Slugs & snails beware/Shelves/asparagus

I have a dastardly device to defeat the slugs and snails trying to eat our salads, vegetables etc in the tunnel. Using the spare pack of decorative stone from the shed, a barrier has been created which stops them using their slime to enter the tunnel (yuk). With a few organic slug pellets to kill any waifs & strays already inside the tunnel, we can look forward to a summer of uneaten fare!

As you can see from the photo, I have put some greenhouse staging into the tunnel, so if anyone is looking for space for their seedlings?

Finally the asparagus is just starting to peep through, looking somewhat larger than last year. Maybe Jonathan can issue some guidelines on whether we harvest any this year?

A fine tilthe

I managed to borrow the rotovator from Ron next door and rotovated the 3 beds nearest to the shed. As these had been the least "worked" of all the beds, should make them excellent for planting this year.
Here is a photo of me in action

pH Readings

I bought a cheap PH test kit and took some readings in 4 different areas of the allotment
Here are the results:

Asparagus Bed 6.5
Onion Bed 6 - 6.5
Tunnel 7.0
Carrot Bed 6-6.5

According to the booklet with the kit, the pH seems to be OK. Asparagus should be 6 to 8, Onions 6 to 7, Carrots 5.5 to 7. Most veg seem to grow OK in the range 6 to 7.5. If you want a test done on particular bed, let me know

Not quite Monet's bridge?

The hole in the ground midway along the 2nd pathway from the Tunnel facing south has been a pain when trying to mow the grass. That surrounding area is also very boggy. In an effort to try to drain the 2-3 beds in this area, I decided to build a bridge and then a soak away.

Please see the attached photo.

There will be special prizes for the first to fall in the water and the first to see a Greater Crested Newt in this newly created wildlife area.

Announcing the carrot harvest

Yes, it's the moment we have all been waiting for; the results of the late planting by Di of the carrot bed, nobly assisted by Mike and his Carrot-fly defying plastic screen.

As we share all produce from our allotment, please let me know, by return, the quantity of carrot that you would like.

Pea Festival Photo

Thought I would put the photo that Di sent round onto the blog

Couple more summer 2008 photos

Summer 2008 Harvest photos

Thought it worth recording some of the crops in full bloom!

Caterpillars are eating our kale

Radio Leicester Radio Car - 2nd visit

We made our 4th broadcast from the allotment with a visit from Julie Meyer on Monday 30 June. She seemed to be impressed with the growth of crops since her previous visit.

here is a photo of the interview in action. We managed to avoid any reference to dogging this time!

She is planning to come back in the autumn.

MARESTAIL

A number of allotments have had a real problem with this weed, which has roots that go down a long way. If this takes hold, it will be nigh impossible to remove. It would be a particular problem in the asparagus bed. May I suggest that we all make sure that we pull out as much root as possible as soon as we spot any of this weed

I hate pigeons!

I was having a chat with Tom next door about whether our cauliflower plants were large and hardy enough to withstand an assault from the wood pigeons. It was suggested that I uncover a couple of plants and see what happens. Overnight, this is what happened!

Before

After
Apparently, they will recover, so I have covered them with netting again!

Third radio spot

Geoff was invited down to a live broadcast in Loughborough Thursday market today and met both Tony Wadsworth and Julie as well as Chris Brindley. We did a short interview next to the market stall outside Next run by Chris, who sells seedlings, onion sets and other plants. Presented Julie with 2 onions and the cabbage that is featured on the Radio Leicester web-site feature. Here are the three of them next to the radio car

Di and I have put together an experimental strawberry hanging basket, as first seen on Jamie Oliver's latest series. I'm guessing that by being suspended, the strawberry plants will avoid some pest damage and the fruit can overhang the basket. The basket has been screwed to Geoff's wooden upright. The bracket from which it hangs may not be strong enough - I'll replace if necessary.
Di has planted a row of basil at the "Boardley" end of the polytunnel. The heady combo of home-grown tomatoes and basil has surely got to be one of the highlights of the year! (Does anyone know how to make mozzarella balls?)

Runner beans, fennel, cucumber planted

Runner beans have now been planted out and the few left over, I gave to Ron next door.

Just as I had finished that, Barry Wharton brought us some fennel seedlings and suggested the time was ripe for planting outside, who am I to refuse? Jan is growing some more to add or replace if they get eaten.

Planted 5 cucumber plants in the tunnel.

The two seed lines of salad leaves that Mike planted seem to have evaporated, although the lmabs lettuce sems to be doing OK.

The French beans have taken a bit of a pounding from blackfly, but most seem to be surviving

Pentland Javelin sightings

Four now seen - something must be working underground now the earth's warming up! Some beans here as well. Looks like a dry week so maybe watering tomorrow.

1st asparagus spear and tomato frame

It's so tiny you can hardly see it, but here is the first asparagus spear.

Also a shot of the tomato frames, also 3 of the plants have some kind of leaf disease, will require close attention.

Salad leaves and broad beans

I've planted a couple of rows of lettuce in the polytunnel. Both rows are at the "Boardley" end, marked with slate markers. There is one row of endives and a row of an Italian lettuce called Bionda Lenta. The endives probably need growing to maturity but the BL's can be cropped as salad leaves. Photo hopefully illustrates.

The broad beans planted outdoors seem to have materialised. So maybe the mice didn't dig them up after all. Second pic illustrates.

The Alloteers get Adopted, part II

Here is part II of the broadcast

The Alloteers get Adopted by Radio Leicester

Here is the video footage of last week's interview on Radio Leicester with the broadcast itself dropped in on top. Due to its length, I have split the video into two parts