Snadgers Penultimate Plot

[Snadger]

Back to the plot today. Assembled a pile of scrap into a shortened version of a polytunnel I had on my old plot.
Dug up my Mooli (surprised it survived the winter) and tickled over the bed with fork and raked level. Put a glass panel over it to warm up the soil for for sowing carrots.

Harvested a carrier bag of beetroot which appears to be ok and weeded that bed ready for possibly a sowing of parsnips soon or for sweetcorn later in the year.

Need to get on top of the weeds but I am concentrating on getting stuff sown in case of full lockdoown where it will have to take care of itself.

[Snadger]

For once, I actually got done what I planned to do today.I had a good session in my own garden borders weeding and tidying up edges(my fingers are still tingling from pulling out nettles.) I even had the tee shirt off at one time as I was quite hot.
Then it was off to the plot to prepare a couple of beds and sow carrots in one and parsnips in tuther.
I also sowed cukes and cougettes and brought a packet of Butternut squash seeds home to do the same with those and add them to the bedroom window sill where I had my tatties chhitting.

[Snadger]

Visited the plot primarily to water stuff in greenhouse after a hot day yesterday.

While I was there I thought I may as well do a bit of weeding with the hoe as certain parts were looking a bit tatty. Hoed around my Japanese onions and took the debri netting off the curly kale plants which have been a bit of a failure and bolted.Pulled them all up and hoed that area also.
Harvested some PSB which will go well with my roast beef. Broke the flower stalk off my rhubarb so that it can concentrate on giving me rhubarb stems not flowers

Took the glass off the carrot bed as I don't want to cook them.

Took my coriander/cilantro seeds home to sow direct into my herb garden at home.

I was only there about 1.5 hrs but tied it in with a visit to the local shop for supplies.

[Snadger]

Called into the plot this afternoon after my shopping exploits to instigate my brassica direct sowing regime.
Hoed and raked off the weeds from the area I was sowing and dibbled seven equally spaced holes along a line.. Filled holes with compost, watered and put a pinch of broccoli/calabrese seed in at each station. Covered seed with some more compost and watered again.
Now all I have to do is wait.

I also took the chicken mesh that I have over my spring cabbage off and hoed all weeds before returning mesh supported at a higher level as they have grown some.

Gathered three leeks and left for home.

I did take a photograph which looked quite impressive but my old wind up android phone and chromebook plus he vagaries of the vines picture loading system have defeated me.

[Penellype]

Try taking a screenshot of the picture and uploading that.

[Snadger]

Typical, went to the allotment to water up and drop off a couple of bags of grass cuttings and finished up staying a couple of hours.

Watered up then spread the grass cuttings on cardboard I have spread on plot. To finish off covering the cardboard I decided to empty the compost from the storage area, a forkfull at a time to completely cover cardboard.

Prepared a small bed for planting I know not what yet

Went home cream crackered.

[Containergardener]

Why do you put grass on cardboard?

[Snadger]

Why do you put grass on cardboard?

I try to gardren organically using no-dig principles if possible.I covered an area with cardboard a while ago weighted down with bricks and bits of wood.Now that I had the organic matter I covered the cardboard with this and took the bricks and wood off it.
This is my weed suppressing mulch and the worms will do their job and slowly absorb this into the soil surface. I will be able to plant stuff through this by dibbling holes through cardboard and planting into the soil below.

[Containergardener]

Oh . That's interesting. Rather like this no dig principle and I'd find it easier. Going to read back through your full thread.
Thanks

[Snadger]

Oh . That's interesting. Rather like this no dig principle and I'd find it easier. Going to read back through your full thread.
Thanks

I fluctuate in my approach, but this is my current thinking. I like to experiment as well, as they say "A change is as good as a rest"

[Containergardener]

Well I shall keep following with interest . Change is definitely good.
Brilliant work so far . I'm worn out reading it . You should write a book .

[Snadger]

Called in at the plot as I had to go out for bread and milk at the shop nearby. Watered the Ailsa Craig onions and the red torpedo onions that are in seed trays. Watered my grapevine that I have grown from a cutting off my old vine. Watered my leek seedlings which have just germinated and lastly watered the stations where I have sown my brocoli outdoors. I'm not entirely sure but I think one of them has germinated in such a short time.
My allotment neighbour knows I have a wood burner so dumps no end of wood off-cuts over the fence for me, bless him.
I loaded the car up with the thin stuff and will have a session chopping sticks tomorrow at home. The other stuff I tidied into what was the compost heap and will become another raised bed once I transport all the wood home. It looks a lot tidier and will keep the site committee off my back for the time being.
It was bright but cold so I spent half an hour hoe-ing off weeds to keep warm.

Had a look through my seeds and decided the next thing I will be sowing direct are some curly kale seeds. Also must get my 100 onion sets planted.

[Snadger]

Back to the plot at liunchtime. Surprisingly there was no one on site.

Watered greenhouse stuff first. Sowed some Swartz Cumin seed in a pot and some Swartz Fennel seed in a pot.
Took debri netting off spring cabbage and hoed around plants. Spread woodash around each plant to make the soil a bit more alkaline, which brassicas prefer. Replaced debri netting.
Hoed around japanese onions and where there were only a few left I transplanted them further back in the rows which allowed me to plant two short rows of maincrop onion sets (Sturon)

Hoed and raked along a line and dibbled in holes filled with compost at approximately 20 inch stations. Sowed a pinch of curly Kale in each (13 stations in all)

Finished my time there by hoeing pathways at far end of plot until I got sick of hoeing. I really enjoy hoeing but on compacted soil it gets a bit painful on the right arm after a while. I will finish this another day.
Because the camera on my phone I use is incompatible with this daft chromebook I took my old Samsung phone to use as a camera only.
Hopefully what should follow are two shot of plot taken today.



In the well know words of Victor Meldrew "I don't believe it!" it actually worked.

[Snadger]

I had to go to the Post Office so killed two birds with one stone by visiting the plot.Watered stuff that needed it both in the greenhouse and outdoors.
I then set about trying to tidy the greenhouse in readiness for bringing the stuff down from my bedroom windowsill.
I didn't realise how much carp I had lying around and even came across some seeds I didn't know I had.

The plan is to utilise the staging and cover the toms,chilis, cukes,courgettes and butternuts with laminate flooring underlay which is like very thin opaque polystyrene. This should have the insulation quantities and will hopefully let enough light through?

Its supposed to be fine tomorrow so I will hopefully get my bedroom windowsill back then

[Snadger]

Bedroom windowsill emptied and three types of tomato, two types of chilli's,cucumbers,courgettes and Butternut squash all taken to allotment greenhouse staging.
Potted the cukes ,courgettes and Butternuts along with six Ailsa Craig toms into individual pots.
Rigged up an opaque polystyrene cover which will hopefully let enough light through and protect them from getting chilled.

I need to do a few repairs to greenhouse where bits of panes are missing but will take the gaffer tape with me tomorrow and patch it up.

After watering stuff that needed it indoors and outdoors I grabbed the hoe and did my Santa claus impression, Ho,Ho,Ho!
Pathways all hoed off and me with an aching right arm.

How do I plant onion sets through cardboard and grass cutting plus compost mulch methinks? I went along cardboard at approximately one foot from edge with spade and cut a groove. I then planted about 30 sets into this groove.
I have another 50 sets of a different onion variety still to plant and may try the next row with a pointed dibber just through cardboard before planting? I love experimenting with stuff like this, its what makes gardening interesting!

I have a Loganberry/Tayberry (Not sure which) I had planted last year and started to train along the fence. My allotment neighbour has cut it down so I presume doesn't want if growing along the fence. Next time I am at plot I will dig it up and take it home to grow along my fence there.
I left with a couple of leeks to make some leek and tattie soup. The leeks will soon start running to seed so I need to get them used up.