Allotment?Veg Patch Thread 13! Are we weathering the weather?

[bookbook]

well, we have got to August , had heatwaves and thunderstorms. Goodness knows what happens next!
All welcome to join in sharing the highs and lows , tips and experiences of growing your own :)
Previous thread HERE

Afternoon !
ah Season - its a little thrill to see things coming up and growing away :)
Cedar - yes, quite chuffed at the swede - every year I tend to get lumpy roots , so to have one that looks like a swede has pleased me no end!
Chard makes pretty good pesto , which freezes well , always useful in soups and pasta sauces
Rained here all morning too, which has slowed my gallop - I had done quite well yesterday, and was hoping to get another area finished and ready for winter, but hey ho , that is life .
I did get a new pair of wellies today though - big enough to get some good thick socks inside :)

bookbook would you mind sharing your recipe for chard pesto? There's loads still on my patch from the previous owner. That sounds like a brilliant way to use it.

Had a really busy weekend last weekend so wasn't able to make it down unfortunately and I was in hospital yesterday for something relatively minor but I don't think I will have recovered sufficiently to make it down there this weekend either

no problem Hovering :)
its taken from a blog I found on Mr Google, and though I made it that way to start, I now use various nuts - the best so far was hazelnuts, but you can use walnuts , or whichever you have . I use chard, or perennial spinach . The recipe says to keep in a jar in the fridge, But I freeze in portions ( I don't have any ice cube trays, but anything like that ) I had to guesstimate quantities, as I am not up much on cups!
Homemade Spinach Pesto Recipe
An easy and delicious homemade pesto featuring spinach instead of basil.

Prep Time 10 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes
Ingredients
2 1/2 Tablespoons dried basil
4 cloves garlic
2 cups fresh spinach
1/4 cup oil
1 cup toasted pine nuts
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Instructions
Put spinach, garlic, basil, and a bit of the oil into a food processor.
Process until itty bitty.
Add remaining ingredients and process until itty bitty again.
I like to add a bit of Parmesan to the finished pesto and stir it in.
Add a bit of oil to the top of the jar to keep it fresh while storing.
Store in fridge.

That recipe sounds good to me Bookbook I still have some weaning size tupperware containers I could use to freeze it in. They are quite old but are still servicable. I still have perpetual spinach on the plot.
I have ordered my asparagus crowns, £5 delivery to DM's, instead of £15 to me, so I am getting digging this weekend and DM will come over when they arrive.

Morning
Utterly glorious today, so managed to get the last bit dug over on another area, all ready for winter. Picked some raspberries, but they are just about over now - only good for cooking . A nice cabbage for tea as well.
elephant - sounds good - so £10 to get over the water to you? daylight robbery!
Hope you are all happily plotmenting :)

Allotment plot goes to auction on Wednesday. We're now aware the parish council is prepped to bid if it doesn't get too high over the 10k estimation, so fingers crossed🤞 We've knocked up some more raised beds and planted out winter cabbages. Other holders we've chatted to were pretty despondent for a few weeks but normal service seems to have resumed for now. Plan B is we'll section off the bottom of the garden for growing but it's not quite the same.

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you FlyingMonkeys on Wednesday. Will you go to the auction?
The lovely weather allowed me a whole afternoon at the plot. I've got some more manure down on one bed and covered it up for winter. I have also planted some bulbs and roots my Dm gave me from her garden. I can't remember what they are but I think the roots are some kind of yellow daisy but the bulbs really smelt of garlic. Oh well it will be a nice surprise next year. Am I too late to put broad beans in to over winter?

No we're not going along, but shared emails with others so we should know an outcome quicker than waiting for an official statement.

Evening !
another here keeping fingers crossed for you Flying . Though is it possible they may beable to find another plot of land to buy for allotments ( not a good solution, but better than none I suppose)
elephant - probably some form of allium - they all seem to smell of garlic in my experience! . No, not too late for broad beans . I only put mine in last weekend , and I will also sow some in pots in the greenhouse in January, as back up insurance ( mice dug them up them last year , the blighters. I have soaked this years in chilli powder, to see if that discourages them ...)

Yes fingers crossed Flying

Did a couple of hours on Saturday. Cleared a bed and put a couple of rows of broad beans in. Part cleared the large bed that has a tangle of soft fruit bushes in. It's poorly designed as it's a large square raised bed and you can't actually get to the middle so I'm trying to think of a workable solution. At the moment I'm going with a row of narrow slabs down the middle.

Pick some beets, three parsnips and a squash all for roasting tonight

Facebook reminded me I picked my first brussel sprouts this time last year. This years are a long way from being ready, should be perfect timing for Christmas

evening !
the Neem oil arrived , so I rushed down to the plot to try it out . Picked kale and broccoli first for tonight ( even though it is nor supposed to be a problem)
I need to go again , as I ran out of spray , so only did the sprouts. I do hope it gets the whitefly under control. You have to spray it every 5-6 days and at least 4 times, to really get somewhere - fingers crossed

Hope everything goes okay today flying

Ooo yes! Any news today Flying?

I've been lurking for some time while on the waiting list for an allotment. Now I've just had a email while on honeymoon telling me that they have a plot for me. I'm arranging to visit it when I get back next week (and absolutely can't wait!). What questions do I need to ask the person who shows me the allotment? Any books/websites I can read? I've done a bit of growing in my garden, but am super excited to do it on a larger scale!

Hello Pyjamas congratulations and enjoy your honeymoon, plenty of time for allotment planning when you get home. Where is the nearest water source ie taps or water butts, any shared facilities ie manure, recycling, plant swaps etc

Morning all
welcome Pyjamas ( on a side note - checking emails on your honeymoon ? ) . Lots of online support , but my favourite book is by Andi Clevely called 'The Allotment Book" :) I would find out if you have a choice of plots when you go - they are all different, depending on the previous tenant. So ask about water supply , ease of access ( any roads , paths as you will be lugging a lot of stuff back and forth ) .Can you have a shed/greenhouse . Any shared/community facilities . Look at the plot with an objective eye. Where does the sun come from, have you trees which shade/overhang . Are you near a hedge ( hard to grow stuff near a hedge, it is very dry) . Is it full of weeds -? don't worry about annuals , they are rampant still at the moment with it being warm still, but look for brambles/ground elder/ mares tail . oh, and as I am nosey ( as everyone on here knows ) whereabouts are you - North/South/East/West ? Let us know!
I have just been plodding on this week - one day on, one day off with winter digging . Managed not quite an hour first thing this morning , but wasn't able to do any more spraying of the neem oil as it was damp , turning to drizzle and rain . Will have to see if I can get down tomorrow .
Hope everyone else is doing okay.

Honeymoon is a bit complicated, we have a feral toddler on a city break (lovely lovely wedding gift from family, but not really toddler friendly), so having another rainy day nap time 5 minutes on my phone! On the plus side we're in Madeira, so I have massive garden-envy. Everywhere in town is covered in flowers and all the mountain sides are covered in crops. Don't think I'll quite manage growing bananas when I get back to Kent (but somehow have been convinced to buy some tropical plant seeds ).

From the email I got I won't get to choose a plot, there is just one plot available, it's in the middle of other plots and looks to be close to a tap. Honestly even if it's in a terrible state I'll say yes, but secretly hoping their might be some fruit bushes already in, or some other exciting things to find. Planning to pop to the library next week and see what books they have there. Will ask about your recommendations. Feeling very lucky because I've only been waiting for 7 months and I've heard about people waiting years.

Just added to my lovely compost pile. Cardboard , tea from teabags and whatever green leftovers. Looking great!

Still no word from 'Our man in the know' who apparently doesn't know anything still?! 😦 We've had a pretty crap week with car troubles, and a grim blocked sewerage drain. On the plus side the winter cabbages are sprouting up and we've continued building raised beds (hopefully not a pointless exercise!). Welcome pyjamas have a lovely honeymoon and exciting news about your new plot.

Afternoon!
Flying - how irritating not to know. Could it be possible they could be negotiating still? And on top of all the other troubles, its mighty stressful I bet.
Pyjamas - ah, totally understandable with a toddler in toe! . Some of the plots that come up on ours range from downright immaculate to err....not. Though if they are really bad, our committee offer to help - everything from strimming,/rotavating to weed killing . You may be lucky, so will keep fingers crossed for you :)
It was lovely this morning, so had another stint - its perfect weed pulling at the moment, so trying to make the most of it , before the bindweed disappears for the winter . Pulled up the last of my beetroot ( though I have put in some more with the hopes they will get going) and a cabbage . Forgot all about taking the neem oil spray, so will try and get that done tomorrow now .

Hello... very excited to have found this thread. We have just bought a house in the country which comes with a paddock (no idea what we will do with it because we don't have a horse!) but also some raised beds.. the lovely owners dug the beds over before they left. Is there anything I can be doing with them now or do I just need to wait until next year? Thank you.

I'd suggest that if you already have beds, do some research on a no dig strategy - HuwsNursery on YouTube and points you are lead to from there. If you are itching to plant,
I've got some perpetual spinach and garlic on the go just now. Not planted that long ago. There are also winter onion sets you could try.
Just planting some green manure and then lightly digging it in would be a good idea.

Welcome scottish - :) how wonderful , sounds exciting! Are you actually in the North? . There are things that you can get on and sow/plant now for overwinter , but first decide what it is you like to eat . There is no point in growing things which take up precious space if you don't like them . Things you can be sowing/planting now - winter onions/garlic/broad beans / overwintering peas /perpetual spinach/chard . But these things will be in the ground maybe until May/June , and depending on how many/big your beds are you may want that space for different crops in the summer .
I would second bellini - winter is a good time to be improving fertility in the beds after a seasons growing . If they are nice and weed free , any bed not being used either add well rotted manure , or sow green manure . That will protect the soil over winter, and work in ready for next spring. And a paddock too - I would be busy making plans for a few fruit trees personally - perfect time for planting too ...

Thank you! We've moved from Broughty Ferry near Dundee up to Memus beyond Kirriemuir. Have a country pub on the doorstep and are totally loving it (the house, not just the pub!!). Not managed to sell the first house yet so we won't be spending too much but sure I can stretch to some garlic... We had a gardener in the other day as we need a gate across the driveway - but we did agree that an orchard next year would be the way to go. Am so excited! Been bulk buying gardening books on Amazon and off to get some chalk paint to tart up some of the old furniture we have moved from old house to new house as a stop gap measure until we sell...