Globe Artichokes

A week away from Sheffield means everything has a chance to grow on its own without me poking my nose in every 5 minutes.

Check out the Globe Artichokes  - need to check on how to pick, how to cook and how to eat.

A View of general growth - beans and potatoes.  Close inspection of Broad Beans showed up some Black Bean Aphids I.e. bean aphids that are black, rather than aphids that live on black beans.  Whatever, I sprayed some stuff on them that we had already and I'll check whether they need another spray tomorrow.

More runner beans

Bought from the Sharrow Shop and planted but none of them seemed to come up.  So planted some more in (5 inch) pots and after a while, here they come.  'Enorma' variety from Tamar Organics.

Off to the US for a week tomorrow so this is what they look like as I leave.  Interesting to see how much they will have grown in pots in a week.

A week later

Random potatoes

After getting the allotment and giving the two main beds a good forking over, I planted many things in nice neat rows in the normal allotment fashion.  What I didn't do was clear out the random veg that the previous occupant had grown so, now I have a few random 'rogue' potato plants growing in slightly odd places.

I nearly dug them up to keep things nice and neat but changed my mid and 'earthed up' a little to see what happens.  A few more free potatoes.

A gift!

Nice gift from Margaret a few plots away from mine (down 1 along 3).  Some Broccoli, Sprouts and Cabbage grown from seed and now ready to plant.  Warned about the fact that the birds will eat the lot unless I protect with netting so I did that tonight.  Bit ramshackle with a few holes and I actually saw the robin inside the netting, but I think it should keep the wood pigeons off.

Also found about Club Root, a horrible disease (fungus thing) that affects brassicas. Only brassicas thankfully.  If you get it on your plot, and it is about on other plots, you can't grow brassicas for 20 years apparently!

Lets see if these gifts grow and I'll find out about Club Root soon enough.

Broad bean flowers

The broad beans are coming on very nicely and there's quite a few flowers.  My sources in the smart restaurant scene tells me these can be used as garnish and are edible. Might try that but presumably if you eat the flower you don't get the bean?  I'll split the crop between flowers and beans perhaps.  Anyway the bees like them.

Here's a photo of the latest state of affairs; potatoes in the foreground, then broad beans with strawberries in the distance, now nicely bedded down with straw by the way.  Artichoke is looking good but no flowers yet.

Sunny week at last

A few days of sun and things are starting to grow, including the weeds. Broad beans are looking good  and loads of flowers on the strawberries.  Of course everything needs watering a lot now.  Sun all day and rain (a bit) each night would be perfect.

Here's a photo of half of the plot, broad beans in the foreground, artichoke to the left and strawberries in the 'distance'.

3D Model of Allotment

Slightly sad, but I decided that it would be really nice to create a 3D computer model of my plot showing where everything was planted.

OK, Major Sad I know but I still did it.  Using SketchUp, here's the results.  I quite like them but I will be tweaking here and there to make them even better.  I might put a bit of work into the shed, get the door right and everything.

Snooker, Leeks and Baby Corn

Causal conversations on leek-growing over a game of snooker makes me think - "I need Leeks!".  In fact I'm concentrating so much on the fact that I need to be growing leeks I actually took my mind of snooker, and lost.

Still, off to Bell Hagg Garden Centre in the morning where they've got a new shipment in.  Perfect.  4 trays, no better make that 3, there seems to be a lot in each tray.  They're a bit odd, leeks, in that you buy these tiny seedlings and each one turns into a single leek. Not quite sure what I expected but I thought everything grew into multiple copies.

 Also, couldn't resist some Baby Sweet Corn to plant alongside the other 'normal' sweet corn.

Planted all the leeks and think I got the spacing about right but I'm sure the rows are a bit close at 6".  Doesn't leave much room for 'earthing up' which apparently I've got to do as they grow to keep them nice and white.  (Photo to follow).

Actually got a couple more courgettes because I am absolutely determined to get some courgette flowers this summer.