Friday, June 22, 2007

Weeds, glorious weeds

"Weeds, glorious weeds,


Horsetails need mowing,


Big docks and bindweed


Take no notice of hoeing"


Torrential rain and warm weather has increased the growth of those lovely perennial weeds. However, we have had the excitement of harvesting 'Lady Christl' potatoes - delicious. We've also had the last of the broad beans. Golden Mangetout continue to crop well, and there's lots of lettuce.


The birds have had a good gnaw (if birds can gnaw) of the strawberries, so I'll have to put nets over them next year.
The sweet peas are producing lots of blooms. It's vital to keep cutting the flowers, so that more buds form - if they go to seed, the flowers will stop.
I planted sweetcord 'Tuxedo' through weed suppressant membrane, and that seems to be working well. The brassicas are looking much healthier and happier now I've put netting over them. I'd not experienced pigeon damage before, and assumed the damage was due to particularly voracious slugs. Next year I'll be ready...

97A: looking good, if full of horsetail
On 99, the potatoes are growing well, including the 'volunteer' potatoes left from previous years cultivation. I've also planted some squashed and courgettes in the vain hope that they will grow rampantly and smother weeds. The rest of the plot is rather overgrown, with the warm weather, but SomeBeans is doing very well with his slow and steady digging, forking and root removal.

Friday, June 01, 2007

Laburnum Arch at Ness Gardens



Progress on plot 99, including smart number made by SomeBeans!

Long time, no post...

Everything's growing so quickly, especially the horsetails down the allotment.

Somebeans has been digging the new plot, but the weeds are growing quicker than he can dig - warm weather and rain have combined to produce something which would shame a rain forest.

In the greenhouse:
  • various squashes
  • cucumbers 'Marketmore (for outside) and Aurelia F1 (for inside)
  • cosmos which need planting out
  • Tigerella tomatoes which I'll try outside, as I've already got some inside
  • alpine strawberries
  • and lots more!

Flowering in the garden:

  • Californian poppies
  • Alliums
  • Rainbow chard (!?!)
  • Forget-me-nots
  • Heuchera
  • Snapdragons which survived over winter
  • Lupin (singular)
  • French lavender
  • Aquilegia
  • Roses

And as for harvest from the allotment: broad beans, a few golden mangetout, lettuce (all year round planted in November), and strawberries.

Notes for allotment for next year:

  • PUT PIGEON PROTECTION UP!!!!!!
  • Not sure about crimson flowered broad beans - look pretty but don't loook as though they'll produce a big harvest
  • Plant more mangetout
  • plant more strawberries
  • Don't leave grass paths in!!