"Bob Hobden" wrote in message
...
"Christina Websell" wrote...


"Bob Hobden" wrote
"Christina Websell" wrote


Haven't been able to get down to the lottie for over a week due to
thunderstorms and other parts of life intruding on my time.

I had to do nearly 3 hours of weeding! Managed to get a few cabbages
transplanted, intended to put the leeks out but ran out of time (and
energy). It's an open site and it was hot.

Was glad to see my brother had managed to get some horse manure and put
in on the compost heap, there is now a mountain of weeds on top.

Surprisingly, I've had very little trouble with slugs and snails, just a
bit of outside leaf damage on the lettuces.

The first courgettes have got away from us just with a week of rain and
not being picked. Stuffed marrow coming up.. every day.
Runner beans doing well. We did an experiment - my brother's beans
would have a trench dug for them filled with newspaper, chicken manure
etc to be transplanted out on top of it, and mine would be transplanted
straight into the ground with bfb scattered on top. No contest. His
are romping away and already have some beans on. Mine are doing OK,
have plenty of flowers on but are definitely not so..luxuriant.

Had my first completely homegrown salad today. New potatoes, iceberg
lettuce, cucumber and radish. Just added a tin of tuna.

I found lots of ants in the salad beds, when I weeded I kept disturbing
their nests. I was going to transplant the leeks out in there, but
decided not to as I think they might stop the leeks settling their roots
down.

Sweetcorn looks OK. We've never grown it before. Landcress (never
grown that before either) doesn't look quite ready otherwise I would
have added it to my salad today.

Spinach has been a disaster. I've sowed it three times, it either does
not come up, or comes up and bolts when only two inches high. I won't
try it again, I'll plant leefbeet.
Beetroot was also a disaster.

Peas didn't do that well but I didn't plant enough. I know better for
next year and I will probably sow full sized peas rather than dwarf.


I think you chose a very difficult year to start your "allotment". I
can't remember a season so difficult for a lot of plants especially with
Blight coming so early too. From what we see only the Shallots and
Onions have done as well as usual although other things seem to have
started growing normally now the weather has normalised.


Normalised? Thunderstorms 2-3 times daily for 4 days last week and
localised torrential flooding and now up into the 20's?
Not normal yet.


Well it is here, luckily.
--
Regards. Bob Hobden.

It's calmed down weather-wise and I have been able to pick yet more huge
courgettes to get a chance of keeping them going at a reasonable size now.
Got the first two patty pans today.
I also got a thank you e-mail from my friend. I dumped a huge ex-courgette
(round type) on her doorstep with a recipe last week. I know she will use
it.
I'm hoping now the Olympics will be over soon, my brother will be able to
help again.
He said he'd borrowed a petrol strimmer a few weeks ago but no sign of him
using it. We desperately need it to maintain the path into the plot
(nettles) which I have ineffectually had to clip with shears. I also had to
take a dangerous path up to the tap today, 50 yards away, totally overgrown
with nettles, bindweed etc. because I needed to water. It normally wouldn't
matter except I have osteoporosis (fragile bones) and if I turn my ankle
it's likely to break. I had two fractures last year. I could not stand
another one.
I cannot even clip my way down 50 yards of big bad weeds as I broke my
shoulder (osteo again) and it's not really recovered from the operation.
However, even with the awful weather and I nearly gave up, the courgettes
are more than good and the runner beans look set for brilliant.
Tina