Upper Poppleton and back

Drove out to Upper Poppleton near York first thing, well, early ish, to the Wyevale garden center there. I had gone specifically for garlic, and indeed got two types, Germadour and Marco. Germadour is supposedly a mild garlic, but Marco says strong, which i sure hope will be the case. Had a good wander around, spent a while umming and aahing over growing my own beansprouts, and eventually came out with garlic, broadbeans, tulips and a bag of ericaceous compost to replant the blueberry bush in. The tulips are a surprise for Julie, ive planted them, cat shite permitting, in the front border. Unless julie reads this (possible i suppose) the first she will know is when they come up in spring. I really need to get some cat deterrent, like 'scent off' or a mk 4 landmine.

Decided against planting the garlic where the onions where, instead eight broad beans have gone in a well spaced row there. The garlic have gone in the 'new' plot, the germadour at one end, and the marco filling up the rest as far as the cabbages, avoiding of course the three or four carrots and one lettuce that managed to grow.

During all this, Freddy was climbing up his house wire and bouncing around, hoping i would bring him some leaves. Not today mate.

I replanted the blueberry, which im hoping despite appearances is still alive, in a big tub full of the compost, and topped with compost from the bin. Whilst digging it out the ground started to buzz, and like a wally i leant in to listen more, only to run off yelling again as a huge bumble bee flew out. I apologized to the bee for destroying her home, and for acting like a soft muppet.

I found out a large terracotta pot, filled it with soil, and placed it on the patio. Written on the side ive put 'Sams Magic Beans'. When Sam gets home later we will plant some beans in it for him to grow.

and then, moments after I finished putting the tulip bulbs in, it absolutely chucked it down. Perfect timing.

Pesks

Gave the plot a good hoe and thinned out the carrots. Spread some growmore about as well, despite the clouds of protesting whitefly. I also thinned out the established plants. Several broccoli that were never going to do well, and a couple of sprouts. I gave the largest of the sprout plants to the monsters to eat. Freddy instantly turned into a furry shredding machine, but Dylan had a little trouble, bless him he was trying to eat from the middle of a leaf and couldnt get his teeth in. Anyway by the time i'd taken the wheelbarrow back down the garden there was little left of it.

One very sad looking swede hidden below the others i pulled, and discovered to my horror Cabbage Root Fly, the one next to it showed signs of this as well. Turns out theres nothing i can do, just next year grow them under mesh to stop the flies getting on them. Just hope theres one for christmas.

I want to grow chili's. Ive been perusing a catalogue and have my eye on Tepin, noted as being the pepper equivalent of a 7.62mm through the temple. Wondering now how well they would do over winter grown in the house.

Hopefully going to get some good garlic sets tomorrow

Disapointment

got down the garden to plant the garlic, started seperating the cloves - they're all rotten. Mouldy. So, another trip up the road to get my money back. Now, to be fair, there was no problem with getting a refund, but it was an extra 8 miles or so i could have done without.

So, i will order my garlic from one of the seed suppliers, and in the meantime get some fertilizer hoed in.

GARLIC BREAD??!!...

well, not yet. Popped down the local garden center and bought some garlic sets. Not much detail on them, just the latin name Allium sativum. Think they could be left over stock but, hey-ho, we'll stick it in and give it a whirl. Its going where the onions have just come out, so not ideal anyway.

Im going to split the bulbs into individual cloves, hopefully will get an acceptable yield that way. I just love garlic, and ive heard that home grown is much stronger. These come with a warning that if grown up't north, they will be considerably stronger and should be used sparingly. Yes! Just what i want.

Freddies Day Out

The sun finally came out yesterday and dried the grass. Julie decided to mow the lawn, and so Dylan and Freddy got to go in the big run on the grass.

This was freddies first day out on the grass, and he spent lots of time running and hopping, and exploring everywhere. Even Dylan, who normally just goes in his box and munches the grass from inside, came out in the sun.

Sams grandad had a bag of veg leaves and pieces from his allotment for the monsters, so they had carrot stalks for tea.

Sun Trap

Have finally finished waterproofing the solar panel. The panels themselves are from a dealer on ebay, and of the amorphous silicon type. Not the most efficient, but low cost. Some plastic cable trunking and plywood were used for the frame, and mounted on a specially constructed wooden stand, at an optimum angle for maximum sunlight, of around 30-40degrees. The panels were then sealed with silicone electronics sealant, and the wood liberally coated with fastglass glass fibre resin.

The weather looks changable today, so ive decided to hold off on mounting it on the flat roof for now.

It should rate at about 15w. Its purpose is to provide power to run my weather satellite receiver, and possibly also the HF receiver. Its the first step towards energy self-sufficiency.

All This Frollicking Keeps Thee Fit...

...Get Up In The Morning Shovelling The....


COMPOST!

The two new bins have arrived. A big white unmarked van pulled up, and since the only other delivery im expecting is a stick of PC memory, i went out to unlock the gate. They came with a free watering can, 2l, just right for Sam.

So, 1 and a half hours later, all the compost has been moved into its respective bin.


So, this is how it all looked half way through. Now, on the whole it wasn't too pongy, and its surprisingly interesting being able to see how different types of plant decompose. A warning though - thick layers of grass cuttings, when cut into, absolutely stink, badly like nappies.

and heres the finished lineup. The green wheeliebin is the councils garden waste service. So, fresh plant material goes into the right hand bin, once partially rotted it is moved to the middle, this turns and aerates it. When almost complete with just woody remains, it is again moved into the left hand bin. By the time it comes out of that one it should be good compost. The more knowledgable allotmenteers amongst you will have noticed the contents of the bottle. Yes folks, its 'organic accelerant', collected during a swift call to the shed after a cut of coffee. That went into the first bin.

So, with that done, and the area around it cleared and made tidy once again, a quick check of the plot and pick off of any caterpillers and its time to come in and have a bath. Its almost time to start thinning out the carrot seedlings

Yes, the spring veg looks to be doing well. I need to get a plank though so i can work between the rows.

Freddy

Freddy the rabbit is getting big, hes a toddler rabbit now, allowed to eat green veg, and very bouncy and inquisitive. He's lovelly and soft, and i think he annoys Daniel a bit bouncing around, but they both snuggle together to snooze.

















Its very drizzly today. Freddy and Daniel are a bit bored. They can't go out on the grass today. Freddy has never been on the grass, he's waiting for his first time out.

A bit of Hoeing

This is how the plot was looking, before i decided the time was right for a bit of hard work.


and this is the result of a good bit of hoeing.

The trees are all pruned back now, and the garden tidy(ish) again, this picture was taken while doing the pruning

and these are the groovey mushrooms that were growing under the trees

Pics of Plants

The Selby Times photographer has just been. Nice old chap, like myself laments the death of film, but forced to embrace digital technology, and knew his brassicas!

Not quite sure what a photo of me hoeing is going to acheive, probably scare everyone off.

The reporter should get in touch later. Until then, ive weeding to do, and a drawer to fix.

What is going on with Cabbage Whites? have they lost all sense of season? I clear the caterpillers away only to see more butterflies buzzing the veg. An dont get me started on Crane flies...

Campaign Email Ready

The email address for the hambleton Allotments Campaign is now live. This is to allow me to collect details of Hambleton village residents who wish to have a plot if an allotment can be provided.

hambletonplots@btinternet.com

Please use this ONLY if you live in the village of hambleton, nr Selby, and wish to have a plot, support the campaign, or if you are a Hambleton land owner who is willing to sell or lease a suitable site.

Seedlings

The rash of little plants appearing in the carrott rows now looks to be carrott seedlings, rather than weeds. The spring cabbage plants are beginning to get quite sturdy, with only a few looking to have been nibbled.

Quite a few of the shoots in the spring onion rows are now looking to be onions rather than grass. They grew bent over like hairpins until the tips broke the soil and they straightened out, each with a little black seed case on the end. I can now begin weeding without any risk of pulling my plants out.

Fair words butter no parsnips

as my old mate used to say. Pulled the last parsnips today, and managed to find a whole three that were usable! So dinner today had potatoes (those i pulled earlier), parsnips (in honey) and cabbage (cut this afternoon) all that we had grown ourselves.

Im still clearing up from pruning the apple and pear trees. Most of the fruit has gone now, mostly to people at work. The spring cabbage seedlings are doing fine. Im not sure yet if the rash of little plants that have appeared in the next rows are the carrotts or not. A few more days should tell. Same with the spring onions, theres some new shoots but they could be anything.

Spent most of the day eating ice lollies. Sam enjoyed several sun-lollies. Just waiting for the new compost bins to arrive, Julie keeps moving all my green waste about out of the organised piles i had it in. Not sure if i should stick the mushrooms in there as well. There not an edible variety. Even if they were, my funghi knowledge is reasonable but not expert, so i wouldnt eat them anyway. I do like mushrooms though.

Big 'ol Moon, Tiny Plants

Too late home from work last night to do much in the garden, it was after dusk. Last night was a partial eclipse of the moon, and the moon is at perigee meaning its closest to us, so quite a stunning sight. Its easy to beleive why our ancient ancestors were so supersticious of such celestial events. Looking through binoculars, the view was often interrupted by the local bats flying through the field of view. Quite gothic.

Went out to take a look at the veg this morning, aquiring dew soaked feet in the early morning grass, surrounded by low fog. The spring cabbage is doing exceptionally well, two lovelly rows of strong little seedlings, all neatly spaced. Little in the way of weeds either, a result of prudent hoeing between the rows. No sign of the carrotts yet, but im sure they are on the way.

The spring onion rows are a different story. No sign of any seedlings yet, but the weeds are regrouping for another assault. I couldnt clear them properly to start with, so will just have to keep a watch over them.

Freddy is getting bigger and loopier, he climbs up the hutch wire whenever i go past to see if i have anything to feed him.

Neatly Trimmed Bush

Bear with me if my spellings a bit off on this one. Ive finally got around to sampling one ofthose bottles of wine our neighbour gave us!

Sam's not very well today, been off school so in between sreaming with a headache and being a monster, hes helped me in the garden. The priority today has been to prune the fruit trees. The plum and cooking apple trees have probably never been pruned, so its taken a lot of work. They are almost bare now, but the light can get in and as long as no disease takes hold next years crop should be smaller in yield but better fruit. In pruning the trees most fruit fell, and despite the collected yield being only about 1/3 of the total (i have been very picky, all but the slightest damage) it still comes to about 10lb of plums and around 30lb of cooking apples.

Its left me with a lot of leaves and branches to compost, more than i can handle, so ive just ordered two more compost bins at Yorkshire Waters discount rate of £6. The current bin got some organic 'accelerant' (ie ive pee'd in it). Cutting all the branches up was hard work and ive got a blistered hand now but i'd rather the nutrients were recycled.

I still cant get rid of the bloody caterpillers. I keep picking them off, but its another infestation, so everything got a spray of Derris this evening. At least Sam is now happy to pick them off for me, not ovveryly squeemish about it, although he doesnt like them moving about. We throw them in the incinerator. I dont think teaching him to crush them is right just yet.

The spring cabbage i sowed last week seems to be sprouting already! fanstastic! That got a blast of derris as well. Julie cut the grass, as there has been an outbreak of mushrooms, at least three types, that i didnt want sam to get hold of.

Boys day tomorrow, me and Sam might go to seaside for the day. In evening i plan to make an apple pie with some of the apples from the tree. We went to Julies grandma's yesterday, and stopped off at the local pet place so i could price up stuff for chicken keeping. I wasnt too struck on their chickens though, they were quite dirty around the back end. I hope to build the chicken house in the next month (as well as get ready for my OU exams) then get the chickens.

If i get time tomorrow, the roses are getting a blast of Dithane against the black spot they've got, and of course i need to finish disposing of all the apple tree branches.