Boring Boring Boring!!

Haven't been able to get to the allotment for ages it feels, what with the rain and the days getting dark so quick. I'm hoping that I can get down there on Saturday so I can check out how the broad beans are getting on and also take some photos of the frames I put down the other weekend.

One good thing with all this rain i've been told that our parsnips should be getting nice and fat yum yum!

Weather has really been on our side lately and both Saturday & today the sun has been out it. Popped upto the allotment today after taking some compost from our bin up there and also some frames that my Hubby got from work.

These frames are brilliant they are about the size of a pallet but hinged so you just open them out. I've got four so two have been done ready for strawberrys to go in next year with compost and straw mulch already in. I've decided that the other two are for salad crops. Three frames are in the new fruit plot and the other one is over in the first bed. I'm hoping he can get some more of these frames as they look so nice and tidy but I could be waiting along time as they don't come up that often.

Harvested some more brocolli, can't believe it just keeps coming ( not that i'm complaining) and some spinach.

Crops growing on the allotment now.

The crops for harvesting now are : kale, brocolli, spinach & leeks.
Ready for Christmas : Savoy cabbage, brussel sprouts, parsnips & swede(hope they get a bit bigger or i'll leave them).
Ready for Spring: Spring cabbage, purple sprouting brocolli, broad beans & carrots.
Ready for Summer : Onions & Garlic.

I have summer cauliflowers ready to be planted & lettuce in my plastic greenhouse.

An overview I haven't done too bad for the first year alot better than I thought I would. I am only now just buying veg from the supermarket as crops are reduced so I think thats good going really, don't you??

The first big news that I have is about the trail I did on the no dig method for some new potatoes for Christmas which I recorded on Tues 19th Sept Blog. Well here they are....

They did better than my potatoes earlier in the year. Yes I know its not Christmas but I got curious as to whether they grew or not so while I was waiting for a lift home I thought i'd dig them up. Got a couple of large ones and some have a few holes but they grew which is brillant. These potatoes could be from shop brought ones as I know there were a few to be planted as they had started growing. I am now starting to think as to whether its worth planting potatoes next year and try a variety in the no dig method again. Every time you mow the lawn just put the clippings down like I did with these. Trouble is I can see me asking neighbours for there lawn clippings and yes they would diff think I was mad or getting there.

Pulled the first of my leeks too not sure what for but could so down well in a soup.

This morning I decided to go to alloment but my hubby took the car with the allotment key on it, after getting changed and realizing that I wouldn't get in the gate I still took a stroll down with Morris & Little tot in tow. After a few looks as to what Morris was I got there and no other allotment holders were around so to climb the gate was the only option. Must of looked kind of strange, woman, kid and animal going over the gate but we made it.

These are my carrots that didn't do that well really but if I can keep them we have a few for Christmas dinner. Alot have been eaten and some I pulled had the eaters still in them, so if I didn't dig them up now I might not of had any at all. Only hope my parsnips next to them are ok and not being eaten too.

My cheeky hen thought she would have one doesn't she realise how hard i'm trying to kept veg for 25th Dec.

I did get back to the lot last weekend and sowed some Nantes Frubund and put a cloche over them so I should have spring carrots. Its been fairly mild really but the clothe can stay over them anyway.

Harvested some curly kale for dinner Sunday and also some spinach. I made some quiches using the spinach, leek and our hens eggs.

Don't look bad do they? They tasted good too. Had to do individual ones as didn't have enough pastry for the size of the baking tray I had.

Thats it for now. Not sure i'll have anything to report next weekend as nothing much going on but I think i'll be ordering my seed spuds for next year soon.

Have a good week, thanks for looking x

The Frost has arrived.

Are you feeling cold like me and not liking this weather very much. Even though time is flying by in general, allotment time has slowed right down nearly to a halt. Popped in there during the week for a check up and radishes are up and growing not sure what they will be like now after the frost but my lettuces did nothing again except food for some hungry animal. I'm going to sow some in a seed tray and put them in the my little plastic greenhouse and see how they do then. The cauliflowers are doing well out in it, one tray has been eaten slightly but nothing to worry about. Sowed some carrot seed I brought last weekend especially for autumn sowing to have some for spring so see how they go. I put them in a plant container not in the ground. May ground sow some up at the allotment if I go up there Tomorrow (Sunday) but not sure if its a bit too cold even with a cloche.

In the back garden there is a pumpkin growing which I have left to see how it goes. I don't think now it may survive after the frost and also the chickens got out today and started digging up its roots but i'll leave it and see.

My chilli plant has started growing again in the conservatory and is starting to produce fruit. The tomatoes in there have produced some fruit but nothing to get excited about so may cut off the ones that have grown and get rid.

Chickens are doing well and the brown one is still laying (good girl) and the black one is still moulting. Hoping to get a white egg layer next year and also hope the the black one starts laying in Spring.

Morris had put on weight i'm sure and is a cute & cuddly as ever except when he does a poof on you and boy that stinks. It must be the way I tickle his tummy as it only happens to me.

I've been baking made two Christmas cakes and also 3 jars of chutney with a courgette and aubergine that i'd grown. I did a made up recipe so it should be interesting or not as the case maybe seeing the pumpkin lasgane which wasn't very nice and we had to have bacon and eggs instead for dinner the other evening. My pickled onions that i've grown and pickled will be ready around Christmas as we may be having cold meat and hors-d'oeuvres.

Happy bonfire's night tomorrow and enjoy the evening if your having fireworks or going to watch them....