The Veg Plot.

[garynortheast]

Well the garden is in full production, and the allotment is not doing too badly either. I haven't bought any veg for around six weeks now. I'm starting to freeze stuff ready for the winter and still have plenty to eat everyday.

Currently harvesting chard, tomatoes, cucumbers, Red Russian and Asparagus kale, potatoes, onions, garlic, climbing French bean, a few runner beans (they're very slow off the mark this year), carrots, courgettes, and beetroot. I have a late crop of peas just getting growing, and a couple of rows of dwarf French beans.

I did sow a couple of rows of green broccoli and early purple sprouting but they both failed to germinate so I had a trip to a local garden centre and bought a number of 6 module trays of 4 types of cabbage, green, white, and early purple broccoli, and brussels, all for two quid a tray. Potting them all on until they are a bit bigger, then I'll plant them out.

I'm at the stage now where, beyond planting out, harvesting, and the occasional bit of weeding, the garden is looking after itself.

I do like this time of the year, as not only is there all the fruit and veg of my labours in the veg plot, we're also heading into peak foraging season. This evening on my local hike in the hills I found several big, fat, horse mushrooms. Two of them came home with me and are now in a big pan of pasta sauce!

[garynortheast]

Happy accident today. I was cutting some of the dead and yellowing leaves off one of my cucumber plants and accidentally snipped off one of the main stems. Fortunately I had already harvested the cucumbers from that stem, so after cursing a bit, I tied in the other stems up the tripod. When I raised these stems up I discovered 5 more cucumbers which had been hidden in the foliage. I shall be eating lots of cucumbers. Actually, I might see about pickling some of them in a spiced brine.

Finally made a start on the foundation trench for the greenhouse. I now need a trip to the sawmill tomorrow to get some more boards and stakes.

[garynortheast]

Out in the garden dodging the showers this afternoon, and managed to get all the brassicas I'd potted on, planted out and protected from pigeons and cabbage whites.





My dwarf French beans are all flowering so they should start cropping soon. The final few Early Purple Sprouting have gone in next to the beans. I'll need to net them tomorrow.



My runner beans appear to be starting to flower properly at last. Better late than never I suppose!

[Sir Trev]

Just back from a few days away with Lady Poppy as a break and I've not dared go down to the veg plot yet. My runners are probably all but finished now, the pumpkins can be brought in for the skins to toughen, still got lots of beetroot and the leeks look ready to start coming up as needed, and the parsnips look just about ready now too. My toms were not as heavy cropping as last year and are nearly finished - my guess is thet were not happy with the manky mid summer weather, same as me!

[garynortheast]

Busy afternoon today.

I went down to the allotment to harvest kale and chard, cleared away the old squash and courgette plants, and then put in some canes to support the brussel sprout plants.

Then back to the garden.

I cut down all the runner bean plants and put them in the compost bin a couple of days ago. I had a final small crop from them before cutting them down.
Now they're gone I can see my greenhouse from the kitchen window!



Into the greenhouse this afternoon to plant some perpetual spinach and chard. I'm hoping that planting them in the greenhouse will encourage them to grow over the winter and give me some crops. The mixed lettuce I planted in there is doing ok.

Lettuce and perpetual spinach.



Rainbow chard.



One of my jobs for the weekend will be washing down the glass in the greenhouse!

Next job was to turn the oldest compost bin into the middle bin on top of the runner bean plants.



Then I cut down the dwarf French bean plants and composted them. There are just four broccoli plants in the bed now. Not sure yet what I'll put in there to replace the beans. I may just mulch it with straw for now.



Staked the early purple sprouting broccoli plants. I just need to go out tomorrow and tie the plants to the canes.



Then finally mulched these two beds with straw. The furthest bed will have spuds in it next year and the closest bed will have garlic in it in the next few days.



I've decided that I'm going to give up my allotment once the crops are finished on it next year. I'm only using about a third of it, and although the soil is good (especially since I've slathered a load of horse muck on there) it doesn't get enough light year round for stuff to grow well. The inconvenience of having to walk down there with tools has played a part in my decision too.

The main reason though, is that I've been genuinely surprised at just how much I can grow in my front and back gardens. So much so that I just don't need the allotment. I've not bought any veg now since June and this is just in the first year of being here.

[DarrenSV650S]

Evil gutter dog is amused at your feeble attempts to sustain yourself

[garynortheast]

Originally Posted by DarrenSV650S

Evil gutter dog is amused at your feeble attempts to sustain yourself

Ha ha! Not sure which of the psychedelics you're indulging in Darren, but if you could just send some down here.....

[redtrummy]

My garden has been quite productive this year, good beans, broad beans,runner and dwarf. Loads of different greens although my brussels and red cabbage have failed. Spuds were small in size, Good soft fruit harvest but no pears cherries or cooking apples this year

[Sir Trev]

Originally Posted by DarrenSV650S

Evil gutter dog is amused at your feeble attempts to sustain yourself

Took me a while to spot how that could be a dog but now it's all I can see...

Good to hear your hard work is paying off Gary. Not sure if you've passed the bug on to your two girls but we've just got back from a weekend in Essex staying with the Monkey at her new house and although they only moved in a week ago she's already deciding which corner of the garden is going to be cleared to create a veg plot. Her hoyfriend has already worked out he has no choice

Back at Trev Towers we only have parsnips left in the ground which we're merrily working our way through.

[garynortheast]

Originally Posted by redtrummy

My garden has been quite productive this year, good beans, broad beans,runner and dwarf. Loads of different greens although my brussels and red cabbage have failed. Spuds were small in size, Good soft fruit harvest but no pears cherries or cooking apples this year

Runner and French beans were just about ok this year but not great. Spuds were excellent, I still have about half a sack of my maincrop "Sunset" spuds. They should see me through to the new year. No soft fruit other that the raspberries I inherited with the allotment. Currant and gooseberry bushes should be established by next year and giving me a crop.

Originally Posted by Sir Trev

Took me a while to spot how that could be a dog but now it's all I can see...

Originally Posted by Sir Trev

Not sure if you've passed the bug on to your two girls but we've just got back from a weekend in Essex staying with the Monkey at her new house and although they only moved in a week ago she's already deciding which corner of the garden is going to be cleared to create a veg plot. Her boyfriend has already worked out he has no choice

Ha ha, that's good to hear. Sioned in B'ham has a small veg plot she wants to expand. I'll go over soon and give her a hand to get some new beds sorted. Eleri is in a student flat with no garden and, unfortunately no interest in, or time for gardening.

Originally Posted by Sir Trev

Back at Trev Towers we only have parsnips left in the ground which we're merrily working our way through.

I never got any parsnips going this year, sadly but I will next year. I'm still harvesting lots of lovely carrots and a few beetroot though.