least one day each at the weekend. Add to that a sunny day today with a farmer's market and craft fair at the local park, and that adds up to neglect for the allotment. Let's hope I can spare some time in the week otherwise the allotment is going to feel very neglected indeed.

Operation Clean Up

2011-04-13T09:53:00.000+01:00

The weather was gorgeous at the weekend, perfect for pottering about at the allotment, but instead hubby and I spent all Saturday and Sunday doing jobs in the garden. There was still last years dead growth on the plants in the border so that was all removed, the small pond got a tidy up and plants in there which hadn't survived winter were removed. Hubby mowed the grass as well as cleaning all the cracks in between the paving. The rabbits were moved from their winter spot on the patio up to their summer spot on the grass, I won't call it a lawn, you should see the state of it. The rabbits have runs which attach to their hutches so they can come out or go back in as they please so they like being on the grass so they have something to graze on. The greenhouse got tidied out and my small mini plastic greenhouse is now situated in there and holds lots of seedlings. I fasten the small greenhouse up at night and it gives the plants a little extra protection than they would get from just being in my cold greenhouse. It means that I can move seedlings outside a little earlier than I would otherwise do so.

I sowed lots more seeds at the weekend too, cucumber - Prima Top, cucumber - Bella, courgette - Soleil, courgette - Firenze, courgette - All Green Bush, marrow - Tiger Cross, Squash - (Butternut) Hawk, pumpkin - Mars. I also sowed some heritage pea seeds which have very kindly been sent to me by other bloggers, Kent Blue, Stephens, and Robinson.

Things I need to concentrate on now are getting my potatoes planted, getting a bed dug for my new strawberries and getting those planted, planting out some pea seedlings which are now ready to grow away, planting out the shallots which I've started off in pots in the greenhouse, planting my onion sets and direct sowing some carrot, parsnip and beetroot seeds. It seems a lot now I've typed it all out, but I'm sure it will all get done just as long as this weather holds for a little longer.

Tanya's Lucky Day

2011-04-11T10:48:00.000+01:00

My Blog Anniversary Give Away ended yesterday, and in true gardening blog style all the names were put in to a plant pot, a name was drawn at random by my son, and Tanya from Allotments 4 You was the lucky winner. Please let me have your address, Tanya, so I can get your prize sent off to you.

I'd like to thank everyone, not only for entering, but also for all the lovely comments I received on my second blog anniversary. My blog was started as a means to record my adventure on my allotment, and it's really heartwarming to know that people enjoy reading my ramblings. I wish I could give you all a prize.

Jennifer Tetlow from Stone Sculpture Journal asked if I am growing any Cosmos this year as Cosmos is the two year anniversary flower symbol. I didn't know there were flowers to mark certain anniversaries, this is something I will look in to more. The answer is yes, I am growing some Cosmos this year. I'm hoping to get some growing on the allotment which I'll be able to cut and bring home for the house.

Denise from Mrs Nesbitt's Space asked for hints and tips on what to grow from seed in the greenhouse. Why not head over to her blog and give her some advice. I would say grow what you like to eat, Denise. If the plants are to stay in the greenhouse once they've grown then tomatoes, peppers, chilis and aubergines are a good bet.

Kay from Kay's Cakes asked if I ever go back and re read old blog posts. The answer to that is yes, when I started my blog it was to keep a record of what I did and when I did it so that I could do the same thing with things which did well, or change the way I did things which didn't do so well, so I often look back at dates and names.

Thanks again, everyone, for continuing to read my blog. I hope I can continue to keep going for another two years, and beyond.

Oops

2011-04-07T15:23:00.000+01:00

This mangled mess of roots and shoots is what's left of my leeks after a ball my daughter threw landed on them. I have some more pots of leeks as well as these, and luckily it's early enough in the season to get some more sown. The peas in the background also took a direct hit but I managed to get them sorted and back in to their modules.

I'm pleased to report that the round stumpy carrots I sowed a few weeks ago in a container in the greenhouse have germinated, so even if I don't manage to get any to grow at the allotment again, I won't miss out on that gorgeous home grown carrot taste.

It looks like we're in for a mini heatwave this weekend with the forcasters predicting warm temperatures and sun. We've got a cooling breeze here today so it would be nice if that drops.

Don't forget to leave a comment on my last post to be in with a chance of winning my Blog Anniversary Give Away. Comments will be accepted until midday on Sunday, after which time a winner will be drawn.

Blog Anniversary Give Away

2011-04-01T12:42:00.017+01:00

It's two years ago today since I started my blog, and to celebrate I thought I would run a giveaway. The prize is a Kitchen Garden Planner which contains lots of information about growing edible crops, whether you're growing on an allotment, in your garden or, if space is limited, in containers. There's also plenty of space for writing your own notes and a little pouch for keeping news cuttings or seed packets all together.

I got the key for my allotment on 21st March 2009 and started this blog shortly afterwards to keep a record of my progress. I've really enjoyed writing the blog and also reading lots of other people's blogs with shared interests. Many thanks to all of you who have stumbled up on my blog and return to read more of my posts. Thank you too for leaving such lovely encouraging comments, I'm still so excited when I see that I've got a comment, even after two years, I don't think that feeling will ever leave.

To be in with a chance of winning the Kitchen Garden Planner, just leave a comment on this post and I will draw a name at random. I will leave the competition open until midday on Sunday 10th April to give everyone a fair chance of entering, and will announce the winner shortly after.

Last weekend I sowed my tomato seeds. I've held off as long as possible to try and avoid the seedlings growing leggy, but couldn't resist any longer. I'm growing three varieties this year, Gardener's Delight, Tangella and San Marzano. The Gardener's Delight have yet to germinate but the other two are up already. I'm particularly pleased to see the Tangella seeds spring in to growth as these were my first attempt at seed saving so I was a little worried that I may have done something wrong and I'd be left without. I needn't have worried as I've had 100% germination. Let's hope they grow and produce well now.

I sowed some spring onions - White Lisbon last weekend too. I've sown them in a container and they've been placed in the greenhouse for now. I always grow my spring onions in containers and they've always grown well this way.

There's rain forcast for the weekend, but the schools break up today so I'm hoping for some good weather during the next fortnight so I can get my son to give me a hand at the allotment. He's always a huge help to me.

Time To Plant Out

2011-03-28T13:16:00.009+01:00

Last year was the first year that I've grown shallots. Even though they were planted out late they gave me a good crop, so this year I want to make sure that I do everything right and maybe I'll get an even better crop. I've gone for Sante which are supposed to have a good flavour. Shallots are traditionally planted on the shortest day of the year, 21st of December, and harvested on the longest day of the year, 21st of June, but as the ground was frozen solid at that time, and for quite a while after, I started my shallots in pots in the greenhouse. They have put out some good strong roots and are starting to shoot so I will plant them out at the allotment within the next week.

The everbearing strawberries - Flamenco which I had delivered from Thompson and Morgan earlier in the year are not doing so well. I ordered twelve plants, and potted them up as soon as they arrived in to plantpots which have been kept in the greenhouse ever since. Out of the dozen plants, only seven are showing signs of life. I've emailed Thompson and Morgan and had a speedy reply saying they will replace the dead plants in October. This isn't the first time that plants bought from Thompson and Morgan have died, however, they have always been quick to replace anything I'm not happy with. It's a shame I won't get the replacements until October though, I was looking forward to a bumper harvest this year.

I've been reading of bumblebee sightings on many blogs recently. I was feeling quite left out having not seen any yet this year, but on my way home from taking Archie for a walk I heard a buzzing noise and there was my first sighting of the year. I saw my second butterfly of the year last week, another Red Admiral, and I'm continuing to see many ladybirds. I'm sure this gorgeous weather we're experiencing has something to do with everything waking up from their winter slumber.

Speedy Seeds

2011-03-22T13:16:00.007Z

Believe it or not, these seeds were sown on Sunday and less than forty eight hours later there's signs of life. I did quite a bit of sowing on Sunday, Swiss chard-Bright Lights, kale-Cavolo de Nero, broccoli-Summer Purple, calabrese-Sakura, Brussels sprout-Evesham Special, cabbage-Tundra, curly kale-Dwarf Green Curled, and swede-Ruby. I also sowed some flower seeds, most of these will be used at the allotment for my cutting patch. Calendula-Candyman Yellow, aster-Lazy Daisy Mix, gazania-Sunshine Mixed, cosmos-Picotee, cornflower-Frosty Mix, zinnia-Early Wonder, zinnia-Scabious Flowered Mixed, rudbeckia-Rustic Dwarf Mixed, and rudbeckia-Toto Gold. The photo is zinnia-Early Wonder, it's certainly living up to it's name so far. Some carrot-Paris Market 5 - Atlas were also sown in to a container and popped in to the greenhouse. I'm hoping to have some stumpy carrots just in case I can't get any carrots to germinate at the allotment again. I'm listing all the varieties on my blog this year as this will be the first time ever that I haven't made written notes. I find it quite time consuming to write everything down as I do it, so I'm using my blog for this purpose instead.

I had a trip to my local nursery on Sunday and bought some compost in readiness for all the sowing which is to be done. I'm also hoping to get my early potatoes in to containers over the next week or two so I also need compost for that. I usually use a mix of multi purpost compost and my own garden compost for potatoes, and even those which go in the ground at the allotment get some garden compost put in with them at planting time. I still need to buy my onions so I shall have another trip to the nursery soon.

I think spring has finally sprung. The weather over the last few days has been glorious and it looks set to continue here for the next couple of days. All this sunshine has woken up the ladybirds, I've seen them in abundance and on Friday I saw my first butterfly of the year, a Red Admiral.

Chitting Nicely

2011-03-16T17:51:00.006Z

It won't be long now until I plant my first early potatoes. I've decided that this year all the earlies will go in containers which will free up more space at the allotment for maincrop potatoes. The other advantage of using containers rather than the ground is that I don't have to wait for the ground to warm up, though I will have to make sure that they are kept free of any frost we have. As you can see, there are some great sprouts on the tubers already. Apparently, if you rub off all but two or three of the sprouts you will get larger potatoes, but I always leave all the sprouts on as I don't mind smaller potatoes.

I sowed my leeks - Musselburgh and peas - Hurst Green Shaft on Saturday. I've always sown my peas in toilet roll inners in the past but this time I've sown them in modules. I didn't have as much success last year with things which were sown in the toilet roll inners so I'm not using them at all this year. Once the ground has warmed up I want to sow some peas direct, something which I haven't done before.

The Goldfinches are back. I haven't seen any for ages but I saw a pair on Monday. I just wish I saw them more regularly than I do at the moment, they're such lovely little birds. We've also got some Coal Tits visiting the feeders, another colourful little bird.

Blackcurrant

2011-03-10T16:08:00.008Z

We called in to Lidl at the weekend, a shop I rarely go to, but I know they sell fruit bushes at very reasonable prices so we thought we'd have a look. At the moment, the only fruit we have at the allotment are strawberries, though as we only have half a plot I don't want to give too much space over to fruit. There were various currants and a gooseberry to choose from and we came away with a blackcurrant bush for the princely sum of £1.49, bargain. I've also got my two rhubarb crowns, which are at present in containers, to plant at the allotment, and also my two blueberry bushes which will stay in containers in the garden, so that will do us for now.

After a sunny start to the week, the weather yesterday and today has been dreadful. We had rain and wind yesterday, and though it's quite sunny today, the wind is really bad. Half of my greenhouse is missing so I'll have to go and hunt that down. I think I'll wait for the wind to drop though first otherwise I'll be repeating the exercise within the hour.

Signs Of Life

2011-03-07T14:14:00.008Z

At last, my peppers have started germinating. I don't have much patience when waiting for seeds to pop their heads above the compost, these have taken just short of two weeks to show any sign of life. I've now turned off the bottom heat to avoid the seedlings growing leggy, and I'll pot them on when they've put on some growth.

We finally saw some sunshine on Sunday so hubby was straight down to the allotment to put a bit of time in doing some digging. It won't be long now until the clocks go forward and the days are longer. I've always enjoyed spending time at the allotment on an evening, it always seems so peaceful at that time of day.

Just a reminder that Gardener's World is back on our screens on Friday with Monty Don coming back as the main presenter. The programme will come from Monty's own garden in Herefordshire. I'm looking forward to it.

Spring Days Out

2011-03-03T18:19:00.010Z

I'm looking forward to some great spring days out at RHS Harlow Carr, I must remember to mark them in my diary so that I don't miss them. As a RHS member I'm entitled to free admission, as is one other family member, which makes it a cheap day out. On 26th and 27th March there is a Grow Your Own Weekend, 9th to 21st April is Eco Warriors - Half term family fun, which I thought my daughter might like as there are scavenger hunts, bush craft and the chance to learn survival skills. From 29th April to 2nd May is Harlow Carr Craft Exhibition, I might go on 1st May as there is also a Spring Plant Fair on then. If you're not a RHS member there is a FREE Open Day tomorrow, 4th March, where admission is free to everyone, the gardens are definitely worth seeing.

There's no sign of life in my peppers which I sowed eleven days ago. There's time yet, though I've usually had them germinating quicker than this on previous occasions. Perhaps I'll sow some more if they're not showing by the weekend.

We saw a kestrel in next door's garden earlier today. It was sat on their lawn as bold as brass eating whatever prey it had managed to kill. After it had left, there was a mass of feathers left behind, which indicates the prey was a bird of some kind. The circle of life can be very cruel sometimes.

Kent Blue

2011-02-26T13:58:00.006Z

The generosity of bloggers will never cease to amaze me. Today I received some seeds for Kent Blue mangetout peas from Kath at Vegetable Heaven. Hubby had mentioned recently that he'd like me to have a go at some mangetout this year, and after the description of these on Kath's blog they sounded perfect. The flowers are a bicolour purple which fade to blue, and the pods are produced in abundance. I shall ensure that I save some seeds so that I can grow them again in future years. Many thanks, Kath.

I popped in to Wilkinsons today and noticed that they'd got quite a few dahlia tubers in. I took a fancy to one named Arabian Night, a burgundy colour, so that came home with me. I grew a few dahlias from seed last year and intend to do the same again this year, though I'd like a few more this time.

The sun is out at the moment but the rain through the night and earlier today has meant that getting anything done on the allotment is out of the question. Perhaps I'll do some more seed sowing instead.

It All Begins Here

2011-02-20T16:22:00.007Z

I've been saying since January that I'm going to start off my pepper seeds, well I've finally got round to it today. They're now all tucked up in the heated propagator, but they'll be taken out of there as soon as they push their heads up otherwise the extra heat will encourage them to grow leggy. I've decided to go for two varieties this year. The first is a bell shaped pepper, California Wonder, which seems to be a popular choice of pepper in the UK. The second variety is Corno di Toro Rosso, which is known as Bulls Horns in Italy due to it's tapered shape. It will be interesting to compare the two.

There's been so much talk of spring arriving just lately that it came as quite a shock yesterday when I got up and looked out the window. Everywhere was white, covered in a layer of snow. It was lunch time before the snow stopped falling, but it had turned to slush by evening. This morning there was no snow to be seen. We should remember that it's still February and this sort of weather isn't unusual.

At the moment I've got a renewed enthusiasm for the allotment after reading several blogs telling just how fast they're progressing with their allotments. I had intended to get cracking with my own allotment this weekend, however, with the snow covering it yesterday and the residual mud today, there was no chance. Fingers crossed for better weather next weekend.

To Bee Or Not To Bee

2011-02-12T15:37:00.010Z

The spring bulbs have been slow to bloom here, I've only just started to notice snowdrops, but now that I have it seems that everything is blooming at once. Along with the snowdrops there are crocus blooming, and the daffodils and tulips aren't far behind. Honey bees will seek out spring bulbs to forage for the nectar, we saw this one today just leaving a crocus.

I've been very good and have so far resisted planting any seeds. It's always tempting to start things off far too early, in which case they usually grow leggy. I will be starting off my pepper seeds this weekend though. I've held off long enough now and if they do grow leggy there's always time to start off some more.

The high winds from last week returned on Monday, though they weren't quite as bad as they had previously been. The rest of the week was fine and the sun put in an appearance. It's been a glorious day today. The sun has been shining and it's been quite warm. I should have really spent some time at the allotment, but we took advantage of the lovely day and had a day out instead. Rain is forcast for tomorrow so we had to make the most of some fine weather.

Rhubarb Shoots

2011-02-06T13:02:00.007Z

I noticed today that my rhubarb is starting to shoot. This will be the third year that I've had this particular rhubarb crown and it's been in a container all it's life. Each year I've intended planting it at the allotment, but still haven't got round to it. I'll have to make more of an effort this year.

We had some terrible winds here on Friday, so much so that two of the ridge tiles on the extension roof have come loose, and half of my greenhouse blew away. I've arranged for a roofer to come and sort the tiles out on Wednesday, and the greenhouse is now back in one piece. It's glazed with polycarbonate, so there was no breakages, but I found the door and two side panels in our garden, and one of the roof panels in our next door neighbour's garden.

The everbearing strawberries which I potted up last month are looking very healthy and have started to put on some new growth. I just need some decent weather now to get a new bed prepared for them, though there's none forcast for the next few days, it's supposed to be very wet.

Aiming For Success

2011-01-31T10:19:00.006Z

This will be my third year growing on the allotment, and yet I haven't yet had any success in growing carrots there. There is such a difference in taste, as with most things, between home grown carrots and shop bought that I won't give up until my home grown carrots are on my plate. I'm not totally convinced that this will be the year of the allotment carrot though, so I've invested in a packet of Paris Market 5 - Atlas seeds, which are stumpy carrots. Before I had the allotment, I used to grow all my veggies in containers, and I grew stumpy carrots, though not this variety. I shall plant these in containers to ensure that I get at least some lovely home grown carrots just in case the ones at the allotment come to nothing again. Stumpy carrots are good for growing in containers as you don't have to provide lots of space for long root growth.

The purple sprouting broccoli at the allotment has been eaten by something, probably pigeons or rabbits desperate for food in the icy weather. It's the first time that I've tried to grow purple sprouting broccoli, and to be honest, I didn't put much effort in to it, it wasn't netted, I really didn't expect much to come of it, so I'm not too disappointed. The cavolo nero has died in the frosts, and the only thing left standing at the allotment now is curly kale. Hubby set to on Saturday and did a bit of digging. Anything done now is less to do later.

This weekend was the RSPB's Big Garden Birdwatch where you record the number of each species of bird which visits your garden over the period of an hour. I had intented to take part, but in the end I ran out of time. Why is it that my weekends are always so busy? I did see a Red Kite on Saturday though, but I wouldn't have been able to include it in my results as it wasn't in my garden. At one time Red Kites were quite rare but following a reintroduction programme in England and Scotland, they can be seen in many parts of the country.

All Sorted

2011-01-25T12:39:00.007Z

A job I usually do over Christmas is to sort out my seeds, work out what I still need to buy, and arrange those I've already got in to months in which they'll be sown. I'm a little late doing it this year, but at last I'm all ready to go. The only seeds I need to buy are parsnip, which should be bought fresh every year, and sweetcorn. All the seed packets are now stored in a cardboard box, which has been divided up in to months. The packets stored under January and February are a little sparse, but come March and April I'm going to be very busy indeed.

I've recently bought a packet of Sweet Pepper - Corno di Toro Rosso, which is a long variety of pepper. Sue from Our Plot at Green Lane Allotments doesn't live too far from me, and she's had success growing the elongated varieties and getting them to ripen quicker in our climate, so I thought I'd give them a go too. Last year, my daughter won a grafted pepper plant. These grafted plants are supposed to be quick to ripen, but I didn't find them ripening any quicker than those plants I have grown from seed in the past. Let's hope that these long peppers do their stuff.

I can't remember the last time I visited the allotment. I wanted to go this weekend but found I didn't have time before it was dark. I've got some purple sprouting broccoli which I want to have a look at. I'm sure if the weather hasn't finished it off, the pigeons will as it hasn't been netted.

Another Potato Post

2011-01-20T10:08:00.017Z

This time it's about potatoes to come, not ones which have already been harvested. At last, I've made the decision about, and actually bought, the potatoes which I'll be growing this year. As my allotment is only a half plot, and there's plenty of other things I also want to grow, there's only going be a 10 foot x 10 foot bed allocated to them, so I've decided that I'm going to grow my earlies in containers to free up more space at the allotment for maincrop. We went to our local nursery to see which varieties they had on offer and found that they only sell the tubers in 3kg quantities. I had hoped to grow a few varieties, however, when I checked the prices at other retailers, the smaller quantities were nearly as expensive as the 3kg bag, which were £3.30. I also get a 10% discount from this particular nursery as I'm a Gardener's World subscriber, so this brings them down to less than £3.00. I decided that it would be more cost effective to grow only one variety of earlies and one of maincrop. The earlies I settled on are Arran Pilot and the maincrop I chose are Maris Piper. I've read good reviews on both of these varieties so I hope they do well for me.

I was thrilled to bits when I visited My Life Diet blog and discovered that I'd won a Stylish Blogger Award. I'd like to thank Nellilou very much, it's always nice to know that people enjoy my blog.

I'm supposed to divulge seven facts about myself, however, I've recently been awarded the same award on my other blog, Through The Keyhole, so I won't repeat myself. You can pop over there to have a read if you like.

I now have to pass this award on to fifteen other blogs, so I'd like to nominate:-

Two Chances Veg Plot Blog

Green Tapestry

Allotments4You

Slow Growing in Scotland

Vegetable Heaven

Moj Vrt

Our Plot at Green Lane Allotments

Pam's English Cottage Garden

My Garden Diary by Kelli Boyles

My Little Garden in Japan

Down on the Allotment

I know not all of you accept awards, but I just wanted to let you know that I enjoy reading your blogs. Please don't feel under any pressure to accept the award if you do not wish to do so.

All that's left is to thank you all for continuing to read my blog. It really does make my day when I receive a comment on my posts, so thank you very much.

Not Quite A Washout

2011-01-16T15:10:00.006Z

As you know, I tried growing some potatoes in containers for Christmas, but even though the containers were placed in a cold greenhouse and wrapped in fleece they still got frosted and the plants died back. I didn't empty the containers before Christmas as even the compost they were growing in was like a block of ice, but hubby got round to emptying them yesterday and this is what he found. It's not a huge harvest but there would have been enough to put on six plates on Christmas day had we managed to empty them then. The best performer was Carlingford, and the other two varieties are Vivaldi and Maris Peer. The seed potatoes were sold later in the year especially for planting for Christmas, however, the yield certainly doesn't justify the cost so this year I'll plant some of the first earlies I harvest to try for a Christmas harvest again.

The everbearing strawberry plants, Flamenco, which I ordered have been delivered so I will spend this afternoon planting them in pots. I'll leave them in the greenhouse until later in the year when I've prepared the bed they will be residing in. It should give them some time to establish some healthy roots before being planted out.

I'm also going to plant my shallots in to plantpots rather than straight out at the plot. The allotment is very boggy at present so they may rot if planted out now, but starting them off in pots will give them a head start.

Ladybird Towers

2011-01-10T12:05:00.004Z

This is the latest in des res accommodation for ladybirds. I have been meaning to make a bug hotel for such a long time and still haven't got round to it, so hubby bought me 'Ladybird Towers' for Christmas. There's lots of little holes drilled in to the wood for the ladybirds to hibernate in, and it comes with a pole to stand it on so I'll be able to site it in my wildlife border. The little ladybird decorations are so cute. Ladybirds are gardener's friends as they help keep the aphid population under control. The ladybirds eat the aphids and also produce larvae which will eat aphids too.

There was a return to snow here last week. We got quite a covering on Friday but it rained during the night turning it to mush for Saturday, so it didn't hang around for long. It was very wet over the weekend though so there was no trip to the allotment. I really need to get down there if only to check on my purple sprouting broccoli, it's the first time I've grown it and I want to check how it's doing.

It won't be long now until we're buying our potato tubers ready to chit before planting. I still haven't made a final decision on which I'll be growing this year so if you have any last minute recommendations I'd be happy to hear them. I'm going to grow my earlies in containers to free up extra space at the allotment for main crops. Varieties I've tried before have suffered from slug damage so I might be better looking for a variety with some resistance.

Eagerness

2011-01-05T12:47:00.009Z

I'm always eager straight after Christmas to start sowing some seeds. Last year, my daughter won a pepper plant in a gardening competition and I enjoyed eating the resulting peppers so much that I decided I would grow a few pepper plants this year. Pepper seeds will be the first seeds I will sow as they need a long growing season to allow sufficient time for the fruit to ripen, though they can still be eaten when green. I'm trying to hold out a little longer yet though as the low light levels at this time of year makes the seedlings grow leggy.

So, as it's too early to start sowing seeds, what else can I be doing towards the coming growing season? I've still got all my seeds to sort out. I usually divide the packets up in to the months they're to be sown and store them between dividers in a box. Those seeds which need to be sown successionally are popped back in the box after sowing, either in the same month's compartment for sowing again later that month, or in the next month's compartment.

I've also got to sort out an allotment plan. My four main beds follow a crop rotation, brassicas, roots, potatoes, legumes, but there's also other things such as sweetcorn and squash which need to be slotted in. I use other areas of the allotment for these, but make sure that they're not grown in the same position as they were the year before.

I didn't get round to finishing the winter dig on the allotment before the snow fell so that still needs to be finished, though I don't fancy doing that at the moment. We've had lots of rain overnight and the ground is very boggy, but we'll have to continue with it at the first opportunity.

There's lots of enjoyable reading to be done. The books I wrote about in my last post are still waiting to be started, and there's a new six part series starting on BBC2 on Friday at 8.30pm, Life in a Cottage Garden with Carol Klein. This should give me a weekly television gardening fix whilst Gardener's World is absent from our screens.

I'm sure you'll agree, I've got plenty to be getting on with before I have to start sowing.

Reading Matter

2010-12-31T14:21:00.012Z

I hope you all had a lovely Christmas. My mum and dad came round for dinner on Christmas day, but apart from that it's been very quiet here. Amongst many wonderful presents were these books, some of them are reference books and a couple of them are people's personal experiences of allotment life. I'm looking forward to getting stuck in to them once everything is back to normal.

Earlier in the year, I won a £10 gift voucher to be spent at Thompson and Morgan which had to be spent by the end of the year. With time running out, I scoured the website yesterday and decided up on some everbearing strawberries, Flamenco. They were offering free delivery yesterday so I only had to pay £3.99 myself. These will hopefully extend the strawberry season next year. I just have to get a bed ready for them now.

We're having a quiet evening in tonight, through I'm sure we'll still be up when the new year dawns. I'd like to wish everyone a Happy New Year. I hope 2011 brings peace, happiness and health, and of course a good growing season.

Arthur Bell

2010-12-20T11:31:00.011Z

I have been looking for a yellow rose which can be grown in a container for some time now. On Saturday, we went to Homebase and found they were reducing many plants, as well as lots of other items. I was lucky enough to pick up this rose, Arthur Bell, which had started off at £9.99, then was reduced to £3.33 and was just being marked down to 50p as I passed by. The label states that it's a bush rose and can be grown in a container. It's a repeat flowering rose and is strongly scented. I thought the sales were supposed to start after Christmas but I don't seem to have done too badly here, a 95% reduction.

I'd just like to thank everyone who pops by my blog. I'm so lucky that I have many regular readers who comment often and who I class as friends, but there are many more readers who never leave a comment. Every visit and comment is very much appreciated. I'd like to wish all of you a wonderful Christmas and a healthy, happy and prosperous 2011, and here's to a successful growing season too.

No Spuds For Christmas

2010-12-13T18:08:00.011Z

I eventually managed to get back in to my greenhouse after the door had been frozen shut, but I wish I hadn't bothered after seeing the scene which greeted me. Let's just say that there won't be any home grown potatoes on our plates on Christmas day. The even more annoying thing is that I had bought these potatoes especially for later planting, they were delivered around July time. Last year I saved some seed potatoes from the ones planted in spring. I kept them in the salad drawer in the fridge until it was time to plant them later in the year and they grew fine, producing enough potatoes for our Christmas dinner. I now know that the risk doesn't justify the cost of buying extra especially for later planting, I'll either do as I did last year and save some from the spring batch, or else plant some of the potatoes which the spring sowing produces. I won't give up though, I'll definitely try again.

We managed a trip to the allotment yesterday, though there wasn't much we could do. The snow has melted and I expected the ground to be very boggy, but I'm pleased to report that the drainage pipe which hubby installed earlier in the year seems to be working as there wasn't as much water about as I expected. The chard has definitely been taken by the frost, it's completely blackened, but the curly kale and cavolo de nero is still looking good. There's also some purple sprouting broccoli and spring greens which seem to be doing ok.

Today, the mercury has risen to a whopping three degrees, but by the end of the week we're expecting more snow. Let's hope we don't get as much as we've just got rid of.

Icy Pond

2010-12-08T13:59:00.007Z

Yet another post about the weather, which seems to be dominating this blog at the moment. My little pond is completely frozen. The ice is so thick that I'm unable to break it, even though the sun has appeared this afternoon, it's rays aren't strong enough to even melt the snow. This morning, I tried to check on the plants which I'm overwintering in my greenhouse but I couldn't get in as the door had frozen shut. I don't heat my greenhouse, but protect the plants inside with fleece. Somehow, I don't think that it will be enough this year, I don't hold out much hope for my Christmas potatoes.

It's a few weeks now since I've been to the allotment. There isn't a lot growing there at the moment so I'm not particularly worried, but I'll probably take a trip down with hubby at the weekend just to check on things.

On a brighter note, my Orchid is now back in bloom again. I've been really successful with this Orchid so far, chopping off the flower spike at ground level when the blooms fade, which prompts it to grow a new spike and flower again. It's been in bloom for the last two Christmas's and it looks like it will still be in bloom for Christmas this year.

Hanging Around

2010-12-03T10:35:00.006Z

The snow is still hanging around, though we only had a small flurry yesterday and it hasn't snowed since. The temperature is set to plummet even further so it's highly unlikely that it will melt any time soon. The kids were sent home from school at 1.30 on Monday and they haven't been back since, much to their delight. Instead there's been sledging, snowballing and a few wintery dog walks, though we haven't ventured too far as Archie cries when his paws get cold. We've been advised to check the school website over the weekend to see if it will be open on Monday or not.

I've been really thankful that I bought some walking boots earlier in the year. I thought they would be good for dog walking, but also for wearing on the allotment. I have to say, they're fantastic for the snow. I always find that Wellington Boots make my feet cold, even when they've got those sock liners in them. My walking boots keep my feet toasty warm, the only problem is that the snow is so deep that it comes above the walking boots. I just make sure that I wear long socks and tuck my jeans in to them.

I mentioned in my last post that hubby had spotted a greenfinch in the garden over the weekend. Feeding the birds regularly seems to be paying off as I spotted a wren on Wednesday, something else which I've never seen in the garden before. I also saw a robin feeding from one of the seed holders yesterday. Robins are usually ground feeders so it's unusual to see them feeding this way. I suppose it's a case of needs must in this weather.

The White Stuff

2010-11-29T12:48:00.005Z

The weather forcasters were right for once when they predicted snow. There's more forcast for overnight and it seems there's no let up for the rest of the week. I can't remember when it last snowed this early in the season, though some news reports suggest it's been 17 years, I just hope it doesn't mean that we're going to get a long winter, last year was bad enough. Don't forget to pop over to my Through The Keyhole blog to find out what Archie's first impressions of snow are.

Obviously, nothing got done on the allotment again this weekend. I'll be interested to see what difference the drainage pipe which hubby laid earlier in the year makes after the snow melts.

The birds are loving the food which has been put out for them. It makes such a difference to them in snowy weather to be able to find food easily. Hubby spotted a Greenfinch over the weekend, something we haven't seen in the garden before. Let's hope he returns with his family.

A Little Surprise

2010-11-23T15:36:00.006Z

I was quite surprised today to find the alpine strawberries are still producing fruit. We've had a few frosts now so I thought they would be finished. Alpine strawberries have a very intense flavour and they produce for a long period too so they're well worth growing.

I've got quite a lot on at the moment so I haven't made it to the allotment this week. Hubby has taken a days leave from work on Friday, but as snow is forcast in some parts of the country for the end of the week, I don't hold out much hope of getting there this weekend either. We've dug over more of the allotment already this year than we dug last autumn so I'm quite happy with that even if we don't get any more done.

I always enjoy reading about people's experiences of allotment life, I think that's one of the reasons I enjoy reading blogs so much. On my Christmas list this year are a number of books on this theme, One Man and his Dig-Adventures of an Allotment Novice by Valentine Low, Digger's Diary-Tales From the Allotment by Victor Osborne and Allotted Time-Two Blokes, One Shed, No Idea by Robin Shelton. I hope Santa's taken note.

Feed The Birds

2010-11-17T12:27:00.004Z

I try to feed the birds all the year round, however, during the summer months I'm not so bothered if I forget to fill up the feeders as there's more food around for them to find themselves. Now that the colder weather is here I try to make sure that there's always something on the bird feeder for them. These suet blocks are great for the winter months as it helps to build up their fat reserves which they need in cold weather. The suet is mixed with insects, berries, mealworms etc. You can also make your own fatty treats easily and there's many recipes on the web. One thing to remember though, you should never feed fat to the birds which has been cooked as it blends with the meat juices and it's prone to smearing which is bad for the birds' feathers. Of course, clean fresh water is also important, and as the freezing temperatures arrive don't forget to check the water supply first thing in the morning as it will probably have frozen over. There's some great tips about what to and what not to feed birds on the R.S.P.B. website.

We visited a couple of garden centres at the weekend. From their insides you wouldn't think that they had anything to do with gardening. They were completely adorned with Christmas decorations and any gardening related products were few and far between. This is one of the reasons I much prefer nurseries to garden centres. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy looking round the garden centres at all the Christmas ware, just not when I'm looking for something for the garden.

I gave the allotment a miss at the weekend. The weather had been so bad last week that I'm sure it will have been too boggy to get anything done. The colder weather has definitely arrived and with it has been rain and strong winds. I think we'll have to snatch allotment days when we can from now on.

Gardeners' World Magazine

2010-11-10T13:26:00.010Z

I let my subscription to Gardeners' World magazine lapse in the summer as I found I didn't have time to read it properly. I've decided that now the winter months are approaching I will renew the subscription as I'll be glad of some reading material whilst I'm sat by the fire on the cold evenings ahead. I know that they recycle some articles, what needs to be done this December will need to be done again next December, and there are lots of pages of advertisements, but there's always something of interest to read in each magazine. I always take out the subscription through Tesco Clubcard Deals as the vouchers are worth four times their value, so a years subscription only costs £10.50 in vouchers. You've got to be quick to get it at this price though as the value of Tesco Reward vouchers is lowering to three times their value from the 6th December so the subscription will then cost £14.50 in vouchers.

I managed to get to the allotment again on Sunday whilst my daughter was at her drama group. My son didn't want to come with us this week so it was just hubby and I. I set about the strawberry bed, which is now almost finished, whilst hubby cleared a bed which was covered in weeds and dug over another bed. I'm really pleased with how much we've got done already this year. Of course, if I hadn't been so lazy and cleared the strawberry bed after they'd finished fruiting we'd have had much more done by now, but I didn't. It's been a real job tidying up the bed, I won't let it get in this state again.

It was a terrible day here on Monday, I don't think it stopped raining, even for a minute, all day. There was nothing for it but to make a roast chicken dinner which we ate with the first lot of runner beans taken from the freezer. How lovely it is to have some stored for winter use. The weather was much the same yesterday, though it did brighten up a bit in the afternoon, but it's been a gorgeous sunny, crisp autumn day today. It's forcast heavy showers again tomorrow so let's hope the rain is out of the way for the weekend.

Making Use Of The Runners

2010-11-03T12:01:00.004Z

At last, I managed to get to the allotment at the weekend. The strawberry plants haven't had any attention since they fruited, even the netting was still in place, so I thought I should tackle that bed whilst hubby and son got on with digging over the plot. I didn't have as much time as I'd have liked there due to having to pick up my daughter from her drama group, but I managed to get about half the bed cleared, which was very time consuming due to the mess it was in. There were lots of runners, some of which had escaped in to the next bed, and new plants had set roots so I gently lifted them and potted them up. They will stay in their pots inside the cold greenhouse until spring when I will create another strawberry bed for them to reside in. This is a great way of increasing your strawberry plant stock for free.

Hubby and son got lots of digging done and the plot is looking much tidier than it was, though there's still lots more to do. The winter dig is already further on than it was at this time last year.

There's very little still in the ground at the allotment now. We're still harvesting cavolo de nero, curly kale and chard, and there's Savoy cabbages and spring greens growing.

My daughter is at her drama group again this Sunday which should free up some more time for me to spend at the allotment again. Fingers crossed for a fine weekend weather wise.