Hello , wondered how it is going ? Weather now changing in Lincoln Have been on hols allotment weed free , got back and with the rain while away , lots of weeds
Hi GWRS, thanks for dropping by, hope you enjoyed your holiday. Yes, weather has turned here too, a feeling of autumn about, first lot of autumn spiders draped over the garden.
My allotment needs weeding too, I'll do some tomorrow. I've skipped a few weeks as I've been feeling a bit sour. One night a few weeks ago I left my cat out as it was hot and he was asleep in the flower bed. Somehow he managed to ingest antifreeze and had to be euthanised. Couldn't be bothered with anything for a while after that.
Some good news, my beetroot has done well, have cooked and frozen some, will stagger sowings next year to get the maximum harvest. Will check back and see which kind it was (Edit: Boston). I thought I'd let it get too big as everything I read seemed to suggest harvesting while smaller than a beetroot you'd get in a shop, but mine were pretty big but taste just fine.
Some pics from today's visit: Looking forward to trying the first apples from my dual purpose tree, Broadholme Beauty, a lovely little tree. Only one apple has a mark, I remember home grown apples from my youth as being afflicted and never ripe, but I'd happily take a bite out of one of these even while still on the tree. Hope they're nice😋
This section of peas has done well direct sowed. I direct sowed in my garden too and only got 1 plant, must be the mice issue.
Still got plenty of onions left in the ground and I dug up the rest of the garlic today, sick of it now, am going to try and offload it to others😉
Got some blacks and rasps to come, other than that am just going to plan where to put the cell raspberries I still have in pots and all the fruit cordons I want. I also want to allocate space for some surplus bulbs and I'd like a practice wallflower bed. They always look miserable and sick under my care but I love the smell so will persevere.
Hello , sorry to hear about your Cat Your sweetbpeas look great , only got “ one “ to germinate , use to do well with them , the way it goes Your apples look good , we decided to start again with apple trees and I am going to cut down the 3 on the plot Definately got an Autumal feel at moment Did you watch gardens world ? Always found gardening makes me feel better
Thanks GWRS🙂 Do you know I never watch GW, rarely any gardening programmes. Probably should, I might learn something.
Went up the lotment today, drizzly. Decided to get the emergency overflow trenches dug. After I first started one, the ground set rock hard and since then it's been raining.
Doesn't look like I dug very deep but this is the clay that was excavated: Dug up these nice silver rocks: Had enough organic rubbish saved to fill the little trench and part of the second, got no top soil to put back on the second trench so I'll use it as my weed trench for now. Hopefully I've packed it down enough that nothing can crawl in there and I'll have finished with it before hibernation time.
Least now I can plan the rest of the plot now it's clear of all the pallets/wood/twigs and stuff.
That clay looks hard work Mention g/w because on one programme they where on an allotment and the plot holder lets radishes go to seed and then eats the seed pods in salads or puts them in a curry , so am going to give it a try ? Lots of rain ☔️ today , hopefully nice tomorrow
Hey,🙂 Did you try the seed pods, any good? Supposedly you can eat beetroot leaves too. I would if someone else prepared them, I haven't a clue.
I've harvested the last of the garlic and all the onions, left them to dry in the gh. The onions were weirdly variable in size couldn't really fathom why but all the tops had gone so thought I'd better get them up.
Tried to do further planning for autumn planting. I can't make a decision on raspberries so think I will leave it til next year, have lots of cordons on my wish list and want to make some permanent flower beds.
Am toying with the idea of making a small pond in what used to be the flood zone but no longer floods. Ironic, possibly😉. What got me thinking that, is twofold. First, bats. I notice the bats figure-of-eight over my garden with the pond in the middle, that tells me that is where the insects hang out. I feel like for an allotment or garden to have health it needs to support life of some sort (not mine). Second, in addition to the bindweed I imported into the plot using topsoil from my garden, I have also brought in a eupatorium and a meadowsweet seedling, therefore pond just sprung to mind.
It's good clay-clod drying weather at the moment. Shifted some of the top layer to aid drying out of the heaps in the picture above.
My next plot neighbour kindly gave me a swede I was admiring. He says to mash like potato with pepper so that's what I'll do.
Hello , radish still in flower no seeds pods yet , will let you known We have given up on growing swedes this year , always been hopeless Raspberris a definite success, easy to grow ! Bats we get lots flying down stream at side of house , if sitting in Conservatory of an evening great to see them Spent last 2 days at plot , worn out but pleased with the tidy up , put some weed membrane on 4 beds to try , they we had cleared Dug up last of potatoes but only half of what we would normally get but it has been good to have a great summer , in fact it has been a lovely day Have some green manure to plant on 2 beds to over winter , later in month Glad it is going well
Created a flowerbed in the summer raspberry enclave today, had to dig it over twice due to all the weeds. Put bulbs underneath, various alliums and some other things I accidentally dug up. Bought loads of allium violet beauty last year and when I dug them up they fell apart into cloves. Couldn't be bothered to replant one by one in the garden so spread them out here. Don't know if they're a good allium that comes back or not so didn't want to exert too much effort. Moved in some red astrantia from the garden, they never do well although the pinks and whites are strong as oxen. They're on a last chance here. Also planted 3 veronicastrum from the garden, they're ok but just ok. Also some linaria that has selfseeded all over the place.
Organised the onions that had been drying, some normal or decent sized and some not much bigger than the seed. Sweet peas still looking colourful for saying I haven't deadheaded them: Think I've made the final shortlist of cordons to buy this winter, 4 apples and 3 pears. Tempted to go crackers and order everything I want but I'll be sorry when I have to plant it all in the clay fields. Some of the clay has started to break up but there is an awful lot of it and only two months til bare root despatch time.
Hello , plot looks good , particularly Apples 🍎 , planted a couple of apple trees many years ago , they are hopeless , decided to cut them down and start again Currently in Monmouth on way to Tenby tomorrow for 10 days Did buy 2 pear trees last year which I Espaliered and they have been really productive, so will do same with apple trees I have a fig tree which grows very well but fruit rarely ripens , gowing to fan that out Have to keep trying different things Have you seen that Wilkos are selling off seeds cheaply Good to hear from you
You keeping busy Vic, your sweet peas are looking well. Normal thing for my to dig / chop alliums up, I am always having to buy more. I think its a french thing with the beetroots, they eat the leaves but not the root.
Posts
Weather now changing in Lincoln
Have been on hols allotment weed free , got back and with the rain while away , lots of weeds
My allotment needs weeding too, I'll do some tomorrow. I've skipped a few weeks as I've been feeling a bit sour. One night a few weeks ago I left my cat out as it was hot and he was asleep in the flower bed. Somehow he managed to ingest antifreeze and had to be euthanised. Couldn't be bothered with anything for a while after that.
Some good news, my beetroot has done well, have cooked and frozen some, will stagger sowings next year to get the maximum harvest. Will check back and see which kind it was (Edit: Boston). I thought I'd let it get too big as everything I read seemed to suggest harvesting while smaller than a beetroot you'd get in a shop, but mine were pretty big but taste just fine.
Some pics from today's visit:
Looking forward to trying the first apples from my dual purpose tree, Broadholme Beauty, a lovely little tree. Only one apple has a mark, I remember home grown apples from my youth as being afflicted and never ripe, but I'd happily take a bite out of one of these even while still on the tree. Hope they're nice😋
This section of peas has done well direct sowed. I direct sowed in my garden too and only got 1 plant, must be the mice issue.
Still got plenty of onions left in the ground and I dug up the rest of the garlic today, sick of it now, am going to try and offload it to others😉
Got some blacks and rasps to come, other than that am just going to plan where to put the cell raspberries I still have in pots and all the fruit cordons I want. I also want to allocate space for some surplus bulbs and I'd like a practice wallflower bed. They always look miserable and sick under my care but I love the smell so will persevere.
Your sweetbpeas look great , only got “ one “ to germinate , use to do well with them , the way it goes
Your apples look good , we decided to start again with apple trees and I am going to cut down the 3 on the plot
Definately got an Autumal feel at moment
Did you watch gardens world ?
Always found gardening makes me feel better
Went up the lotment today, drizzly. Decided to get the emergency overflow trenches dug. After I first started one, the ground set rock hard and since then it's been raining.
Doesn't look like I dug very deep but this is the clay that was excavated:
Dug up these nice silver rocks:
Had enough organic rubbish saved to fill the little trench and part of the second, got no top soil to put back on the second trench so I'll use it as my weed trench for now. Hopefully I've packed it down enough that nothing can crawl in there and I'll have finished with it before hibernation time.
Least now I can plan the rest of the plot now it's clear of all the pallets/wood/twigs and stuff.
Mention g/w because on one programme they where on an allotment and the plot holder lets radishes go to seed and then eats the seed pods in salads or puts them in a curry , so am going to give it a try ?
Lots of rain ☔️ today , hopefully nice tomorrow
I've harvested the last of the garlic and all the onions, left them to dry in the gh. The onions were weirdly variable in size couldn't really fathom why but all the tops had gone so thought I'd better get them up.
Tried to do further planning for autumn planting. I can't make a decision on raspberries so think I will leave it til next year, have lots of cordons on my wish list and want to make some permanent flower beds.
Am toying with the idea of making a small pond in what used to be the flood zone but no longer floods. Ironic, possibly😉. What got me thinking that, is twofold. First, bats. I notice the bats figure-of-eight over my garden with the pond in the middle, that tells me that is where the insects hang out. I feel like for an allotment or garden to have health it needs to support life of some sort (not mine). Second, in addition to the bindweed I imported into the plot using topsoil from my garden, I have also brought in a eupatorium and a meadowsweet seedling, therefore pond just sprung to mind.
It's good clay-clod drying weather at the moment. Shifted some of the top layer to aid drying out of the heaps in the picture above.
My next plot neighbour kindly gave me a swede I was admiring. He says to mash like potato with pepper so that's what I'll do.
We have given up on growing swedes this year , always been hopeless
Raspberris a definite success, easy to grow !
Bats we get lots flying down stream at side of house , if sitting in Conservatory of an evening great to see them
Spent last 2 days at plot , worn out but pleased with the tidy up , put some weed membrane on 4 beds to try , they we had cleared
Dug up last of potatoes but only half of what we would normally get but it has been good to have a great summer , in fact it has been a lovely day
Have some green manure to plant on 2 beds to over winter , later in month
Glad it is going well
Put bulbs underneath, various alliums and some other things I accidentally dug up. Bought loads of allium violet beauty last year and when I dug them up they fell apart into cloves. Couldn't be bothered to replant one by one in the garden so spread them out here. Don't know if they're a good allium that comes back or not so didn't want to exert too much effort.
Moved in some red astrantia from the garden, they never do well although the pinks and whites are strong as oxen. They're on a last chance here. Also planted 3 veronicastrum from the garden, they're ok but just ok. Also some linaria that has selfseeded all over the place.
Organised the onions that had been drying, some normal or decent sized and some not much bigger than the seed.
Sweet peas still looking colourful for saying I haven't deadheaded them:
Think I've made the final shortlist of cordons to buy this winter, 4 apples and 3 pears. Tempted to go crackers and order everything I want but I'll be sorry when I have to plant it all in the clay fields. Some of the clay has started to break up but there is an awful lot of it and only two months til bare root despatch time.
Currently in Monmouth on way to Tenby tomorrow for 10 days
Did buy 2 pear trees last year which I Espaliered and they have been really productive, so will do same with apple trees
I have a fig tree which grows very well but fruit rarely ripens , gowing to fan that out
Have to keep trying different things
Have you seen that Wilkos are selling off seeds cheaply
Good to hear from you