Late posting - Frost damage to Potatoes and Seedlings

Had a problem getting the photo's off the blackberry and a lack of time to fix it meant that I did not post these pictures when they were taken. The early potatoes that I planted out in the first bed got hit by some frost damage - which surprised me because I did not think that we'd had any serious frost - perhaps the allotment is colder than our garden at home? These pictures were taken 10 days ago and thankfully the plants have recovered. At first I thought it might be blight from poor quality seed potatoes but thankfully it isn't.



Seedlings update
Planted out 8 tomato plants into grow-bags under the kitchen window 2 evenings ago. These are now about 3 -4 inches high and have had to be tethered to canes. Last time I grew tomoatoes I did not support the plants and they rambled all over the place. All the other plants have been potted into medium sized pots. Will have to give some of these away and will plant some out on the allotment.

Most things have sprouted well. Butternut seeds harvested from a supermarket bought plant have sprouted, as have the Halloween pumpkin seeds. Not sure where I am going to plant these out. The potato seedlings (planted from seed harvested from fruit 2 seasons back has taken extremely well. I've decided to pot these into small tubs and grow them at home so I can keep an eye on them - the plan is to harvest the first tubers for planting next season. I have also planted out the extra seedlings in a hidden patch in a garden flowerbed. Quite excited about these.

Runner and Black Eyed Beans are also progessing well, although have lost a couple of plants to a blasted snail that got amongst them - ate through a Runner bean stem and stripped the first leaf off a Black Eyed bean plant. The Italian beans from Nick have not sprouted (yet). Some have rotted in the pot, but when clearing these out I found a few that looked like they were about the sprout so I apologetically pressed these back into their soil.

Chilli plants have sprouted at last - these were kept inside on the kitchen windowsill and took over 2 weeks to germinate - thought I have used a poor potting compost or the seeds were old but at last we have the little elf-like sprouts lifting their backs through the soil and lifting their slender arms to the light. Have habenero and cayenne so should not be short of a little HOT to add to dishes.

The tray of purple sprouting MUST be planted out this weekend - otherwise I will lose it in the tray. Only one line of the lettuce seeds that I planted in the window box has sprouted so may replant another type this weekend.

Only work on the allotment last weekend was to weed, weed and weed. The Bindweed has gone crazy around the raspberries as I have not turned that soil for 2 seasons.

Update picture of progress of Broad Beans taken 19/04/2010

Beans, beans and potatoes

Managed a good three hour session on the plot on Saturday. Continued clearing the bind-weed root from the soil below the old manure pile, dug a manure trench for the runner beans and turned and bedded up a section of the bean bed ready for planting the peas and black eyed beans which are coming along fantastically well in the pots at home.

The first broad beans have also started well - about an inch of growth from the first set that I planted and the second lot is now pushing through. I also could not resist planting the empty bed that I had set aside for purple sprouting. I have put french dwarf beans in instead. Will have to work out where to put the brocolli when its ready. (Note the good successional planning going on here!)

First of the early potatoes are also now pushing leaf through and the seedlings that I harvested two years ago from fruit that the potatoes produced is going great guns. I am considering planting these out into grow bags and not harvesting them in the first season - and then chitting and planting out next season as I am not sure how much they will yield in the first year.

I've also planted out Cosmos flowers in the flower corner of the allotment - Imogen and Amelie helped with these. I've also put chilli and parsely out in the seed trays - bally slugs have had a go at the purple sprouting and savoy cabbage - I think I've all but lost the savoy cabbage :-(

Broad beans - early growth


The manure bed and trench for beans and peas.


French dwarf beans planted in bed 6.

Dandelion roots & Rasberries

Spent a few hours weeding the rest of the raspberries this afternoon. Was amazed at how deep the dendelion tap roots were - because the raspberry canes are too close together to use a small garden fork, I had to use a hand fork which made it bloody difficult to get the longer tap roots out. I can only assume that these plants put these roots down late last summer - there is now way that these roots could have grown through the winter we've just had???

Finger tips are sore from lifting the claggy couch grass but at last finished weeding the raspberries.

Seedlings

Set up a planting rack on in the sun-trap near the back door this afternoon. Have planted quite a lot out today:

1. Second tranche of peas to follow those set out 2 weeks ago - in small pots
2. Black eyed beans - these were left over sprouts that we past their best for eating so I popped a few into some small pots to see if they grow. I have no idea whether they are a climber or ground bean. Will have to wiki it.
3. French Runners - first crop. Planted into bigger pots so I can delay planting these out if we get late frosts
4. African Marigolds - two tub trays with 2 seeds in each. These will be to plant amongst the legumes to hold back the snails and slugs, I also have some French Marigolds which will need planting out later.
5. Livingstone mixed Daisy - in a tray, these will add some summer colour to the allotment
6. Italian Beans (from N-PG - need to remember to ask him to check the pack as not Bortolli as I have written on the envelope)
7. Butternut - these seeds were harvested from a supermarket fruit. I dug the seeds out, washed them and then dried them laid out flat on a plate. Then popped them in an envelope.
8. Pumpkin - these seeds were also taken from a supermarket plant- harvested after halloween. I'm going to see if I can plant them on the compost heap.

Good Friday Potatoes

I've been told that it is tradition to plant your main crop potatoes on Good Firday - I have done that. Planted these today - going left to right:
King Edward
Kerrs Pink
Cara

Broad beans are sprouting now, showing first through which is great. Garlic is about 1 inch now and some onion leaf is showing.

Seedlings & Rhubarb

Took the tomoato seed trays indoors last night as a frost was likely. Peas, poptato seedlings and thyme are on a outdoor shelf about 3 feet off the ground so unlikely to get burnt by the forst. Propagator lids removed from Savoy Cabbage and Summer sprouting Brocolli seedlings three days ago.

Rhubard starting nicely too. Took out the large crown in Feb (it was about the size of a large wheelbarrow tub!) and split it into three and moved it to the other side of the plot - dug them into manure and fed the one plant that I did not move. Gave Mandy and Stu one quarter of the crown as had too much.