Vinny's Allotment Plot

After getting the go-ahead from the Council to demolish my rotten fence, I went yesterday armed with an axe!  I didn't have the heart to attack it so instead I propped it up again (a bit Heath Robinson,  but it appears to do the trick?) and will leave it vowing to 'do a number on it' if it comes down again!

As it was a sunny day I thought I may as well crack on and get a bit done on the plot. I dug over about twenty foot off one of the diagonal beds, bashed down the lumps and raked it level. I then planted a row of Centurian F1 onion sets down the centre of bed spacing about six inches apart.
A row will follow down either side at a later date to give a continuation of cropping hopefully?

I then bashed down with rake the other two areas I had dug over recently and raked level.

To finish off I dug up four rather nice leeks to take home for my daughter. None of the leeks are bolting yet, but I know they soon will so need to get them used.

Called at the plot as I do most Saturday morning after excercising. I was just going to have a neb and see if any onion sets had been pulled out by the birds?......they hadn't. While I was there I thought I may as well do summat? I have a bed of Mooli which I sowed a bit late last year. It has survived the winter but will probably just run to seed now? In case it doesn't, i hand weeded all the groundsel which had grown among the rows. Groundsel is just on the point of flowering so hopefully I have saved  myseldf some work? ( One years seeding, seven years weeding and all that?)

I sowed loads of flower seeds last year but the labels have disintegrated and some of them must have been either biennials or perrenials as they have ccome back again! I have loads more to sow this year so will make a start on that on my next visit.

All my elephant garlic from the early planting is up now and looking good. I have spinach and beetroot which has overwinterd and not gone to seed yet so I need to harvest them soon. Out of three rows of broad beans I have only got four broad bean plants which are flowering now!

Only one on site agan today and it was such a lovely day weatherwise. First time for me this year with shirt off and get some sun to my body whilst working the plot!

I took the glass panes off the large cold frame, hand weeded it, tickled the soil over with a fork, levelled with rake and sowed a full packet (5 rows) of The Sutton broad beans. Replaced the glass and used watering can and a handfull of dried grass to clean the panes.

Pulled more groundel and hoed some weeds that I had missed on the herringbone paths.

Dug up a single large leek to take home and have with some bacon at some time.