Strange yellow ball in the sky!

Something strange has appeared in the sky. I think I recognise it but it's been so long... Yes, the sunshine has returned, and what a sight to behold! May has been generally cold and grey, so it was a surprise to see some semblance of a warm-up on Sunday followed by two really quite warm and sunny days. The forecast is set fair until at least Sunday - what a difference a week makes.

Looking at the plot it appears the weeds have grown in profusion but many of my seedlings have failed to germinate. It was wet in early May but it's been cool, dry and windy since (current weather excepted) and the soil has capped on the surface. This seems to have had an impact on the germination success of everything from salads to root crops to legumes by creating an impenetrable barrier. Parsnips and salsify are a no-show, there's not much to report from two rows of carrots and as yet I cannot see the emergence of any beetroot. There are a few peas trying hard to poke their heads through the surface cap of soil but that's about it.

The main vegetable interest comes from those seeds I had earlier sown undercover and then transplanted on the plot. Peas and broad beans are moving now, the little gem lettuce is starting to heart up and the giant (I hope) onions are starting to kick on. I also have a few plants of calabrese and cauliflower - these I sow little and often so I can transplant a few at a time throughout the growing season to avoid a glut. All the spuds are well through their ridges now and will soon need earthing up, although I'm certain there won't be a crop until July at the earliest.

In a couple of weeks the plot will green up further once the summer transplants are set. I have sweetcorn, various squashes, courgettes and assorted beans relishing the warm weather in my glasshouse but I'll wait until June before they go in. It's always tempting to get them in when it first gets warm but I think they'll be happier being protected for a few more weeks yet until the nights are consistently warmer. Outdoor tomatoes can also wait and the cucumber and melon won't go out until nearer the longest day.

Speaking of tomatoes, I'm really disappointed this year. I had been growing a large number of different varieties but it's been so cool and grey that they have become long, drawn and very spindly. I decided to try and pot-on and fatten-up the best (or should that be least worst?) of them and binned the rest. I always grow too many so it might not be such a bad thing. Again I expect the crop to be delayed as they're nowhere near ready, even for the polytunnel.

The soft fruit seems consistently good from a cursory glance amongst the foliage of the gooseberries and currants. The raspberries seem a couple of weeks behind where they were last year, when I was picking them from about mid June, but they have flower buds and they're progressing ok. They'll certainly be worth the wait and I think fresh raspberries are probably my favourite soft fruit, although don't tell my new strawberry plants :-)

A month to forget

No post for a month pretty much sums up April in a nutshell. Weather-wise it was a rotten month here in Nottingham - cold, wet and often windy and a real shock to the system. If March brought us June's weather a season too early, April took us straight back to February and the weather has really played havoc with the allotment.

It was a rubbish month for me as I spent most of it either getting ill, being very ill, before then recuperating very slowly. An unshakeable cold and cough at the end of March turned into pneumonia by Easter and thereafter followed a period of time feeling distinctly unwell and popping some pretty strong tablets to try and clear away the infection. It actually didn't take too long for them to have a positive effect but it did take an age for me to feel well again and I am only now getting my energy levels back. As a fit, healthy man in his mid thirties I can now see why it can be a very serious illness for anyone with underlying frailty.

Back to the plot, the cold weather has meant I've not fallen as far behind as I feared due to my enforced inactivity. Nothing has really moved on from where it was at the end of March. The apple blossom has opened but bee activity has been limited to the occasional sunny day and I will soon be able to assess the impact on the potential fruit crop this autumn - my fear being that it will not be great year for my apples and pears. The combination of cold wind and lashing rain does not promote a good fruit set and, if I were a bee, I'd have spent April firmly in my hive!

The other downside to the cold weather, and in particular the chilly nights, has been the lack of potential to harden off the tender crops. I have some healthy, if a little spindly, tomato and pepper plants that I dare not put into the cold greenhouse and so they sit on my windowsill longing for some sun and warmth. It is only this weekend that I have started my various beans, squashes, cucumbers and melons as I have no space for them indoors and it's just been too cold for them to germinate outside even with protection.

Grumbling aside, some crops are progressing ok and have benfitted from the high rainfall. The onions, garlic and shallots are now looking strong and sturdy and the early peas and bean transplants are healthy. It also looks like the soft fruit (gooseberries, redcurrants and blackcurrants) are carrying a good crop and they appear to enjoy the cooler and wetter conditions more than the top fruit. A few potato haulms are also poking through the ridges I created when they were first planted. Late frosts aside they should now grow apace and I hope to be harvesting the first crop some time towards the end of June.

So that was April in a nutshell, a month with very little input on the allotment due to ill health and poor weather. May has started cool and wet but the days are noticeably longer and I am hoping for better things as the month progresses. As an optimist I can see the benefits of the rainfall, with the ground now well charged and my four waterbutts full to overflowing. This bodes well for when the hotter weather eventually arrives. I am also a beliver that nature has a way of balancing things out. We really needed the rain, and it has come in bucketfuls. Fingers crossed the sun shines kindly when we want it in summer, with warm evenings, gentle breezes and occasional overnight rain to provide optimal growing conditions and prevent a return to drought conditions. We can but dream!