Allotment/Veg Patch Thread 12! Plotmenters hoping for better weather

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Well, previous thread is nearly full, and I am busy the next couple of days, so thought I had better get this up and ready.
Thanks for the plot title Una
Everyone welcome to join in and share their experiences, tips, the woes and joys of growing their own .
Summer and harvests here we come ( and we''ll do our best to beat the pests)
Previous thread HERE

all have great foliage. and get a weekly feed with comfrey juice

I only planted my sweet peas out a fortnight ago too, haven't seen any in flower on our site yet.

It was so muggy up there this morning. I dug out last years PSB and chard, pulled out massive handfuls of long grass from between all my raspberries, harvestedmy first strawberries and planted out nothing. The weeds are rampant after recent rains and I need to get back on top of them.

Oh and netted my redcurrants, at least half of which had vanished since Weds despite not being ripe yet

Morning!
Guy - ah, that is good to know , I will definitely touch wood for you. If the path is going to be permanent, I would buy the proper weed suppressant ( you can buy from DIY stores - the stuff that goes under decking etc) , but Aldi/Wilkos/B & M usually have a cheaper version, which is perfectly adequate :)
blue - you normally harvest potatoes after they have flowered , just wait for the flower to die back, and any time after that - though if they are maincrop, you can leave them in until you need to use them .
Hounds - lovely sweetpeas - I am like almost everyone else, my sweetpeas, beans etc are only just beginning to go up the canes - a while to go yet!
I popped down for an hour this morning - it was forecast rain, but we are getting really fine bits of drizzle which doesn't even reach the ground . So I have hoed and watered and earthed up the potatoes a bit. Had a good look at some things that have been left to their own devices. My currants have aphid blisters - not life threatening and the currants have set well, but even so, annoying and not pretty to look at.
I have sprayed some dilute washing up liquid on my broad beans too - just one of the plants is fairly heavy with blackfly, the others barely any ! how weird is that - obviously the least sturdy. So I sprayed them all, just incase.
I shook the little plum tree to loose off any unset plums - I have to decide whether to thin them I think - it is only in its 4th year, and not fruited as yet, and it is fairly well laden. Lots of fruit setting - raspberries/strawberries/loganberries so fingers crossed for a good harvest

gah WhoKnows - how infuriating. I was pulling up grass in between my raspberries too! Yes - weed month is upon us

Spotted good luck getting rid of the rat. There's also a rat near my plot although I haven't seen it. It's being blamed for damaging nearby sweetcorn seedlings, apparently quite a few have been sheared off just above the base & it doesn't look like slug damage...I'm keeping mine covered by bottle cloches for now, until they're big enough to withstand attacks!
No rain yet unfortunately although it's cool and cloudy today. I watered some of the vegetables yesterday and tried to weed out the endless crops of fat hen. Apparently this is edible & very high in Vitamin C but not sure if I fancy eating it. My whitecurrants are looking a bit sad with very misshapen leaves - possibly aphid damage or even a virus although I hope not? May try spraying with washing-up liquid & see if things improve. My garlic has rust so I picked off as many of the leaves as I could, hopefully it won't affect the bulbs and I should be able to harvest soon. Interestingly my Japanese onions in the next bed are so far showing no signs of rust at all, fingers crossed it continues. My sweet peas are just starting to poke through, I got excited thinking French beans were also coming through but it was bindweed AGAIN! Both courgette seeds have germinated but I only have room for one plant really.
I planted sunflowers seeds in a pot at home with the DCs and if they survive the intense daily inspections I'll move them to the allotment eventually as they'll have more chance of growing to their full height there rather than in a pot at home.
Will have a day off from the plot today & return tomorrow or Monday for more weeding and watering.

Morning all

You all sound very organised. I am only on my 2nd year and mainly winging it.

Had our first harvest this morning of 3 little strawberries. Went to take a photo and ds had eaten them all 🤣.

I planted out my sweetcorn. They are tiny, about an inch high but are in those biodegradable pots and they are breaking down already so thought they were better in the ground. Got 29/30 germinated so pleased with that.

My butterhead lettuce is starting to form hearts. A couple of flowers on my runner beans and a few on tomatoes. Potatoes beyond earthing up now so leaving them to do their thing. Everything else seems to have doubled in size and looks very healthy.

DH did a bit more on the chicken run too. We will be ready to start putting the wire on tomorrow.

Am losing the battle of weeds around my rasperries. They are down the fence line between us and a rather neglected plot so keep getting sticky weed and brambles shooting through. Think we need to put some membrane down. And a thug of a rasperry we inherited is putting out runnera everywhere. At least I assume it's the thug? Could the runners be from my new canes? Have left them for now as wasn't 100% sure.

We got home just as the heavens opened so timed it perfectly. Forecast thunderstorms all afternoon so will be mostly doing boring housework. Would rather be on the plot.

I planted out my runner bean plants yesterday, I used canes either
side of plant and tied it up at the top, then laid a cane along the top (tied on), then half way up the canes I put string along. Not a little worried thou as my plants are not that close to my frame! Think I will have to do some more research!

I've yet to plant my tomato plants yet, have decided to do some in the greenhouse as well as outside to see which grow better! I am in the Southeast!

I managed to fit a waterbutt all by myself the other day, took ages but I was so proud of myself, unfortunately that night it rained but didn't fill, I was so upset. Yesterday I went out and had a play, shortened the connector kit, right now it's pouring down and DC think I am completely mad as I have just popped outside to check on butt and its half full from the rain! Little things!

Will keep an eye on my garlic, I did plant them last autumn so hopefully they will be ready end of June??

It's lovely reading what everyone is up to, so inspiring!

We've finished our first couple of paths today. Still very early days but it feels like things are definitely starting to take some shape.

I'm just back from a few days away. The garden tomatoes look fine but a bit dry, the tumbling toms have a few buds but something has been eating the 'marmande'. I will check on the plot tomorrow.

I had to show you my charity shop purchase whilst I was away. It made me giggle and definitely be used when I go to open garden events

Thanks for advice about cucamelons; will build a cane wigwam in my front garden - as only space left and I want to see what it does rather than abandon to the allotment, which survives on 2 visits a week.

Coriander and parsley planted out today. Had to water as no rain here.
Need to hoe my potato bed tomorrow as the weeks have really shot up!

Sweet peas are growing well but nowhere near flowering. My nicotania I have just potted on. Sunflowers are tiny.

Think the pink tomatoes seen midweek can be harvested by my toddler tomorrow!

Oops meant strawberries - not tomatoes! Tomatoes are not in flower yet!

Total newbie to growing- have rocket sprouting at the moment and I am wondering do I pick it or pull it and do I have to start growing again then? It's in a fairly large pot. I realise this is probably a stupid question!!

Oh and do I need a cane for a broad bean plant??

I didn't stake broad beans but tied the plant together so they supported each other.

Mikado. Pick the leaves you want and then leaVe it to grow more. It often goes to seed (goes stringy and starts to flower, the flowers are edible and pretty). . So sow some more to come along.

salad leaves I have to grow in a pot near the house. slugs just like them too much.
but the spicy leaves (rocket, mustard) are fine.

Hello, do you mind if I join you? I lurked last year, I don't have an allotment but was growing veg in pots. This year I have 3 4x8 ft raised beds which I hoped would give me opportunity to grow more but I've been unwell for the last 2 months and the stuff I've managed to get done is a bit slapdash...

All beds are planted now and most plants seem to be growing except my runner beans. They were planted direct 14 days ago and I only have one plant out of 26. Is it too late to plant some more indoors to get them going or shall I give up for this year?

Also, I planted potatoes but threw away the bag and have no idea what they are . Is there any way to tell?

Sorry for all the questions, I'm completely new to this and have no idea what I'm doing. A lot of my plants have gone out far too late but I have sweetcorn, courgettes, carrots, leeks, lettuce, tomatoes and aubergines. I've also got brassicas in one bed but wonder if I should have started these off indoors/in the mini greenhouse - lots have already germinated but I assume I will need to thin them out/move them as they grow.

I live in the South East so I'm hoping some warm weather might help everything catch up.

welcome readit
not too late for a lot of stuff but I would say plug plants rather than seeds. salad can be sown now.

everything needs good protection from slugs/snails and possibly cats, squirrels, pisgeons.

have a look at garden centres, they have loads of ready to plant in right now. also have a look at the 'shelf of doom' sometimes a good bargain to be had.

It's probably already been explained- but if you put straw around your strawberries, what do you mean by 'net' them- will the straw be enough?

I am such a newbie, I'm honestly clueless, and some things I have planted are eaten already!

Hoping the already getting established fruit trees/berries in the plot will give me something this year otherwise it'll be 4 strawberries and about 6 small potatoes the way I'm going on!

All beds are planted now. 'All' we have to do now is keep weeds/pests/birds/disease off.

Had our first pea & bean risotto in the week. It was delicious. Going back this afternoon to pick more broad beans and rhubarb.

Great pics gnome I realllly want an allotment. Sadly nothing nearby, so will have to make do with my tiddly growing area.

Everything survived the biblical rain. Got some cabbages from the shelf of doom, bit leggy, but 7 for 50p, have potted them on.

...sitting in the garden with lemon balm lemonade...

so refreshing

Thespring, - straw raises the berries off the ground to stop them rotting if it's wet and hopefully act as a bit of a barrier to slugs etc, netting keeps birds off. I do both but still lose a few to slugs and bugs.

I had another hour atvthe plot this morning, planted out sunflowers, sweetcorn and my newly divided chives. Just courgettes and PSB to go in, I'm delaying the PSB as it needs covering, I only have two lots of mesh, one on strawberries, one on redcurrants, so it can wait till redcurrants are over.