leeks – We bought ‘The Land’!!!

Seeds and seedlings

This week, I find myself without a car as it died a death on Monday! It has been particularly frustrating as there are jobs to be done at the allotment (aren’t there always?!) and buses/walking isn’t an option around here. Our small covered planter that is being used as a ‘greenhouse’ at the moment is bursting at the seams, as are the kitchen windowsill and dining table! I can’t wait to get things planted out but they aren’t really big enough and even if they were, it just feels too cold at the moment (even in Cornwall, which is supposed to be mild!).

We don’t have a covered area outside for planting and sitting outside today would have meant dodging several hail storms and generally being very cold, so I turned my living room floor into a planting area today with the help of a dust sheet! It worked very well and once I was done planting, I simply scooped up the sheet and shook it off outside. Today I separated and potted up some Rudbeckia (Marmalade) seedlings – When I originally sowed the seeds, I put quite a lot into a small pot. I don’t think I was expecting many to germinate for some reason, but they all have! I have also potted on some Pea (Hurst Green Shaft) and a few various sunflower seedlings. I have sown some seeds too: Cosmos – Seashells Mixed, Leek – Northern Lights, Pepper – Cayenne, Sunflower – Vanilla Ice. I’m really rather excited at sowing the Leek seeds. I’ve been looking forward to it since seeing a picture in a gardening magazine and deciding that I needed to grow this variety – I’m sure it isn’t normal to get this excited about leeks!

The allotment will have to wait until the weekend – here’s hoping that the weather picks up!

Thanks for reading, have a great day!

March 2016 trip to the allotment

The sun shone in Cornwall for a good few hours this weekend! Ashley and I have been meaning to get to the allotment for several weeks now, however bad weather and a dislike for standing out in the cold meant that we kept putting it off! The last meaningful visit to the allotment was just before Christmas to dig up some parsnips for our Christmas dinner!

We were greeted by a flattened gate and we were already aware that the poly tunnel hadn’t survived the winter. There was little other damage which was a relief! The aim of the day was to clear weeds from the beds. Working at a leisurly pace in the sunshine was a joy – I was a little worried that I had fallen out of love with the allotment already, but it turns out it was just the weather that was the problem!

3 hours of weeding later, all but one bed was weeded, the autumn raspberries had been cut right back (leaving a few new shoots that were already growing), and we moved some wooden boards to mulch different parts of the paths between beds. We completely filled the (previously pretty much empty) compost bin! It felt very much like a job well done and it’s great to have the beds cleared ready for this years seedlings.

We already have some cabbage, kale and purple sprouting broccoli growing that were planted last autumn. The unused parsnips are still in the ground to be dug up as we want them and there are also some leeks left in the ground, although they aren’t looking too great. I thought the leeks would be fine left in the ground over winter – maybe it’s just been too wet for them or maybe I should have stored them some other way. I will have to do some research for next year.

At this time of year, it seems quite exciting to see the purple sprouting broccoli in its glorious colour!

I am ever so pleased that the autumn raspberries have spread, but I’m a little concerned that the rhubarb doesn’t appear to be showing any growth at all after dying right back before Christmas. We will see soon enough if it has survived or not, and there’s nothing I can do about it now.

Next, planning when to start seeds off and get planting at home. Thanks for reading!

Start of the harvest

A quick trip to the allotment this evening was a pleasure, even in the cool and misty weather we’ve had today. We pulled up the first potato plant and brought these beauty’s home, this should last us the week! I also picked just a few swiss chard leaves. It’s great to finally have produce to bring home, even if it is just the basics!

We planted out the leeks that have been growing away nicely in the greenhouse – they’ve been exposed to the elements for the last couple of days and now the nights are warming up, I think they will do just fine as long as the rabbit doesn’t take a shine to them!

Ashley managed to sneak a quick photo and video of the Swallows nest in the tool shed – I’ll show you what he found in another post very soon!