It's sowing time!

Finally I can start sowing seeds, in fact, I have been.  After erecting the plastic greenhouse in the garden, I have sown the following...


Beetroot, Brussels Sprouts, Red Cabbage, Green Cabbage, Chard, Leeks and Pak Choi.  I have also sown Pansies and Gerbera's.


Now that this has been started, the temperature is bound to plummet!  I'll be outside wrapping the greenhouse up and lighting a small oil lamp to keep the temperature up.


I popped up to the plot for about 30 minutes this evening and planted the onion sets and shallots.  I have a whole bed of onions which equates to around 150 sets, hopefully I'll be in line for a good crop.


A few pictures of where I am with the plot.

The raspberry beds - not much at the moment!

Rhubarb - and it's only March!

The whole plot - some of which still needs digging.

2011 - A New Season

2011 is hopefully going to be a good year for the allotment. I've decided to stick to varieties of vegetables I have grown previously as I can guarantee (as far as I can) a good crop and at the end of the day, that is what I'm after.


The raspberries were looking very cramped in the bed I had originally put them in.  Because of this I have split them up and made new smaller beds which have six canes in each.  After a recent promotion from Thompson and Morgan, I obtained a further six canes for just the postage.  This brings me up to eighteen canes so hopefully I should get a good crop from them.


I like the idea of growing fruit as well as vegetables.  This does reduce the amount of room I have to grow other crops though.  Blackcurrant's are the most likely plant I will put in but we'll see!


The rhubarb has excelled itself again.  Other peoples are only just showing, mine has sticks over 15" long and I've already harvested ten sticks!  As with a lot of early rhubarb, it's very sweet and tender.


Sowing seeds in the greenhouse is the next job, that and continuing digging te beds.  The grass is becoming a pain again which is why I want to get the rest of the beds framed sooner rather than later.


Nearly forgot, the garlic I planted in November have all germinated.  The broad beans however are a different matter.  Out of the seventy I sowed, only eleven have germinated.  This could be because of the very cold winter we had but I suspect it's more to do with the family of mice I found living under a piece of wood next to the beans.  Little buggers!

The first of many raised beds

After I responded to an add on FreeCycle, I obtained some timber for making raised beds.  The wood was from a man who repaired sheds during the summer months.  A couple of pieces were a little rotten but once cut away the remaining wood was fine.  An hour or so later and few splinters I've built a couple of raised beds.  A little "rustic" perhaps but functional.  No more cutting the edges of the beds, just the grass!

Getting ahead!

I had a quick visit to the allotment today and planted 25 garlic cloves (Albigensian Wight), and sowed 70 broad beans (Aquadulce Claudia).


The garlic needs to be overwintered to produce bulbs and not enlarged cloves.  This is a large softneck variety and will be ready for harvest in June next year.


I specifically chose Aquadulce Claudia as these beans produce a better harvest if overwintered.  My Grandad always said the beans produce a better crop if they are sown in November.  I have also read they get less problems with black fly.

Weights so far

So, this is what I've harvested.

Potato - Desiree - 8lb 1oz

Potato - Rooster - 8lb

Beetroot - Boltardy - 4lb

Sweetcorn - Kelvedon Glory - 9lb

Butternut - Metro - 2lb 4oz

Pumpkin - Jack O' Lantern - 20lb 8oz

Onion - White - 8lb

Onion - Red - 6lb

Shallot - Unknown - 5lb

The crops left on the plot are leeks and parsnips.  I've not had any leeks yet but I have lifted a few parsnips.

Parsnip - Gladiator - 1lb 8oz

Allotment Update - October 2010 - Photographs

Here are a few pictures of what the plot has produced this year.

 White and red onions, and shallots.

Jack O' Lantern pumpkins (10lb & 10lb 8oz) and butternut squash

 Sweetcorn

 Rooster potatoes

Gladiator parsnips

Allotment Update - October 2010

I've spent a few hours on the plot over the last couple of days.  The grass has taken hold again and is trying to get the better of me.  I will win, honest!


Each bed is being cut to size and dug over very deeply.  I would like to frame each bed with timber but this will prove very costly if I have to buy new wood.  A little later in the year I am going manure each bed, apart from the ones which are going to be used for parsnips and carrots.