tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-179577822024-03-29T03:28:44.197+00:00DICKY AND HEATHERS FARMYear 5 - An early start on the seasons to do list!Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.comBlogger123125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-47569952388974229292020-12-28T20:08:00.000+00:002020-12-28T20:08:59.224+00:002020 Season Review and a New Platform<p style="text-align: justify;">I really didn't realise it had been so long since I'd written anything here, but just because I didn't doesn't mean I'd given up on the farm, quite the opposite it turned out to be a very successful season.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">The lockdown and restrictions gave me a lot of extra time to spend on the farm, but also had the affect that I really didn't do much reading and writing during that time, just wasn't in the mood.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I did manage to keep the plot nice and tidy this year and did a far better job of successional sowing and re-using the ground once the first crops had been cleared. I also finished off some projects like the strawberry bed, a new shed floor and rebuilding the brassica cage.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">This year also had a more decorative angle with the salad bed having both edibles and flowers, it got a lot of compliments and hopefully inspired some of the many new plot holders that have joined our site this year.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">While I didn't update the blog very much I did post some pictures on Instagram, I found being able to take the pics, edit and update on my phone whilst still on the plot a bit easier.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">If you'd like to follow the farm on Instagram, apparently it's known as Insta or 'the gram' to the youngsters, then search for <b>dickys_farm </b> to see pics from this year and see how I get on next season.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I seemed to struggle to sit down and write things on here this year, (I was still working full time, just from home) and Instagram seemed to work very well for me, so for the start of next year at least I'll be updating on there. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">I'll leave this blog up and I've put some pics from this season up to show how it went. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">Happy Gardening!!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; 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So with everything except the leeks and successional sowings in the ground the farm now looks pretty busy. So far it all seems to be taking nicely with only a few problems. Here's a bed by bed run down.</div>
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<b><u>Bed 1</u></b></div>
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The asparagus is just about done for the year but has had a good season, a solid 6 weeks of cutting and 3 out of 4 of the newer crowns have put on some growth this year. I'll give it final cut and a covering of manure soon and let it grow out for the summer.</div>
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The cucumbers are up to 6 leaves now, 6 out of 7 plants have survived being planting out, and once they get to 7 leaves I'll nip out the tips to get the side shoots going to produce the fruit and secure them to my trellis.</div>
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Gherkins are nearly big enough to be secured to the tripod now, again I'll nip out the tips. The sweetcorn are getting taller and the pumpkin and butternut plants should cover the remaining ground to keep the weeds down. </div>
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My spring onions are nearly big enough to start harvesting, I haven't managed to grow these in years so looking forward to those. There is a second sowing in and some beets and Asian radish just starting to come up.<br />
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<b><u>Bed 2</u></b></div>
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My salad bed is getting some nice comments. I've started picking leaves off the Salad Bowl and Lolo Rosso and have now picked the first of the Amaze little gem style ones. As I pick them I have green Little Gem, more Amaze and Rocket ready to fill the gaps. The tomato plants are just starting to flower and I've put in a beetroot seeds at random for some visual variety.</div>
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The Oca is doing well and my 6 courgettes are just showing signs of the first fruit of the season.</div>
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<b><u>Bed 3</u></b></div>
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Main crop spuds are well earthed up and just starting to flower, earlier than the early variety, wonder if I got the labels wrong.... The leeks will go in behind these soon.</div>
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There are 4 half rows of carrots inside the carrot fly netting, several staggered plantings, they are small but growing nicely. The parsnips however are putting up a fight this year, more than usual, I still only have about 50% up so far.</div>
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My onions, white from sets and red from seeds are doing well, unfortunately pickling onions are being a real pain this year, the first plantings in compost and direct have been a no show. I have a last desperate attempt on the kitchen windowsill at the moment, fingers crossed. Luckily they only need a short growing season to get to pickling size.<br />
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<b><u>Bed 4</u></b></div>
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The small cage has my summer cabbages, a cauli and a Romanesco broccoli and all seem to be doing ok despite a mealy aphid attack which was quickly despatched with the bug gun. Hopefully they make a full recovery. </div>
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The big cage has Kalettes, sprouting broccoli, sprouts, all well supported against the recent winds, and kohl robi. The kohl robi are just starting to fatten up and I must remember to pick them a little earlier this year.</div>
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The early spuds are all looking healthy, one has gone missing after the earthing up against the late frosts though.</div>
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<b><u>Bed 5</u></b></div>
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I'm doing my beans, yellow and purple bush and green climbing, in 2 sowings this year to try and avoid the glut which wouldn't be able to get rid of while I'm not going into the office.</div>
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The green Cobra beans all came up and will heading up the poles shortly, the bush ones are either being attacked when they come up, get dug up by wildlife or just aren't germinating well. I've had to sow them twice and still haven't got full rows!</div>
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The marrows have mini fruits on them but the flowers on them aren't fully open yet, and there aren't many male flowers about yet either</div>
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I've started picking broad beans early while they are still small, again to avoid a glut I won't be able to get rid of. They seem to have a decent crop on them despite the black fly which were again dispatched with the bug gun.</div>
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In the cage the pod peas are flowering now and the mange tout are about an inch or so high. Again they were stagger planted. The first of the beetroot are almost ready to harvest, being a bit bigger than golf balls now,</div>
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<b><u>Strawberrys</u></b></div>
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I've had 3 off of these so far and while there are plenty more they still seem a bit small and aren't ripening very quickly, but the birds aren't getting them this year! </div>
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Hope your seasons are off to a good start.<br />
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Happy gardening folks!</div>
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<br />Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-14249943510757208292020-05-22T11:56:00.000+00:002020-05-22T11:56:25.013+00:00Too much time on my handsI'm still working during this little adventure, from home rather than commuting to London, and the 2 1/2 hours I'm saving each day does give me a lot more allotment time.<br />
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I've had time to uncover and prep all the beds ahead of planting out, which I've held off doing while quite a few of my fellow plot holders were caught by those late frosts. It looked a bit bare and sun baked but ready.<br />
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The weather is bit crazy this year, having waited for the usual late frost I am now waiting for the heat wave and the high winds to pass before putting out squashes and tomatoes.<br />
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I have bitten the bullet though and planted out bedding flowers, brassicas and some sweetcorn I ended up buying from a garden centre as mine were pretty much a no show this year.<br />
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I was doing some shopping in Aldi yesterday and picked up some willow trellis and 6ft plastic covered poles to make a cucumber trellis so that was a nice result.<br />
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I'm hoping to get everything else planted out on Monday when the weather returns to something a little more like what we would expect for this time of year.<br />
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It's certainly nice to see everything so tidy as I've had the time to put into it.<br />
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Happy gardening folks!<br />
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Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-24591043627358328152020-05-11T22:06:00.001+00:002020-05-11T22:06:38.823+00:00Short Supplies<div style="text-align: justify;">
This lockdown has bought host of new growers to the game, whether it is something they always wanted to do and now have time for, or people concerned about the food supply chain in the current situation. </div>
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While it's great to see the overgrown and unloved plots on our site being taken over and worked it appears it has bought about a new problem, lack of supplies. People trying to order seeds online have been quoted delivery dates of June, not a lot of use, compost supplies are slowly catching up but around here getting some things has been difficult. </div>
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No doubt garden centres opening this week will help, but I wouldn't want to be in the fight in the seed isles!. I also suspect that the allotment'ers community spirit will help out anyone who is short with spare seeds and plants, I've already donated a few. Hopefully these newcomers enjoy their first year and carry on. </div>
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I wanted some bark to top up the paths and managed to get some from a small local petrol station/shop, I didn't fancy risking B&Q. The plot looks good with its freshened up paths, if a little bare at the moment.</div>
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Asparagus season has started, slowly at first but the last couple of pickings have been like this. It's the first proper crop from the plot this year as the usual winner, the radish has been a bit lazy, they will be second though.</div>
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My peas are looking good so far, they seem to have appreciated a seaweed feed last week. These are a pod variety called Boogie. I will put the Shiraz mangetout seeds in at the end of the month, nicely staggered to avoid last years glut. This year I plan to replace the Boogie's with winter cabbages as I'm planting those later this year as well.</div>
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All but one of the lettuces has survived being planted out in the salad bed and the second sowing of radishes and beetroot have germinated nicely. </div>
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Back home the greenhouse is doing a good job and a bit of tetris means everything can be accommodated. </div>
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There have been some strange germination rates this year, out of 24 sweetcorn I only have 5, I suspect I won't get replacements anywhere, there are no pickling onions and I had to plant some donated white onion sets as my seed onions failed both times. I have enough tomato plants but only 3 of the 5 varieties came up. </div>
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I'll need to recheck the dates on my seed packets but even allowing for some older seed this has been a strange year germination wise.</div>
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Happy Gardening Folks! </div>
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Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-6812522335696994772020-04-18T14:08:00.000+00:002020-04-18T14:08:53.225+00:00I need a Shower.....No that doesn't mean I'm letting my personal hygiene slip while working from home in these strange times, it means the April showers we expect just aren't coming and the plot is looking a little dry and dusty.<br />
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I'm very thankful we are still allowed to carry on working on the allotments, it is certainly helping to maintain my sanity. As someone who usually pops into his local 4/5 times in a week it provides a welcome opportunity to see a real human, even if it is just from a distance.<br />
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In the last couple of weeks I've been fairly busy planting at home and filling up my new greenhouse as well as some direct planting, housekeeping and completing the strawberry bed project.<br />
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The strawberry plants are looking good and the final level of the cage and netted lid have been added.<br />
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All my spuds are in now, Foremost for earlies and Carolus for Main. Plenty of soil available for earthing up.<br />
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I planted out the broads and put a wind screen around them. They are supported with string as there can be a stiff breeze down there. This pic is a few days old, they are flowering nicely now.<br />
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Some direct planting. A half row of radishes, spring onions, lettuce and beetroot in one bed. Carrots and parsnips in the other.<br />
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Asparagus season is starting again. Only a couple so far but looking forward to it!!<br />
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Happy gardening folks!!<br />
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<br />Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-82939073161056501772020-03-22T20:48:00.001+00:002020-03-23T11:57:35.510+00:00Mad March!!Blimey what a lot has changed since the last post... It feels like the world has gone mad. The biggest worry at the moment is what happens in terms of access to allotments if the lock down gets worse.<br />
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I made a start prepping a bed on the farm today. The covers are off the pea/broad bean bed now, I threw on some Growmore and worked it in with hoe before raking it smooth, it was dug over at the end of last year so that is all that's needed.<br />
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I need to redo the netting on the pea cage before moving it into place and planting out my broads which are hardening off in the garden. They are a bit leggy and needed staking. They got a bit warm in the house during the storms but putting out a pop up greenhouse for Derek to trash seemed a little silly. These will go out next week as we have a couple of cold nights coming.</div>
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At home I have a gone for a larger pop up green house. It's weighted and tied down so fingers crossed it stays in place. I might even set it up as a home office as it's pretty toasty in there!<br />
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Over the weekend I have planted my tomatoes, leeks, pickling onions, brussels, oca and broccoli. I've thinned my flower seedlings, (pansy, marigold and mimulus) and pepper plants. I've also re-sown my white oinons as they all died off. I suspect dampened off so I'll be more careful and try and water from the bottom this time. I've need had this before.<br />
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That's quite a few trays of plants to bring in on a cold night but hopefully I'll be able to leave them in the greenhouse overnight soon. <br />
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Happy gardening folks, stay safe<br />
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<br />Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-59088554326692112412020-02-09T21:13:00.001+00:002020-02-09T21:13:17.993+00:00Strawberry Fields Forever....A little dramatic that title, more like strawberry beds until the decking rots away.<br />
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On a sunny Saturday morning I fitted my painted raised strawberry beds to the bed frame. They are lined with plastic and filled with a mix of topsoil, manure and potting compost.<br />
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Once the plants are in and start to fruit I'll fill the gaps between the planters with weed control fabric and a layer of straw to keep the weeds down and reflect the sunlight, which is also the reason for the white paint.<br />
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Provided this weekends storm has left me something to work with I have to fit another layer of painted decking on top of the outside of the bed before making and fitting a hinged netting lid. It may seem like over kill but I like strawberry's and the critters usually get more than I do!<br />
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It's been a bonus to get on with such jobs in January thanks to the mild weather, although the ground is certainly too soggy to dig so it's limited to a hoeing the exposed areas. <br />
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Also in the fruit bed it was good to see that the rhubarb crown I dug up, split and moved at the end of last season has survived, this new leaf has come through in the last week.<br />
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The next post could be a damage report, we'll see as soon as I can get down the farm in daylight.<br />
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Happy gardening folks! Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-15255615725662591692020-01-31T10:58:00.001+00:002020-02-07T12:08:01.436+00:00And We're of!!Sowing season started here last Saturday with chilli's, leeks, white onions, peppers and dahlias.<br />
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And the winner is..... Dahlias, 6 out of 8 up already.</div>
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I'll start Broads of this weekend and get the just arrived seed spuds set up to chit.</div>
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I'm going to put a cloche or 2 up on the plot to warm the soil for radishes, lettuce and early carrots, if it stops raining!!</div>
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Happy gardening folks!</div>
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Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-31677440124528484462020-01-22T13:21:00.001+00:002020-01-22T13:23:07.079+00:00New Potting TraysSo far this year all I've planted is a row of garlic that started growing in the kitchen cupboard. Leeks, onions, Broads and chili's are on the schedule for this weekend.<div><br></div><div>In the mean time I've been building myself a couple of these wooden pot holding trays out of pallet wood. Far more sturdy than the thin plastic things that break under the weight of damp compost. Recycling at it's best.</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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</div>My cleaner is pleased I'll be doing all the planting and potting in the garage this year instead of in the kitchen now I have my work benches.</div><div><br></div><div>I've been working on the new strawberry bed when it's been warm at the weekend, pictures to follow soon.</div><div><br></div><div>Happy gardening folks!</div>Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-1923070760600471452019-11-11T22:12:00.000+00:002019-11-11T22:12:28.546+00:00A Review of 2019<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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My apologies for the lack of posts over the summer, while I have managed to keep up with the tasks on the plot and get a good haul in the process, time for posting here has been a bit short. Work and DIY does tend to get in the way, along with quite a few BBQ's of course.<br />
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The cold start and hot couple of months did cause a few issues but it's fair to say that everything planted put in some kind of appearance and we certainly didn't go short this year.<br />
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So here is a rather pictorial update of this years progress.<br />
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Love a freshly picked sweetcorn. They did well this year despite a bit of wind damage</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">50mph winds bent a few of the sweetcorn</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivQg1pGC61oMQg_TRX0lsRmhQcVmkrkvx-OEUIT-DfvAV5nhRl9S1EuEPN3PWxuHvr44R0PvH0tuRTnIFZRoGchYFvL46BGVr0MbQ7WZkOyl4IDAJ4qhuZg1A9KKE8Gqj8kZB3mQ/s1600/IMG_20190811_105537520.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivQg1pGC61oMQg_TRX0lsRmhQcVmkrkvx-OEUIT-DfvAV5nhRl9S1EuEPN3PWxuHvr44R0PvH0tuRTnIFZRoGchYFvL46BGVr0MbQ7WZkOyl4IDAJ4qhuZg1A9KKE8Gqj8kZB3mQ/s320/IMG_20190811_105537520.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The changeable weather meant that the sprouting broccoli put in an early appearance this year</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Plenty of tomatoes this year, although the dry conditions did make some of the skins a little tough</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Malbec carrots. The first planting had to be scrapped but the second produced a good crop. Carrot fly have been an issue this year</td></tr>
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Even managed to get a couple of decent sized peppers</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilZV8g8MKSiVaEnXvnri7OIxK-7UpNySBGXkVqkalAuJXdz5_AWP0HWxQsLcjZZXgf8y3AYfVPysev2p-wcSIZwHBlhxQZQT143DZPL7qdWmWvpmJsLQRowLxHxhD8xV3SePZgAg/s1600/IMG_20190803_151140160.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilZV8g8MKSiVaEnXvnri7OIxK-7UpNySBGXkVqkalAuJXdz5_AWP0HWxQsLcjZZXgf8y3AYfVPysev2p-wcSIZwHBlhxQZQT143DZPL7qdWmWvpmJsLQRowLxHxhD8xV3SePZgAg/s320/IMG_20190803_151140160.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It was a good onion crop this year</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh77CyAUUVduDUHu_qFpgj3g2ZGpQNv0TwgWp8UIMZTYoM4z5fWQtmsAFfn07y33F1o_DSMzE381vhzGWBWhX1RF5Sut5FNjb6vrqTeG1diO4HnSAJd0nM7Ydq5YFMe9j3QqXibwA/s1600/IMG_20191012_090642355.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh77CyAUUVduDUHu_qFpgj3g2ZGpQNv0TwgWp8UIMZTYoM4z5fWQtmsAFfn07y33F1o_DSMzE381vhzGWBWhX1RF5Sut5FNjb6vrqTeG1diO4HnSAJd0nM7Ydq5YFMe9j3QqXibwA/s320/IMG_20191012_090642355.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Last of the onions strung for winter usage. I'll definitely grow from seed next year as well</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlSmmxCckrOuzYHBC3hWKm6RQ7L86DiYT3IL1Nyd8E2CD01foTn-JLOZuq8ZoPDo9EZbJZdg780R7yHDMPfvBDuWPPh79S_zwTZVcD2fcikL8UCe6fymU4Xq8dBsE8XqcOJ4RwVw/s1600/IMG_20191109_115611277_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlSmmxCckrOuzYHBC3hWKm6RQ7L86DiYT3IL1Nyd8E2CD01foTn-JLOZuq8ZoPDo9EZbJZdg780R7yHDMPfvBDuWPPh79S_zwTZVcD2fcikL8UCe6fymU4Xq8dBsE8XqcOJ4RwVw/s320/IMG_20191109_115611277_HDR.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div>
Carrots, leeks and parsnips. The leaf miner has hit the leeks again this year but there are still some usable ones. Some kind of protection will be needed for next year</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEkJuAFmt6SYts4nwlva4eQCSPXu41z_jzGK92z8YH4VMIzLu0NW3jtA917wANu1e8VS3SnMyh6BJM2uZaCxCShLR5tlnzSJz0AioXOr3CfCJ1i8ZRtWKpVXakXiQYMHlPvyHOuw/s1600/IMG_20190831_122908270.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEkJuAFmt6SYts4nwlva4eQCSPXu41z_jzGK92z8YH4VMIzLu0NW3jtA917wANu1e8VS3SnMyh6BJM2uZaCxCShLR5tlnzSJz0AioXOr3CfCJ1i8ZRtWKpVXakXiQYMHlPvyHOuw/s320/IMG_20190831_122908270.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The biggest of 2 pumpkins, large squashes didn't have a great year</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrBofqmwBvxeyn6WiHTNnJjGRtu9yYEAD-Pr2vy__F9ywJ8frhRpkCmrtrvZOc0f6tdQc0QL40ApIXTtJQw5g1yJ3XSAzIFwas-OyIUUijGV7fOI4n6DpF8W0R02n1JPStbxxouA/s1600/IMG_20191029_210211137.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrBofqmwBvxeyn6WiHTNnJjGRtu9yYEAD-Pr2vy__F9ywJ8frhRpkCmrtrvZOc0f6tdQc0QL40ApIXTtJQw5g1yJ3XSAzIFwas-OyIUUijGV7fOI4n6DpF8W0R02n1JPStbxxouA/s320/IMG_20191029_210211137.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And they ended up like this!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpcVk-PXFK4GuhheiCBFV4fJnE9s8WhqR4TmJtJww4lznmD8CFwNs2dDGQIIpMdTT1Cp2mSUlgv7p5JxY54tFirXaQfJLRnH03wd_jEo7YpfFeKCTaqSIvt4U_chydxArTwCQrCg/s1600/IMG_20191109_104324919.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpcVk-PXFK4GuhheiCBFV4fJnE9s8WhqR4TmJtJww4lznmD8CFwNs2dDGQIIpMdTT1Cp2mSUlgv7p5JxY54tFirXaQfJLRnH03wd_jEo7YpfFeKCTaqSIvt4U_chydxArTwCQrCg/s320/IMG_20191109_104324919.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A picture from last weekend. Leeks, parsnips and brassicas. Oca covered in fleece in the background. I need to remind myself what to do with them. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaNbOCFaVmn9gdD5u2w268F0q_OSnlkD3sELmc04b-brxVuaCACL3l_uwlfnZQrLK_vZiBvVW5sp7xvT0TCa50-N3yzDjcJnlY6jcUP_Ywa5dOpRgB2DJORU8YwIRLvKqnmVXIQw/s1600/IMG_20190716_212146314.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaNbOCFaVmn9gdD5u2w268F0q_OSnlkD3sELmc04b-brxVuaCACL3l_uwlfnZQrLK_vZiBvVW5sp7xvT0TCa50-N3yzDjcJnlY6jcUP_Ywa5dOpRgB2DJORU8YwIRLvKqnmVXIQw/s320/IMG_20190716_212146314.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This year I've pickled my own onions, they do have a bite! and even got to like a boiled beetroot</td></tr>
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The plot is looking quite tidy. I've manured and covered all the finished beds and I've been working on tidying the fruit bed. I don't think I'll get the strawberries replaced this year but I'll have the bed ready in the spring.</div>
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We've had the usual end of season visits from the vandals and they slashed the pea cage netting and Brian's shirt. It happens every year, usually closer to christmas, but at least they left the veg alone.</div>
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Hope you've all had a good season.<br />
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Happy Gardening Folks!!Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-38537822582258123732019-07-08T20:55:00.002+00:002019-07-08T20:55:23.714+00:00Let the picking begin!<div style="text-align: justify;">
A good blast of rain and a hot weekend later and things are kicking off nicely. Now as well as keeping up with the weeding we have the picking to keep up with as well. </div>
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The Arran Pilot potatoes didn't flower much but as they have been in the ground since March it was time to see what we've got. The results were good, giving a good yield per plant and some of them are huge. They have a really nice taste and don't fall apart when boiled. There was very little pest damage or scab so really pleased with them.</div>
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I thought the Shetland Black spuds had gone a bit wrong and been ruined by something but after looking through all my books and digging around online I couldn't find pests/disease that matched what I was seeing or any evidence on the plants themselves.<br />
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Then I found an article that says this variety often doesn't flower and that while they are second earlies they are often ready at the same time as first earlies. It also said that they don't get very big. Based on this and the condition of the spuds themselves I've decided they were actually a success. They are a pain to harvest though. They just look like lumps of mud and are quite hard to spot as you dig.</div>
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They are really a roasting/chip/crisp spud as they are floury and fall apart when boiled, they actually turn the water a rather strange green colour too. </div>
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The first couple of Dutchman summer cabbages have been really good. No damage from pests, very clean and a good size. </div>
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The mangetout peas, Oregon, are ready now, the Boogie ones won't be far behind. They are very nice but grow so quickly that picking them at the right moment is a challenge.</div>
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A glut of broad beans is being dealt with by taking them to work, they go down well and make a healthy snack that keeps us out of the biscuit jar as well. </div>
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The good news is that I'm getting requests for courgettes. As the courgette madness will be upon us soon this is good news.</div>
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Some of onions had some browning of leaves, when I tried to remove them they came out of the ground very easily. It looks like the dreaded white rot, luckily it only affects 3 onions so far. They weren't wasted though, they were fine to use straight away.</div>
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I've had to plant more carrots as carrot fly had been at them and I found the tips had gone soft when I pulled the Malbec variety. I think this was caused by the amount of rain we had as I've never seen this before</div>
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As always there is the odd problem but in general I'm happy with everything. The farm certainly looks a lot fuller than last year.</div>
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Happy gardening folks!! </div>
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Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-9387272891523404772019-06-25T05:58:00.000+00:002019-06-25T05:58:12.046+00:00Meet Brian!<div style="text-align: justify;">
We have a new helper on the farm, a rather snazzy dresser he is too, meet Brian.... we've been meaning to make a scarecrow for the last couple of years and have finally managed it, thanks to some free straw we got on freecycle.</div>
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Things are starting to look good on the plot now, we aren't picking much variety wise but things are looking good for a couple of weeks time.<br />
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So here's the latest update.</div>
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<b><u>Bed 1:</u></b></div>
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On the left the sweetcorn are doing well and are about 18 inches high now. They all survived the transplant. I lost a blue pumpkin to the wind but had a replacement, it and the orange Halloween pumpkin are doing ok and slowly starting to spread. Same for the spaghetti and butternut squash.</div>
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On the right Brian is guarding my marrows and 4 courgettes. One courgette didn't look great after bring potted out but after a feed is starting to pick up. The cucumbers are nearly big enough to go in.</div>
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<b><u>Bed 2:</u></b></div>
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At the back the 6 tomato plants are looking nice, they have some good solid stakes to support them. After all the rain I am just hoping the breeze and lower temperatures are keeping the blight at bay.</div>
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Also in here are 3 more courgettes and a line of lettuces I should be able to start picking soon. I lost a lettuce to something but I'm not exactly short at the moment so not too worried.</div>
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In the front I'm planning to give the asparagus another week or so before I let it grow out for the season, Its done well and has paid for the plot again this year (£32). All 4 crowns I put in last year have come up as well which I wasn't expecting. I'm cutting the salad bowl and lolo rosso leaves as I need them and they make a lovely salad. I have a second sowing of radish in here, the pigeons are finally leaving the beetroot alone and the multi tiered lettuce I plan to give away as growing salad are doing well. Spring onions however are eluding me again, well certainly in this bed.</div>
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<b><u>Bed 3:</u></b></div>
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In the back are my second early Shetland Black spuds, and something is going wrong. The tops are dying off before they flower and some of the stalks can be pulled out of the ground. I had a dig around one of the plants but apart from red ants can't find anything wrong. It's not blight, doesn't look like blackleg and I can't find any cut worm. There are spuds there and cutting one open revealed it is small but healthy. I'm going to leave them and see what happens.The Oca are looking good and I've got more lettuces and radishes around them to use up the space.</div>
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At the front the parsnips still have bare patches but I've used all seeds trying to fill the gaps so they will have to take their chances. The Malbec carrots are looking a bit pale and the tops are wilted. They probably just need a feed but they could be a bit wet, which makes a high nitrogen liquid feed a bit risky. The resistafly are looking good though. The main onions are starting to swell nicely, some of tops are a little bent from being under the tunnel but they don't seem to mind. The pickling onions are doing well and I've put out the leeks, all of which of survived.</div>
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<b><u>Bed 4:</u></b></div>
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The arran pilots are flowering and the rain has really made them put on a spurt, I'm looking forward to those and will dig a plant as a trial next week. The Oca look good again, and there are yet more lettuces, a variety called amaze, a purple tipped little gem which I'm told are very nice.</div>
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In the front the brassicas are very good this year with no bug issues so far. The kohl robi are being cut now in the main cage to give the sprouts, kale and broccoli more room. It's the first I've grown kohl robi and it turns out they are lovely in a salad. In the cabbage cage the summer cabbages are starting heart up nicely. The winter ones look ok so far, they will get some more room once the summer ones are out.</div>
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<b><u>Bed 5:</u></b></div>
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<b></b><u></u>In the pea cage things are really starting to move. The Oregon are flowering and both varieties have needed tying back with string before they get tangled., and also so I can get to the beetroot at the back which are nearly ready. The broads have had very little black fly, partly helped by the bug gun, and should be ready for picking next week.</div>
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In the bean bed all varieties are doing well, some were nibbled but have recovered nicely, I'll be tying them to the poles and string soon. The lettuces around them look nice now and keep the weeds done.</div>
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<b><u>Fruit Bed:</u></b></div>
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There's still a bit of work to do here. I've netted the strawberry's so I'm finally getting more than the birds. A spare courgette has been plonked in here just to use the space.</div>
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I skip dived another load of decking wood to do the bed edges and I'll get round to it soon then build my raised strawberry section.<br />
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Happy gardening folks!!</div>
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Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-64365746704175741782019-06-10T19:48:00.001+00:002019-06-10T19:48:22.333+00:00Planting Out<div style="text-align: justify;">
Now with the danger of overnight frosts gone, the young plants big enough to survive in the big bad world and the ground prepped it's time to the put plants out to take their chances.</div>
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Sounds simple doesn't it, dig a hole, stick the plant in, fill it up and water.....or is it?</div>
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I follow a 3 simple rules for planting out and thought I'd share them with you. They are quite simple, those that go in deep, those that in level and those that need a hill.</div>
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<b><u>Those that can go deep:</u></b></div>
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By deep I mean putting them in the ground up to the first set of true leaves, not the baby leaves. These are plants that will put out extra roots from the stem, or those that need strong support such as brussels and sweetcorn.</div>
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It this category I put tomatoes, sweetcorn, sprouts, Kale, sprouting broccoli</div>
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<b><u>Those that go in level:</u></b><br />
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These are plants that need the surface of the compost they were planted in to be at the same level as the ground soil, where planting them deeper could cause the plant to rot.<br />
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These are plants were the end product is swollen stem, such as onions, or very close to the ground such as cabbages and cauliflower.<br />
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Some say lettuces should be included here, but I've always planted them a little deeper to provide support. <br />
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<b><u>Those that need a hill:</u></b><br />
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Some plants don't like their leaves and stems getting wet. Not only can they not be planted deep, but water shouldn't be allowed to pool around them. This is the cucurbit and gourd family, mostly known as squashes.<br />
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These should be planted on a mound, pile up the earth, make a hole in the top, pop the plant in level with the surface. This can mean the root ball doesn't have much soil around it in the first couple of days so it's best to put a plant pot in so you can water near it.<br />
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I tend to dig a bigger shallow hole, make my mound in the middle and then water into the moat around it. The white pipe is instead of a plant pot<br />
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If you have a sloping plot then planting them at the top will stop the water pooling.<br />
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Hope this helps someone out<br />
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Happy gardening folks!!Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-35388885141518112372019-05-21T21:22:00.000+00:002019-05-21T21:22:00.838+00:00Slugs, Pigeons, Rabbits..................and Horses!<div style="text-align: justify;">
The last couple of years we've had mercifully few problems with slugs and our site doesn't really suffer with rabbits like the one up the road. Pigeons we most definitely have a problem with and peas or brassicas without netting don't stand much of a chance.</div>
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One thing you don't expect though is horses. There are some living in the field beside our site and of late they have been escaping to our side of the fence occasionally.</div>
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When I popped down to water last Wednesday the first thing I noticed were some holes in a dug but empty bed. As there was no soil flung about I wondered if someone had been nicking the topsoil by the bucket full, then I saw the unmistakable imprint of a horse shoe in the clay surface of the un-dug bed one.</div>
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It looks like the beast had had a wander round half the plot, including splitting my two rows of carrots into four! Not happy. Somehow he missed every parsnip that has germinated.</div>
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I looked up to see the horse merrily wandering around the far end of the site defying all attempts to catch it, or take its picture. Needless to say a complaint has gone into the council who were supposed to replace the fences in April.</div>
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At least I haven't put in many of my plants yet, the sweetcorn are due to go in this week, quite happy with these.</div>
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I'm glad I waited unlike some who lost more than a carrot or two. Very disheartening for new plot owners.</div>
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Happy gardening folks!!</div>
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<br />Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-64682064415155872242019-05-13T23:03:00.000+00:002019-05-13T23:03:42.553+00:00So here's the plan.....<div style="text-align: justify;">
I like to try and stick to a crop rotation plan, there is usually a little tweak required every year, something doesn't come up, you get given something new or more than expected germinates so you think why not put it in. So here is this years plan. Having the cross paths splitting the beds does actually make things easier to manage. </div>
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I'm pretty happy with things so far, I know there is a long way to go yet, so here's a run down of the progress so far. </div>
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<b><u>Bed 1</u></b></div>
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Nothing happening here, not even got the covers off yet. It just needs a little dig and its good to go but I have a good couple of weeks as some of the plants due to go in there haven't even come up yet. I'll probably add a couple of buckets of manure to the bits that was exposed over winter.</div>
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<b><u>Bed 2</u></b></div>
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At the front the asparagus bed is getting into it's stride and if this keeps up it will effectively pay for the plot again this year.</div>
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The other half of the front bed if being used for quick growing crops such as lettuce, radish, turnip and beetroot. Once I get all the crops in other beds I'll mix them into the those and maybe use this space for something else. I'm thinking more ornamental this year. </div>
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The back of the bed where the tomatoes and chillies will go has been dug and prepped ready.</div>
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<b><u>Bed 3</u></b></div>
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I planted 24 stations of parsnips, with 4 seeds per station, so far 12 have come up, that's a 1/8th germination rate, don't you just love them! I've replanted the failed stations again.</div>
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The carrots are coming along nicely and onions seem to be enjoying life in the fleece tunnel which will continue for the next couple of weeks until the risk of allium leaf miner has passed..</div>
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At the back of the bed the Shetland Black potatoes are looking good and the space for the Oca plants is prepped.</div>
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<b><u>Bed 4</u></b></div>
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The summer and winter cabbages are looking healthy in the small cage. Only 11 in total but how much cabbage can one man eat! In the big cage The kohl robi are started to swell, I've never grown these before so I'm watching them closely and the broccoli, sprouts and kale have settled into their new home quite nicely.</div>
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At the back are the arran pilot early spuds, some of which are a little behind but all showing now. There will be more oca in here once the danger of frost has passed.</div>
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<b><u>Bed 5</u></b></div>
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The bean canes are up and the seeds are in. I've gone for the odd angle in the bed to make the best use of the space and put in different coloured varieties to make it look a little more interesting.</div>
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At the back of the bed the broad beans have plenty of flowers, but no pods yet, they are a dwarf variety so the wind hasn't ravaged them too badly this year. </div>
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In the pea cage things are looking good, the germination rate has been very good, I thought about thinning them but I think I'll just leave it. The beetroot plugs I put in have taken nicely too.</div>
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<b><u>Fruit Bed</u></b></div>
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I've finished clearing the old raspberries, weeds and herbs, dug it over and turfed the new paths. Once the turf takes I'll cut the edges and put in the boards. The strawberries have lots of flowers but no sign of and berries yet.</div>
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So that's where we are so far. As long as everything that is filling up all my window sills does its job we should have a lot more planting out to do soon.</div>
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Happy gardening folks!!</div>
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Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-60138612348662811212019-04-30T21:13:00.000+00:002019-04-30T21:13:40.646+00:00Where did the sun go?<div style="text-align: justify;">
Over the Easter weekend I got quite the tan working on the plot, this weekend not so much...</div>
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The great weather gave me the opportunity to plant out the summer cabbages and kohl robi seedlings in the brassica cages, the marigolds in the borders and the beetroot seedlings in the pea cage where the pesky pigeons can't get their beaks on them!<br />
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The carrots are up and the rows look good with no big gaps, the parsnips I'm not so sure about, something is coming up in places but I haven't been able to 100% identify them as parsnips yet. This makes the weeding a rather perilous affair.</div>
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I put in a half row of radishes, turnips, Tom Thumb lettuces, red spring onions, beetroot and a row each of the pea varieties in the new pea cage. The radishes took a record 4 days to appear!</div>
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At home I've planted tomatoes, sweetcorn and chard in pots and had a good germination rate. The tomatoes are on the windowsill where they can get a couple of extra hours of light under the grow lamps, no leggy specimens for me this year I hope! The sweetcorn and chard are outside in the green house.</div>
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This weekend I wanted to get the broccoli, winter cabbages, sprouts and kale out too but it's still windy here in Essex and we are due a couple of cold nights this week so I'll leave it for a few days yet.</div>
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The red/white onions are now getting a bit big for their cells I don't think leaving them in there until the start of June is a good idea. I have been holding off planting them out until then to avoid the first wave of allium leaf miner but as I don't think they can wait I have invested in a fleece tunnel to cover them instead. I was going to buy one anyway to cover the leaks in Sept/Oct when the second wave arrives. I just need to wait for the wind to drop a bit more so the tunnel doesn't end up next door.<br />
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I've finally made a start on clearing the fruit bed as well. There is a lot of weed clearing to do but hopefully it won't take long to do. </div>
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The first veg crop from this season is not the usual radish, but the asparagus which has just started to produce. I'll waiting to see if the new crowns I put in last year do anything, I suspect they won't and that's the case I'll try growing some from seed next year.<br />
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The spuds are starting to poke through now, not exactly where I think I planted them but I'll take it. I've been earthing them up as the overnight temps can still be a bit low.<br />
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Happy gardening folks!<br />
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Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-65296532606772589382019-04-13T16:40:00.006+00:002019-04-13T16:40:55.151+00:00The Home Front<div style="text-align: justify;">
I managed to get the cage netting finished one chilly evening this week, I hate working with that stretchy green stuff, I can never get it quite straight and even, there was a lot of swearing, but apart from that its been a bit windy and cold for my liking on the plot. Fingers crossed I get to tackle the to do list down there this weekend.</div>
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At home though the window sills and mini green house are looking most productive.</div>
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The summer cabbages and kohl robi are doing very nicely, these will get planted out as soon as the brassica bed is uncovered and the small brassica frame has its lid made and netted. The winter cabbage, sprouts and kale have been potted on into some lighter compost and seem to be liking it, putting on a little growth spurt.<br />
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The onions are just starting to bulk up at the base, they have had a feed and put on a spurt too. These have to stay in the cells until June once the first allium leaf miners risk has passed. The Paris Silverskin are just starting to germinate on the bedroom window sill.<br />
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My Oca tubers are now poking through in their large pots on the windows sill. They were chitted first but seemed to be taking a while to come up, so I dug down and uncovered the tips of the chits just in case I had planted them too deep. There are signs of the first leaves just sprouting I will level the soil again once they get a bit bigger.<br />
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I put a couple of early tomatoes in as an experiment with the grow lights and they seem to be doing ok, I haven't really put them under the lights in the end but have just left them in the outside greenhouse, small but not getting leggy.<br />
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The leeks are still very small but they haven't been in long so I'll let them off.</div>
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Not everything has gone to plan. The sunflowers only managed a 50% germination rate and the pumpkin on a stick were a complete no show. I've planted some more of both in a different compost so fingers crossed.</div>
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The main tomato and sweetcorn crop to plant this weekend!</div>
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Happy gardening folks!</div>
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<br />Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-34868307816829706332019-04-07T21:21:00.000+00:002019-04-07T21:21:12.762+00:00The Great Outdoors<div style="text-align: justify;">
After 2 weeks away it was nice to get down the farm for a couple of Saturdays and make a start.</div>
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First a little house keeping, trimming all the grass paths, which only took 20 mins thanks to the raised beds, rather than the usual 2 hours, topping up the bark on the cross paths and a bit of weeding. </div>
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Next was to plant the potatoes, as the pic shows they had got a bit carried away in the chitting department this year. They were under my bed as per usual so no idea why they went quite so mad, maybe I'm going soft and had the heating on more this year.</div>
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So that's the Arran Pilot and Shetland Black planted out. As a little experiment I planted the Arran Pilot 6 in one row, 5 in the next and 4 in the final, just to see how yields are affected. </div>
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We are expecting a couple of cold nights so they are well earthed up.</div>
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Next was to plant out the broad beans, they have been out in a cold frame so are nicely hardened off. The farm can be a bit windy so they have string supports, it also has lot of pigeons so CD bird scarers and finally slugs, so slugs pellets. Not much more I can do, they are on their own now.</div>
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I've put in 2 rows of parsnips and 2 rows of carrots and covered them with cloches to keep the temperature up and also to stop the rain capping over the soil. After last year I'm hoping for more than 2 parsnips!</div>
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I've built a pea cage for this year, without it the pigeons will eat more than me. I find covering things with nets that need removing for weeding and harvesting a time consuming pain in the preverbal. This one is high enough for me to stand in and I should be able to get 2 rows in there nicely.</div>
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I ran out of staples to finish the netting but I wasn't planning to plant the peas until next weekend anyway as we are due 3 days of rain this week. It's in the diary for next weekend.</div>
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As the first Saturday was nice and sunny a quick beer on the plot was called for.</div>
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Happy gardening folks!! </div>
Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-12086793876532514982019-03-13T11:26:00.001+00:002019-03-13T11:26:05.348+00:00Still frostyFirst of all, apologies for the lack of pics on this one, I forgot to take them before I wrote this in a hurry before leaving for the airport...<br />
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In previous years there have been things sprouting under cloches on the farm at this time of year, but this year so far... nothing.<br />
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There are 2 reasons for this, firstly we are still getting some pretty impressive frosts and secondly I go away for 2 weeks shortly meaning popping in to water on the way home is a no no. Once I'm back hopefully it will have warmed up a little and we can get cracking. This doesn't mean we have been doing nothing, at home the sowing and potting has continued.<br />
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Every broad bean came up and they seem to like it out in the mini greenhouse. They will be planted out when I get back at the end of March, hopefully after the winds have abated.<br />
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The cabbages and Kohl Robi have been pricked out and are growing on nicely. They may go under cloches soon, I haven't decided yet. <br />
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The chillies are slowly germinating but taking their time. Once up they spend the day under the grow lamps to stop them getting leggy.<br />
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The Marigolds, unusually had a poor germination rate and had to have a second sowing, again with mixed results. I'm not sure quite what is going on here, they usually germinate under almost all conditions. <br />
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Onions germinated well, now thinned to one per cell they are getting their first proper leaves. I've been trimming them back to about 3-4 inches in height to stop them falling over. They seem to like the mini green house as well. <br />
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This weekend I planted some beetroot in cells. I've never done this before but as you can buy plug plants of beetroot I figured I'd give it a go. Also some Convululus and sunflowers, leeks, pumpkin on a stick and a couple of Apero tomato plants to see if the grow lights stop an early sowing going leggy.<br />
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I almost forgot these, under the bed the spuds and Oca tubers are chitting nicely.<br />
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When I get back things will start to ramp up with the main sowings of peas, parsnips, early carrots, and early spuds. I look forward to finally getting things moving on the plot.<br />
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Happy gardening folks!!<br />
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<br />Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-33156919498041363012019-02-17T10:52:00.001+00:002019-02-17T10:52:10.403+00:00Lets get this party started....!<div style="text-align: justify;">
Or more to the point, lets get this planting started.</div>
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The 2019 season has officially started, last Saturday (9th), armed with a bag of John Innes compost and a well organised seed box I made a start on the planting over the weekend.</div>
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Downstairs on the cooler windowsill in the kitchen are marigolds, broad beans, white cabbages and kohl robi. While upstairs on the heated bedroom windowsill there are chillies and red and white onions.</div>
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A bit of recycling in this years planting equipment, a mixture of used mushroom trays and coffee cups from work. Both have a bit of extra depth, and hopefully the broads will be pleased with the cups as they like a deeper pot apparently.</div>
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After a week, already putting in an appearance are the marigolds, white onions, cabbages and kohl robi and a couple of broads, not bad at all.</div>
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I want to start radishes, early carrots and salad off down on the plot under cloches but we are still getting quite a few severe frosts so I'll wait a couple more weeks before starting anything off down there.</div>
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Last year I had a lot of seedling failures and wasn't sure if it was down to the compost. This year I'm trying John Innes for the first time but I did make a bit of a boo boo. Instead of picking up number 1 compost for planting seeds I picked up number 2, which is for young seedlings. This means it has added zinc, I have yet to read what differences that makes, but surely as soon as a seed sprouts its a young seedling! I have noticed that the John Innes is more soil like, rather potting compost and may need careful watering as it retains a lot of it. The moisture meter may be on overtime.</div>
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Happy gardening folks!! </div>
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Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-29307359029270045722019-01-27T22:56:00.001+00:002019-01-27T22:56:35.020+00:00Deliveries!!<div style="text-align: justify;">
Since the last post we've done, well pretty much nothing.... I don't like winter</div>
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I did make it down to the farm on a Saturday morning for a couple of hours when the weather was warmer to do a few general tasks but more of that later.</div>
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It is that time of year when things start popping through the letter box. This years seed order was a lot larger than the last couple of years but the seed tin did get a good clear out of the older seeds and things we've decided not to grow any more. </div>
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We ordered from DT Brown and Mr Fothergill's this year and this beautiful little lot is what has arrived. This shot includes the pumpkins on sticks and blue bosque tomatoes we got from <a href="http://www.growyoursecretgarden.com/" target="_blank">www.growyoursecretgarden.com</a>. </div>
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The Mr Fothergills seed potatoes arrived today too. This year I've restricted it to Arran Pilot for a nice early spud and Shetland Black, I've always fancied trying a different coloured variety.</div>
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One reason to restrict the spuds to 2 varieties was to make space for Oca. Also known as New Zealand Yams and originating from South America They can be used cold in salads with a citrus taste or roasted like potatoes. They have less pest problems than potatoes and are expected to catch on in the UK.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMvwOCvep0S-tp_V0ZZIJvpT67VHR6fywE1XF6FOqm8kmBvaDRcnhPDm9wP9RdQ3ZkCG_H7K0vdV_wrTOV2jqus1LYmRJA7ITHtyrjmPf6XpQvPt_S03p1ut3GKB9m618yWyiqzA/s1600/IMG_20190125_093318174.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMvwOCvep0S-tp_V0ZZIJvpT67VHR6fywE1XF6FOqm8kmBvaDRcnhPDm9wP9RdQ3ZkCG_H7K0vdV_wrTOV2jqus1LYmRJA7ITHtyrjmPf6XpQvPt_S03p1ut3GKB9m618yWyiqzA/s320/IMG_20190125_093318174.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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They aren't the cheapest thing to start off, 5 tubers for £7.99 but with some seed saving it should become cheaper. Excited to see how these turn out. As an added bonus the more observant may notice I got 6 instead of 5!.</div>
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Jobs wise, the compost bins have been moved to their permanent home. I put a thin strip of weed control fabric around the edges and between the bins leaving the bottom of them open to the soil and then used wood chips to hold it down. Should keep the weeds down and hopefully stop critters digging into the bin. </div>
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Last years asparagus stalks have been cut down and composted and the bed weeded. It might get a top soil top up before the season start.</div>
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All the remaining carrots were dug up, none salvageable unfortunately and the ground dug over and the contents of the moved compost bins dug in ready for squashes and tomatoes. I might even put in a couple more bags of manure. </div>
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We haven't planted anything at all yet this year but in the next couple of weeks the onions and leeks will be started from seed... I really must get the cold frame built!</div>
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Happy gardening folks!! </div>
Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-33139292638576130972019-01-04T10:22:00.000+00:002019-01-04T10:22:04.842+00:00Meet Percy..<div style="text-align: justify;">
As some of you will remember, 2018 was not my year for parsnips, something I'm normally quite good with. In fact we have only two this year.</div>
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We popped down to check covers etc over the weekend and decided to dig up this fellow, one of the cleanest parsnips I've actually ever grown, at the moment he is destined to be soup. </div>
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Elsewhere there is very little left growing, just some chard, kale, slightly eaten cabbage, holey carrots and the last parsnip.</div>
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The Cape Gooseberries and Chillies have been killed off by the frost and once again the allium leaf miner struck and ruined what was once looking like a promising leek crop. That's 3 years in a row now I have had trouble with these pests. I know a few fellow plot holders have also had issues, although it seems totally random who they hit. </div>
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There doesn't seem to be any chemical control available but here is an extract from the RHS site regarding non chemical control</div>
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"Plants can be protected by covering them with horticultural fleece, or an insect-proof mesh such as Ultra-Fine Enviromesh, at times when the adult flies are active and laying eggs (March to April and October to November). Crop rotation must be used, as adult flies might emerge from pupae underneath the covering if susceptible plants are grown in the same piece of ground in successive years."</div>
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I will be growing onions and leeks from seed this year and am unlikely to plant them out before May, so it appears that my best hope is cover any unharvested crops for Oct-Nov. Guess we'll give that a try.</div>
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Happy gardening folks!<br />
<br />Dickyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03148019227810388996noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-78540199169066797662018-12-18T23:24:00.000+00:002018-12-18T23:24:59.949+00:00Food stockpiles and Brexit<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Here are the farm we don't discuss politics but politics is impacting gardening it seems. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I follow a few food preservation groups on facebook and ended up following a link to one where its members are seriously concerned about a disruption to the food supply following Brexit in March 2019. The members are building up their food supplies so they could survive a few weeks or even months by living off food in their cupboard.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The BBC has been covering this same topic with <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-46111085" target="_blank">members of the public stockpiling</a> along with <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-46191729" target="_blank">company efforts to stockpile</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As one poster pointed out on facebook, March/April is possibly the lowest time of productivity yield in a garden. However a number of them have been making long term plans to maximize their winter vegetables like leeks as much as possible.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRttJksgnhKH9iJMEAkwcqEXwIfym1YxDzipQ-L6thVYp-xXjVa1HcFYe5C0neRjeRJC85kh5mSqlrryUO47zi6vWT2-UYGcb04DAddmCjnNdY7Hn9O4E0Pr7rkua63ipLDIgV/s1600/chillis2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRttJksgnhKH9iJMEAkwcqEXwIfym1YxDzipQ-L6thVYp-xXjVa1HcFYe5C0neRjeRJC85kh5mSqlrryUO47zi6vWT2-UYGcb04DAddmCjnNdY7Hn9O4E0Pr7rkua63ipLDIgV/s320/chillis2.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some of my jarred chillis</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Some have decided to start gardening this year, remembering the Dig for Victory efforts and how rationing in the UK was in effect during and after the war until 1954. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Others are stockpiling vegetables in tins in the event that the electrical supply is disturbed. They're buying an extra few tins each week of things like carrots and potatoes along with basics like rice and lentils.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Independent of Brexit, here at the farm we try to preserve and stockpile food as much as possible, although Dicky has put his foot down at my frozen French bean stores (too soggy I've heard!)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We do have three spaghetti squash and five marrows still to see us through the next few months.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In the past I've jarred tomato sauce, salsa and chillis. There's nothing so nice as eating your own tomato sauce in the dead of winter. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dicky and his sister recall spending hours assisting their parents when the bean harvest came in. I'm not sure if they are really fond memories though!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipFZgxrnFBwd1pYn8x11liEHD3JoXlLc6waJ-L-xGJUVK_khW1y5goQT0fRbUpt2wev2UqJdG4-WckImriskTJ16JxAP1Gmk0Vi04pGp6ejxZQVrJ6adX3EDUgPVprig7f1bz8/s1600/chillis1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="810" data-original-width="1440" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipFZgxrnFBwd1pYn8x11liEHD3JoXlLc6waJ-L-xGJUVK_khW1y5goQT0fRbUpt2wev2UqJdG4-WckImriskTJ16JxAP1Gmk0Vi04pGp6ejxZQVrJ6adX3EDUgPVprig7f1bz8/s320/chillis1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some of my dried and jarred chillis</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> I grew up near Amish country in America and those folks have big gardens and they preserve a lot. Granted there is a lot more growing and storing space in America but check out these <a href="http://amishamerica.com/amish-canning/" target="_blank">photos of an Amish larder</a>, it may give you canning envy!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">How about you, has Brexit influenced your garden habits?</span>Rooftop Gardenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342009397868402731noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-83241446738203346332018-11-30T09:48:00.000+00:002018-12-03T15:19:24.094+00:00Snails in the rooftop garden!My facebook recently brought up one of their 'photo reminders' where they remind you of what you posted in the past. Here is a recent one that popped up, when I went snail hunting!<br />
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My little rooftop terrace garden is four floors up. I am pretty organic up here, all my vegetable scraps and coffee grounds go into a compost bin.<br />
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Considering I'm off the ground and only bring up soil in commercial bags, I'm amazed that I have a plethora of living creatures up here like worms, bugs, snails and slugs. <br />
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Periodically, i.e. when they start eating too much of my produce, I gather them all up and relocate them to a more suitable place at ground level in our public park or in woodland on the way to our allotment. If I don't clear them regularly every year, I end up with a situation like this when I skipped a year:<br />
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I'm not sure where they're coming from but I've eliminated a few sources:<br />
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1. Ground level: I live in a concrete jungle. They're not climbing up the side of the building.<br />
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2. Neighbours: My neighbours don't have plants so they're not hitching a ride on a pot or in soil.<br />
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My current thinking is to blame the birds! As I have a roof terrace garden, I still have additional roof space which is above my living space. We regularly get birds up here: crows, sea gulls, magpies and occasionally sparrows.<br />
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The bring a mix of gifts to my rooftop. They like to perch on the TV ariel and over time the pots below this area started to grow a variety of plants that were not from me such as rapeseed and general weeds. I have since moved these pots.<br />
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In addition to their organic matter the crows LOVE a good takeaway and we have plenty fast food shops nearby that cater to drunk folks on a Saturday night who leave their empty boxes in inappropriate places. The clever crows will bring up the leftovers, in particular, the fried chicken remnants. Every time that we have a good storm I am guaranteed to find chicken bones or various dead bird bits on my rooftop.<br />
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I much prefer the friendly magpie. He seems to have stolen a ping pong ball from the local outdoor community tables (looked like an egg?).<br />
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Imagine the conversation I had with my neighbor who also has a terrace, we're separate by frosted glass but have 5 inches of clearance so things can blow underneath. 'Excuse me kind neighbour, are you missing a ping pong ball?'<br />
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In the meantime I found some slugs in the lettuce that I picked this week. They're back! Time to go hunting again...<br />
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If anyone has any other ideas of where they're coming from, feel free to comment. :)Rooftop Gardenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342009397868402731noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17957782.post-307508903279642632018-11-18T12:20:00.001+00:002018-11-23T23:02:14.480+00:00Book Review on the Dig for Victory Campaign<div style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As the nights draw in I find myself under a wool blanket (and usually a cat) with a good book. I wanted to share my recommendation for The Spade as Mighty as the Sword by Daniel Smith.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I picked this little gem up a few months ago at one of those book stores where everything is discounted. If you're interested in the Second World War and how the Dig for Victory campaign came about, this book gives a full overview.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It gives background about how the nation sourced its food prior to the war, how government policy came into being, how commercial and farm production changed and how each person was encouraged to take part.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It does have a few pages in the centre with black and white photos.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c;"><span style="color: #134f5c;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; display: inline; float: none; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">A poster from the campaign at the </span></span></span></span><span style="color: #134f5c;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; display: inline; float: none; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Duxford Imperial War Museum</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "quot"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"> </span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The most interesting thing that I learned from it is that the original campaign was not called 'Dig for Victory' but instead was 'Grow More Food.' In 1939 it went through a re-branding effort which seems to have paid off. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One of the Amazon reviewers stated that the book isn't much of a nail biter. I find that sort of true, it does read like a history textbook at times, dense with facts. However, it is also filled with personal anecdotes of how people reacted to government policies which balances it out.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Another neat things that I learned from this book: by 1943, 25% of fresh eggs were coming from home coops, can you imagine that today?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It also states that in 1942, 55 - 60% of families were growing some part of their own food. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">If you're interested in this time period or how the nation produced and consumed food at the time, I'd highly recommend this book.</span></span><br />
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Rooftop Gardenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16342009397868402731noreply@blogger.com2