Allotment/Veg patch Thread 17 - onwards and upwards

[bookbook]

Wow - cannot believe we are on thread 17 !
As always , pull up a garden chair and join in with the joys and woes of growing you own .
Previous thread HERE

@Gingerwarthog

Yes Echt, I thought I would grow the unusual (for me) on the allotment a few years back - which was radicchio and Jerusalem artichokes. Ate neither (think the idea of a 'hairy choke' put me right off) and have stuck to broad beans, rhubarb, beetroot, garlic, onions, mint and apples ever since. Happily.

It’s the globe artichoke that has the hairy choke. Jerusalem artichokes you eat the tubers not the flower buds.

@CaveMum

I made the mistake of not checking on the courgette plants for a few days as I was so busy with work. Rookie Error! I discovered this bad boy this morning, clocking it at 39cms

That’s almost into marrow territory. Stuffed marrows are great.

Mere, must have been the Globe I planted...there was definite 'hairy choke' action....

Lots of different greens here this morning . Think I'll be making a vegetable stir-fry later on

Evening all!
It has been absolutely manic this last week , so had no real time to sit and read through , and post .
Hello echt! - I gave up on trying interesting new stuff with the asparagus pea debacle .
Everything is full on producing . I have been and picked every other day - had to start giving french beans away , and I noticed the blue lake ones I posted about have started to set.
I planted out autumn/winter cauliflowers yesterday in the space that was used for the peas .
Also found a nice courgette chutney recipe which has gone down well - DH has eaten a full jar of it already - only made it last week ..HERE
I picked the last of the broad beans today , but the very first autumn raspberries have set . Blow me , even a head of purple sprouting has come through too - miles to soon .
( and a very few loganberries - a sad looking looking lot this year )
Loads of squashes are growing - crown prince and the marina di chioggia , but no sign as yet of any butternuts .
Onward and upward

Hello bookbook and gingerwarthog.

Like you I found a use for giant courgettes: chutney. I eat a lot of pickles so have planted red radishes and daikon in the cats' toilets well as the rainbow chard. This winter I've managed to grow coriander all through, under a plastic pop over greenhouse.

I'm going to give tomatoes a go again, after two terrible years, as well as new spuds in a container.

I say winter, though daytime temperatures have never got even as low as 10 as a daytime max this year, and I saw deciduous trees with spring growth this week, and still month of winter to go. It all feels nice, but not OK, in a climate change sort of way.

Good morning Echt.
Massive thank to everyone who recommended that I plant dwarf French beans. Back from a few days away and they are sprouting happily.
The beetroot is also doing well as are my squashes.
Courgettes have been a non- starter this year (!)

@Gingerwarthog

Mere, must have been the Globe I planted...there was definite 'hairy choke' action....

Globe is basically a giant thistle, Jerusalem is akin to a sunflower

bookbook I’ve been picking purple sprouting for the last three weeks.

I gave up asparagus peas. Stunning flower, lovely taste, but just no to picking a serving dish of veg half an inch at a time.

My loganberries have had a record year. It’s peas and broad beans that have been a bit skimpy. Alternation of drowning and drought has confused them.

Just been up to the allotment and the weeds seem to have sprouted again in my absence.
The mint smells glorious however so managed a good hour surrounded by that lovely smell.

Missed a few courgettes, not quite marrows but close

Runner beans are producing plentifully. Bell peppers seem like they'll be ready soon and the aubergines have now been plagued with green aphids. They've not grown in weeks.

I’m new to this board but very excited about signing up for an allotment today! Have grown bits at home this summer as we created a veg patch and was put onto the waiting list for an allotment expecting it to be next year, but had an email yesterday saying a plot has come up. It’s going to be starting from scratch ( it’s been left and is a pile of weeds currently with nothing planted), and I wondered if anyone had any beginners tips please.

@Cantthinkofabettername that's so exciting to hear. I'm the least qualified person on this thread but the beginner part rings true as I started on a neglected patch of weeds too haha. I used Charles Downing's no dig method if that's of any use. Although I did remove all large weeds that I could see, and then placed cardboard over the area regularly till growing season arrived. Then I added fresh soil and compost to the ground and made raised beds. It's worked wonderfully so far. The odd weeds but nothing like the weed haven it was before

@notsogreenthumb thank you! I’ll look up the Charles Downing method. Hoping to make a start on Monday eeeeek! The other plot holders have very smart plots so no pressure 😂😂

Can't think - my best advice would be to watch what the other allotmenteers are growing and ask the 'old hands' for any advice.

@Gingerwarthog thank you - we were shown round by one of the more established allotmenteers who was lovely so I’ll definitely be taking your advice!

Can't think - yes, my lot are lovely and really keen to pass on hints to newbies. They often gift us veg too - have had several courgettes and lettuces this week.
Good luck!

Evening all!
Welcome Cantthinkofabettername :) Exciting times !
I have a few tips that are worth thinking through . Biggest mantra has to be - it's a marathon not a sprint . Take it steady , plug away at it a bit of a time , don't try to do everything at once .
Good idea is to do a rough plan of your plot . Measure it if possible , see where the sun comes , any overhanging trees /hedges etc . It is surprising what a difference it makes when you are working out what you want to grow , and where to plant it .
Check to see if you have any sort of water supply
Read up a lot - I went to the library and borrowed loads of books . Found one I really liked and bought it - it is my bible ( The Allotment Book by Andi Clevely)
Check on your tenancy agreement about basic rules ( eg permission for sheds/greenhouses/ planting trees )
I hope you get help (you always get lots of advice! ), but make a list of what you want to grow . may be some perennials/fruit bushes , and you will need to consider where they are going to go - you can then cover with weed suppressant/cardboard until you are ready to deal with the area . Look carefully though in the mass of weeds - you may just have some, and you can't see them .
Last most important bit - only grow what you want to eat .
Thats just a taster , but hope that helps :)
So another hectic week for me , plus lots of rain ,, so it has mostly been going and harvesting , though managed a bit of weeding , and cut the grass today too . I dug up the broad bean plants , dug over and planted some late cauliflowers for late autumn /Christmas .
Gluts of french beans and courgettes of course !. So along with a few small caulis have made some piccalilli today :)

The gluts from this week 😊

Here's a lemon from my tree, got at by a possum. They only eat the peel.
Furry gits. I think I've cut off their access.

My tomato plants are not enjoying this weather at all.

Spotted the first ripe blackberry yesterday.

Otherwise picked some tomatoes, a load more courgettes, and a beetroot. Tomato plants still don't look too happy but hoping the sun today might cheer them up a bit.

The other great discovery is that since getting a puppy we've not had a single incidence of cat poo in the raised beds, despite one of them being empty and just loose soil right now. Puppy brings her own challenges of course - not many mange tout are making it to the kitchen as she loves them as a treat - but on balance not having my plants trashed by cats and not having to sift quantities of stinky poo from the soil is a huge improvement.

Evening all!
Agh echt what a pain!!!
Love the fact the dog has deterred the cats tiz - just a shame about the mange tout!
The weather has been interesting here. Unexpected heavy showers in days not forecast rain, no rain on days it was due… just generally running in and harvesting, which always takes longer than you ever think. Finally the tomatoes are starting to ripen, so can get going with cooking sauces for the freezer

Enjoy your planning cantwait
One thing I found useful was to see what other people at the allotment grew and what they seemed to do well with.

Last year we planted some fruit bushes - so small crops this year, but my children have loved picking and eating at the plot!

I keep forgetting to check the courgettes and then they are marrow sized. Runner and French beans are doing well. Onions are plaited and hanging up. Spinach and peas have been a disaster and the coriander has bolted ( I think - has flowers on!) very quickly. One cucumber plant has totally died, so the cucumbers on that plant stopped growing. The other one is still fine - and green and healthy looking, so glad I had 2!

I have found room for the broccoli - and the kale is doing well. When do people pick kale? I thought it was for the winter but it has lots of leaves on now, which has confused me.