Allotment?Veg Patch Thread 10 - Plotmenters busy into summer ! and loving James Wong

[bookbook]

Last thread has filled up so quickly! Thought I had better get one up and running before I get off to the plot.
Busy, busy people, just waiting for the harvests to start, fighting the bugs, slugs and weather :)
Last thread here
THREAD 9

I'm doing it about once a week.

Hmmm. Might do it a bit more often.

JW says the effects of aspirin mostly last a whole season but he tends to do it monthly to be on the safe side. Which reminds me that I need to do mine again.

Bloody slugs are devouring my onions.

Back on the garden slug and snail trail. At least 15 this afternoon and tonight in my garden. I hope my leek seedlings are ok on the plot. NeedMoreTea I didn't know the little feckers ate onions.

A couple of onions harvested - nearly forgot to take a photo. I try to take photos of everything I grow, useful to see the progress compared to previous years.

I've not been plagued by snails and slugs this year, at least not fruit and veg wise. I think my dahlias are acting as sacrificial plants.

Action shot tizwozliz. That looks like a very wholesome onion.

Slugs were all over my shallots last year - I manage to pick off at least 5 from one shallot plant. I didn't know that they really liked onions/shallots until then. I've used beer traps this year which seem to have helped - plus it's been so dry. I do need to re-set the traps though as the wetter weather has brought them back out again.

I managed to harvest all the onions and shallots last Sunday. I also dug up a row of potatoes. They're not bad - a reasonable crop. We need to get the rest up this weekend as the plants are dying back and I'm worrying about slug damage.

We've got lots and lots of blackberries. I've already picked several punnets and there are more on the way. So we're going to be eating blackberry and apple crumble all winter! Beans are also doing nicely now.

So far my effort at using aspirin on tomatoes is buying the aspirin and the spray bottle. Haven't actually got as far as spraying the plants!
We did have our first ripe tomato the other day.

Our blackberries are a long way off yet

Afternoon!
slugs on onions and shallots?
well, I managed to go and dig more potatoes again this morning. Along with enough veg for a nice stir fry . It was okay, got home and the heavens opened . It has stopped, but due thunderstorms now - flaming July .....
Igardener - well, it seems I am the only one not using aspirin - hope you are well , not too hot !
Cedar - yay a ripe tomato :)
tiz - that is a beautiful onion, almost a still life !

we have tomato glut

I don't mind (yet).

we had warm tomato salad for lunch: boil rice as per instruction, add chopped toms, a handfull of fresh basil leaves, half a tub of creme fraiche, salt&pepper to taste.

Today's harvest. A couple of courgettes that almost got away and I seem to be specialising in fuggly tomatoes.

That is an interesting looking tomato there elephant
I have just caught up with my courgette harvest - 1 x chocolate courgette brownies and 2 x courgette lemon drizzle cakes and 1 in a stir fry for tea.
It rained all afternoon, and I am out tomorrow. I may need a wheelbarrow for Saturday :) I wish my tomatoes were glutting Yellow - I make a lot of tomato sauce for pasta to freeze , and usually add courgettes ...

Well hello! I expect most of you either have no idea who I am, or have completely forgotten me, and I used to be such a frequent poster on these threads! Last year and the year before mostly. Stuff happens, life gets in the way. Anyway, here I am. Back (for a while at least!)

Quick low-down for those of you who don't know me / have forgotten me:

• I have a small veggie patch at the bottom of the garden - about 16 feet square.
• Lucky enough to have a nice big greenhouse and a separate fruit bed (about 6 foot square).
• I have 2 children (4 YO DS and nearly 1 YO DD). Two dogs who get in the way help.

So... this year!

Young children and a husband working 70+ hours a week aren't conducive to getting much done but I try and do bits here and there. Today we harvested tomatoes, French beans, beetroot, spring onions, potatoes and gooseberries.

I also have runner beans, chard, spinach, leeks, pumpkins, courgettes, butternut squash and kale. I did have swede but they appear to have been slugged sadly.

Oh, and a WATERMELON in the greenhouse which I'm quite excited about.

Anyway, I'm going to slope off and read back a bit of the thread, see how people are getting on and get to know people again.

As you were!

• lovely to see you - no way your baby is nearly 1 - and wow - a watermelon -

some of my black krim toms are looking rather 'bottomy'
they sort of have a navel at the bottom as well. they still need a bit of time to ripen.

Watermelon

wow bella that's amazing

Baby!

oh, wow :) and baby is gorgeous too!

Thanks book, she is a cutie!

Who wants to hear something weird? DD is called Poppy (not worried about outing myself, the Daily Fail did that in spectacular fashion already!). Partly because DS just told everyone that would be her name, partly because it was my MILs favourite flower (she died when I was pregnant).

I have never been able to grow Poppies in my garden.

This year my garden is covered in Poppies.

Lovely about the poppies. the name suits her well.

was the outing due to your dog/bed thread ? But that is a lovely about the poppies Bella - MIL obviously had a hand in that , they are lovely :)

It was indeed, book! I will forever be known as the MNer who's dog ate sugar, threw up on the bed and ended up in the Daily Mail.

I remember you from last year's threads Bella. Lovely pictures of Poppy/poppies. And I remember the dog eating the sugar thread
Very impressive to actually have a watermelon growing. How big is it supposed to get to do you think?

elephant looks like you caught those courgettes just in time! What variety of lettuce are you growing? I'm growing Webs Wonderful but they don't seem to be hearting up at all as I though they would.

bookbook good haul on the potatoes.

I managed a quick trip yesterday and picked another punnet of blackberries. Some are a cultivated variety and some are just normal blackberries. There is also a thornless one which has only had a couple of ripe ones so far but has lots of red fruits just waiting. Also harvested more beans. DD has helpfully decided she only likes green french beans not purple french beans or runner beans. Even though the purple ones go green when they are cooked anyway!
There are so many weeds its getting ridiculous! I managed to clear round about half the leeks but need to get over and have a proper weed and tidy up.