Allotment/Veg Patch Thread 6 - Weed 'em and Reap!

[bookbook]

Thanks WhoKnowsWhereThe Time GOes for the title of the new thread.
So, we head into summer, praying for sun, gentle rain and no slugs
Everyone welcome to join in and share joys and woes and advice, given freely!
Previous thread here
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/gardening/2582241-Allotment-Veg-Patch-Thread-5-The-Diggers-Rest?pg=1

Oooh, lovely bright borlotti harvest book. I must get mine in.

That's interesting about the leek varieties - the blue is really attractive! (Rather amusing that 'prizetaker' takes no prizes as well!)

Definitely hear you on the 'back end' of things. It is really cold here today - just ordered this year's stack of winter logs.

Wow book what are you going to do with all those beans?! Can you freeze them raw? Really happy - did a bit more clearing earlier and found some strawberries!

Embarrassed to say I had to look up 'overwintering'! Still not 100% sure how it works

weed - you can dry them and keep in an airtight jar, but I open freeze them. That way, I can take out how many I need. I then give them a soak - about an hour, and a boil for about 15 minutes. I use them in soups and casseroles for over winter. It doesn't look many , but the ones I harvested last year have only just been used up. I do like things that can 'store' rather than have to eat or cook straight away, it just takes a bit of pressure off.
Overwintering - I sow direct into the ground broad beans ( and you can do peas too) in about 3-4 weeks time. I cover them with fleece ( over hoops) They germinate slowly, but are little plants ready to go come early spring, and gives me a crop about 2-3 weeks earlier than doing them in spring. I also sow some in pots in the greenhouse in November, to fill in gaps as insurance ( I had a disaster this last winter - about half didn't germinate seemingly - dug up by mice I think, then the others were doing nicely, when we hd a storm in December, which ripped the fleece away, along with my little plants). Its basically not putting eggs in the one basket syndrome - I will sow more in early spring too. I also do that with shallots , though they only need netting against birds pulling them out. And don't forget garlic - that will need planting soonish too. That does need the winter cold to get it to split into cloves. Tradition there is to plant out on the shortest day, and harvest on the longest :)

I think loads of us had a disaster with overwintering pea and bean germination last year - pretty sure Monty Don had problems too. I definitely did.

The other great thing with overwintering is that peas and beans are nitrogen-fixers, so it's a bit like having a light green manure on the soil. Stops nutrients washing away, and revs it up a bit ready for some heavy feeders in the summer.

I don''t have book's patience, so I blanch and freeze borlottis. You can then use them straight out of the packet without the soaking.

Evening!
weed - be ready for a strawberry harvest next year !
So - an hour podding borlotti beans -( chocolate was necessary :)) but such a joy - they are beautiful, if beans can be called so...
If anyone is interested, I podded over 4kgs. That is off 10 climbing plants which have been left to themselves , bar a little watering in the dry periods, -just left to grow up cane wigwams . So basically as easy as is possible , bar the podding...- and about 100/150 gm makes a large amount of bean casserole

book those beans are beautiful! I'm going to try some next year. No doubt I'll be back asking what I'm supposed to be doing?

My strawberries are flowering again. what's going on there?

I've had a fruit catalogue arrive so am pondering my future raspberry requirements! Tempted to try their dwarf patio variety for something a bit different.

Oh, and I noticed yesterday that my tomatoes are nearly over. They did well considering how neglected they were! I'm actually quite looking forward to clearing out the greenhouse a bit when they're finished. The soil is very dry in there, how do people improve theirs? Do you completely replace?

I'm trying to think of a new thread title but nothing comes close to Weed em and reap! Was that Whoknows' idea?

Oooh, they are lovely and fat book!

And yes, it was whoknows who came up with the current thread title- she's brilliant at this!

Those borlotti beans look good. We had a few plants this year and they did OK but I should have planted more. I was also under the mistaken impression that they were a climbing variety but they weren't so a few pods got slugged before I noticed.

We grew the tomatoes in the soil this year because we had a spare patch in the garden. In the past we've grown in pots and they always get blight without fail. So a couple of years ago decided not to bother again. So this year we got more fruits even though they did get blight. I don't know whether we'll bother next year.

I've not tried overwintering beans or peas yet. My plot neighbour did broad beans but they didn't do that well last winter. Mice got my pea seeds this year so I'll have to start those off in pots next spring. I did a few like this but tried direct sowing as well and it wasn't a success. Our pea harvest consisted of about 3 pea pod this year. Just slightly ahead of our carrot harvest of one carrot!

cedar - my carrots have been crappy too! I really, really love homegrown ones, but I have not yet mastered the art of producing a decent crop. I think I am going to try them at home in a raised bed (which is high enough to avoid fly) where I can stand guard over them. Roots are my achilles heel - apart from celeriac, oddly.

I am going to sow my overwintering peas and beans very soon. I know it's a little bit too early according to what the books say, but because my plot is right on the edge of the city and quite high, I don't want to repeat last year's mistake of being a bit too late and then struggling. I figure there is a lot of stuff around for mice to eat right now, and the slugs have had a tough, dry summer too, so am hoping to sneak one past both of those pests!

Morning!
I am no good at carrots, and no good this year again at swede - neither do well, though the little stubby chantenay have been okay-ish so far. The grower who gave me those amazing carrots - his were in a raised bed of what looked like a mix of sand and compost. He also had them in an old greenhouse, with enviromesh instead of glass. True determination!
I have been looking at borlotti bean recipes, and I am going to give this a go I think, if I whizz and go and pick some courgettes
hummus
I am also going to do some for baked beans on toast too I think, before they get frozen. I may have been niggley with how many beans I use in casseroles as well, looking at other recipes ( basically the one I do has lots of other things with it)
Well, will have to think of a thread title very soon, as I think we need one up tonight - so yes to suggestions!!

Thanks for the voices of reason! My DP told me off for being hard on myself generally as well. I flaked out on the sofa for most of yesterday afternoon, watching Monty Don docos on YouTube - so basically gardening really and popped past the plot for 5 mins later on, just to have a look and make myself feel better that it isn't going to drown under weed regrowth if I miss a few days. Then went back this morning before work for an hour, was there right as the sun was rising and it was beautiful, so peaceful and quiet. Got an hour of weeding done, nothing too strenuous but lots of grass & bindweed roots banished. Bit by bit :) it is only 5 mins walk from my flat, I'm really lucky. I do feel really conscious of the decreasing daylight though, before long will be dark before and after work and there'll be even less opportunity to get there.

I am dithering about whether to sow green manure on my rotational beds. The thing is, the site gets a huge delivery of council compost for free, which I was going to dig into the beds, but not until the end of November, about 8 weeks away. Obviously weeds are going to keep popping up between now and then, although I could just keep on top of them I suppose. But deliberately sowing green manure might be a more sensible option? Leaving space for onions, garlic and broad beans!

Watching gardening telly definitely counts. Take it easy, phoenix, you sound really burned out and on the verge of something viral.

I am of your free compost delivery - that's amazing! Could you use it as mulch? I often do this in my garden - I put a good covering (2-3 inches) over all of the bare soil after leaf fall and it does really keep the weeds down over winter, cutting down on work. Some people at my site do this with a mix of horse manure and compost in Nov, then start covering it in Feb/March with plastic - apparently it warms up the soil.

Weed growth will be slowing down quite dramatically now as the temperatures fall (theoretically), so keeping on top of it for a few weeks should hopefully not be too much bother. All that said, I think I might have to weed my green manure beds - I sowed the rye in rows and I will probably have to hoe inbetween between now and the really dormant part of the year.

Alternatively, you could do a bit of both? Some green manure, some mulch?

Evening - have just put up a new thread here all ready to go :)

I like the new thread name :)

I think I will just keep weeding and then mulch with the compost when it arrives. As well as the surface tiddly weeds which are easily hoe-able, I'm still finding lots of perennial roots - bindweed, grass, brambles, dandelion - so if I just keep on going through the beds again and again then hopefully I should be able to minimise the impact of those ongoing. Luckily I'm finding I really enjoy pulling up weed roots - it's very satisfying!

Still got the second half of the perennial bed to dig over, and the soft fruit area, which is currently the rubbish heap- the council are sending a trailer one weekend for me to load up, it's all rotting carpet, plastic and various bits of rubbish I've dug up.

Thats sensible Phoenix - I shall be doing that with my heap of rotted manure, starting shortly.... And I also like weeding. Seeing the bucket I carry around full of couch and bindweed is a very satisfying feeling
Good on your council - they seem to be well on top of things, which makes life so much easier

The best ones are when you can just see a teeny tiny bit of root sticking out, and you gently pull on it and 3ft of evil monster appears and just slides out of the soil in one piece. Aaaaaaah.

Ooh yes I love that satisfying pop when you get a piece of bindweed out whole!

Actually managed a bit of time in the garden yesterday. Mostly playing diggers in the greenhouse with DS, but I did tidy up the tomatoes a bit and dig some more potatoes. I also just pondered future growing plans a bit! Hopefully one day I'll actually get chance to do some of it.

Yes, this afternoon is getting out my graph paper , and making a proper plan for what will be going where next year. Need to get it sorted, as have a lot of manure to shovel in the next week or so, so want it in the right places!

I think it's worth having bindweed and couch on my plot just for that satisfied feeling with the long roots! Sometimes I tug on a couch root and notice a shoot of it a couple of feet away starts going under and you know you're going to get the whole thing if you are careful enough

I feel I have definitely found my people

I also now have a different view of the weather. It's raining annoyingly today, not proper showers but enough that its unpleasant to walk in it. But instead of resenting it too much, I'm happy that it will be softening up the soil so digging is easier tomorrow!

See you all on the new thread

oh I love pulling and pulling.
have lots of climbers and tidying up involves pulling until it looks less overgrown.
very satisfying