Butternut Squashes Harvest

I visited today and did some weeding as well as harvesting the butternut squashes.  They've actually turned out OK.

Weeding and hacking down the Horseradish

I just made a quick visit today and did some more weeding and digging.  I've also cut down the horseradish as it is completely out of control!

Onions and Butternut Squashes

Today I harvested the onions and I don't think they'll grow much more now.   I've put them on the bathroom windowsill to dry out in the sun.  It's depressing to see how bad the weeds have got but good to see that the butternut squashes are finally coming along nicely.  I also had a good strim around the edges and of the worst grass on the plot today.  I had keeping up with the weeds and the grass and it's made no easier by the fact that the people with the back half of the plot I have are really neglectful of their plot so mine just keeps getting covered in weed and grass seeds from them.

Almost enough for pudding!

A fairly quick visit today.  I harvested some raspberries - almost enough for pudding - and some lettuces.  I also did a bit of weeding and I'm pleased the weeds don't seem too bad this year.

After the holiday

We've been away for three weeks so I thought I'd find weed devastation.  It wasn't actually too bad and half an hour of weeding made a good difference.  I harvested some lettuces and am pleased that the butternut squash plants are looking very healthy.  No sign of the pumpkins or courgettes, sadly.

Strimming

I'd noticed on Sunday that the borders of my plot were getting a bit overgrown again so I've visited this evening and given them a good strim.  Much tidier now!

Weeding and lettuce harvesting

I spent an hour or so weeding the plot again today.  Courgettes still not doing well but lettuces are much better.  I harvested some for lunches this week.

Weeding visit

We've had quite a bit of sun and rain in the last two weeks and the plot was indeed a bit weedy.  I was also sorry to see that the pumpkin plants have all been slug-devoured.  The courgettes and squashes are not doing very well either.  I hope they have a bit of a growth spurt soon.

I weeded around the onions and lettuces as they do seem to be doing quite well.

Tidying and planting out pumpkins

I hoed over the onions and lettuces bed today and planted the pumkin plants in the mypex I put on the back of the plot last time I visited.

I'm a bit disappointed with the courgettes and squashes but hope they will grow more as time goes on.  The plants are still looking rather weak.

I'm pleased that the onions and lettuces seem to be doing OK though.  Not might sign of the rocket yet!

Weeding and planting squashes and more onions

Quite a quick visit today.  I did some more weeding, planted another two rows of onions, planted out the squashes and put some more mypex on a bit of the allotment near the back.  I'll plant the pumpkins out there in a few days.  I also planted some rocket.

More planting and weeding

I visited again this evening as I’m about to go away for five days.  I had a general weeding session and also planted some more onions as well as some rocket.  I’m no good at growing rocket so I’m trying some new seeds to see if I have greater success.

I also planted the courgettes out through the mypex at the front of the plot.  I’ll do the pumpkins and the butternut squash next week.

No picture today as the camera phone  I take to the plot had a dead battery!

Mypex, sowing lettuces and planting onions

I made a good long visit today.  I met one of the allotments committee first and she sold me some new mypex to put on the front of my plot to keep the weeds down and sow the curcurbits through. I did quite a bit more weeding before laying the mypex and it was pretty hard to fix the edges in as the ground is so dry and crumbly.  I used a few bricks to hold it down so I hope it's OK.

I also sowed a row of mixed lettuce seeds in the bit with the egg-shell rich compost on it and also a couple of rows of onions.  There are more onions to plant but this, at least, is a start.  I put some canes at the end of the onion rows, about a foot high, with string between.  I wrapped bits of foil around the string at intervals to deter birds from stealing the onions.

I was on the plot for a total of 2.5 hours today.  It was nice that the only thing that made me return home was the fact that it was getting dark and a bit chilly.

Another weeding visit

I feel like I'm starting to get on top of the weeds now.  I spent a couple of hours today weeding around the raspberry canes and things are starting to look much better.  I'll get some mypex on Tuesday so I can cover the front of the plot then and get ready to plant some courgette, squash and pumpkin plants later in the week.

I had meant to plant onions and lettuces today also but I figured getting on top of the weeds was more important and I ran out of time.  I must have pulled about 2 bin bags full!

Weeding and Strimming

I spent another hour or so at the plot today.  I did a huge amount of weeding of the front bed.  It was just wet enough for the weeds to come out quite easily and with their roots intact.  Very satisfying!

I cleared quite a lots of the weeds around the raspberries too and then had a good strim of the front bed and the edges.  I am waiting for someone from the committee to reply to me so I can buy some more mypex to put over the front bed now it is weeded and strimmed.  Then I'll be able to plant out the curcurbits that are currently at home in pots in the garden.

Clearing the mess

It's not been a good allotment year so far.  We were away for the Easter long weekend and the Royal Wedding long weekend and this has really let the weeds and grass take hold.  We've also had a massively dry March and April but has some much needed rain at the weekend.

Today I've cleared the bed that was covered in mypex and it's come up really well but the rest is a bit of a nightmare.  I think I'll need some new mypex to cover the front bed and will grow curcubits through it as I've done so successfully before.  I'll plant onions (which were really successful last year) and lettuces in the bed I've just cleared.  I've got lots of good healthy pumpkin, squash and courgette seedlings ready to plant once the front bit is covered with mypex.

I must visit more often too!

A visit to the plot

It's the first day of British Summertime today so I took the opportunity to go and visit the plot.  It's suprisingly dry for this time of year.  The weeds aren't too bad but the grass is really annoying.  I had a good hack at it with hoe, rake and spade but it's going to take a few visits to get it back in order.

There were quite a lot of these pretty purple plants but they have to go as they are not fruit or veg.  If anyone knows what they are then do let me know.

Planting more seeds

Today I planted some more seeds - tomatoes and pumpkins.  They came with nice free labels :-)

The courgette and squash seedlings are already too big for the root trainers!

First seed planting of the year

Today I planted seed of the following in the propagator:  Courgette (All Green Bush), Squash (Avalon F1), Serrano Chillies, and Tomatoes (Alicante)'

I also planted some Rocket and put it in a plastic bag on the front window sill.

The first visit of 2011

A long gap since the last visit but the plot is not in too bad a state.  Quite a bit of grass growth but I think the big freeze of December has seen off quite a lot of the perennial weeds.  The main job today was to dig up the rhubarb that had got very big and was too close to the gooseberry bush.   I broke the plant up and gave some to Emily and some to Tom.  I've replanted other bits further away from the fruit bushes so I hope they will bed in and do well again this year.

I was amazed to see how big the horseradish I have on the plot has got!