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.

14 Sep - Butternut Squash Results

A few years ago I planted a few butternut squashes, if I recall correctly they were an unnamed variety labelled under the Wilko seed brand. I even managed to get a few squashes from a couple of plants that survived my ham-fisted growing attempts. The upshot was that the family really enjoyed them so I've grown a few for the past couple of seasons.

Over the Winter I did a bit of research and downloaded the RHS plant trial they conducted on butternuts (link at the bottom of the article) and thought I'd try 'Hunter F1' because the variety tested very well and was bred to ripen in the UK's short summer. (Below - butternuts first planted out).

I sowed the butternuts on the 15th April in a heated propagator then moved them into an unheated greenhouse when established. They were potted on into larger pots when required and ten were planted outside on the allotment in the space vacated by my early potatoes - this was on the 12th June just as the weather was warming up nicely. (Below - first fruits).

I also planted bottomless, up-turned plastic bottles next to each plant to act as a funnel for watering and feeding. Once the squash are established it can be difficult to see where the plants are anchored into the ground so the bottles get water and liquid feed direct to the roots. I used a basic, home-brand high potash liquid tomato feed once a week when the fruits were beginning to form. I hand pollinated at every opportunity to ensure fruit set on all the vines. (Below - early September and the usual powdery mildew has set in).

I harvested them on 13th September when powdery mildew had all but finished off the plants - I could have left them a week or two longer but as there wasn't going to be any further growth I decided to take them up. While I didn't get the prolific quantity the RHS got in their trial I certainly got enough squash to last a few months! I haven't counted how many butternuts I have but there is a plastic crate full plus a full hessian sack - a fantastic crop. (Below - a crate and sack full of butternut squash).

I'm delighted with the Hunter F1 butternut - the sizes vary a little but most are a good size and they taste absolutely delicious. We use loads of squashes roasted as part of a cooked Sunday lunch where they compliment the other vegetables so well. The Hunter F1 AGM are a good choice and are available from a number of seed suppliers. (Below - a decent squash harvest minus the load we've already eaten and given away - there's a pumpkin to come too).

Link to the RHS Butternut Squash trial: RHS Butternut Trial

07 Sep - Carrot Growing Experiment Results

I decided this season to try and grow a decent carrot. Not a hard thing for some people I know but, with my stony clay soil, I've never grown a carrot worthy of the name. In April I used two new ways to grow carrots on the allotment (see 11th April 2014 post) and, in good old school science parlance, here are the methods, results and conclusions.

The first method involved creating newspaper tubes, filling them with a mixture of compost and sand then sowing a few seeds on top of each tube - thinning to one seedling per tube. The tubes were stood up in a bucket until the plants had established then the whole tube, plant and all were set out in holes in the ground.

The second method I used was to push a metal bar into the ground about two foot down and to wiggle it around in circles to create a conical hole. The bar was removed and the hole filled with a prepared mixture of compost and sand. A few seeds were sown on top of each hole, again thinned to one strong plant.

Well what were the results and conclusions? Firstly, the newspaper tubes were a bit of a faff to make and to plant out without falling apart. The bar method was easier to do in a prepared bed. The carrots produced by both methods were basically the same so, the bar method is the way to go if growing in poor soils for carrots. Seed is also important, I used Sweet Candle F1 for the experiment, which produces large main crop carrots though I also tried a few Early Nantes as well with the bar method and got good a row of finger length carrots. (Below - a freshly pulled Sweet Candle F1 carrot - not very pretty but a good size).

While my crop won't win any beauty prizes at local vegetable shows they are still the best carrots I've ever grown and I'm delighted. Every carrot is of a good size with the smallest being larger than anything I've produced before. Forking in the carrots I've pulled so far has been minimal though the biggest issue I've had is splitting due to having a dry spell of weather then heavy rain causing an irregular watering pattern. Nevertheless, the odd split won't affect taste.

Conclusions? The bar method is relatively easy to do and a bucket of sand and cheap compost mixture goes a surprisingly long way and will fill quite a few holes. The method of using newspaper tubes is not worth the hassle though an alternative to both of course is to have a barrel or box just for carrot growing but this would cost a lot more in terms of sand and compost. If you are going to grow for shows then a barrel or crate is the way to go. The correct seed is pretty vital, the Sweet Candle F1 produces large main crop carrots which are equally at home on the show bench as well as the dinner plate - they taste great which is the most important thing.

That's it, bye for now ...

06 Sep - Checking Leeks and Digging Spuds

After taking up a few tubers of my Sarpo Mira potatoes (see 29 Aug 2014 post) I decided to take the rest up at the start of September. The Sarpo's are probably the largest tubers I've had for some years, not prolific, but of excellent size, possibly due to the extra time the blight resistance allows them to stay in the ground. Unfortunately there's a lot of scab on them because there' too much lime on the soil left over from the brassicas - luckily scab, though unsightly, is no problem when the spuds are peeled. I'll definitely be ordering Sarpo potatoes again next season.

Powdery mildew is now rapidly making it's way through the squashes and I've taken up a few more Sweet Dumplings and hybrids. The squash harvest has been brilliant and I've a fair few in storage already with a few more hybrids to take up and I've not even started harvesting the butternut squashes yet. (Below - hybrid & Sweet Dumpling squashes - we've already eaten a load).

As we've had some pleasantly warm weather this week I took the opportunity to weed and check the Musselburgh leeks. The leeks have been under a frame of enviromesh because of the appearance of leek moth in recent years. The leek moth usually has two generations with the second generation of larvae occurring throughout September which causes the most damage. Even with enviromesh, I still get the odd leek being munched so I start checking the plants every few days from the start of September. If the tell-tale signs of leaf eating are apparent, I gently examine where the new leaves are appearing at the centre of the leek and the grub is usually found and removed. Attacked leeks will recover if the larvae are removed in time though seldom grow to their full potential - leeks too damaged usually rot and die. (Below - leek moth larvae).

My young leeks were left in a tray near my garlic in May - the garlic suffered an attack of rust and my young leeks looked like they would succumb too. They were so bad I almost threw them out but, as I didn't have any replacements, I stripped particularly affected leaves and dibbed them into the ground in July. (Below - dibbing in leeks - see 06 July 2014 post).

Despite the initial rust the leeks have done remarkably well, putting on strong, rust free growth in the last two months. I weeded in between the rows this week and have given the them a quick liquid feed in the hope of boosting them in the event of a leek moth attack. (Below - leeks at the start of Sept 2014).

There are some gaps appearing on the plot now as crops are cleared. A large bed of winter squashes have been harvested along with the main potato crop, onions, salads and sweet corn. I tend to roughly dig over and weed these areas as I clear them and will probably give them another dig before Winter sets in as this will make life easier in the Spring.

That's it for this post - I'll leave you with a picture of the er, gorgeous Jolene - what a looker.