Showing posts with label currants. Show all posts
Showing posts with label currants. Show all posts

Monday, 11 June 2012

First week of June round up

Really quick round up, mainly in pictures of how the plot is looking as of last week.

Courgettes in the foreground, then pumpkins, then butternut squash all finally planted out

 All the flower seedlings around the pear tree are starting to grow and should hopefully cover the area in a carpet of colour.

The asparagus is looking very healthy and am looking forward to being able to harvest some next year. This year it is being allowed to 'rest' as the crowns were moved at the end of last season.

The parsnips have put out loads of top growth now so hopefully the roots are doing just as well.

First earlies are well through and main crop spuds are starting to break through. All the rain should mean some good spuds in a month or so. (My earlies went in late - so not lifting them for another few weeks at the earliest)

The swede that I germinated at home and then grew in in toilet roll tubes have been nibbled to almost nothing by flea beetle. I could spray them, but as I'm trying to do it mostly organically and without much help from anything this year will just see how they fare. Maybe next year I will let them grow on further before planting them out so there is more leaf which may make them more resilient.

Lettuce and spinach planted out

Have 4 different types of tomato this year - Moneymaker, Alicante, Gardeners Delight and Black Cherry

Carrot and beetroot are starting to come through

I started about 20 corn plants at home, and then put in several rows with 2 seeds per station which all germinated. Have moved the 2nd seed from each and now have about 80 corn plants. If they all produce a minimum of 2 cobs each there will be a good amount of corn this year.

French and runner beans are starting to climb

3 variety of peas in so far - Hurst Green Shaft, Junos and cant remember the 3rd

I've never limed before planting brassicas before so have given that a go this year to see if it makes an improvement for the cauliflower. 

The onions some set and seed are doing well so far.

The raspberries have gone bonkers!

Strawberries are all mulched now. Not expecting a huge crop as all the plants were moved last year.

The lupins are doing well and the crab apple I planted a few weeks ago is taller than the top if its protective tube.

Rhubarb is growing well and already made a batch of jam from it. Will need to split the crowns this year.

Broad beans were sowed late, so will have to pinch the tops as soon as they start flowering to deter the blackfly.


Almost everything is in the ground now. I have acquired some more currant bushes so they will need planting out if the rain ever stops. There are still some more cauliflower, brussels and purple sprouting broccoli to plant out. And then peppers and chillies and aubergine need sorting into the salad beds which I will hopefully get windbreaked this week.

Monday, 14 March 2011

Potatoes and currants

Beautiful morning and even though there had been a frost last night I decided that I was going to put my first earlies in today. They'll take a while to come through the soil and by then the frost hopefully wont be happening.

I read in one of my books to add newspaper into the trench to keep the plants moist. I had a bag of shredded documents which I though would do the job. Having spoken to one of my allotment neighbours she always adds slug pellets into the trench along with some fruit food. I had slug pellets and some growmore. I know neither are especially organic, but I lost most of last year's potato crop to slugs and there are a huge amount of the underground ones about so I thought best to give it a go.
Loaded up and ready to go

Chitted spuds (Arran pilot) shredded paper, slug pellets, growmore

Trench dug

paper, growmore, slug pellets - row one, forgot to water paper before adding potatoes

Potatoes  - did 2 rows like this, 2nd row got the paper watered before adding the potatoes

Row 1 - Earthed up


Rows 3 and 4 only added growmore and slug pellets as an experiment to see if the paper makes any difference at all.

Eek! Looks a bit like burial mounds!!

Again, a bit of an experiment to see what difference if any cloching has on the potatoes; not that I'm expecting the plastic ones to last long in the wind down there!! (But they were only £1 each from Poundland so they dont really owe me much!!)

Redcurrant and blackcurrants


Daft redcurrant already has berries on it!

They look so tiny now!

Am absolutely exhausted now, but feel like I'm making good progress :)