Squashes planted

Took advantage of some relatively benign weather to visit the plot for an hour or two yesterday. I'm currently on paternity leave, which means some very intense periods of activity at home - usually involving nappies - followed by spells where my wife and baby are resting. After finishing all the chores at home the plot offered an opportunity to grab some fresh air to stave off mid-afternoon tiredness. So, pots washed, washing hung, hovering finished, baby and wife peacefully sleeping = quick trip to the allotment.

After some quite heavy recent rains and milder weather the soil was in perfect condition for my various squashes to finally go out. They were strong, robust plants but exhibiting the signs of having exhausted the energy reserves in their compost - slight yellowing of leaves namely - and needed to be planted asap.

I haven't employed a particularly sophisticated approach to squash planting this year, given the time restraints, it being more a case of 'bung them in and leave them to it'! My idea was to create a low maintenance squash/ pumpkin patch to cover ground, smother weeds and provide a harvest that can be stored for late autumn and early winter use - just round about the time baby might be sampling pureed food for the first time. This should minimise weeding requirements over the summer and the plants can be left to their own devices save for the odd glug of water in very dry spells.

The patch in question had received a thick cover of mushroom compost the previous autumn and was generally in very good condition. I dug the soil in the immediate area where the plants would be set (planting in pockets as opposed to full cultivation of the land), added some rough compost and chicken manure pellets and made an approximate circular bowl 60cms in diameter. The plants were set in the middle of this bowl with a handful of chicken manure pellets underneath them for good measure. Cane in the ground to mark the centre of the plant (for future watering requirements), a good drink followed by a mulch of rough compost.

In reality, the area is probably over-planted but I know from experience that vines can be wound round in circles and they'll happily scramble over each other. Just need some warm days and nights, a bit of steady rain to keep the soil moist, and I'll have a pumpkin patch that will be the envy of my fellow plot holders... Varieties include marrow Long Green Trailing, Atlantic Giant and Jack O' Lantern pumpkin, Butternut 'Hawk', mixed 'sunshine' squashes and 'Autumn Crown' - a cross between Butternut and Crown Prince squashes.

No other major activity to report other than a successional sowing of lettuce now the first batch is ready to harvest. I also sowed some mixed radishes and spring onions in drills between the celeriac, scattered some swede seed in the brassica cage and sowed some calabrese and mini caulis in modules for planting out in about a month.

I think I will soon start to reap the first meaningful harvest from the plot. Little gem lettuce, Anya potatoes in pots, strawberries and gooseberries are all now there for the taking. Let the good times roll!