Vinny's Allotment Plot

Called in at plot on way back from shoppingjust to see how stuff was doing and to take a few piccies.

The flower seeds I sowed are starting to show through and I will have to thin out the swede seedlings soon. I noticed the bees were loving the comfrey flowers,even in the rain.

A few general piccies from plot below.

What's in the yellow tubes, Vinny?

What's in the yellow tubes, Vinny?

Nothing as yet. They are just markers where I have sown pumpkins and squash!

Back at plot today for about 1.5 hours as the sun was shining.Took down the bag of soot Ihad but didn't do anything with it.

Weeded and dug over a long diagonal bed with no idea what I was going to put into it?

I had my top off for about an hour until I started to burn, had the soft top downon the car also for only the second time this year!

Took out the seeded leeks from a bed, turned it over and decided to put some mange tout in bed.I just broadcast seeds on top then poked each seed in with my finger.
Prepared another bed and sowed spinach and beetroot.

Finished off by applying a handfull per square yard of fertiliser to the stuff that seemed to not be growing as fast as it should?

Camehome with some elephant garlic scapes to try with my lamb for dinner!

Perfect day for a soft top. Ever so slightly envious!

Not a brilliant day weatherwise today but decided to go to the plot anyway. Raked down the long diagonal bed I had prepared the other day and decided to plant beans in it. Three types of beans mainly grown for the actual beans themselves, and not their pods.
Two rows were sown (first piccie shows beans placed in position but not yet pushed into ground)

In a break with tradition and as an experiment I intend growing them WITHOUT support? The winds we get roud here would require me to build a substantial frame,wich I dont intend to do! It will interesting to see what happens.

I also started to prepare another bed but the weather was against me and I had to dive into the greenhouse with the rain ,which along with the wind was coming at me horizontally!
I noticed the autumn sown Aquadulce broadies are starting to fatten up now.

Enough is enough I sez and made a bolt for the car and home!

Back at plot again today. Broke down the lumps and raked level-ish the bed I had dug the other day. Sowed Austurian Tree Cabbage,Purple sprouting brocolli and Cavelo Nero kale.
Dug over another bed and then ran for cover as the rain pelted down.  I will fully prepare this bed next time I am at plot and probably sow some more brassicas in it?

Back at plot today mainly to see what stuff had germinated.................not a lot was the answer!

In between showers of rain I managed to smash down the roughly dug bed I dug last time and rake it into a seed bed. Into it I sowed spinach,cauli & Calabrese.

Stuff certainly wasn't going to grow in the packet so I may as well get it sowed!

I  took my car in for it's MOT this morning at 8.00am. The garage is about 2 mile from where I live so I decided to walk back via the allotment and do a bit there before returning home and waiting for the dreaded call!

I first of all tidied up the tree cabbage. It must be about for years since I sowed these so they have lasted well. I have just recently sown the rest of the packet so will wait with baited breath to see if they germinate?
I then weeded and dug over the bed they were in and rakedit kinda level to sow or palnt something in? Same with another of the diagoanal beds.

Appaently the Council hvae been around again sticking notices on plots that haven't doe anything since last months letter. I got a letter last month but none this month so I must have done summat right!
Seeds I have sown are starting to germinate now, at last although I have a hankering the mice may have decimated the mange tout seeds I planted? In case thr are any left I have covered the area with glass to keep the little divils oot!

Piccies are of my four year old tree cabbage,the diagonal plots and the right angled plots along with my broadies which I am harvesting bit by bit and my one block of white onions which HAVEN'T decided to bolt yet, fingers crossed!

Short session at plot today. I did the initial thinng of the three types of swede in my trial. Thinnned to clumps 4 inhes apart. Once they have grown a bit more I willthi themto one plant per staton.
Lots of hand weeding and hoe weeding done.My hands are tingling wth pulling out small nettle seedlings.
Lifted one of my elephant garlic to see if they were ready for lifting, which they are. I gave plant away to another plot holder who was facinated by it!
Watered a few seedling and planted out the rest of the leeklets!