Allotment/Veg patch thread 11 'We bid farewell to rainbow leaves but will keep plotting along'

[bookbook]

Well, nights are drawing in, leaves are starting to turn, harvesting carrying on
What a summer it has been!
Join in with the ups and downs of growing our own into autumn.
Last thread www.mumsnet.com/Talk/gardening/2951768-Allotment-Veg-Patch-Thread-10-Plotmenters-busy-into-summer-and-loving-James-Wong?msgid=71770088HERE

Morning all,

Newt - my sweetcorn isn't quite right this year either. I've never hand pollinated mine, just plant them close in a block and they've always been fine, this year I have only had 6 decent cobs from 12 plants, there are lots of smaller cobs but they are half formed and have dried out now, clearly aren't going to grow any more.

Spent a chilly hour up at the plot yesterday. It is very overgrown, I thought I had left quite a lot of bare space this year but several things have been much more vigorous that I expected and the self seeded cosmos are huge. I dug out the first of my potatoes - before we went away mid Aug I though they were just about ready but they had the first signs of blight so I lopped off all the foliage and left them in the ground, got masses out from just two plants and they are really smooth and healthy just wish I could remember what variety they were. Usually mine seem to be a bit nobbly, scabby etc. Also took home my onions which I pulled up about a month ago too and another tub of raspberries. I really need to get on with some weeding, the weather is grim but at least the ground is soft.

Morning!
Its horrendous here, black, cold, hurling down rain ...
So I am going to pick a load of tomatoes to roast, sort out what aubergines and peppers I have ( they are looking very sad now - it has been cold outside the last couple of nights) and add them too .
Sweetcorn - mine has been the best I have grown,, but the smaller ones up the stalk are a bit hit and miss germination wise too. I have tried to tap them as I go past every time, but that obviously hasn't worked that well. A neighbour actually cuts off some of the pollen tassels and physically rubs them around to get better results - mind you hers are the ones nibbled by rats this year ......
Once - potatoes sound good - you have won one!
I am just working out what I am growing next year - the seed catalogue has arrived from the allotment society ( and Marshalls, and DT Browns, and Thomson & Morgan and Pomona Fruits )

Thank you for the new thread book

Welcome ow and Once

I had to give the plot a miss today and over the weekend - too busy with the DCs, and today we had one torrential downpour after another. I managed 3 days in a row last week and goodness i was tired afterwards. I made a lot of progress but still need to transfer all of my currants, raspberries and a load of well-rotted manure from my old plot to the new one. I'd also really love to take my butternut squash plant but not sure if this will be possible (would it survive the move?)
I bought a bag of daffodil bulbs in Also today, 50 bulbs for under £2.50. I also pre-ordered some strawberry plants as I ended up digging up the whole strawberry bed last week - all plants looked old & tired, and he bed was in need of additional soil and manure. I've ordered Mara des Bois as recommended by James Wong so am hoping they'll live up to the hype!

Hoping to get a few rain-free hours tomorrow in which case I'll try to get the white- and blackcurrants shifted.

Also = Aldi

Evening!
well what a day of weather ... rain, rain, sun, rain ,sun, sun, rain, rain :)
So I harvested all the peppers and aubergines ( though the aubergines didn't really go dark purple) and more ripe tomatoes
Still lots of tomatoes yet to come, fingers crossed. So did a big load roasted with shallots and garlic, along with what I could use up of slightly sad basil and said peppers and aubergines.
Of course , tomorrow, which looks good, am busy with other things needing doing and Wednesday is looking a bit dire with strong winds...

ooh forgot tim - if its in the ground, I don't think it would be a good idea to move - they have very brittle stems I always think , and if they have set fruit, you may just break them , allowing rot in. I think they will nearly be over in a couple of weeks anyway, I suspect, depending on whether we get any sort of last ditch Indian Summer ... But that sounds like you have got a lot done!

Haven't tried my Mara des Bois yet but I can definitely recommend strawberry Manille which is a descendant - I planted some earlier this year, picked the flowers off early in the season but have now let them set fruit and it's absolutely delicious and such an unexpected pleasure in September!

Placemarking!

Evening all

Had a busy few hours on the plot this afternoon. Picked the first of my sweetcorn mainly because a few had been blown over. All nicely formed if a bit small but I don't think they were quite ripe enough. Still nice though and going to leave the rest until I see the milky stuff.

Got another bag of french and runner beans. Pulled 1 runner bean wigwam up and all the french beans as they have jusy about finished, looking a bit wobbly and didnt want them collapsing onto other stuff in the gales we are forecast tonight. Also got another half bag of tomatoes, 2 bags of spuds, a couple of handfuls of chillis, 3 courgettes, 4 cucumbers and lots of nettle stings!

It's all looking a bit bare now but am really trying to resist planting anything else this year so I can get it all sorted for next year.

Managed to persuade DH last night that we do need more beds so we're are definitely adding in 3 x two metre by one metre beds as the next phase. These ones will be dug into a grassy area next to the kitchen garden whereas the rest of the beds are raised and so it should be a good spot for potatoes, sweetcorn and other large stuff. Plan is to get them sorted as an autumn project. Stables have offered a load of manure. If we are not planning on planting in the beds until spring would we be ok to just dig the manure straight in and then leave it covered over? (manure will be recently out of the stables not well rotted down stuff).

Afternoon
hope everyone survived the wind!
Frouby - its a good time to sit down and plan , and whilst relatively empty be able to crack on with sorting the shape of it too - where everything goes, and how to sort out paths etc :)
Newt - I would leave the manure on the top - it will rot down , and act as a mulch, and be much easier to deal with next spring . Should be okay after about 6 months I would guess.
Been to the plot this morning, weeding , shifting a couple of wheelbarrows of manure .( Just about another 6/8 to go ).
Everything held up well, but the green and purple french beans have given up the ghost, so I have harvested the last of them, and will take the wigwams down this weekend. Runners are still okay though.
Feeling decidedly back end now ..

Book that's what I intend to do. The beds we have in are too close together so need moving. We need a shed, a chicken coop and run and a polytunnel building. I need to get fruit canes in and want wire up to support them. Plus smaller structres like brassica beds and bean wigwams all ready to go for the end of march.

DP is a builder so can do all this stuff. But is pretty fair weather so won't do stuff if the weather is a bit ropey. I dont particularly mind the weather (years of horses makes you un nesh) but ds hates rain so want to make the most of dry weekends where possible. And if I have stuff growing at the same time it takes time away from what we need to get done.

Haven't made it up since the storm blew through. Hoping to get up today at some point to see if my sweetcorn and 1 remaining bean wigwam survived.

But spent yesterday sorting everything we harvested tuesday out. Made a homegrown chutney. First attempt at chutney. Am pretty pleased with the initial taste. Need to pop it away for a month now to mature. I also took my mum and dds riding instructor a bag of veg each. Riding instructor is the only person I know who loves courgettes so they have done well this year. And gave a carrier bag of tomatoes to a neighbour I have never spoken to as she is having a big bbq on saturday. She posted on the local fb page to let people know there would be music and stuff and everyone welcome so offered the tomatoes. She was lovely and very pleased. Nice to be neighbourly and I have no more room in the freezer for anything at all so saved them going squidgy.

Newt just dig it in the beds in spring. The ammonia in the beds can apparantly burn young plants if you apply it before it's at least 9 months old. But I think that is if you just apply manure around the base of the plants. Just make sure it is well dug in.

Photo of chutney. Am very proud!

We had two of the sweetcorn plants down in the wind and so the DSs had sweetcorn for dinner last night. DH had a sneaky bite and said it was very sweet (picked and literally straight into the oven 2 minutes later and roasted with butter and sea salt.) Once I'd stripped off the outer husk they were better than I thought. Nice and big and only the top section and a few random kernels seemed not to have pollenated.

So all in all more of a success than I thought. . Next year I'll plant more though and closer together. I followed the instructions on the pack and had them about 60cm apart in a grid.

Newtsuitcase that sounds good. We've never needed to hand pollinate our sweetcorn but have had problems with rats (or mice, I prefer the idea of mice) nibbling the cobs. So we didn't bother this year. Might have another go next year as we do like sweetcorn and it is at it's best if you pick and eat straight away.

Frouby it's nice to be able to share your crops with others isn't it? I'm impressed with your chutney. I've never got around to trying making chutney but I probably should.

Haven't seen what damage the wind did although being in the south east we only had the edges of it, not the full force. Might get a quick trip in today.

Plot all still standing. Phew. Late crop of peas looks a bit windswept but everything else is ok.

The chutney was pretty simple cedar. I was a bit apprehensive as I have never made it before. Used a Mary Berry recipe as I had the book already and it's easier to follow a book rather than keep looking at your phone but it's turned out ok. Had a little taste last night and it's quite nice so far.

Will definetly do it again. Have some beetroot in so will probably pickle some and make a batch of beetroot chutney. Still lots of tomatoes to come too so might find one that uses both.

Afternoon!
Frouby - what pretty jars of chutney :) - mine are all in old jam jars ....!
Newt - I agree that more sweetcorn is necessary next year - we have enjoyed ours (its the first year we have truly succeeded with it - ) DH is now converted . I've been told it freezes well too, but we are eating ours as they are picked . I think I did the same spacing on mine ( old hat two feet apart) and planted 20 plants out. Had 16 cobs so far, with still a fair few left I think.
Hope your plot survived Cedar
I got down to the plot this morning and took down the wigwams with the green and purple french beans , weeded and barrowed another load of manure. Dug up a cabbage for tea. I had had enough b then , so came home . Have started to pick pears at home this afternoon. Its a long job, so I have started with the lower branches and a step ladder. Hate heights , so it will be DH up the big ladders in the next day or so. It is looking like a good harvest this year

Wow! I can't believe how busy you have all been. I have barely done anything this week, by the time I get home I'm shattered. Hoping to get busy this weekend.

Does anyone know if I want to grow a few things from seed over the winter (mainly flowers that say you cam sow in September) I was going to put them in my greenhouse! Do I need to have heating in my greenhouse? Or will they be okay as long as they are in GH?

I literally have no idea and at the momentI have my little seedlings that are growing nicely and I don't want them to get spoilt.

Desperately need some warmer weather, things just aren't growing/maturing. My late planted stuff really required some warmer weather up until the end of the month after such a miserable August.

I pulled up a carrot yesterday and they're a long way off being worth eating.

Afternoon!
owl - I am retired, so I wouldn't worry. Greenhouse sounds like a plan on the seedlings - I don't think it can hurt to coddle them a bit when its winter, gives them a flying start come spring, as long as you harden them off properly :)
The weather is just pants isn't it . It has just been grey, wet , yuk. Woke up to rain again this morning.
So little work done the last couple of days - just watching tiddly little butternuts trying to get going here - probably too late sadly.

Hello- very much end of season here. Last chillies coming off and runner beans. Pleased with autumn raspberries , much much better than my summer ones and they aren't netted but seem ok. Apples on a very old apple tree covered in blemished but only skin deep this year so maybe calcium treatments helped. Wish I had a big freezer to freeze them chopped up for crumble as their are LOADS. I'm looking at my psb and wondering when I get bits I can eat?? They are huge and leafy but nothing else

Any ideas why my apples are like this?

Sorry for spellings- must use my glasses!

Just been out and planted the potatoes I picked up last week. They should be ready for Christmas apparently. Also dug up the last of the current lot. We have potatoes coming out of our ears. The DSs have ordered tartiflette for dinner!

Also planted the garlic and thinned the carrots a little more since I think they were still too close together. Mine are also a very long way off being ready. I'm not sure about the effort reward ratio on carrots...

Leeks have had a real spurt though. They were bought as seedlings last year and I forgot about them and they shrivelled and went yellow. When I discovered them it was 9 months on and they'd almost given up. Instead of chucking them I chopped off the tops and replanted and they're now looking really happy!

Oh and if anyone remembers my sweetpea test from earlier in the year (I planted them REALLY late) they're in bloom!

Managed half an hour at the plot this afternoon, it was lovely and warm, brought home more spuds and started weed-clearing. Not very exciting, but very relaxing.

Loads of slowworms relaxing under the plastic plank I keep down as a habitat for them, couldn't count them as they were all tangled into one another and the bindweed.