Penellype's Allotment

[bramble]

Penellype, I have spinach growing in the greenhouse in containers and have bern harvesting the leaves as they grow.
Is it better to leave the plants until they reach maturity...This is my first time growing spinach.
There has Bern no frost damage but I cover with fleece when the nights are cold.
Sorry to see your plot so waterlogged.

[Snoop Puss]

I grow spinach as a cut-and-come-again crop like you, Bramble. I'll be interested to hear your views on that too, Penellype.

[Penellype]

Can I ask about the leeks? Are they supposed to continue growing during the winter? I thought they just withstood winter weather or were for harvesting in winter.

I always seem to have difficulty getting nice fat leeks, but these are the worst I have had for a long time. I think what they are "meant" to do depends a little on the variety - some mature later than others. I am growing 3 varieties this year, all with poor results.

My favourite variety, Oarsman (which made really nice leeks last year), germinated abysmally and I have just 2 plants, which are in a pot in the greenhouse. They are about 3/4 inch across. These are normally ready mid-late winter and do keep growing slowly during milder spells before putting on a growth spurt in early spring before the flower heads appear. At this point the outer leaves are quite tough but the inside is nice and soft and they only start becoming inedible once the flower heads appear above the leaves which is usually around April. Oarsman is F1 and the seed is quite expensive.

In previous years I have grown Northern Lights as an alternative to Oarsman, but I have found they perform very badly, so I tried Giant Winter, which is described as a variety with "thick heavy stems - harvest from January onwards". These are the ones at the allotment, and I have more in a bucket at home. The ones at home are marginally bigger than the allotment ones, but not more than 1/2 an inch across. I thought the allotment ones might be suffering from white rot as I have that at the allotment, so I harvested 2 plants yesterday, but the roots were absolutely fine. As these are supposed to be harvested in winter I am not sure they are going to get any bigger.

The 3rd variety is Bandit, which is a late maturing leek, said to last until May without bolting. I am expecting these to start thickening up in spring - they are in a bucket at home and are about 1/2 an inch thick at the moment.

[Penellype]

Penellype, I have spinach growing in the greenhouse in containers and have bern harvesting the leaves as they grow.
Is it better to leave the plants until they reach maturity...This is my first time growing spinach.
There has Bern no frost damage but I cover with fleece when the nights are cold.
Sorry to see your plot so waterlogged.

I always grow spinach for cut and come again - the only reason I haven't harvested any of the current crop is that they were slow to get going due to slug damage and I don't want them to be over-stressed in the cold weather. The danger with leaving them until they get bigger is that they have a tendency to bolt, and this happens extremely quickly once it starts. There isn't really a time when they are "mature" until they start to bolt.

Spinach is an interesting crop - the same variety and even the same plant behaves completely differently according to conditions. Young spinach sown in spring produces fast growing soft paleish green leaves which are round in shape, have a mild flavour and are suitable for salads. The same variety sown in autumn produces slow growing dark green leaves, which are much tougher, almost leathery, have a stronger taste and really need cooking. As the plants get older the leaves get bigger and become more pointed in shape. Some varieties (including Amazon which I grow) can produce huge leaves at this stage - occasionally bigger than a sheet of A4 paper. Pointed leaves are a sign that the plant is starting to develop flower buds which are not yet visible. Then suddenly, almost over night, a flower spike appears, and this can soon become 2-3ft tall from a big plant. The leaves on the flower stalk become increasingly narrow and pointed and look like they are from a completely different plant. They also become increasingly tough and stringy. I use these (including the stalk but not the seeds) for soup, which I blend and sieve to remove the stringy bits. Bolting can be initiated very quickly if the plants dry out or get too hot, and can happen even if the plants are very young with only a few very small leaves. Spinach therefore almost never grows well in summer, and this is the reason why it is often regarded as difficult to grow. It isn't, it just needs cool conditions and an absence of slugs.

[Snoop Puss]

Best description of spinach behaviour I've ever read, Penellype. I'd not realised the significance of the leaf shape. Thanks.

As for leek varieties, I've not tried Bandit. I will see if I can get seeds for them. Leeks in late spring would be a boon. We eat a lot of leeks and I resent buying them, as they're so expensive in the shops.

I ordered some Winter Giant seeds for trying this year on your recommendation. For early leeks, I cannot speak highly enough of Chef's White. Really good. For later ones I've tried Titus and Freezo, both very good. I always grow in the ground and in clusters of three to five (ideally would be four) at 30 cm apart each way for speedier planting and easier weeding. I'm fortunate in that I have no white rot here (hope those aren't famous last words...).

[Penellype]

If you like leeks in summer try Bulgaarse Reuzen Lincoln. These are fast growing tall but not very fat leeks that get to about the size of large spring onions. They are not frost hardy so need eating before winter sets in. Photo taken 1st September.

[Nicos]

What variety are your leeks, Nicos?

No idea…bought at market as thin pencil sized ‘blue’ leeks. Blue indicating they are a winter variety apparently!

[bramble]

Thanks so much Penellype for so much useful information. I think I have been lucky with my spinach crop...harvesting small leaves as they grow....🤞🏻🤞🏻

[Penellype]

February (photos taken on 1st)



Still not a lot happening here after the cold January, although the bluebells are growing slowly. Even the weeds under the hedge are reluctant to appear - I am normally pulling out speedwell and goosegrass by the handful by February.




Slight rearrangement here - the hoops from the old hotbed have been moved to the new hotbed (under the plastic cover) and the square frame has been moved over the vacant bed as it is too big for the plastic cover. There is still some kohlrabi in the old hotbed but it is gettign a bit old and needs making into soup.



A better view of the new hotbed, which was filled with fresh horse muck in mid January.



The parsnips are still there in the nearest bed, but have died down almost completely. I have harvested a few, most of which have a bad attack of canker which has allowed pests to damage the roots.



PSB is surviving but hasn't grown much. As least it is not currently either flooded or frozen, as was the case during much of January.

[Penellype]

In the tunnel



Not a lot happening here.



Beetroot at the far end has all been harvested or removed - the smaller ones had rotted after the frost.




More empty beds.




The mulch on the strawberries is being pulled about by the birds.




The calabrese is looking a bit worse for wear. There are some small shoots on the right hand plant which look like they may grow, the left hand plant looks as though it has had it.

The tunnel itself has been damaged by the gales we have had this winter. One of the wooden poles was snapped off at ground level and several of the clips that hold the hoops onto the horizontal bars have broken. The cable ties that hold the lower part of the net onto the frame keep snapping and the net has several holes in it. I need to get some more debris netting, take off the old net, check and replace any clips that look broken and put on a new net with new cable ties. I am thinking about the best way to do this as there are a few design flaws in the current setup.

[Penellype]

Fruit



Fruit bushes still looking very wintery.



The chilean guava shoots have been damaged by the frost. This often happens and it will regrow in spring.



Buds are starting to look as though they may break soon on the blackcurrant.



No sign of new growth yet on the strawberries in the growhouse.



Even the rhubarb is showing no enthusiasm for growth. Apologies for the poor photo - my phone was nearly out of battery so I was hurrying.

[Penellype]

Veg



The leeks are not showing any signs of getting bigger.



Kohlrabi in the old hotbed.



PSB is being harvested as it grows.



Overwintered spinach is growing very slowly - I still haven't picked any.