11 Jul - Winter Cabbage & Turnips

A spot of nice weather has allowed me to plant out some winter cabbage. I sowed a few Ormskirk Savoy last month in modules and the seed germinated well despite a 'sow-by date' of 2011. The young cabbage plants have been set out in the space vacated by my early broad beans. I had intended to use this space for my leeks but having doubled the size of my plot recently, I've been able to put the leeks on the new plot.

I've grown Ormskirk Savoy for a number of years and they are a great variety which will stand throughout the winter and have a wonderful iron flavour. Savoy's, with their deep green, crinkly leaves are somehow suited to the depths of winter. I turned the soil over and added some fertilizer before planting nine cabbages, though ideally I'd prefer the ground to be firmer for brassicas but as I've already dug up the broad beans it's looser than I'd prefer. I've firmed them in well and they usually do OK. Needless to say I've covered them with a frame and net to try and keep the butterflies and pigeons off.

Though this might appear a bit strange, it's almost mid-July and I've just sown my turnips. I'm not a great fan of root vegetables though I do enjoy them in thick stews when the cold weather arrives. So, I've timed my turnip sowing so hopefully they will coincide with my swedes and parsnips in the late autumn. I've sown turnip 'Snowball' once again as they usually do well for me.

The onions are swelling really well now; at the beginning of June I thought that it would be a poor crop but over the past month they have developed well and a good harvest is in prospect. I have found 'Sturon' sets do well on my patch and I tend to buy them year after year as they are a good all round onion. Hopefully they will put on a bit more weight in the next few weeks before they 'go over' in August.

If you are a regular reader you might remember that I sowed 'Blue Lake' climbing French beans earlier in the year but they germinated very poorly. Having decided to scrap that batch I bought the renown 'Cobra' instead and they are doing much better, already giving me a good handful of beans even before they are halfway up their canes. I look forward to a decent crop of French beans which I always consider to be more refined than runner beans.

Myself and my wife have been sorting through a few pound of freshly picked blackcurrants this evening and jam making has now commenced. Great stuff. I've also got a few pound of gooseberries too - wine making this weekend? I think so. See you ...