More of the same depressing weather, but some things are growing. The climbing french beans are now starting to produce and the other crops are continuing. The wet weather has got inside the collars on the celery and caused it all to rot – no celery left.

I have taken the carrots out of the tubes, as always the first was the best and the rest were disappointing.I have lifted some onions and left them in the grenhouse to dry off.
The asparagus is growing into strong plants now it has been left to grow and will hopefully build up plenty of strength for next years crop.

This rain and cool weather is making a problem or two for us growers. The rain has slowed down the rate of growth of most plants and the damp in the foliage of the potato plants has started of early signs of blight.

All the recently planted seedlings are hardly growing and the courgettes, which by now should be getting into large plants are ticking over. On top of all this every weekday I manage to get to the plot it starts raining!

The experiment I started last week, with cabbages in cut down plastic bottles, is not going to plan! The pigeons have eaten the tops of the leaves above the bottle tops, but the growing tip is still not touched, so maybe they will grow, time will tell.

I have cut the potato haulms off my early potatoes, to stop the blight getting into the tubers and causing them to rot.

The strawberries are still continuing to fruit and are providing plenty of berries for eating, the courgettes are giving about one fruit every two days per plant, very low for this time of year.
I have started picking the first of the cucumbers and cabbages and the calabrese is begining to produce heads.
The onions are showing quite large bulbs for this time, lets hope they continue for the next few weeks.

JOBS FOR THE WEEK
1. Remove old compost heap, again!
2. Start a new compost bin. Done
3. Remove weeds from around stores timber.Done
4. Tidy up potting shed.
5. Tidy cold frames.

WORK DONE THIS WEEK
Sunday
Pick.
Water.
Thin and weed carrots
Summer prune apples
Monday
Cut down potato haulms and dispose in skip
Pick
Water
Start cutting down weeds round timber.
Tuesday
Water
Pick
Wednesday
Pick
Water
Continue weeding timber area.
Thursday
Plant out more cabbage in bottles.
Top up comfrey bin
Water
Tie in grape vine leaders
Cut some more weeds
Friday
Finish weeding timber area
Sort out new compost bin
Water
Pick
Saturday
Weed bed of french beans and sweetcorn
Cultivate above bed
Cut back nettles alongside road
Water
Pick

CROPS PICKED THIS WEEK
Potatoes
Courgettes
French beans
Cucumbers
Strawberries
Cabbage
Carrots
Spring onions

It goes from bad to bad this weather, what can you get done! The potatoes have started to die back and so they are being dug up to store. Crops in the ground outside are growing very slowly and those in the tunnel are not a lot better.

The weeds still keep growing and need removing. The one crop doing well at the moment is the cucumbers and they are producing about 20 fruits a week off the four plants.
Carrots are doing well in the frame, the leaves are touching the top mesh and begining to push it up. The sweet corn is producing good strong plants and hopefully will give a good crop

Crops are still growing even though the weather is not ideal. The tunnel is producing too many cucumbers and the tomaotes will soon be ready to pick. The melons are begining to produce fruit and are growing well.

Outside the celery has been collared to produce longer blanched stalks.
Fruit in the cage is comming into production and regular picking is needed.
I have dug up the early potatoes and planted the area with some winter brassicas and covered them with a net.

The roses covering the arch were getting out of hand so they have been given a trim and look better for it. The early garlic has dried off and is now stored ready for use as needed.

This has been a difficult week, because the weather is so changeable that it may or maynot be raining when you can get to your plot. That is why I have outstanding work from this week to complete. The time spent on the allotment must allow you to get the importent jobs done.
At this time of year, in my case, the tunnels must be watered every day and the crops picked as they are ready. Some days this is all that gets done, and as we get further into the picking season then it takes more time.

The weather governs how things grow and different conditions help different crops to thrive. The rain is obviously important, but not in the quantities we are having at the moment, the temperature also has an important contribution to growing conditions. The cooler periods we have had have kept crops standing still, then we get some warmer spells and crops jump overnight.
These are the constant problems that we love to fight so that we can produce the food we want. Most things are growing well but there are a few that are not getting on as fast as they should be, most of my root crops and leafy crops are very slow at the moment but brassicas and potatoes are doing well. The the tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet corn, peppers,chillies and aubergines are all doing well, in fact it is the earliest that I have had flowers on the peppers and aubergines.

I read in a magazine recently that one way to stop pigeons eating brassicas was to plant them in cut off plastic bottles – three days so far and no leaves eaten. It is so easy at this time of year to forget about regular sowing of salad crops. my new grape vine is growing well at its firdt bunch of grapes is forming.

JOBS FOR THIS WEEK
1.Remove old compost heap.
2.Thin carrot bed.
3.Tie in outdoor cucumbers. Done
4.Fix supports for asparagus.Done
5.Plant out rest of leeks.Done
6. Pot up melons into final pots. Done

WORK DONE THIS WEEK
Sunday
Tidy old peas and beans in tunnel 1
Prepare soil in tunnel 1 for next crop
Water
Pick
Monday
Water
Pick
Tuesday
Water
Wednesday
Tie grape vine leaders
Weed
Water
Plant melons in the final pots.
Pick off potato stems with blight on.
Thursday
Water
Friday
Water
Saturday
Pick.
Water.
Plant out leeks.
Erect canes and string up asparagus.
Prune step over apples.
Dig up second lot of garlic.

Crops picked this week
New potatoes
Cucumbers
Beans
Strawberries
Courgettes
Lettuce
Cauliflower
Garlic