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Mid Summer Bits and Bobs - 2016.

Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2016 8:27 pm
by oldherbaceous
Dear Monika, as requested, now the weather is looking a little kinder.

Lifted all my Shallots the other day, so they should dry well with this warmer weather.... :)

Re: Mid Summer Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2016 8:36 pm
by peter
Darned optimists! :wink:

Re: Mid Summer Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2016 4:56 am
by oldherbaceous
I was going on the law of averages, Peter, as we have had so many wet days..... :)

Re: Mid Summer Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2016 6:06 am
by Parsons Jack
Lifted my two 6ft rows of charlotte a few days ago.
Very pleased with them. No damage at all :D


Image

Re: Mid Summer Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2016 6:56 am
by Pa Snip
Trying to lift my potatoes plant by plant rather than row by row this year.

Not sure it will work as growth rate of the actual potatoes may mean they become too big to be enjoyed as 'earlies'

So far in the last two weeks I have lifted 4 plants of Jazzy (not tried before), one of Lady ChristL and yesterday 3 plants of 'Belle de Fontenay' (another one that we have not tried before)
Lifting them two weeks ago was too early, now they are just the right size.

Jazzy have a nice flavour, slightly nutty.
Not over fussed about the Belle de Fontenay, no detectable flavour, but that could be down to my taste buds being extremely variable, Ma Snip wasn't fussed about them either though.

Re: Mid Summer Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2016 9:08 am
by Pa Snip
Master Poddington Pea enjoys visiting the plot to dig for potatoes. He has been rather impatient to do so this year and has had to have it explained why there are only certain times when potatoes are ready.
At least he knows where food comes from though.

The picture shows some of the 'Jazzy' first earlies that he dug recently

DSC_5894-web.jpg
DSC_5894-web.jpg (63.06 KiB) Viewed 4688 times

Re: Mid Summer Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2016 2:16 pm
by dan3008
haha, got him hooked have you pa? That's amazing

Re: Mid Summer Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2016 2:40 pm
by Pa Snip
dan3008 wrote:haha, got him hooked have you pa? That's amazing


Seems so, to the point where when the freezer ran out of some items from the plot he refused to eat them from the shop. His word "yuck "

Not bad for a 3, soon to be 4, year old and hopefully a allotmenteer of the future

Re: Mid Summer Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2016 3:41 pm
by Elaine
Oh that's good to hear Pa! Our four year old grandaughter and her parents lived with us for three months last year when they came back from America to live here. She really enjoyed coming to the allotment with us, thrilled to bits by pulling carrots, harvesting cauli and calabrese, helping her Grandad by collecting the potatoes as he dug them out. She ate every little bit that I put on her plate, which was a first apparently!
They live in York now and whenever they come, she wants to go to the "Pallotment" to see what she can pick. So far, she isn't interested in growing but one can live in hope! :wink:

Re: Mid Summer Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2016 4:00 pm
by Pa Snip
Small steps Elaine, small steps.
Its nice that she actually wants to go to the pallotment.

Master Poddington does help his mother sowing seeds. As an aside he is doing well at learning making & baking cakes as well

Re: Mid Summer Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2016 7:51 pm
by dan3008
My little girl (2) loves digging the raised beds, planting seeds and pulling everything up. And of course eating it. Mrs and I haven't seen a single strawberry because she just eats them straight off the plant

Re: Mid Summer Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2016 9:14 pm
by Monika
My parents always tried to grow their own vegetables, very valuable during and especially after the war in chaotic central Europe. Sometimes we only had a tiny patch, sometimes a small corner of a field, but as a child I was always encouraged to 'help' and certainly allowed to grow some things to my own liking. This desire has never left me and here I am, almost 80, grandmother of many and greatgrandmother of one and still doing it with much enthusiasm.
So, yes, do get the children involved and they will never forget (although there might be a little lull in their teenage years!).

Re: Mid Summer Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Sun Jul 17, 2016 7:45 am
by Primrose
I think it's great that young children are encouraged in the art of food growing. Sometimes they can be fussy eaters but often when they've grown it themselves they take such a pride in it that they can warm even to vegetables they apparently wouldn't normally like. Well done Pa and to your daughter for encouraging him.

Re: Mid Summer Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Sun Jul 17, 2016 6:42 pm
by peter
26° here today and forecast to be 29° tomorrow and Tuesday.
With Tuesday night staying around 20°.

Bit of a change from previous weeks. :wink:

Re: Mid Summer Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Sun Jul 17, 2016 7:06 pm
by Westi
At 10.50 this morning it was 27 degrees on lottie. Dog did the sensible thing & went under the plum tree, I slapped on more Factor 30 & tackled the weeds. It dropped to 23 degrees later when the clouds built up & we got a bit of breeze.

You'll be pleased to know all my squash & courgettes are thriving & I found another one self sown in my little tomato / aubergine/ cucumber/ chilli shelter. I thought it might be a cucumber but leaves too big. My guess is that's how far the thief that raided all my sowings got!

I'm going to have to make another asparagus bed for next year, after I weeded & could see what was there, it looks like I've lost, (or in the process of loosing) 5 plants. The current bed is only 12 years old & extremely pampered, so a bit disappointed, but I'll keep original bed for another year or so as well just so I can crop.

Westi