July: half way through but a long way to go!

Here is the Mini Allotment update for July. We are now (shockingly) half way through the year already!
Its almost shocking how little i know and how much more i have to learn. I'm already thinking about next year and what I will do differently!

By far, the most exciting thing that has happened this month is my first "Harvest"....

....Please try not to laugh.....

Followed a few days later with ...

I tell you, you read and hear all about "How much better Home Grown tastes". Its true. End of. 

Oh and the smell.....Its like my senses have been diluted all my life and now i know what real vegetables smell like!

So, in between down pours, Ive been faffing about and planting out some more potatoes and carrots.

Bed 1: Carrots and parsnips are just starting to show their heads now after about 2 weeks, and the radish is doing really well (Thanks a bunch Slug Pellets!) But i think i sowed them too shallow so Ive done a mini "earthing up" of them to help. And the Spinach next to them are doing well. Ive now thinned out both of these.

Little baby Parsnips and Carrots !

Bed 2: The last of the potatoes were dug up and the soil turned them I planted 4 more shop bought potatoes. (I wont be cutting the tops off these ones when they emerge!)

Bed 3: Carrots and Parsnip are slowly getting there and the Onions and Gladioli on the other side seem ok. Not sure how long the onions should take but they have been there forever!

The back of Bed 3 and 4 have also had a "hair cut" to make some room for flowers to get pollinated

easier. The sweet-peas and Little Miss's sunflowers are doing well and shooting up every day! The Munchkin Pumpkins are climbing faster than I can tie them to the supports!

Bed 4: Ive been having some trouble with the pumpkins as the fruits would get to the size of a golf ball, then  rot and fall off. After some advice, it would seem that they weren't pollinating and that was causing the rot. So after a little "tickle" of the male and female flowers with a paintbrush, and a big trim of some of the leaves (to get to the flowers), Im hoping I will get some actual pumpkins growing now!

 
 

As you can see, Ive got some of one pumpkin plant growing up a bean support. It has got one bean plant growing up it but the bean doesn't seem to mind!

All in all, So far so good!
Looking forward to my next "Harvest"!!

That's all for now! Happy Gardening x

What I've learnt so far (a.k.a: Don't do this again!)

I thought it would be interesting to write a little blog post on the things I have learnt so far about growing my own food - and a What NOT to do guide for myself for next year.

1) First things first - DON'T over crowd the crops. 

I've totally underestimated how much room things actually need to grow and as a consequence to that everything is not quite at its best. The raised beds were a fantastic idea but I have been so anxious to plant everything this year in my (let's face it) tiny plot, that I've not let some crops have the room they really need. Case and point, (ABOVE) my munchkin pumpkins. The pumpkins may be small but the pants that grow them are bloody huge! 4 plants is 2 too many!

2) Slugs do not discriminate and the bloody buggers eat everything. PUT SLUG PELLETS DOWN!!!

3) Care for the crops as you're meant to...

I've lost 3 pumpkins because I didn't get my act together and get some straw/hay underneath them. Without it, they rot and fall off the plant. I'm now on it!

4) Plant what you really want to eat and then actually plant it in succession.
Case and point; carrots and parsnips. I'm both in equal measures terrified and over-excited to pull up my first C and P and I'm quite sure there are a couple of each ready to go, but I haven't managed the succession very well (and those pesky slug haven't helped!)

5) When things start to grow, revel in your achievement and don't let anyone says you're silly for getting over excited over a 1.5cm pepper/tomato/cucumber

6) Enjoy it...always. Its worth the ups and downs

Thats all for now. Happy growing x

A quick June update

Ive sorted out my tiny grren house and put some of the plants and seedings from the convervatory in there now.,,,

Sweet Pepper plants doing well and beginning to flower!

The top half of the cucumber plant...

....The bottom half of the cucumber plant.

Tomato plant re-potted and added next to the Cucumber

I have also weeded the other side of the garden to within an inch of its life!

before...

...and after

before....

...and after

Hopefully I will be adding the new flower seedlings I'm growing in a few weeks time, although there is still such a question mark over what exactly we are going to do with this side of the garden!

That's all for now. Until next time, you take care now x

And thats May!

Well, I went through a bit of a Lull (at the busiest time in the growing calender - go figure?!)

Anyway - I've decided to do a garden up date every month - so as we are now right at the end of the month of May, I will count this as June's post and will up date again in the 1st week of July.

Here are the pics...

Bed 4: The Pumpkin Patch

Bed 3 (Left side) - Onions, munchkin Pumpkins, a French bean plant and some Gladioli have been planted too.

Bed 3 (Right side): 2 rows of carrots and 2 rows of Parsnip -  in succession. One sweet pea and 2 x munchkin pumpkins
 at the back

Bed 2: Several potatoes of different varietsy and 3 sweet pea plants at the back

Bed 1: Salad bed has now been harvested. 2 rows of carrots (3) and Parsnips (3) plus two
new rows of salad have now been planted. Two tomato plants at the back (left)

Newly cleared pots beside bed 1 have 3 rows of Radish (French Breakfast) in and lots of rocket-type salad.

New rose for Birthday  - Arthur Bell and 2 2 x munchkin pumpkins put into pot.

Cucumber!

The length of my hand and harvested 30/5/16. A little tough and not as sweet as shop bought, but fine!

2 x sunflowers and 2 sweet Pepper plants (smaller is not potted on)

French beans and cress

Aubergine - biggest

I'm really pleased now that its all starting to grow!  I've already made some errors - but I wont bore you with that now! I look forward to seeing how things change and develop as we go into the next month!

That's all for now. Until next time x x 

There she Grows!

Busy, Busy, Busy!

Here's what has been going on...

In the garden, (in late February, actually), I managed to get a large plastic tub from the boot sale (for £1!) which I thought would be great for a little mini/nature pond...

Then it needed some plants, so I up-rooted some Crocus' from the other side of the garden that didn't do so well last year but had started to sprout up again.

And finally, I have now added an oxygenating plant and a lovely water forget-me-not...

I've also potted on my Tomato plants and put them outside. I know this might be fatal, but I'm hoping they will be fine and if not, then its fine as we don't really eat tomatoes and they were more for the fun of it anyway!

rather proud of those roots! (from SEED baby!!!)

...and they smell amazing!

The first of the blooms are out in the garden! I'm desperate to cut some for the house but I don't want to loose the colour in the garden!

My one and only cucumber plant is looking rather fabulous, if I do say so myself!

And my sweet peas look lovely... They will be planted out in a couple more weeks, I think.

And my Aubergines are still doing fabulously!

I've also now potted up my pumpkin seeds (large and munchkin) and will let you know when they germinate. I've chitted and planted 4 shop-bought potatoes too and have three more chitting and three red potatoes chitting too.

Adding to all that greatness, its the Easter Holidays; So lots of time spent in the garden me thinks!

That's all for now. Until next you, you take care now x