It's Chriiiistmaaaaas!

It's been two months since my last post, namely because not much has happened that's been worthy of mention. I've been to the allotment on the odd occasion to pick a few bits and to tidy up plants as they've died back, but other than that there's been nothing to report. However, after a long and mild autumn, winter proper has arrived with a bang just in time for the festive period and I've been to the plot over the past few days to pick some veg for today's feast and to take some pictures of the pre-Christmas snow. Here's how it looked a couple of days ago.

The view from my fruit bed back across the plot


View to the shed through the cordon apples and pears

The really cold weather set in on Thursday 17th December and since then the temperature has barely risen above freezing. It is suggested that parsnips taste better after a bit of frost but I was worried they would be frozen solid in the ground! However, after some tough digging, I managed to extract plenty of good sized roots after breaking through the frozen top layer of soil. I've also managed to produce sprouts, carrots, swede, scorzonera, cauliflower and leeks for the next few days of non-stop eating, not to mention the king edwards and butternut squash stored in the garage, so I'm well pleased that all the veg for my Christmas dinner will be home grown!

On a walk up to the plot this week I stopped by at the local Wilkos store for some bird feeders and various fat-based food. There is a wide range of birdlife at the allotment, with tits, blackbirds and robins all common visitors, together with the odd thrush and sometimes even a sparrowhawk. With the cold and frosty weather they've needed a bit of help recently so I placed feeders in the big old bramley apple tree and within only a few minutes they were visited by a bluetit. The robin prefers its food at ground level so I scattered a fatball on the ground and hoped for the best that the local cats wouldn't make an appearance... I'm hoping this festive kindness on my part will be returned in the summer when the birds make a large dent in the aphid and caterpillar population!

With all the recent cold weather and long, dark nights it's easy to forget that thoughts will soon turn to spring and the growing season ahead. The winter solstice has passed and, although imperceptible at first, the days will be getting longer from now until 21st June! Admittedly I won't be doing much digging at the plot any time soon, but on Boxing Day I'll be sowing the first batch of Kelsae onion seed indoors in anticipation of a large crop in the summer. I'll also be placing my seed order in early January and visiting a potato day at the end of the month to buy the seed potatoes for next year's crop. Nothing stands still for long at the plot, and although I'm enjoying the lack of urgency that comes with one of the coldest periods of weather we've had for quite some time, I'll no doubt soon be itching for longer days, slightly warmer weather, getting out there and 'doing something' and looking for signs of the first green shoots of spring.

Have a very Merry Christmas, a Happy New Year and a successful growing season in 2010!

Autumn is here!

The amount of leaf sweeping I've been doing over the past couple of weeks confirms to me that autumn is well and truly here. After a slow start, the trees are now shedding their leaves in profusion and have given a pretty decent show of colour to boot. It hasn't been particularly cold yet and the couple of predicted frosty nights a fortnight or so back didn't really materialise here in Nottingham - the lowest temperature I recorded was 4.8C, which was chilly enough to see the last of my cucumber plants on its way but not what I would consider unduly cold for mid October.

Down at the plot its clear to see that preparations are in order for the forthcoming winter slumber. Many plotholders had their summer crops cleared weeks ago and have dug their ground ready for it to be broken down by winter frost. I'm never that keen to start clearing too early, namely because if the weather stays mild it's possible to continue cropping far longer than might seem likely. For example, I picked my last Burpless Tasty Green cucumber during the first full week of October, the chilli plants are still in flower and going strong, a few tomatoes are still ripening at home and I've helped myself to a few portions of late runner beans. A visit yesterday, however, signalled that it was time to start clearing and the pictures below show how the plot looked as of Friday 23rd October.





It's not all doom and gloom though. I've been really pleased with how my planning has provided a plentiful supply of crops for late autumn and winter use. I've started picking the first of my parsnips, swede, celeriac and scorzonera more out of curiosity than need, and the results are exciting. The parsnips in particular are long, thin and tapering (with the odd stumpy one thrown in for good measure!) and there'll be plenty of them after most of the double row I sowed germinated first time. Here's a picture of some parsnips and scorzonera from yesterday - for scale the 'perfect' parsnip root is about 40cms long.



I also have some crops growing that will stand the cold and provide a crop early next year. The brassicas I've previously shown have really grown on well in the mild weather and I may yet get to pick some sprouts for Christmas dinner. The caulis and spring cabbage are also progressing nicely and should provide some goodness through the lean times of late winter and early spring. My white sprouting broccoli is also strong and healthy and I'm looking forward to these helping to fill the 'hungry gap' next year. This is how the plants looked yesterday, the ruby chard in the foreground and the white sprouting broccoli protected from pigeons by their cage.



Allotmenteers are always thinking ahead and as one season progresses we're always mindful about those to come. Taking advantage of the still warm soil I've planted my overwintering Japanese onion sets (Senshyu Yellow) and shallots (Jermor) and also some dwarf 'The Sutton' broad beans. I've never before tried to overwinter broad beans on the plot so it will be interesting to see how they fare. I've tried to time the sowing right so that they'll germinate and become sturdy little plants to cope with winter weather without becoming too big and floppy so that they aren't able to stand the cold and wet. Only time will tell...

I've also ordered a few extra fruit trees and bushes that will be delivered bare root at the end of November/ early December. I have a maiden Denniston's Superb plum to replace the Marjorie's Seedling that died, a red and white currant, and two M9 apple rootstocks that will become my first foray into grafting next year. There are some highly productive trees on the site so I'm hoping to be able to blag a couple of cuttings and see whether I can propagate my own trees - how exciting!

Keep watching for future updates, when I'll review how things went this year and what I'll be growing next year. I have the seed catalogues in front of me so I'll sit down one evening with a nice bottle or two of beer and plan my attack for 2010. Until then, enjoy the rest of the autumn and the Halloween and Bonfire Night festivities if you're doing anything to celebrate them.

Reaping the harvest

There hasn't been that much of excitement to report over the past month or so, with little activity taking place at the plot other than picking fruit and veg! We're finally enjoying an extended period of dry, sunny and relatively warm weather for the time of year. This has prolonged the harvest of summer crops such as beans, courgettes, luscious sweetcorn and some monster cucumbers and has helped ripen and sweeten the pears, plums and apples that have been produced in profusion this year. Here's a few photos to show the harvest of recent weeks.

A belated photo of the apricots before picking in late July/ early August.

-

"Sow early for a harvest this year..." said the seed packet. Sown in March, here's the evidence that confirms the statement. The first of my artichokes, picked and eaten a fortnight ago, boiled and then dipped in an oil and balsamic dressing.

Atlantic Giant pumpkin - one of three - up against my Pear 'Beth'. It's currently about beach ball size!

Winter brassicas in their 'Heath Robinson' pigeon and butterfly proof home. Rustic but effective!

Beautiful pods of Borlotto 'Lingua di Fuoco'.

Scorzonera in flower.

-

A sea of nasturtiums across the plot!

Blight strikes again

It appears my optimism of earlier posts was premature. Visits to the plot over recent days have shown again the damage that blight can do to both potato and tomato crops in a relatively short period of time.

I first noticed a few blight spots on my maincrop King Edward potatoes last week, so started removing infected leaves in an attempt to delay its effects. I suppose it helped to keep the plants growing for as long as possible but today I decided to cut my losses by removing all the top growth of the plants after the majority of the foliage became infected. I'll leave the tubers in the ground for a fortnight or so for the skins to harden and for the blight spores to disappear and then lift the crop about a month sooner than I'd hoped. Only time will tell whether the potatoes have had enough time to bulk up and provide a worthwhile crop. As for the haulms I've removed, they'll be burned as soon as I get the chance.

Unfortunately my tomato crops in the ploytunnel and outside have also been affected, with far swifter and more devastating results. Tomato blight often appears after the potatoes have been affected but decimates the plants in only a few days rather than over a longer time period. I'm particularly annoyed about the polytunnel crop as one of the main reasons for buying it was to protect my tomatoes after the failure of outdoor plants in recent years, but all to no avail. Again the plants have been stripped of diseased foliage and I've salvaged what I could of the green tomatoes. Together with the tomatillos and a few courgettes I'll make a good batch of chutney, but it's not quite the same as enjoying fresh, ripe tomatoes for the next couple of months.

Blight is now an annual occurence on our site, usually arriving around the beginning of August. Of course it is triggered by the wet and humid conditions that have prevailed in recent summers, but I also feel that, collectively, plot holders don't do enough to mitigate the effects by taking early and decisive action when it does appear. A few on our site spray their crops with Dithane but the majority garden organically and do not spray, me included. Unfortunately the term 'organic' appears to be synonymous with 'do nothing', which couldn't be further from what is actually required to obtain good crops of organic vegetables and fruit.

Soils need to be nurtured and improved annually and plants must be grown healthily to combat the various pests and diseases that would otherwise be tackled with chemical sprays. It is also vital that action be taken to address fungal infections, such as blight, that can devastate not only your own but everyone else's crops in so little time. If action is taken early with blight, such as the removal and destruction of all infected leaves on a regular basis, the plants can be maintained for long enough to at least get a half decent harvest. But if one plot is left untouched, the blight is spread around the site more quickly than might otherwise be the case and any efforts you take end up being futile.

I'm sure there is a lot of confusion about what blight actually is, its effects and how to counter them, so I'll be putting together as comprehensive a guide as possible for next year and circulate it with the quarterly newletter I produce for the site. Hopefully plot holders will then know what to look for and, more importantly, the action they can take, whether chemical or organic, to address the problem.

High summer?

This is the third very wet July in a row now, and possibly forming something of a trend based on the jetstream flowing across the country in high summer as opposed to well north of the British Isles. It's a long, long time, July 2006 or maybe the unseasonably warm April 2007, since I was worried about water shortages and my waterbutts have remained full throughout the summer thus far. Even if things dry up now I think the ground is so well charged with water that there will be no danger of drought affecting my plants. Although the rain is welcome, I would appreciate some settled weather now to help ripen the outdoor tomatoes and other fruits that rely on sunshine and warmth to attain their full depth of flavour

After yet more copius rainfall this week, with over an inch on Wednesday and a similar amount during Saturday's deluge, the sun finally shone on Sunday for a trip to the plot. As my sister was visiting for the weekend it was a chance to show off the allotment in its prime and send her back to Harrogate with a bag of fresh veg. I was also able to demonstrate the delights of a freshly picked apricot - the 4th and final ripe fruit I'd been saving in anticipation of a family visit. It was/ they were all delicious!

Everything appears to be flourishing thanks to all the rain, with the beds looking full and lush and no signs (yet, touch wood) of any blight, mildew or general ill health amongst the plants. We managed to pick some huge beetroot, several large courgettes, a punnet of raspberries and blackberries and about half a bag full of beans. There are also some decent squashes forming now, with the first of the butternuts also setting fruit.

Here's a few pictures to show how things have progressed since mid July.

Looking across the plot to the polytunnel - rows of celeriac, beetroot, scorzonera, carrots, parsnips and potatoes...

Pumpkin patch and a close up of my biggest Potimarron squashes

Baby butternut squash - sadly damaged

Boltardy and Burpee's Golden beetroot washed and ready for the pot!

Highly productive tomatillos

Painted Ladies in bloom and a rare glimpse of some blue sky

Out and about

Although I've been to the plot several times each week this month, there's not that much to update in terms of new activity. After the hard work of spring, the plot is now in its mid summer lull, with most of my time there spent picking crops, such as runner beans and courgettes, and weeding in between the rows.

I've picked more beans already this season than the whole of last year and there's plenty more to come, with the Painted Lady runner beans both prolific and pretty with their red and white flowers. The Borlotti beans are slower this year but I noticed yesterday that the first flowers are forming. I've also picked some fantastic Boltardy and Burpee's Golden beetroot - taking little and often I've been able to thin the rows to allow others to grow larger and have managed the crop so that I won't be left with a massive glut for pickle in the autumn.

The last of the summer raspberries are still ripening and they'll soon be replaced by the first of the autumn crop. Having moved and thinned the raspberry canes in February to create room for my cordon apple and pear trees, this year's harvest of summer raspberries has been a pleasant bonus and there are now plenty of sturdy new shoots forming to carry next year's crop. Seemingly earlier every year, there is now also a steady supply of ripening blackberries, although the major harvest should come in August when I hope to make some type of jam or preserve from them.

Given the lack of action at the moment, I've used the last couple of weekends to get out and about and visit some gardens. A trip to Garden Organic, in Ryton near Coventry, was a fantastic afternoon's stroll around formal and informal vegetable, fruit and ornamental organic gardens. I've taken plenty away from this visit, such as companion planting and techniques to get the best out of organic growing systems and it was also pleasing to see that many of the techniques I use were exemplified as good practice. One thing I'll definitely be trying is green manure on fallow beds, helping to lock in nutrients and providing some back to the soil when they are worked in.

The other trip was a day at Chatsworth House in Derbyshire. The house and grounds were impressive but I was most interested in their large kitchen garden. Again it was pleasing to see that many of the techniques and growing styles were similar to my allotment, although of course on a much grander scale. They were growing a wide range of crops, some in orderly rows and others in smaller, mixed bed systems - similar to my experiment of old and new growing techinques this year. It was disappointing not to be able to enter the vine houses but a view through the glass revealed some very impressive bunches indeed - one to consider for next year maybe..!

A time of plenty...

The plot has been left a bit to its own devices recently, with only fleeting visits to pick and to keep on top of weeding. It's amazing how everything has responded to the warm weather of late, none more so that the plethora of weeds which tries to engulf everything as soon as my back is turned. I'm keeping on top of the pernicious perennial weeds as soon as they appear, such as the dreaded bindweed, but some of the annual weeds manage to get a foothold until they are either hoed off on a dry day or pulled when it's rained. The recent monsoon has thoroughly soaked the soil and so such weeding is almost a pleasure!

It's not just the weeds that have taken off recently though. Below there are a few pictures I took around the plot on Sunday 5th July and you'll see the extent to which things have grown since I last took some pictures in mid June. I am eagerly anticipating the first of my Painted Lady runner beans, the first of the courgettes have been picked and fried, the broad beans are groaning under the weight of pods and the salad potatoes have provided enough to feed a small army. Add to that a regular supply of raspberries, some tayberries kindly offered from my neighbour's plot, huge (well, I think so anyway!) gooseberries and a helping of red and blackcurrants, it really is a time of plenty - and long may it continue.

Sweetcorn reaching for the sky!

Painted Lady runner beans

Atlantic Giant (baby) pumpkins

The Kelsea giant showbench onions

Rampant tomatillos with the globe artichoke in the foreground

Inside the polytunnel jungle - tomatoes, chillies, melons and sweet potatoes

Plenty of potatoes - Pentland Javelin and Charlotte