The 2015 Allotment / Veg Patch Thread Part 3 already!

[agoodbook]

Just seen the other is full , so here goes - we are heading for summer now! Welcome to everyone old and new :)

here is a link to the previous thread

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/gardening/2350947-The-2015-Allotment-Veg-Patch-Thread-Part-2?msgid=54546739

[DuelingFanjo]

Just marking my place. I finally have a courgette popping up in a pot so maybe my squash will eventually make it.

[RoosterCogburn]

Dueling I planted 6 squash and only one has germinated, perhaps yours will appear soon.

I've planted out some rocket and sweetpeas today, I've also netted my brassicas. Last year I didn't bother and the caterpillars had a field day.

I've been promised some well rotted manure from a local stables so DH is going to put it onto the beds we are not using this year.

[ethelb]

Woohoo! Third thread!

I just got back from six hours at the alloment and it is well and truely Pimms o'clock.

We cleared and dug over a bed for the kale, which is now planted and netted. I cleared and dug over a HUGE bed for the cucumbers and tomatoes which will go in tomorrow.

Yesterday we strimmed everything around our alloment and did our edges, Planted the courgettes, pumpkins and put in a nastertium boarder for the bees.

It is starting to look pretty good! Just need my brassicas and alliums to hurry up so I can plant them out. I got my sweetcorn out of the greenhouse and under fleece for planting out in a week or two. Is that too soon?

[Piratespoo]

Ooh! I hope it loads better than the other one!

I took the kids up to my allotment today and my 4 year old decided to chop around with the hoe and hacked my best growing sweetcorn right in half! I only had five and one looked distinctly weedy...of course he chopped the healthiest looking one. I was not pleased!
I did do some weeding, and noticed one courgette has completely been eaten...that leaves three. I have a few in my greenhouse but will have to harden them off I suppose.

My broad beans and sugar snap peas and post aids are growing well...so that good. I noticed a neighbour had sprinkled blue pellets all around his plants...slug pellets? Think I will get some.

[minkGrundy]

I had another quick look at the allotment. Still seem to griwing a lot of nothing. A few signs of peas and mangetout and 2 beetroot out of an entire row. Might be too dry. Bit of rain would be nice.

[agoodbook]

evening!
Duelling - I have sown two varieties of squash, and resown them as I thought they were not going to germinate. One variety , Crown Prince -have now all come through, ( 8 ) but the butternut so far only 3 have come through - all done exactly the same
ethelb - sounds amazing - you are the other way round to me- I have already hardened off and planted sweetcorn and brassicas, but the kale is a few weeks behind- not sure I know what happened there! and the courgettes and squash have to be hardened off this next week
Piratespoo - its never ever the runts that get the chop is it ?.
mink is it worth sowing some beetroot in plugs to transplant? I have direct sown, and done plugs, and the plugs are growing away nicely- the direct sown still only have 2 little leaves on mostly - I think mine is too dry as well- they did better once we had some rain. But unlike those further south,the rain is mostly missing us .
Though I think I have to resow my row of swede - they germinated, but a late frost last week seems to have done for them

[WhoKnowsWhereTheTimeGoes]

Just marking my spot for now, we're away this week so my seedlings are all on a saturated towel in the bath at home, apart from cucamelons which are in a propagator on a sunny windowsill. Enjoying reading what you're all up to.

re block planting, I've done it in a small raised bed before, bed is 90cm sq, I marked it out into 9x 30cmsq blocks with marks on the boards and sowed radishes, carrots, lettuce in a diagonal pattern, two lettuce per block, or 3 or 4 short rows of radishes/carrots. Also had nasturtiums to tumble over the sides at the 30cm marks and fitted in a couple of basil and coriander plantings on corners too. I was pretty impressed with the results, needed a lot of feeding/watering though.

[violetwellies]

Wow another thread so soon.
I've desperately over planted I know. But there are so many murderous creatures waiting to decimate everything I'm working on the theory that some might just make it if I plant enough.
If it all comes through we'll just have to live on the thinings

[RoosterCogburn]

Violet you have to allow for attrition!
I planted 8 cucumbers and only one sad specimen survives after a slug had a feast in my greenhouse.

[agoodbook]

Its definitely a war
violet - thats why I sow mostly in plugs/pots , and then transplant - I always have back up - and when I am sure all is well, the local primary school has a plant sale, and I give the spare away.
Rooster :( only 1 left? I was considering that copper tape stuff across the door to my greenhouse, but at the moment things seem to be slug free -- I have a hessian non welcome mat at the moment - famous last words?
as a thought - most of my pots/plants in the greenhouse are all stood on a wire shelving unit- and not the bottom shelf at that- wonder if that helps

[minkGrundy]

I have put beetroot in propagator for plugs for first time ever for just that purpose. Its is coming up already!

[PlumpingThePartTimeMother]

I love how busy this thread gets at the weekends oh and funnyperson, if you're here, no shame in what you posted!

I have been splitting my tomatoes/tomatilloes into separate pots and have now established Tomat(ill)o City. Also quite excited because flowers are now happening and so fruits will hopefully follow!!

[TheSpottedZebra]

Ooh, lovely new thread!

I'm still fretting over what to put outside and when. It is unseasonably cold here still, but the rain seems to gave eased off at least.

You'll be pleased to learn that my corn and borlotti at the allotment are all still alive. I have started to move tomatoes outside. Well, to the blowaway. It's small and my tomatoes are many so it's a gradual process! Plumping is your Tomat(illo) City an outside one?

Some of my plot potatoes -first earlies- are getting a teeny flower. Does this mean anything? I've read that it means they're nearly ready, but also that it signifies cold night time temps... And how do I know when they're ready, is it when the foliage dies back a bit? It feels like that's a few weeks off, at least.

I may copy you all and grow more beetroot in plugs, to transplant. I will have a beetroot this year!

[mousmous]

how do I know when beetroot are ready to harvest?

[PlumpingThePartTimeMother]

It is indeed Zebra! I'm a bit blasé about hardening things off because my indoor plant area can range from 8-35 degrees in a single day; they all germinate and grow happily in there so I just stick them outside when they get too big. They can come in again if they look pitiful after a few days

My corn seedlings are getting battered by snails - I'm hoping one or two survive!!

[agoodbook]

Morning!
mink - its amazing how quickly some things germinate! I don't have a propagator, but sow things like beetroot/spinach into little plastic plug trays ( I keep them when I have bought plants) and shove them outside that way I don't have to worry about hardening them off!
Plumping - very impressive :)
spotted flowering on potatoes = nearly ready! - for 1st early varieties let them all come into flower, and then when the flowers are properly open ( very delicate and pretty) try scraping back some of the soil on one of the plants to see if you can lift any . This is when you find that regardless of how careful you are, the fork/trowel always goes straight into/ through the nicest specimen!
mousmous - start thinning beetroot -( they germinate into 2 or 3 little plants)-leave one every 2-3 " and if the leaves are okay, chuck them in a salad.You will begin to see the top go the root getting bigger -then start thinning the inbetween ones at golf ball size, and leave the others til a bit bigger , its usually somewhere around 2-3 months from sowing to harvest

[TheSpottedZebra]

Lovey, Plumping - right, you have inspired me to shift the hardening off up a gear...!

Nearly ready, agoodbook -Ooh that's exciting. Well to be honest it's just a smattering of teeny buds at the mo, but good to know that it's all happening. Plus I want that space for other stuff. I went to the allotment shop yesterday for the 1st time, and saw that they have massively over ordered potatoes, and after a series of reductions, the seed potatoes are now free. I came away with none, as I really don't have any more space . Not sure what I am going to follow my potatoes with, probably I will play fast and loose with regards to rotation and do a mix of stuff, including tomatoes.

[agoodbook]

Best not tomatoes spotted if possible - they are the same family and can get blight. But there is lots you can grow - lettuce/spinach/spring onions/beetroot/carrots/turnip - cabbages/cauliflowers for autumn and winter or even flowers for the bees in late summer :)

[TheSpottedZebra]

Oh I know it's a massive blight risk, but I have loads and loads of tomato plants that I need to find space for. I've given a few away but I still have lots. And I really like tomatoes. But yes, I will sow fewer next year

I'm not that fussed yet about growing cauli and cabbage. Probably because I remember seeing ones crawling with caterpillars when I was young, so i have filed those away in the 'advanced gardeners only' section of my braIn. I'll def try some beetroot and turnip there, and probably left over courgettes, but still suspect there will be some tomatoes sneaking in there too. Is that allotment suicide? I've got a couple of blight-resistant varieties (that Gardener's World freebie) growing.

[ethelb]

Agoodbook I know I seem to have done it all a bit back to front! Courgettes and pumpkins have done well already. They have pretty much doubled in size since I put them in on Saturday. I had disastrous pumpkins and squash last year so fingers crossed this one goes better.

The cucumbers and tomatoes went in today. Maybe a bit early?

We have a very windy plot and today is less windy than normal and we have some heavy cloud cover, so hopefully they don't all curl up and die. Last year I made the rookie error of planting on a windy summer day and they shrivelled up in about two hours! Luckily they recovered but I thought I would put this year's in while the conditions were right.

This week I will mainly be getting in some last minute seeds that I haven't got round to sowing yet. Chard, lettuce etc

Has anyone planted their Florence fennel yet?

[TheSpottedZebra]

You've planted cucumber and tomato in open ground, ethel ? Right, I will def put some toms out this week then.

I've bought canes, do I just shove a cane vertically in the soil after planting each tomato, and tie on as necessary?

[AlternativeTentacles]

My florence fennel is in small blocks in a seed tray. It can bolt so I got a bolt resistant variety this year. Best sown again after 22nd June as the days start getting shorter to be honest.

Took some photos at the allotment last night.

Firstly - my 'pond'. It really is just a storage box left out to collect water. It had tadpoles in two years ago and this year, as I was tidying round it - loads of frogs started leaping about so I put back some wood, some grass and left them to it. I went back down later and took a photo of one of them - top left hand corner. What a cutie!

And the limanthes. Usually flowers in Feb. Started flowerin a fortnight ago. Just shows how late it is. A couple of garlics nestled in amongst them for good measure. All self seeded.

And the crimson clover. I sowed a bed of green manures last autumn, dug them in a month ago when the spuds went in and I left a strip to flower. Love the flowers on these.

[RoosterCogburn]

Love you 'pond' alternative
I did try and persuade DH that one of our weedy overgrown flower beds would be the perfect site for a pond but he muttered something about them being high maintenance.

My sweetcorn was looking really sad a few days ago, yellow and wimpy, but today it seems to be a bit healthier.

Spotted I grew cabbage for the first time last year and they ended up crawling with caterpillars.
This year I have netted my brassicas (no cabbage though, last year put me off) so I am hoping to have a better success rate.
My cucamelon seeds arrived on Saturday (I forgot I had ordered them) so I have planted some - do you think it is too late?

[AlternativeTentacles]

They are not high maintenance, unless you call looking lovingly at the frogs 'maintenance'!

[mousmous]

a pond in the right location is not high maintenance, you just need to clear out too much plants twice a year.
and lovingly look at the frogs, dragonflies