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

Officially written off my french bean sowing now so bought some new seed today and will get them sown. Not too much bother as can sow throughout the season anyway and I have some dwarf varieties as well.

Onions seedlings have gone outside too and will get some more sown as well in case of casualties and well, you can never have too many onions and I grew them successfully in buckets last year so not too concerned about space.

Also built myself a new compost bin out of an old palette and an empty compost bag yesterday, it's not a thing of beauty but it's hidden away so looks aren't too important.

Afternoon all

Finally got my first earlies in this afternoon. I bought far too many tho and have a good 20 to donate my dsis.

Something has had a good old munch on the butterhead lettuce I put out last week. And I found a greedy snail in my mini greenhouse this morning who had had a good munch on my sweet pepper seedlings. Hmph. Going to put salt down on the decking I think. Can't use slug pellets as have a pet pigeon that will eat them.

I have more or less given up on my french beans too tizwoz. Everything else I planted that day is up I think. Runner beans are at least 4 inch tall and need repotting so think the frenchies have failed. I might wait and just direct sow instead.

Dp also found a rhubarb crown lurking in the undergrowth which is handy as 2 out of the 3 crowns I bought seem to be dead. So dug it up and relocated it.

Back is aching like mad tho now. Pulled loads of bindweed roots and glass out of the potato bed. Where they are hasnt been worked for years and we have had it covered for about 10 months so it will be interesting to see how the spuds grow.

My comfrey crowns came from Ebay, hoping they do all eventually come up.

Need to crack on with sowing back up plants as am pretty sure I’m going to need them. Enlisted some help today so shed guttering up and all the grass strimmed. On a mission to gradually get rid of what grass is left. Put some strings in for DH’s hops plant.

Absolutely love my allotment, my favourite place ever.

I planted seeds last Saturday into pots. Broccoli have germinated, as have basil seeds. First beans are showing movement - the soil is moving. Nothing like a bit of warmth and sunshine to start them all off!

We won't get much done this weekend I don't think as it's DD's birthday party on Saturday and the forecast is for rain on Sunday.

Frouby - I use beer traps to stop things munching on the plants. It seems to work quite well. I'm trying not to use slug pellets this year if I can help it.
The rhubarb crowns may surprise you yet, it may take them a while to get going. You may find that next year they suddenly start to grow.

On the subject of french beans it's not too late to try again in pots. I haven't planted my borlotti beans yet and my notes from last year tell me that I did that at the beginning of May. French beans are more delicate than runners so can't be planted out too early.

I planted out french and runner beans direct at the end of May last year (due to failure of pre-holiday beans) and still got a decent crop. I have sown them indoors and directly this year so we'll see how they all go.

My fear with beer traps is that they just attract the slugs to the area and they're quite happy to have a munch on a few tasty seedlings to line their stomachs on the way to the pub! I've been drenching everything in garlicky water (a la James Wong) which seems to help against the slugs and is a useful way of using up last year's stored garlic which is sprouting!

I didn't set French beans off until about the end of May last year and still have a few bags in the freezer so not worried. We love then and had them with every meal virtually from august until I think.it was end of October fresh, then frozen as well.

I think they freeze quite well so will set some more off next week then do successional sowings. I think the october ones we had didn't go in until august and still got a decent crop of those and peas which went in where the courgettes had been all summer.

I think spring comes later these days and summer lasts until end of October. It was very mild here until the end of November.

Afternoon!
I don't sow my french/runner/borlotti beans until May ! Much too cold up here, and they just get too leggy if I keep them indoors.
Well, I managed to beat the rain this morning by going early to the plot. Managed a good hour before the rain started , so pleased about that. It has rained on and off for the rest of the day. Found half an hour spare this afternoon, so decided to pot up my cucumbers/courgettes/squashes as they are competing in the pots . They have done so well this year. Took them out to the greenhouse to do - its freezing out there . It is April for crying out loud .......

They look nice and healthy, Book.

Just seen there are 933 posts. Looks like we're going to need a nice fresh thread at this rate!

Thanks for the info about PSB, book. It's really lovely to eat so I've changed my mind and will grow it again this year.

Some broad bean, lettuce and spinach seeds have germinated happily in the ground outside. I'm very pleased about that. Everything else is doing well inside. It's nice to have a decent germination rate for a change!

Chez-moi slug patrol has commenced in my tiny garden, I've picked up at least 40 tonight. Nematodes ready to go tomorrow at the plot and the residue will be used on my garden. I have now got a friendly blackbird who seems to be helping.

I had last year a helpful family of sparrows who were happy to pick off caterpillars off the cauliflowers. and were picking woodlice off where I moved pots etc.

I hope they are back this year. they were fun to watch.

Was itching to plant my beans out. I will hang fire.

Gaah, slugs are nibbling my pumpkins and courgettes. I have drenched them in a fresh dose of garlic water along with the solitary bean seedling that has put in an appearance

Afternoon all

Cool and drizzly here so no plot today. Plus dp is on his stag do and I need his muscle to help dig beds.

Just had an hour potting the 20 stongest tomato seedlings on and about a dozen runner beans that were desperate to move somewhere bigger. Dumped the failed french beans and also a seed tray of some kind of bedding plant that I set off. They started to come but then stopped growing at about 2mm high so dumped them. I need the space in the mini greenhouse.for stuff that is actually growing well.

I now have 2 courgette seedlings and 1 cucumber coming up. Had sown 12 of each so am assuming they are just lazy sods. The cucumber only put in an appearance a couple of days ago so will give them another week.

Have a mixed tray of melons, toms, lettuce and pumpkins in the mini greenhouse that I sowed last week. Half tempted to bring them inside to give them a push along but they are in a biggish tray in individual pots and am not sure they will fit on the windowsill.

Hoping it starts warming up soon.

it says 5 degrees for monday

Oh my goodness it is SO COLD! I have the heating on again, which is most unusual for me -I'm more of a put another jumper and more socks on kinda woman. I did make it to the plot, to pick some rhubarb for a crumble. The rhubarb is loving this weather and is huge. I stayed for quite a while in the pouring rain, as there was a little robin looking really sorry for himself so he had a good rootless in my compost heap. Then, er, I'd turn it over a bit and he'd go again. I may also have dug a few holes, just for him. Luckily there was no one else at the site to witness my idiocy.

My seedlings are not thriving at all. My beans are awful, and my 2nd sowing have not yet shown. Inspired by Clara I did re-sow my courgettes and they were up in a few days but now it is cold again and they've stalled.

But it's my poor tomatoes that I am fretting about the most. They have suddenly gone a bit floppy-stemmed. They're neither too dry or too wet so I can only assume it's lack of sun (they are either in porch or conservatory so get all the sun that there is, it's just that there is none) OR lack or warmth. They've not turned blueish though.

blue it says 3 degrees for me here overnight

I am much calmed by reading of May beans upthread. Maybe I jumped the gun there a bit?

Afternoon!
well -I decided to go to the plot this morning - forecast rain. It hasn't so far - yes a bit cool, and a bit of a cold wind, but so far no sign of wet. So, I got stuck in this morning. I weeded the fruit cage ( properly, as the net has been taken down, and got rid of all those annoying weeds that manage to root around the bottom of the net ( or is that just me? ) couch grass, bindweed, the lot. Really chuffed at that, then I went on to re weed and dig over where I took out the row of autumn raspberries earlier in the year. I am going to squeeze in the gifted pink fir potatoes there. So tomorrows job is more manuring - for the potatoes, and a top dressing for the fruit bushes before we put the net back on. My kale is all bolting, so I picked a load of that - gave half away. I will take the plants up tomorrow , ready to to dig over and pop my beetroot in - they are coming along nicely in plugs at home.
As it stayed fair, DH and I went back this afternoon to do bit of brassica frame sorting - the stays to keep it firm and straight, and some clamps to keep the HDPE pipe in the right place. I just now have to work out how is the easiest (!) way to join 10m of butterfly netting together- we could only buy 4m wide netting , and the frame is a 7m hoop......
my tomatoes are okay Spotted in the greenhouse, but not growing away IYSWIM - same with peppers and aubergines.
I pricked out all my brassicas this afternoon, they were sat in cold , damp compost poor things .
All my squashes/cucumbers etc are all sitting on my south facing living room window .
Next week is sweetcorn and bean sowing , but will wait to see how warm/sunny its going to be !
So - suggestions for new thread title very welcome!!

Plotmenters hoping for better weather? Haven't lost much but it is mostly going very slowly and lots of stuff that I'd hoped to get outside well in advance of going away next month is still too small. Must get the irrigation set up in the greenhouse!

Oooo new thread title time.

'May is here, but when is spring plotting an appearance?

'The weathers not hot, but don't be fooled. Courgettes will still plot a glut'

'Winters bean hard, and no frenchies around. Plot for them now to be in the ground'

Great ideas Frouby. I've applied the nematodes today but not much else as I have managed to put my back out. Still it was an excuse to sit in the garden during the brief time the sun was shining and watch all the bees being busy.

Everything here seems to have gone into stasis, apart from the potatoes which I am having to top up with soil every other day. Realised whilst doing it however that I cannot remember which varieties I planted where - oops.

I've also managed to start off some peas and sweet peas without labelling which is which.

Morning all,

I feel all behind again this year, finally got my potatoes (maincrop) and new strawberry plants in yesterday. Aldo picked my first rhubarb. Hoping to manage shallots (seedlings) and onion sets today, but it is so cold and muddy. I spent the morning freezing at an outdoor event at DCs school, the afternoon freezing at the plot, put the heating on, had a warm bath at 8.30 and in bed by 9.30, which is most unlike me.

Spotted - I too have a friendly robin who is quite a distraction, so, so cute though.

Morning!
great titles Una and Frouby
elephant - look after that back
tiz - yes, everything seems to be hanging fire, even ( dare I say it ) weeds
WhoKnows - I am the same, feeling behind and running to catch up if possible .
Windy and cool here, but dry .
I managed to plant my pink fir potatoes , plus planted plugs of germinated peas 'Hurst Greenshaft' - chicken wired around them , ( the pigeons are merciless ) . Then direct sowed another row - I popped them in warm water for an hour or so, along with loads of chilli powder, so will be interested to see how well they germinate. The weather forecast is so poor for the next couple of days, I fleeced over them, just to help them along.
Then picked asparagus and PSB for tonight , and zoomed home - got a rather busy afternoon ahead .