What I Did Today Archive 2008

[MaureenHall]

Went to the lottie early, uncovered some of the part that had already been dug and weeded, loosened it up a bit (cos I'd walked on it!) and spread a load of manure. Took 2 of the chooks with me to dig up an ants nest - they enjoyed their eggy breakfast . Came home with a thumping headache, think it's cos the weather feels so heavy and stormy today, could do with a BIT of rain to fill up the water butts again, but no more than that please.

[Snadger]

Progressed with adding wood chippings to the paths at lottie! Phew!! I have a LOT of paths but can console myself that by doing it right, I'll save myself a LOT of weeding!

Made a temporary enclosure for the chooks who were glad of the change of scenery!
As it was so hot and I had a banging headache I made myself a pint of blackcurrant juice and pulled up a chair to watch them. There is a big mirror at the top of the lottie and it was quite funny watching the lead hen , who is top of the pecking order, trying to peck at herself in the mirror! She was going at it with such vengeance I was a bit worried she'd break the mirror!
Had a quick snooze (well they are very relaxing to watch) then woke up refreshed and ready to go! I think the Japanese call it power napping!

Cut a large swede, some carrots, tatties, toms and cukes! Hopefully if OH is speaking to me, I'll get some of these in my Sunday Dinner tomorrow, if not I'll have to make do with peanutbutter sarnies instead!

Left lottie without any eggs today as the punters relieved me of them as soon as I put a doz of them in the sales box!

PS Forgot to mention, I sowed some summer cabbage where some of my spring cabbage hadn't germinated..........couldn't get spring cabbage at B&Q so had to make do with Greyhound.........it'll be an interesting experiment!

[wellie]

Ah now Snadger, I am SURE OH is speaking to you!

Trousers and I spent most of the morning at our Allotment, and to be honest, we're very very ashamed to say, it was a disgrace. The weeds were so huge, we never thought we'd tame them....! but eventually we did, and after a good couple of hours, strimming and Wellie hand-weeding, we walked away feeling much better about ourselves.
Oh, and we harvested loads of Red Onions, and White Onions, but forgot to harvest the Sweetcorn, which was ready. And actually, so are lots of the Borlotti Climbing Beans, and I'm in two minds whether to harvest those 'fresh' or let them go 'for drying'......

Pinch me. I've got too many choices already....! X

[wellie]

I picked a lot of Borlotti Beans here at home, and turned them into 2kilos of Sweet'n'Sour Preserved Borlottis, that last at least a year, and they're FAB with cold meats.

[Snadger]

Took up my ham onions to dry off and added composted grass cuttings to the area(smelly) Tickled over the surface and sowed 4 rows of April spring cabbage.
Decided to make a run extention to encompass my compost heaps and move another shed internally into the run in case I get the urge for more chooks.
Problem is I have a lot of shifting of woodpile and crap to do before I can relocate the hut.
May make a start tomorrow..............haven't decided yet!

[Hans Mum]

yesterday cleared strawberry beds at lottie....found loads of slugs so left them for the birds to enjoy
today made 10lbs jam, 6 jars pickled cabbage, squash soup & tomato soup for freezer & a courgette cake

[Winged one]

On Saturday, I dragged the OH and toddler up to the plot, as neither had been in a good while. It was mainly a harvesting visit, with some clipping of paths (OH doesn 't go as close to the ground as me) and tidying up,l including adding the cardboard from washing machine/tumble dryer delivered last week.

We had to pull up all the tomato plants, as they were rotting off (not sure was it blight or another kind of general rot) and we laid the plastic back over that spot for a while. We laid plastic over the summer onions bed too, until I finish taking the spuds from the far side of it and get it ready to plant for winter (will be broadies, peas and salad bed).

I pulled another decent bag of brocolli shoots (they were sooo good this year- cropping for ages) and dug another 3 Anya potato plants (enough for another 3 dinners for the 3 of us). OH found another 4 peapods on the last of the pea-vines in the tomatoes. There was another decent bag of salad leaves (mainly cos) and a large handful of spinach. A small handful of french beans was there (there'll be a good lot next week) and a single baby courgette was the final goodie added to the haul.

We will be pulling the older brocolli plants next weekend (will be pulling the summer leeks at the same time so didn't want to pull them this week) and I have a couple of late PSB and some savoy cabbage to put in their place. I am leaving the borlotti beans to get big so that I can use the beans from the inside (I have plenty of french beans yet for pods).

As we were heading out, we were talking to the gentleman who works 2 plots at the corner (I often chat to him but we never seem to have exchanged names). He is really lovely and helpful and often has more than he can use. This week, he had greyhound type cabbage ready - 2 rows of it - which he reckons "won't stand", so he gave me 2 beautiful heads of cabbage (and the toddler was given 3 fabulous peapods whic delighted her - they disappeared in the back seat while we were en route home rather than being kept for lunch!!).

Over the weekend, we had a lot of our own produce to use, which was great. I took some chicken stock out of the freezer and boiled some brocolli in that, liquidised and OH and I had brocolli soup for lunch on Saturday, followed for dinner by lamb chops done in the oven with a splash of lamb stock, some fresh rosemary, spuds, tomatoes, peppers, mushrooms, onions, garlic, french beans, mange tout and courgettes (peppers, mushies and toms were from shop - rest was home grown). Yesterday, we had a roast chicken flavoured with a lemon and our own tarragon, and more Anyas (roasted this time), with steamed spinach and boiled cabbage.

Today, we are having a leftovers chicken curry - with french beans and using chicken stock from last night's chick. OH is eating from freezer tomorrow night (I have to go to a retirement do at work ) and on Wednesday, we are having Jamie Oliver's tomatoes and linguine using the yellow tumbler toms from the hanging basket in the garden (I didn't take all the ripe ones off, and I filled a 2 pint pudding bowl with them). I'll worry about the rest of the week later (although I suspect that OH will be using freezer on Thursday as I have another retirement do to go to). And I have my salad bowl again today for lunch, and I have enough to do it all week (that has been at least 4 times per week since May, I am well impressed!!).

[wellie]

I went to the lottie and harvested 18 ripe sweetcorn cobs.

[Two_Sheds]

I went to QD and bought £30 worth of daffodils, crocuses etc; reduced seeds (20p a pack); and Senshyu over-wintering onion sets. I also have Senshyu seeds, so I can see which grow best.

[Stu H]

Dug in some home compost in to the new bed and sowed some green manure, hoping to make the soil a lot nicer!

[Winged one]

Had an interesting discussion at the retirement do last night about compost, spud growing and raspberry canes. Which raised eyebrows among a few folks that I was chatting away so knowledgably about it all (me being such a young'un in the middle of the group!!).

I've also started on my planting plans for next season, as I think I need to progress this while I remember what did/didn't work this year.

[bucket lady]

I am new to the grapevine, i am also new to growing my own veg and need as much information as possible, i have quite a large area in which to grow veg and would like tips on growing peas, onions, cabbages, parsnips,turnip,lettuce herbs.
As i said i am new to growing veg so need to know where to buy seeds and bulbs and when i can plant them.
I have so far grown some lettuce in a large bucket, it is been eaten today for the first time so should have some feedback soon.

[Kayt]

Have cleared another 4ft strip of brambles this morning inbetween the showers. They do give a coffee break to sit and plan out what will go where on the plot. Definitely going to build new compost bins halfway down rather than at one end!
Picked a few spinach leaves and radishes. Lifted onions and left drying in shed.
Am off shortly to collect as much as I can bag up of horse manure that has been sitting in a pile for the last 2years and some large cardboard boxes from the back of the retail park to cover cleared area with.

[Rodley]

Tomato blight in SW France

We are going back to UK today for a fortnight so went to pick some tomatoes for a relative in between the showers and saw that they had been hit by blight (the tommies not the rellie!). So had to clear the bed and put as many of the green ones into my large shed. And now it has started raining again - but at least it is warm rain! I am not looking forward to the UK's weather at all. Yesterday was picking and freezing sweetcorn.

[Snadger]

If I hadn't of been worried about my chooks I wouldn't have visited the allotment today.
As it was, the chooks were quite happy and although looking a bit bedraggled had ahd the sense to go into the coop when the rain was heavy. I knew this because the entrance and perching areas were wet. They had kindly layed me 10 eggs as well.
Gave them some sunflower seeds (which they didn't seem to know what to do with?) thinking that the extra sunflower oil would help keep them warm. Let them out while I harvested my red onions in the rain.
Weeded the greenhouse beds, gathered tomatoes that were ripe, strung some onions grown from sets, picked a few japlapenos's, gathered some windswept gladioli and all in all had quite a successful day even though it never stopped raining.
Sunflowers and sweetcorn were flattened by last nights gale force winds to my dismay and the numerous spring cabbage seeds I sowed seem to have been washed out of the soil!.