Is anyone else finding this a difficult year on the allotment?

[TiredofLDN]

Im in my third year of allotmenting and have found it much more hit and miss than the first two- not sure if its the heat, or tired soil needs more of a boost or the new seed supplier I tried (lesson learned- stick with Kings!) but lots has been crap.

Potatoes are all tiny, courgette plants are putting out fewer fruits but they’re giant seemingly overnight, kale has been eaten to stumps (never happened before), radishes bolted before they even grew roots really, carrots I’m never very good at but germination was poor … Oh and the French and runner beans have been a nightmare to germinate - but the ones that did get going are doing well.

OTOH squashes have been fab already (took some early and they were delicious), and celeriac is coming on well. 😂

I never do lettuces or onions because I don’t find them worth the faff 😁

Just one of those years, or am I going wrong somewhere?! Help!

I’m down south and it’s been a weird year. Cold in June. Then heatwave after heatwave.

Even with daily watering, the soil in many of my pots is destroyed.

Some things are doing well. Cucumbers, chilis, peppers, courgettes, Borlotti beans.

My squashes have flowered but haven’t set.

I'm south London. Potatoes are tiny, climbing french beans are exhausted and stopped producing, runner beans very slow. Courgettes and cucumbers producing less than normal but winter squash are ok. All small things have bolted and not at all sure we will have sprouts for Christmas.
Sweetcorn is being eaten off the cobs before we can pick which has never happened before.
Think it's the very wet winter, then cold then hot and dry. Our soil is ok, just so dry. At least the slugs and snails are not about.

Tiny and I do mean TINYIEST bit of washing up liquid in your pots. Will sort them right out.

I’m using grey water which has a little bit of detergent in it?

Hmm, maybe you need a live top dress then. And, or buy professional wetting agent so you can go mad.

Worth having a bottle because I think most peoples gardens are going to need it in autumn anyway. This drought will have done some serious damage.

I'm a lifelong really keen gardener and this summer has utterly defeated me. My tomato crop is thriving but pretty much everything else is toast.

In my experience lots of people last three years on an allotment. Year 1 = daunting but exciting. Year 2 = Seeing results but a bit ongoing. Year 3 = no longer a novelty and you notice how time consuming it all is, especially the watering and keeping up with harvesting. The year 3 thing coupled with the scorching weather has made lots of people I know say enough is enough this year.

To be honest, it’s a rare year that everything goes equally well. I only get down to my allotment a couple of times a week maximum. My chilis, tomatoes (greenhouse, solar irrigation from a water butt) and squash are fabulous although the tomatoes are a bit slow to ripen. My brassicas are hit and miss - some of the psb for next spring are bolting in the heat although the sprouts seem to be holding out. I have given up completely on the little quick stuff like radishes.

In cold wet years my squash and tomatoes struggle. The allotment flooded a couple of times a few years back and the rhubarb was terrible. Etc etc. It’s never bumper all round.

I am def a time-poor allotmenter - make it to the plot twice a week if I’m lucky- but try to reflect this in what I grow/ how I grow it (don’t grow anything that needs excessive special care, or grow it at home if I want to), only run a half plot, and have made my peace with my plot being more weedy than pristine between the beds (but I think this helps with water retention in the soil).

i also do okay with slug damage - i have a theory that keeping the edges relatively wild, and planted up with things like wildflowers, nigella, mint, etc, then a very short strimmed path between the beds, encourages the slugs and snails to stay in the edges of the plot where it’s lush and green and damp (rather than cross the relatively inhospitable terrain to my beds) … but this might be wishful thinking!

I would agree that every year is different, though this year is particularly challenging. This year our beans have struggled massively and after a large harvest last year, this year we've only managed to pick a handful. Things like kale, courgettes and blackberries are doing really well. But a lot of things are struggling with the lack of rain and a lot of things we've planted have come to nothing, or not much.

I watched two Youtube videos last night about how to adapt to the hotter summers and there's loads of food for thought here:

Same. My raspberries (my favourite crop, both summer and autumn) have been progressively too cold, too dry, eaten by deer, and scorched. Can't remember a worse year!!

OTOH I've managed to keep my potatoes and sunflowers watered and they're okay.

The rest of my plot is a bramble sand pit. I'm waiting for the weather to cool so I can dig... and start thinking about next year lol 😝

My runner beans and courgettes are fantastic. Peas were good but have finished now. I have fed the neighbours and filled the freezer! Looking forward to tomatoes and chillies which are almost ready. Strawberries were rubbish, onions looking sad and only 2 beetroot remain. I have a wild rabbit who visits my plot regularly and he is getting the blame for the missing salad veg but he is very sweet. Similarly the blackbirds took the blame for the lack of strawberries.

Yes, it's been pretty soul destroying actually.

Broad beans, garlic and onions all did well.

Courgettes doing okay, tomatoes okay (outside ones doing better than greenhouse ones) cucumber and bit hit and miss but I think I just chose the wrong variety. Potatoes mixed, I think the more standard varieties do better than the posher ones. My Charlottes look good, but you need a microscope to see the La Ratte crop.

So much stuff just never got going at all, not a single lettuce even germinated and most of my herbs. My winter crops are all germinating in the cool of the house as it's just too hot outside, and I'm cautious of planting out the ones that have germinated as they'll just get fried.

As for my flowers in pots, I just abandoned them. They are all empty and waiting for the tulip bulbs to arrive, to the delight of my cats who adore sleeping in them.