Feeling guilty

I may have killed my greenhouse plants. I've been away for a long weekend and didn't arrange for anybody to water the greenhouse. I didn't even set up the watering system before I left or water particularly thoroughly as I had a tired, tearful, three year old in the car and I had to drive to Scotland. I didn't even go today as I had a tired, tearful, three year old in the car. Tomorrow will probably be too late. All that nurturing gone to waste (well, apart from the several kilos of tomatoes, cucumbers and chilli peppers I've harvested).

Allotment dinner

Went down to the plot this evening with Elizabeth to water the greenhouse plants and came home with the ingredients for dinner: corn on the cob, new potatoes, courgettes fritters, french beans and a yummy hot (chilli) tomato sauce. The only things in the dinner that we didn't produce were eggs (hope to soon), flour and olive oil!

We also came home with a (kids) bucket of blackberries from our foraging along the river bank and a couple of apples from a fellow plotholders tree (I feel a pie coming on!). Also had the offer of ripe elderberries -may have another go at elderberry wine.

Plum jam

I've just made plum jam! I used half of my first batch of plums (1kg) just in case it didn't work, but all seems fine. It set nicely and has formed a seal on the recycled glass jars (the poppers on the top are all depressed). The jam is a beautiful plum-red colour (even though the flesh was green) and best of all the bit I put on a plate to test tasted very yummy.

The recipe was simple: 900g plums (before being stoned), 300ml water, 850kg sugar. Cooking in a wide pan until it reaches 220 degrees F or for about 20 mins on a rolling boil. Test a sample on a cold plate, if it wrinkles when you push it then it will set. Pour into hot sterilised jars.

I'm going to have a go at a plum chutney tomorrow and a plum cake on Sunday. the challenge of course is what to do with the next kilo I pick!

Plums, tomatoes, beetroot and bindweed.

Just back from my hols (Iceland - fantastic place) to find a bumper crop of plums, tomatoes and beetroot, not to mention cauliflowers, courgettes, potatoes....

I'm really pleased with my plum tree - it's about 3-4 years old and last year gave me 4 delicious czar plums. This year, well, the photo hopefully shows that my toddler tree has produced so far a whopping 1.5kg of ripe plums with more on the way.

I also have a dozen beetroot, a bowl of cherry toms as well as golden sunrise yellow toms, some marmande as well as others that I can't remember the name of.

I was delighted with the cauliflowers - I've grown them under enviromesh (a fine mesh-net thing) after a couple of years of inedible catepilliary cauliflowers I've finally won - this year have had 4 cauliflowers so far with no wiggley things inside.

I think I've done well in just under 3 weeks. Many thanks go to my allotment neighbour Shirley and my brother Jamie for watering my greenhouse whilst I was away.

Unfortunately I've come back to a plot that is not only full of produce but overrun with bindweed. I've pulled up a sack of it already and there is still more to go.

Now to find plum and beetroot recipes.

Poppies

I think it's fair to say that I have a poppy problem! Every bed, in the paving, everywhere there are big pink poppies. I can hardly see the plot or what's growing on it for poppies. I usually let a few grow but this year I've been a bit preoccupied selling my home and trying to buy somewhere so I've only rushed down to water the greenhouse. I haven't carefully thinned the poppy seedlings down to a managable number and have been over run! I'm not sure if you can see that from the photograph.

It's not bad though, there are plenty of bees and other pollinators, my crops are all doing well (have a regular supply of strawberries for Elizabeth as well as raspberries, gooseberries and soon the blueberries start cropping.

My sweetcorn is doing well, and the interplanting with beans and squash seems to be working this year. The three free roses are fantastic and I've had cut flowers with loads left on the plant for the insects for a month now.

My greenhouse is overflowing with tomato plants and it's a mammoth task potting them all on and more importantly finding pots!

I was also pleased to see the broad beans are thriving despite the odd bit of blackfly. And more pleased to see that there were loads of ladybirds, ladybird larvae etc feasting on the blackfly - its year three and my no chemical principles seem to be paying off.

My next big challenge is how to keep the greenhouse watered whilst I'm in Iceland. Think I need to beg a few favours - they should be able to help themselves to the first crop of tomatoes that will ripen in the next week or two.

Time flies

It seems like absolutely ages since I last spent time at my plot! I've made the dash down there to water the greenhouse but not much else in the last few weeks (my weekends have been taken up with visits to relatives, friends and my Hut).

Absence however has this remarkable power - the allotment goes wild. I now have metre-high poppy plants everywhere (the first one is in flower, a lovely large pink bloom). The weeds are also huge (despite pulling them up everytime I see one - how do they escape!).

On the plus side I do have lots of fruit this year - a bumper crop of pears, apples and plums (see pic) and it doesn't look too bad on the cherry and gooseberry front either.

In the greenhouse things are going well - I had over 100 tomato plants of different varieties but have managed to give many away (hurray!) and potted on the others. Still many toms in pots they have outgrown but will hopefully get to those this weekend. There are quite a few toms already on the plants - some the size of golf balls!

I've finally managed to grow carrots - after my third attempt at sowing seeds. Wonder what I did wrong. And I've only got about 4 parsnip plants after sowing nearly 3 packets of seeds!!!

I've also planted out sweetcorn and squash as well as beans (trying the 'three sisters' again this year).

Harvesting-wise I've had a continuous but small supply of strawberries (they rarely make it off the plot), a few early onions, asparagus and lettuce. The cherries are ripening and I guess the garlic will need lifting soon.

Meet Jimmo

Hi all

Pleased to meet you. I'm Jimmo the Scarecrow. Elizabeth and Elizabeth's Mummy made me - with a little help from our Girl Guide knot-tying friend Clare. I'm protecting Elizabeth's strawberries from the birds. And I hope adding a little something special to the plot.

Jimmo