12 Jan - Seed List For 2019

It's the beginning of 2019 and my thoughts are already turning to plans for the growing season on the allotment. January always seems a bit premature but it isn't really because seed potatoes, onion sets, garlic bulbs as well as a myriad of seed packets will be appearing in the shops as soon as the Christmas left-overs have been cleared from the shelves.

I tend to shop online and in my local Wilko store; my preferred seed varieties are purchases via a company on eBay that stocks virtually everything I want and Wilko are cheap for more bulky items like Early potatoes and onion sets.

I've been in a bit of a quandary about Maincrop spuds this year. I normally order Sarpo Mira as they are pretty blight resistant, produce a good crop of tubers and stand well into late September/early October whatever the weather. However, price is a factor here as I can't get them locally so I have to order them from major suppliers (not cheap) and pay hefty postage rates. This was worth it when I had a larger plot and were planting loads, now, it seems less cost effective.

I've been checking out RHS spud trials and the variety Picasso has an AGM award for producing good sized tubers and disease resistance. This, in conjunction with Wilko selling them in 2kg packs this year for £2.50, makes me want to give them a go this season. If I cant get Picasso at either of my local stores, though they are listed on their website, then I'll rethink my choice.

I usually grow cheap Alicante tomatoes but I've been given a packet of Shirley F1; people swear by these and won't grow anything else but I tried them a few years ago and had terrible germination rates, also £3 for 10 seeds make them a poor choice compared to great crops from my usual Alicante at 99p for a few hundred seeds. So, I'll give Shirley F1 a go though I will sow a few Alicante as back-up!

I tried Corno Di Rosa Toro (Red Bull's Horns) sweet peppers last year (instead of my usual California Wonder) and they were great so I'm going with them again this season. The Bosworth F1 Brussels Sprouts have done well for me over the years and they are so reliable (even in the drought), don't blow and are available from October to March so I won't grow anything else. I've grown Tundra F1 Winter cabbages for the past few seasons and they have been good but I'm going for January King just for a change.

Proposed Seed List 2019

Leeks - Musselburgh (awful in 2018 due to drought)
Tomatoes - Shirley (as I've a free packet)
Bell Peppers - Corno Di Rosa Toro
Broad Beans - Bunyards Exhibition (drought hit in 2018)
French Bean (Climbing) - Cobra
Runner Bean - Firestorm
Garlic (Spring planting) - (whatever soft-neck I find locally)
Lettuce - Lollo / Little Gem
Mixed Leaves - Mesclun Mix
Radish - French Breakfast
Salad Onion - White Lisbon
Brussel Sprouts - Bosworth F1
Cabbage - Summer - Pimo II
Cabbage - Winter - January King
Kale - Curly Dwarf / Tuscan
Potatoes - First Early Rocket
Potatoes - Maincrop Sarpo Mira or Picasso
Onion Sets - Sturon
Parsnip - Gladiator F1
Carrots - Sweet Candle & Resistafly F1
Beetroot - Boltardy
Courgette - Defender
Pumpkin - Big Max
Butternut Squash - Hunter F1 (I've a few Crown Prince I'll sow too)
Sweetcorn - Incredible F1

That's it for now. Bye.

26 Dec - Review Of The Year

It's that time again when I take a quick look back at the year and review what went well and what didn't. Well, there was quite a few 'didn'ts' in 2018 largely due to the drought we had that stretched from the middle of June to the end of August.

I'll bang through my proposed growing list for 2018 as published on Dec 06 2017. The Musselburgh leeks failed as they were transplanted just as the drought started and they really didn't get underway. The Alicante tomatoes did well in the greenhouse and produced well into the late Autumn. Also the Corno di Toro Roso sweet peppers were lovely, this is the first time I grew these and will be doing so again. I did have to move them from the greenhouse to the open air as it was too hot for them, though it was an usually hot year.

Broad beans died because of the drought just as they were developing pods; the French and Runner beans were OK but they didn't last into the Autumn and went 'over' rather quickly - again I think the lack of water took its toll. The garlic started well but died in the space of a fortnight and the Sturon onion sets remained small and were finished a month early.

Salad crops were OK, plenty of lettuce and mixed leaves though they eventually went to seed due to the heat. Salad onions failed along with the radish that largely bolted. As for the brassicas, they were more resilient than I thought: the Summer Primo II cabbages produced well and the Winter Cabbages Tundra F1 are looking tatty but are still edible as I write. (I'll probably sow these a month later in May next year). The Brussels sprouts, Bosworth F1 have developed well and have produced a decent crop despite an attack of white fly and the pigeons picking at the tops again. I didn't sow Kale as planned due to lack of room.

Potatoes - the earlies, Rocket, were ready before the drought hit in June so were as expected. The main crop Sarpo Mira never developed the large plants above ground that they normally do, they looked small and stunted well into the Autumn and I lost a few plants too. I was therefore surprised to get some nice spuds from those that survived. I had some decent sweetcorn but quite a few went unpicked and ended up as chicken treats.

As for the other root crops, the Gladiator F1 parsnips failed to germinate, not a single seedling appeared despite sowing a good pinch per position; I've never had this before. A major success were the carrots especially the Resistafly which produced loads of decent sized carrots over the season despite me totally over-sowing them; these have become my new carrot of choice for planting directly in the plot. The Sweet Candle carrots in the barrel are still there and I've been pulling the odd one through the Autumn and Winter. The Bolthardy beetroot grew and developed through the season as if it was a normal Summer and seemed unaffected by the dry weather; it's pickled in jars and is being eaten over this Christmas period.

The courgettes did OK, plenty on them but they died off a bit sooner than usual. A decent pumpkin developed too though I was worried for a while! The largest success in 2018 has to be the Winter squash, namely the Hunter F1 butternut. The butternut enjoyed the heat and I watered them regularly through my funnel system, (I always bury a plastic bottle with the bottom cut off upside down next to the squash when I first plant them out - this funnel ensures that the water and liquid feed get straight to the roots). 

Over all, 2018 was a forgettable year on the allotment mainly due to the drought and I'm still getting to grips with a much smaller allotment after giving up the other half. There's still some decisions to be made on the best things to grow in a smaller plot. Anyway, that's 2018 done and dusted, we've had cold weather and snow early in the season then baking sun and drought through the Summer. Let's hope 2019 is better.

Bye for now.