Plan for 2021

So you may notice my last post was my plan for 2020.... Grand plans ended up not coming to fruition last year due for the most part to a run in with long covid that left me worn out by doing the smallest thing and coming up against coughing fits and aggrevated asthma whenever I …

Plan for 2020

So I've had it in my head (I know everyone is plotting away what they want to do in their patch next year all through the previous year 😉 ) but I've finally put pen to paper for 2020 on the plot. I've got the crop rotation continuing around the beds (Still can't believe we've …

Nettle Soup – Purest green

We've got a nettle patch on the plot that I've been cultivating (to Tom's dismay) for nettle tea - one of my favourites! But, after reading how high in vitamins nettles are, today I decided to try nettle soup. Its delicious! And a crop that grows itself - what's not to like? Also, I don't …

So chit begins!

Another year of potato growing up and running. I got carried away again, partly fueled by a very exciting morning out to the West Yorkshire organic growers potato day in Shipley last week. We've never been before but after seeing a poster in the local library we thought we'd give it a try and it …

Review of 2019

So 2019 has been a bit of a weird one! As many of you know its been a crazy year for me. I've been hoping to make a career change for about three years now but at the start of the year I was still working as a scientific consultant. Then, before the end of …

Our first proper brassica forming

Now, this may be a few years in but embarrassingly this is the first time we've had a proper brassica head form at the allotment! It's a romanesco cauliflower and I really hope it makes it all the way to maturity now it's come so far!

Starting to work on 2020

It's really nice when things have quietened down so much at the allotment, to have some jobs to do that feel like you're gearing up for the year to come. Having had a go at the blackcurrant bushes with my favourite friend - the pruning saw - I have some blackcurrant cuttings set up in …

Late sprouting broccoli

We've finally got some purple summer sprouting broccoli.... in October! Though Reading this does seem to be just within it's usual range.Confusingly though it's not really purple but bright pink. Having had a scout around online I've found a few other photos of pink purple spouting but no reasons for why it might happen. Maybe …

A better year for potatoes

We had a ceremonial digging of the first potatoes last night (because we were both nervous that we get hardly any like last year) and so far we seem to be doing well! All in all from about a third of a bed we actually planted and a few rogue plants that popped up in …

Gooseberry update

Another year another round of mildew. I cut all the bushes quite hard back in late April after the fruit had set as they weren't looking happy. There's not as much mildew as last year but they're still not looking happy. The fruit on the younger branches seems to be doing much better than the …