Thursday 6 March 2014

My Jobs for March…

My Jobs for March…
I love the month of March as not only does the winter begin to recede but we officially step into spring. I am really excited to be getting down to my allotment this weekend after all this rain and remove any weeds that have survived through the mild winter and begin preparing my beds by applying some fertilizer in preparation for sowing and planting during April and May.
Plant
First early potatoes, onions, shallots and garlic by the end of the month.
Sow
Seeds can be sown directly if you covered and warmed the soil, otherwise I would advise to sow indoors or under cloches and in cold frames. Some hardy seeds such as broad beans, broccoli, cabbages, leeks, parsnips, peas that are able to germinate at low temperatures can also go in. More tender crops such as aubergines, peppers, chillies and tomatoes can be started inside this month or in a heated greenhouse until it is warm enough outside.
Harvest
Harvest any remaining brussel sprouts, celeriac, parsnips and swedes if you have any left.
Tidy-up / Prunning
Trim up all established herbs and propagate chives and mint (especially) by digging it up, dividing then re-planting to keep them under control. Ensure all winter-pruning for fruit canes / bushes is done this month.
Feed any overwinting crops
Any crops that have been in the ground through the winter may be looking a bit unhealthy, make sure you apply a dressing of blood, fish and bone meal, chicken manure, or seaweed-based organic fertilizer which will perk them up.
Weather conditions improve...
Having seen the weather forecast for this weekend (up to 15 degrees) I shall be making the most of it by fitting in as many jobs as possible including planting out my dwarf fruit trees. I will upload some further pictures after the weekend...

Sunday 23 February 2014

Seed Potatoes 'Chitting'

You remember me saying that I like to grow varieties that are different, well I went to check of my seed potatoes that arrived a couple of weeks ago and they are 'chitting' really well in their egg boxes.  I have Bikini (early maincrop), Belle De Fontenay (second early), Shetland Black (second early), Highland Burgandy (maincrop), Salad blue (early) and  (first early).

Sowing and planting...
When to plant... start planting in March or April once the soil is at least 7⁰C (45⁰F). Planting depth...in either trenches or holes but at least 15cm (6in) deep. Planting distance...earlies 30-35cm (12-14in) apart, second earlies and maincrops 38cm (15in) apart. Row spacing...earlies 45cm (18in) apart, second earliers and maincrops 75cm (30in) apart.
Harvesting...
I always get confused with with knowing when they should be ready for harvesting....well after some research the rule of thumb is that earlies should be ready to lift between 100-110 days after planting, second earlies within 110-120 days and your maincrops after 125-140 days, although the only way to be sure is to dig up a few and take a look. It is usually best to wait until after the first flowers appear.  Try to pick a dry if you are harvesting your maincrop potatoes for storage as it is a good idea to leave them out in the sun for a few hours before bringing them as it will allow them to keep better the drier they are.

Dwarf Fruit Trees Arrive

When you do order plants rather than seeds online - I get great excitement out of seeing the delivery man walking up my drive come to the front door and seeing those words 'LIVE PLANTS - OPEN IMMEDIATELY' printed on the box.

Well, yesterday this happened and I proudly took delivery of my dwarf fruit trees Plum - Black Amber, Cherry - Prunus Avium Sylvia, Pear - Doyenne Du Comice and 2 variety of Apple (Gala and Yellow). 
I just have to wait for the weather to improve to plant them. This is the first time I have grown fruit trees so I can't wait to see how they do.

As these are young, specifically bred on a dwarf rootstock I will support them with tree stakes. If you do not have an allotment these specifically bred on dwarf rootstock varieties can be grown in patio containers. The height is 1m (3ft) with a spread of 1m (3ft). Location; full sun with a harvest period of September, October. Ideally containers should be of a reasonable size and should be able to hold 25 litres of John Innes No3 compost, but no larger than a 60cm (2ft) in diameter.

It is advised that after 2 years each tree is removed from its container along with as much compost as possible and the roots trimmed back. The tree can then be replanted back into its original container with fresh John Innes No3 compost.  

I will keep you updated on there progress through the summer.....

Sunday 9 February 2014

Welcome to my blog

The inspiration for my blog was as a result of reading various 'allotment' gardening books and blogs, I then realised that you can actually do quite a lot without being a pro and enjoy the successes that it brings.

I plan to update you on a weekly / monthly basis on what I have been doing in my greenhouse and on the allotment... that's if it stops raining any time soon!!!

Today, I ventured over to my allotment to check it out after all this rain and to my surprise it is looking good, only a few minor weeds to contend with and once it dries up a little I will set to work to ensure that the ground remains prepared ready for planting.

My Jobs for February...

Start 'chitting' seed potatoes
My seed potatoes arrived the other week and I was really excited to unpack them. I would say that it is really worth spending the extra money to buy good-quality tubers rather than saving and re-using your own, as they are fairly certain to be disease-free.  

Spread compost or manure
Feed your soil with compost or well-rotted manure. Next weekend I will be raking in / spreading manure pellets. Due to the recent weather I will be letting them become incorporated naturally as the ground will be too heavy and messy. 

Clean Pots and trays
I have started to dig out my pots and seed trays to give them a thorough wash and clean with a weak soap / bleach solution as it is important not to allow any diseases from last year to carry over to this year. 

Watch this space...