26 Dec - Christmas Holidays

One of the things I've never been great at is having food from the plot at mid-Winter. This year I've made a bit more of an effort to get a few things for the family Christmas lunch. The obvious was the Brussels Sprouts - a good crop of Trafalgar F1 which I've been picking since October.

Then it was time to dig up another parsnip or two. These went rather well and I was very pleased indeed with the Gladiator F1 - these are the largest parsnips I've ever grown using the 'bar' method (see earlier posts).

I also cut a lovely Savoy cabbage, Ormskirk, not of great size but plenty for us. I love Savoy in the Winter with its crinkly leaves, this cabbage is a great mid-Winter vegetable. Along with a leek, a nice little collection from the plot.

Of course, I still have plenty of other vegetables in storage too like Butternut and Winter squash, onions and frozen carrots. The chickens are still laying a few eggs a week despite the dark days so we had enough for pastries and Yorkshire puddings. I even cracked open a few bottles of my wine (only 90 bottles left now *sniff*), a bottle of Rhubarb and a lovely fruity hedgerow red containing blackberries, elderberries and plums.

That's it for me, here's wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a fruitful New Year on the plot.

05 Dec - Review Of The Year

When looking at my neighbour's plots and seeing a sturdy vegetable or a heavy cropper I often ask, 'that's done really well, what variety is it?'. Invariably the answer is, 'erm, not sure, I can't remember'.

I discovered early on that if I wanted to improve my skills on the allotment I had to know: what varieties of vegetables worked well on my plot and those that failed; when the best time to sow was and; how they should be planted. Unfortunately I wasn't very good at writing these things down so this blog is the way for me to record the 'what, when and how' of it all. It's a way of recalling what worked and what didn't. That's what this review is all about, changing the things that failed and trying to improve on the things that worked.

The Negatives.

The first two things that come to mind are radish and sweet corn. Radish are easy to grow, they come up like weeds; I sowed 'Icicle Long White' and got nothing. I'm not sure if the seed was bad despite being a fresh packet, but I'll be trying something else next season. As for sweet corn, I sowed the reliable 'Swift F1' in deep root trainers and initially they did really well, growing tall and green. However, the process of transplanting them caused their development to stall and, while they did produce cobs, the plants appeared stunted. I've read that sweet corn don't like being transplanted but I've never had a problem before - perhaps 'Swift F1' are more susceptible to root disturbance than other varieties. Next season I'm going to wait longer before sowing so it's warmer and will sow direct with no transplanting. (Below - Swift F1 initially grows strongly in root trainers).

My Autumn garlic, planted Nov '13, grew really well in the months before Winter really set in and by early Spring they really got away. There is no doubt that planting in the Autumn allows quicker plant development but, the wet conditions over Winter causes the bulbs to be more prone to diseases. While I only lost one plant to rot, by early Summer the leaves were really suffering from allium rust and I had to trim the leaves off to save the plants which resulted in smaller bulbs. I'm not planting Autumn garlic this year, I'm going to try it in early Spring as I've had success before this way though the down side is that they are ready later in the season. (Below - allium rust on the garlic leaves).

The only other poor crop was the kohl rabi 'Korfu F1'. The plants all grew well at first but black ants hollowed out a few and pigeons polished off the leaves of the rest. While the ant problem was unusual, I will need to ensure that kohl rabi is protected by nets as it's a brassica and pigeons love eating all of the brassica family.

The final negative were the unusual cucamelons I grew in the greenhouse. Don't get me wrong, the plants grew, developed and cropped very well but, they were a bit something and nothing. Yes, they were unusual and interesting, but I won't bother growing them again as my family weren't that impressed - they were just 'ok' and were hype than substance. (Below - a developing cucamelon).

The Positives.

The season was pretty good this year with warm weather and just enough rain to ensure the plot didn't suffer. Therefore, the fruit and veg did well overall so, I'll pick a few things that I tried this year that might be a new variety or a new way of planting.

Firstly I'd like to mention carrots and parsnips. I planted these using the 'bar method', where a metal bar is wiggled around to create a deep conical hole in the ground which is back-filled with a mixture of sand and compost. A few seeds are sowed on top at each station and are thinned to the strongest. This method is a way of overcoming my heavy clay soil that contains too many stones for decent root crops.

The largest leap forward for me resulted from the bar method and the carrot variety 'Sweet Candle F1'. This carrot is head and shoulders above other main crop carrots - it's a blunt-ended variety that is so good it is used for displaying at shows but still tastes better than any other carrot I've ever had. I'm not overly fond of boiled carrots but Sweet Candle, roasted with other roots and squash tastes amazingly brilliant - so incredibly rich and sweet. I still have a few bags in the freezer, pre-prepared into strips, blanched in boiling water for a few minutes and frozen in bags. I can't recommend this variety highly enough. However, there was a touch of carrot root fly so I will be covering with horticultural fleece next season to see if I can improve on, what for me, were the best carrots I have ever grown. The parsnips, 'Gladiator F1', were sown using the same bar method, sand & compost, sowing direct and thinning - the result was equally good as the carrots, large parsnips that weren't too woody and were extremely tasty. (Below - the large Sweet Candle F1).

I love Winter squashes and this year I planted Sweet Dumpling, Pumpkin and Butternut. The seed from the Sweet Dumpling was saved from last year and had been crossed with a Pumpkin by accident to produce fruits at least four times the size they should have been. These hybrids were a terrific surprise and tasted gorgeous. I have saved some of the seed for planting next season but I have no idea what they will produce. The Butternut squashes, 'Hunter F1' were terrific - they were started off in the greenhouse (like the rest) and were planted out in the space vacated by my early spuds in mid-June. (Below - stacks of Butternuts, the smaller Sweet Dumplings and the larger hybrids).

Talking of potatoes; this year I tried the blight resistant 'Sarpo Mira' main crop for the first time. Sure enough, they resisted blight extremely well. As other potatoes succumbed to blight on my neighbours' plots as early as July, my Sarpos continued to grow strongly into September and would have continued to grow if I hadn't dug them up. I haven't had such large tubers for many years though I had a fair bit of scab on them. I'll certainly be trying to source Sarpo Mira again for the next season but I'll be altering my crop rotation so the potatoes don't occupy ground previously limed for the brassicas as lime can cause scab.

The onions were good this year, the Sturon sets developing well despite having 'rusty' garlic near-by. The rust also affected my 'Musselburgh' leeks which were growing on in a tray near-by. They looked so bad I almost didn't plant them out. As I didn't have anything to replace them I stripped the worse leaves and put them out in June as normal where they grew on very well indeed. (Below - Musselburgh leeks grow on well despite a touch of rust when young plants).

I initially had a bit of a failure with my 'Blue Lake' climbing French Beans, probably due to old seed, so I replaced them with the more prolific 'Cobra  which were excellent. I'll be using Cobra next season. The 'Primo II' cabbages did well as usual and the 'Ruby Ball' red cabbage produced large heads as well with the added bonus that the slugs don't like them. However, I don't think I'll do red next season despite the lovely plants they produce as the family prefers the look of the green. I grew 'Trafalgar F1' Brussels Sprouts this year despite having great success with 'Bosworth F1' last year. The jury's still out on which are better - the Bosworth produced lovely large buttons that remained compact but likewise, the Trafalgar are doing the same. I actually picked Trafalgar sprouts in mid-October this season despite them being listed as mid-season crop from December onward. I'll probably stick with the Trafalgar if I have seed left but will consider Bosworth as I notice they have the RHS AGM award now. (Below - Trafalgar F1 sprouts being picked in mid-October).

Back in the greenhouse I grew the cherry tomato 'Gardeners' Delight' and my usual 'Alicante'. To be honest, I think I'll do away with growing the cherry type next season, they are lovely but we tend to use tomatoes for pasta sauces and cut up in sarnies so cherry varieties aren't so useful. Alicante have always done OK with plenty of mid-sized tomatoes cropping into early October. However, I'm going to try 'Shirley F1' as they have a good reputation and I want to see if they do better than Alicante - the seed is more expensive but I wonder if the crop will justify the additional cost? The 'Californian Wonder' sweet peppers were the best I've grown this season - I ensured they were fed at the same time as the tomatoes as usual but the difference was that I potted them on into larger pots than I have done in the past which really worked in terms of cropping.

I grew my usual 'Sutton' dwarf broad beans as I have for most years - starting them early in the greenhouse and getting them out on the plot under cover in March - they always do well. A bit later in the season, when I had some space, I risked a 'catch crop' of 'Bunyard's Exhibition' broad beans - what a revelation they were too. I'd never grown Bunyard's before but they grew quickly and strongly in a short space of time producing a very heavy crop of long pods despite being planted late in the season. I think I'll go with Bunyard's straight away this year as they give so much more.

The two main changes that occurred this season I have left for last. The first is that I doubled my plot size. Up until now I've had, what is considered in these parts, a 'half plot' measuring around 1024 square feet - not massive but good enough to grow a fair amount of food if I was clever enough to use some of the ground twice in a season; for example, taking up all my early potatoes in June and growing in their place leeks and Winter squash already raised in trays and pots; dropping in a few 'catch crops' of early carrots, broad beans and lettuce when other gaps appeared.

This season I took over the half plot opposite which now gives me a full plot for the first time. The new plot gives me the same growing space as the original plot but with some extra room for a shed which I luckily inherited too. I cleared the new plot throughout the summer as it was fairly overgrown having not been used last season. I even managed to get one bed sorted early enough to grow some bits and pieces on it. (Below - the new half plot before work started on it in June).

The second big change was the addition of some hens on the allotment. I've always wanted a few chickens but never had the courage or space. With the extra plot I decided now was the time to give it a go especially as a new site member had both hens and ducks. I adopted four ex-battery/ex-barn hens from the British Hen Welfare Trust charity who find homes for these poorly treated birds who are just commodities in a barbaric poultry industry. Needless to say their condition was not good - mites, worms and missing feathers but, a bit of care, attention and time can solve most of these problems and the hens soon settled in. Seeing birds that basically had no idea what being outside was like basking in the warm sun, scratching about and developing into glossy, friendly hens is a privilege.

Unfortunately the hen that became 'top' bird, who became the largest and re-grew lovely feathers, decided to die. One day she was asserting her place as head of the pecking order, the next day she settled down in some fresh straw and died. I console myself with the thought that at least she had a few months enjoying herself at the end of a short and unpleasant life. The remaining three are doing well, I get to see them at least three times a day - I open the coop at dawn, give them a scratch feed of corn late afternoon and shut them up at dusk to keep them warm and to protect against foxes. I'm fortunate to have my plot within 30 seconds of my house so it's easy for me to pop back and forth. I'm thinking of getting at least another pair in the Spring as I really love having them around and I have the space. Not only are the eggs appreciated but I put their droppings in a composter and this mix will go to improve the fertility of the soil - it's all good.

Well, that's my review of an eventful and exciting allotment year. It's been a good one which I have recorded both in this blog and, for the first time, on video (which I will keep too look back on in the future). With the festive season approaching I'll be digging up some fresh vegetables in the coming weeks for that special feast, so until then, bye for now.

I'll leave you with a recent frosty scene from the plot - Winter is here and all is now quiet.

24 Nov - Decent Frost And The Covers Go On

Clear skies last night and a change in the weather meant a decent frost this morning. It's been pretty mild so a white frost across the grass comes almost as a novelty. Despite the temperature hovering at one degree for an hour or so, the hens couldn't wait to have a scratch around outside.

Not much to do on the plot at the moment if I'm honest. I'm taking leeks and parsnips plus the odd handful of Brussels sprouts. I haven't staked the sprout plants yet but I'll do that before the windy weather arrives. I have taken quite a few leaves off the sprouts this week, hopefully this will help the sprouts develop - the majority were yellow leaves anyway and they end up littering the ground.

As it was such a lovely day I thought it might be a good time to pull my covers over most of the plot. I tried to use my tiller a few days a go but it was so wet the mud just bunged up the tines. With this in mind I thought that I'd get the covers on so the ground wouldn't be too sodden in the Spring. I'm hoping that we don't have the storms we had last year as it was basically impossible to keep the sheets anchored in place.

That's it for now, bye.

10 Nov - First Frost & Gladioli Corms

I noticed the first frost of the Autumn yesterday on the plot. The weather has been very mild and wet but it seems that the sky cleared of its rain-bearing cloud just long enough for the temperatures to drop to 2C according to the thermometer. The frost was light on the grass and brassicas, nevertheless there were small shards of ice on the black polythene paths.

The hens didn't seem to notice the powdery hoar frost and clucked impatiently, like mildly scolding primary school teachers, to be let out of their coop. After acquiescing to their nagging I took a moment to take a few pictures in the early morning light. I was somewhat amazed to see a few strawberries still flowering and a couple of yellow raspberries' 'All Gold', still nodding on their canes.

Apart from visiting my hens at dawn and dusk, I haven't done too much on the plot. This is a bit of a problem as I have to write this month's piece for the local newspaper,  quite difficult when the plot has basically gone into hibernation. Luckily I don't suffer from writers block and I can waffle about anything (as you can see from this blog).

Still, I have pulled up a few gladioli corms this week. I like to plant a few in the Spring as they are excellent for cut flowers for the house in the Summer but the corms have to come up before the first real frosts or the cold will kill them. It's just a matter of digging up the corms, cutting the stems off and storing them in a dark, frost free place until they can be replanted in April. There are always loads of little cormlets, most can be discarded though the larger ones can be kept for replanting. (Below - gladioli corms).

See you next time.

31 Oct - Pumpkin Comes Good

It's All Hallows Eve and the pumpkin I've been growing since April finally gets to be centre stage.

The variety, Jack O'Lantern, is an ideal size for both carving and eating though this strain comes from collected seed and I'm going to have to buy fresh next season as I'm getting hybrids now. While the hybrids have proved delicious, they don't look much like pumpkins. I did manage to get one to 'come true' for Halloween though.

I'm somewhat traditional when it comes to pumpkin carving, a pair of spooky eyes and a set of spiky teeth will do nicely thank you very much but Mrs Allotment Blogger is more 'arty farty' and, as carving cucurbits is her domain I guess she can do what she wants (and she does).

This All Hallows Eve the pumpkin queen has decided on a 'scene'. Cave, moon, dragon and dead tree it is then. It must have worked as we had record numbers of kids knocking the door for treats.

That's it for another pumpkin year. Now it's just a matter of roasting the seeds and pumpkin flesh and making the most of this special squash. Bye for now.

18 Oct - A Handful Of Sprouts

We've had some heavy rain over the past few days but the temperatures are unseasonably warm, hitting 18C this weekend. While temperatures are forecast to hold up for a bit longer yet, the winds are set to increase over the next day or two due to Atlantic storms.

In-between the spells of rain I've been at the plot checking out the Brussels Sprouts which are developing well in the short period of Autumn where the plants are still able to put on some growth. The sprout variety is Trafalgar F1 which is supposed to be a mid-season sprout, ready from December. I was surprised then to see a handful of good sized sprouts, enough to pick for a small taste this weekend.

Last year I grew Bosworth F1, more by accident than design as I was given some plants after my initial sowing of Brigitte F1 were eaten by a snail (see 01 Dec 2013 post). The Bosworth F1 went on to be truly excellent and if Trafalgar don't do the business this year I'll be going back to Bosworth next season. Still, let's see how Trafalgar does though I have noticed that Trafalgar doesn't have the AGM while Bosworth does, that doesn't bode well.

After digging up my first Musselburgh leek this week and, seeing that there appears to be no more evidence of leek moth etc since I checked at the start of the month, I removed the frame and enviromesh. It's a bit of a risk but the leeks are already well developed and could probably survive a late attack if it were to come. The risk is outweighed by allowing extra light for the plants and the convenience for harvesting.

During a rainy afternoon this week I tackled the garden greenhouse. The tomatoes and sweet peppers have really gone over now so it was time to clear them out. I picked a last crop of the season and then up-rooted the plants for the compost bin.

The canes are stored again for next season but I didn't get around to sorting through all pots and seed trays, a job I hate. They're just piled up at the moment but I'll have to go through them all soon as it will be a matter of months before tomato seed sowing will take take place and the cycle begins again.

That's it, take it easy. Bye for now.

15 Oct - First Leeks Of The Season

The weather has been a bit wet for the past week with heavy rain showers, often prolonged. Temperatures have still been relatively decent, hovering around 14-16C during the day and there hasn't been any frost so far.

I've been checking my Musselburgh leeks weekly for leek moth and allium leaf miner. Both these pests have increased in recent years to the point where leeks only thrive on my site when protected by enviromesh or horticultural fleece. Thankfully, by early November, the threat is over and the mesh can come off allowing the plants to benefit from a little extra light during the shorter days.

I sowed my Musselburgh leeks in a tray at the start of February 2014 (picture from 3rd Feb post) and they were planted out in early July – quite a long process but, leeks are worth it. It’s still a thrill to dig up my first leeks at this time of year and the plants will continue to stand well through the wet and cold of Winter when there is little to take from the plot except brassicas.

The leeks are already of a good size, quite surprising as they caught allium rust from the garlic when they were in their tray and I nearly didn't plant them out. The old variety Musselburgh is such an excellent leek and is worth growing year after year, you can take it from October to April. (Below - first leek of the season).

The Winter cabbages, Ormskirk Savoy, are now developing hearts. They have benefited from the removal of the nets and a liquid feed. It's nice to see them as there isn't too much on the plot now - Winter cabbages, leeks, Brussels Sprouts, Swiss Chard, parsnips and swede - though I've all manner of veg sliced and diced in the freezer and loads of squash, onions and a few potatoes in storage (not to mention the wine).

That's it for this little update - things are slowing down on the plot now, though there is still weeding and tidying to do - as always. Bye for now.

09 Oct - Autumn Arrives

While the first few days of October were cool but fine, the weather has now become cold and wet. A lovely late September lulled us into a false sense of Summer just slipping away when in reality we were all on borrowed meteorological time.

Luckily I did do a few things on the plot before the weather changed. The first job was to check my leeks under their enviromesh. I found two leek moth caterpillars and four cocoons, which I removed. The leeks are looking OK so far; I'll give it to the end of October before removing the mesh; the pest threat will be over by then and the leeks will benefit from the extra light as the sun's strength has diminished. (Below - a fine morning at the start of October).

My last Winter squash has finally gone over so I've picked the pumpkin. The vine had virtually gone to nothing so I thought it best to store the pumpkin in the shed for the rest of the month until Halloween arrives. We're not big fans of the taste of pumpkin ourselves but the seeds are lovely roasted. The main reason for growing one is for carving on All Hallows Eve, a job my wife does admirably but hates. I'm just hoping it keeps well until required.

In the first few days of the month I managed to do a bit more weeding around the strawberry patch, I started at the end of last month but it's still not finished. I was amazed to see a few strawberries on the plants too. There's still a load of weeding to do around the rest of the strawberries, gooseberries and raspberry canes but that will have to wait until the next fine spell.

It's that time of year and a key signifier that the growing season has ended is the ritual demolishing of the runner bean poles. The foliage was beginning to turn yellow and there were only a few forlorn beans left so it was time for them to come down. Canes now stored and vines added to the compost bin - all done for another year.

Just after I took the bean poles down the weather came in again with low cloud, blustery wind and very heavy rain. I waited out the squall in the shed and then made a dash for home. Autumn has announced its arrival.

On a sad note, one of my hens passed away, ironically the one at the top of the pecking order who was both the largest and had grown her feathers back. Still not sure why, one day she was putting the others in their place, the next day she went to sleep in a quiet corner in some warm straw and never woke up. RIP Lillian.

30 Sep - Prodigious Parsnips

This is the last post for the month of September and what a lovely month it has been. The weather, while cooler at nights has been largely warm and pleasant with very little rain - a real 'Indian Summer'. As a result I've had plenty of time to work on the allotment.

Yesterday (Sunday) I decided to check out the small row of parsnips I sowed back in March (see 16 March '14 post). For the first time I used the bar method, that is, using a large cane or metal bar inserted into the ground and waggled in a circle to create a cone shaped hole. The hole is then filled with a light compost and sand mixture and a few seeds sown on top which are thinned to one strong plant.

I did the same with the carrots this year which were successful. The parsnips are Gladiator F1, a good variety. So, what about the parsnips then? Any good? Oh yes, both the variety and the method seemed to work very well indeed. 

I tried to dig a parsnip out with a trowel but had to resort to a large fork in the end. It took ages to get out of the ground. I managed to snap a piece off the bottom but the parsnip still weighed in at over two pounds, (1 kg). I like the thick stumpy type as the long thin parsnips are a pain to prepare for eating. The Gladiator F1 are canker resistant and are slow to go 'woody'.

I've been doing a bit of weeding around the fruit bed too. The strawberries have put out loads of runners and had to be chopped back. I should really use some of these as new plants but I have so many strawberries now I decided not to add any more rows as the ones I have are only a two years old or younger. Maybe I'll take runners next year. 

I took the nets off the Brussels Sprouts and the Winter cabbages this week, I figure the butterflies won't be hatching too many caterpillars now. The sprouts (Trafalgar F1) are doing well and I gave them a quick liquid feed in the hope it will give them a boost while the weather is still pleasant. The Winter cabbages needed a serious weeding around their bases and a few of the leaves have been attacked by pests. Nevertheless, the Ormskirk Savoy are developing good hearts with thick, crinkly, dark green leaves.

That's it for September, bye for now.

25 Sep - Blazes: It's My New Tiller

When I took on the new plot it was in beds surrounded by scaffolding boards but unfortunately the majority of the boards were rotten and useless. I pulled up the remains and stacked them behind the shed until I could deal with them.

As we've had a spell of dry weather and I've a bit of time, I broke out the old incinerator and had a bit of a fire. The fire burned for hours and darkness eventually stopped play so I'll have to  have at least one more go sometime soon.

I've bought a new tool as you can probably tell from the furrows and ridges in the top photograph. I bought a little Mantis tiller and what a great little tool it is too. It's obviously not designed to break new ground but it's superb at cultivating existing beds. I'm really impressed with it; it's four stroke, easy to start and the tiller went through five and a half of my beds with ease only using half of its tiny fuel tank in the process. It's easy to pack up and carry short distances too, only weighing 12kg - this was one reason I bought it as I decided I wasn't going to store it on site in case of theft.

A short post for the end of the month. I'll leave you with a picture of a jolly red pepper (Californian Wonder) that looks like it's covering it's eyes and poking its tongue out. (Either that or it's pleased to see me). Bye for now.

17 Sep - Carrot Crop & Tidying Up

The weather has turned colder in the mornings but is still warm during the day, perfect for September really. There's been virtually no rain so it's been a good time to dig over cleared areas as the earth is dry on top and damp underneath.

Having harvested all the butternut squash (14 Sep 2014 post) it was time to clear the vines and generally tidy up the area. The squashes have large leaves and do a good job at suppressing weeds throughout the summer - another reason to grow them! Then it was a quick dig over.

I like to give the plot a quick dig after crops have been cleared as it stops the ground becoming too compacted. It's all about making it easier in the Spring when the time comes to plant again; besides, it just looks a bit neater over the Winter.

I took up the last of my carrot crop and took them home for processing and freezing. Some were chopped up into 'rounds' others cut into long thick strips for roasting. I've had a great carrot crop this year, the first time ever - see my post 07 Sep 2014 for the methods, results and conclusions of my carrot growing experiment. Pictured below some examples of my lovely carrots - see you soon.