Mal's Allotment

Bicentenary (or Third Birthday)

2012-02-13T11:31:00.000Z

This is my 200th post and the third anniversary of starting this blog. Here's some of the most visited topics.
My 100th post was in the height of summer when I was spoilt produce at the plot. It still gets lots of hits, mostly by people googling "Red Kidney Beans"

Red Kidney Beans

Another big hit is "Brick Raised Beds"

Brick Raised Bed

"Edinburgh Snow" has lots of visitors too.

Edinburgh Snow

Now I've set up a separtate blog Edinburgh Album for non gardening pictures. I've also made a blog just for bread too ryesmile as my interest in breadmaking threatened to take over my allotment site!

One of the earliest and most popular topics was Forcing Rhubarb:

Forcing Rhubarb

Another big "pull" is carrots!

Carrots

Although there is the danger of blogging instead of gardening, keeping a blog really does wonders for productivity. By having a "conversation" with others you not only learn some really relevant tips but also are putting yourself on your metal. Of course I am a boaster, forever hiding that messy corner out of camera shot. Wide angle and macro shots are both forgiving in their own ways. But I'm also honest enough to learn from my mistakes. I've enjoyed the journey and really appreciate the help and the company along the way. So thank you for joining me on this vegetable odessey.

A is for artichoke

2012-02-12T14:11:00.002Z

Like starting over

I'm fed up waiting for spring so I've decided to start the clock with some Jerusalem artechokes. These will happily be sown in January or February. I thought they were indestructable but last year I had a crop failure for the first time, so I'm not so blasé now . I forked out 70p for these. Half a dozen should be more than enough (Iggy).

French Artechokes

Ideally they should have been organic UK grown artechokes but rather than delay another day I went to the greengrocers that's open on a Sunday and just got on with it. Whatever does grow will be gourmet quality. 6 inches deep and 18 inches apart I pampered these with a liberal dose of compost mixed into the planting hole.

artechoke planting

I feel better now my gardening year has started!

Brick Beds - Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme

2012-02-06T20:15:00.000Z

Clockwise from the left: Strawberry (Marshmello), Herb bed, fleece protected pelargoniums, parsley plus sorrel stalks (which will grow back) and tarragon which sadly will not.

At this time of year you can understand why these herbs are the ones that are on sale at Scarborough Fair

Parsley

Sage

Rosemary 1 yr old cuttings

Thyme

A quick trot by

2012-02-05T13:45:00.000Z

Foxtrot

Got around to doing some real gardening today. Digging compost into what will be the carrot patch this year. Home made compost, not manure as that would be too rich.

Carrot preparation

I had to clear away the Brussel sprouts to do this, so we've got lots to eat this week. Otherwise all that's left are leeks...

Leeks

...and the very aptly named "Hungry Gap" kale.

Hungry Gap Kale

This year we ate all our potatoes, carrots onions before Christmas arrived. Now we've picked our last brussels and turnip. I've set myself a target of lasting longer next year by growing and storing lots more carrots and potatoes.

All tooled up

2012-01-29T18:30:00.001Z

I've taken up fencing. No not Épée, Sabre or Foil - fencing fencing. Boy you need a lot of gear:

The Kit

Today was my first work visit to the plot this year. Having recently acquired a sledge hammer of my own and a set of ring pincers (that's the green and black pincers) I was confident I had taken everything I needed. Here's the results of my handiwork. Not that fantastic but I'm proud of it, and it should stay in good nick for a year or two. Previous efforts have lacked the requisite rigidity and have proved short term. I'm hoping that, with the right equipment and technique, the new fence will last. This is for the brassica patch which will be topped out with a plastic net once the plants are planted out.

One surprise: this coriander plant is sitting pretty at the end of January! I guess we expect anything in a curry to require a tropical climate. Not so!

A bit of a shock

2012-01-15T10:20:00.000Z

Ice on the canal

Daft Dafs

Some plants have been lulled into a false sense of spring. They got a surprise last night -5 C!

Crocus

Wind update

2012-01-08T18:29:00.000Z

I am happy (tinged with sympathy for those less fortunate) to report that all was well with our shed! I took the opportunity to harvest some supplies.

There were trees down all over town. The record 102 mph wind was measured at the top of Blackford Hill which is almost exactly half way between home and the plot.

Weather Report - Rough Winds

2012-01-05T22:59:00.000Z

Here's the report circulating following the winds on Tuesday when Edinburgh winds gusted to 102 mph.

Extensive damage to allotments. Some Very severe. no one unaffected . victims worst affected Mary (roof blown off). Ditto P . David H original hut severe damage .Maggie L's hut totally demolished part of which is on G's plot some is in the burn. Maggie S's Severe damage to greenhouse Too much to mention.

Don't know if I dare to go and look this weekend!

Bread Nut

2012-01-02T11:53:00.000Z

This Christmas the vegetable plot lost out to the kitchen!

Here's my Christmas haul

(The black object is a double baguette baking tray.)

Now I know how to convert this:

into this:

1st day of the year - 1st recipe

The obsession continues...

Further episodes at: http://ryesmile.blogspot.com/

Has Bean Year?

2011-12-19T13:58:00.002Z

It was an atrocious year for drying beans* in Edinburgh this year. It just wasn't warm enough and it was too wet. The slugs had a field day. Then the autumn winds flattened any dwarf beans that weren't staked. (The ony thing they avoided was being struck by lightening)

So when it dawned on me (in October) that, despite the lack of a bumper bean crop, summer was definitely over. I gathered whatever I could and put them on racks in the shed to dry. Then I rather forgot about them... until today when I needed a few beans for soup (ribollita). I didn't have that much hope of finding anything useable within.

Bean pods

Despite having been jumbled together the different colours reveal the state of play: The Canadian Wonder (red) and the Malagrowther reversion (mottled white) did at least produce something. The four Borlotti beans have been thrown in with the Malagrowthers. I am concluding that Italian seeds need an Italian climate.

Shelled beans

....except that the Cavolo Nero does very well in Scotland too!

Last of the Cavolo Nero

*The runners beas did well.

SAD? Bring on the colour

2011-11-30T21:35:00.000Z

It's been pretty horrible outside in recent days and with the shorter days there's not much to do outside. I'm not very good about Christmas shopping, or lists, so I dusted off last year's plot spreadsheet and updated it for next year:

Then I finally got around to listing the seeds left over from this year... and realised I could colour code them too! Anything less than 1.00 is an open packet. The dates are the "sow before" dates

Wow, when it comes down to it, it doesn't look like I need to buy any seeds after all! Top up on carrots, leeks and lettuce I reckon. Maybe I can still justify introducing a bit of variety with new varieties that mature at different times. The brassicas never fail before the best before date, but other open packets might not be as reliable. I don't think I will be growing any more chilli, tomatoes or cucumbers after this year's failures. By the way, does anyone know which group the radishes should go in?

First parsnip

2011-11-27T22:56:00.000Z

I dug up my first parsnip today. They are a bit thin on the ground this year so I was worried how big they would be. This roasted up nicely and fed four. (Despite having a larger core than I would have wanted.)

Focus on salads

2011-11-19T23:14:00.000Z

It's late November and the temperatures are "high for the time of year". Good news for the late sowings where my new potatoes had been. Lettuce 'Cocarde'

Watercress:

Lamb's lettuce:

Spinach beat

Chervil:

And the real surprise has been a couple of thriving coriander plants!

Worming the Compost and Planning for Next Year's Rotation.

2011-11-15T19:20:00.001Z

It's time to seed the allotment dalek compost bin with worms from my home compost heap.

Here's what they look like close up:

Although I have removed any horseradish or mares' tail along the way there are a lot of grass roots and such like in the allotment compost heap. I'm hopinge the little slithery tikes will help break them down over the winter.

Meantime here's the state of play from a rotational point of view. I now operate a five year rotation of Potatoes/Beans/Brassicas/Alliums/Other Roots.

Next year's bean patch - currently leeks for the winter:

Next year's Alliums patch

And in between them next years Brassica patch. (Currently lettuce rocket radishes watercress and lambs lettuce - and in need of a weed)

Next year's potato patch. There are still parsnips and spinach beet growing here alongside the perenial globe artechoke. beyond that all the carrots have gone.

Last of all, this year's brassica patch is to be next year's Other Roots (other than potatoes)

I will be treating each of these areas differently over the winter in readiness for their new role next year.

Pull the other one

2011-11-10T21:50:00.005Z

Today I dug up my first home grown celeriac. It had a lot of roots.

Celeriac roots

I also pulled a neep (swede/rutabaga) grown in the very next row.

Swede vs celeriac

The neep was sown direct outdoors, as a bit of an afterthought, the celeriac got a head start by about two months, started off indoors in my new propogator. It was watered copiously whenever it was dry.

The neep was pecked by pigeons until, when I noticed, I strung a looped string between two canes to distract them. It was touch and go whether to just pull them up at that point.

After trimming off the peripheral root there wasn't much left of the celeriac:

Size matters

When it boils down to it my novelty celeriac was a waste of time, whereas the traditional neep grew away like topsy. Half of me thinks that I'll never try to grow celeiac again. (The other half thinks I'm going to crack this nut next year - there must be some trick I am missing)

To make matters worse I happened to see Masterchef tonight and virtually EVERY dish had celeriac in it.

p.s. Hope you like the new look and the bigger pictures. Also please note that I've set up a link to my new blog Edinburgh Album which I will use for my photo excursions around town, and around the country, from now on. The Allotment blog will continue, and if things go well I might even start one just for bread.

p.s. I have started one for bread called 'Rye Smile' and you can link to it through Links above!

Escape to the Pentlands

2011-11-08T09:25:00.001Z

Lending their name to numerous potato varieties* the Pentland Hills on Edinburgh's doorstep offer the chance to escape the hustle and bustle of city life. Last Sunday we climbed Capelaw.

Bonaly Resevoir with Edinburgh and the Firth of Forth

Setting off

The Pentland Range

Allermuir Hill and Fala Knowe

Midlothian - Roslin's down there behind the low cloud

Winter sun

Heading back to Edinburgh

*This is the flimsiest excuse for putting these pictures on my allotment blog, but as a matter of fact the Scottish Plant Breeding Station was based at the foot of the Pentlands, near Roslin (behind those clouds) from 1921 to 1981 when they produced various innovative "Pentland" varieties of potatoes, many of which are popular varieties today.

Autumn Round Up

2011-11-01T11:32:00.001Z

Autumn - Craiglockhart Hill

We've not had any snow but the season has definitely turned, and it's time to get out and about. We used our extra hour on Sunday to climb the highest peak in the Pentland Hills:

View toward Edinburgh from Scald Law

Back at home there's graft required at the plot:

Overview

These leeks will be good eating next spring. (The leaf is sorrel)

Leeks

First season for artechokes and these appeared:

Artechokes

The brassica patch is in full production:

Brassica patch

Another autumn activity, jam and chutney making. Harbinger did manage some ripe fruit but there were plenty of green fruit.

Before

After

2011 The year of the...

2011-10-24T21:56:00.002+01:00

2011 - The year of the….

I’ve been pondering what I will remember this year for.

Carrot. A contender for best performer this certainly qualifies for ”most improved”. Previously I had abandoned carrots because of the root fly, but armed with fine nets last year saw some fly free results. The only problem was remembering to lift the nets frequently enough to catch the weeds before they smothered the carrots (assuming they had germinated in the first place). Emboldened by the absence of tunnelling bugs I bought 8 varieties of carrot seed and 2011 saw the best crop yet as a result of blanket sowing under three nets. Proof that if you keep on going (and weeding and sowing) some good will come of it.

Blueberry. I was proud when my three autumn (2010) sown blueberry “twigs” survived the harsh winter and had high hopes of a bumper crop spread across the season. They could not have been more pampered. I buried a plastic liner and filled it with ericaceous compost, topped out the patch with an improvised metal cage with fleece for warmth and netting to keep the birds off. Whenever it was dry (there was a dry week or two in May in Edinburgh) I watered. End result 6 berries. There is some encouraging leaf and branch development so maybe next year they will come into their own(?).

Strawberry. I planted out four new varieties at the plot. A dozen each of Cambridge Favourite, Florence, Judibell and a late entrant was “ever bearer” Albion. As with carrots and blueberries the target was blanket coverage from as early to as late in the season as possible. Things started well as our established “Honeoye” got into early production but the Cambridge favourite never seemed to quite ripen, the Florence were big but few. As the rains kept coming the slugs moved in and polished of the fruit there was before we could pick it.

Beans. In fact 2011 has been a bad year for beans. Just too short a season and too wet. The runner berans cropped for maybe a month, the French and Italian beans never really got going. There's hardly anything for drying this year!

Celeriac - should have been a surefire winner. Grown from seed early in the season the weather was good for them (wet). I haven't picked them yet because they are too small to bother with. An experiment I don't think I will repeat.

On reflection, considering the weather conditions and the havoc wreaked on the salads, strawberries, beans and other crops, I think I will remember 2011 as the year of the SLUG!

Don't Be An Old Sourdough

2011-10-08T23:13:00.001+01:00

I have to record how proud I am of my latest experiment. I've been baking a loaf most days for the last month or two, but this one is different - it doesn't have any shop bought yeast in it! It's a sourdough made with "wild" yeast which gives it a generous acidic flavour.

Sourdough loaf

Here's how it started out:

Loaf rising in cheap "banneton"

And for good measure here's a rye flour cousin:

Rye Loaf

In the past I have been a purist about adding commercial yeast to sourdough, but nowadays I have become more pragmatic. If the results are good (light, crusty, tasty) then commercial yeast is a perfeclty legitimate ingredient in my book. All the same it is nice to prove you can make a decent loaf without it! Also the flavour is addictive and you will find yourself adding some sourdough starter to all the bread you make to give it that lift that you don't get with supermarket bread. Once bitten...

End of Seasoning - Herbs

2011-10-01T14:14:00.001+01:00

Do you remember the new herb bed? Back in June it looked like this:

http://malsallotment.blogspot.com/2011/06/parsley-sage-rosemary-and-thyme-and.html

but now each plant has run its course for the first season. Some have flourished and disappeared (Fenugreek, Chervil and Summer Savory) Others have established themselves (Rosemary Sage and Thyme) but the cuckoo in the nest has been the Sorrel! I've sown some more at the plot and I am going to dig this patch up. Anyone know any good sorrel recipes?

All in all I am delighted with the new "parterre". As you can see from the picture below the loose leaf lettuces are turning into pagodas while the wild rocket is going wild. In the background my outdoor tomato experiment has returned a negative response. Not one fruit. Not to be repeated.

On the plants with some protection (my plastic greenhouse) fruits have appeared. The Sungold cherry tomatoes have been enjoying the indian summer. The second variety (Harbinger) has even put on a late spurt to produce one ripe fruit!

..but there's plenty more for the green tomato chutney!

Red Potatoes?

2011-09-16T21:03:00.003+01:00

A novelty this year has been Highland Burgundy potatoes. Considering the disappointing yields on new potatoes this year perhaps the biggest surprise was that they came through well, along with the other main crop spuds. Flash photography makes them look rather ordinarily red skinned. After experimentation this picture is the nearest I could get to their daylight appearance:

Highland Burgundy

The skins are rather rough with crazy paving patches and corky spots. These must be related to Shetland Black. But inside is a novelty. Inside the characteristic halo the body of the tubor is red.

Red to the core

And it stays that colour after cooking. (The texture turns from firm to mushy in a trice) Flavour wise it is good , yes, just good. Well you can't expect too much from a spectacular looking spud can you? (And storage may possibly improve them.)

Red mash

But, do you know, I reckon this potato is the one for my Borscht!

And here's an update on the tomatoes:

Links to Shetland Black posts:

:http://malsallotment.blogspot.com/2009/08/proof-of-potato.html

http://malsallotment.blogspot.com/2009/08/black-and-blue.html

Little by little

2011-09-10T22:46:00.000+01:00

Waiting for the storm...progress report on the tomatoes

...until September

2011-09-02T14:48:00.000+01:00

Well it pretty much has rained until now. Comparing my pictures from last year the crops are behind by about two weeks. That's bad news for the 'exotics' (peppers, tomatoes, blueberries). Thank goodness I decided not to give any space over to sweetcorn! Here in Scotland without a proper greenhouse you deserve a medal for growing tomatoes, cucumbers, aubergines, okra etc. My cucumbers have bombed completely. The tomatoes are good for quantity but now I'm biting my nails waiting for them to turn.

One down, twenty to go!

I've been waitin...

Blueberries or Greenberries?

On the plus side the runner beans are going like the clappers, courgettes too, and they haven't yet succumbed to mildew. The raspberries just keep on coming. Leaf and root beetsa re doing well and brassicas are looking good for the autumn. I've done some successional sowing where the potatoes were but now I've had to accept that it's too late to sow anything in the remaining space where the peas were. So it's goodbye 2011. 2012 starts here with the first manure being dug in.

Getting down to it

Maybe the weeds will stop growing soon too.

Amazing Technicolour Dreamcarrot

2011-08-27T20:58:00.003+01:00

Back in February I blogged about coloured carrots

http://malsallotment.blogspot.com/2011/02/oops-i-did-it-again.html#comments

So, aside from two nets of 'normal' carrots, I sowed a third net of four labelled coloured varieties.
Well today the net came off and I dug up a sample of each and subjected them to a blind taste test.

From left to right:

Rainbow: Yellow white and pink - top marks for taste - little or no splitting
Healthmaster: Healthy name but could do with a spoonful of sugar. Low yield, splitting.
Sugarsnax: Good yield. Despite name not as sweet as Rainbow or Purple Haze
Purple Haze: Looks good, tastes good, some splitting.

Bread Sourdough Experiments

2011-08-24T11:37:00.000+01:00

I have recently rekindled my enthusiasm for rustic breads, after getting a bit bored with the predictabilityof the bread machine. This currently represents my proudest achievement:

*Sourdough success

The impetus for this has been the purchase of a baking stone (a ceramic tile heated up in the oven onto which the risen dough is deposited). Strangely a breadmaker mixed dough removed from the machine and then baked on a stone for baking tastes completely different to the standard machine loaf. If, in addition, you save a small amount of your dough from one day to the next you can reduce the dried yeast to a minimum and the taste and texture is transormed to another level.

But on the way adjustments (and some experimentation) are required.

Firstly rising times may need to be varied. A slow rise can be adventagous as you can leave the dough to its own divices until you have time to fit it into your daily schedule. Secondly you have to rise your dough on something else while the baking stone heats up and then transfer the fragile risen loaf onto the stone. Sounds simple but this is the area I have needed to experiment most with. Due to my tendency to raise the loaf above the oven (while the stone is heating) the dough can get a bit too warm and spongey and so hard to move, without losing those precious bubbles that make the bread light and airy. The third area of experimentation is, or should be, the fun bit - slashing the loaf to allow for controlled bursting of the crust. In fact there is an art to this as the picture below shows. This is the same dough divided and treated in two different ways. The one on the left was round but got a bit squashed as it was slid onto the stone. Because it was baked with the same side up as during the raising the skin on the dough persisted and was dissapointing. The second bageutte shaped loaf stuck to the baking sheet it was being raised on and had to be reshaped and given an extra rise on a now heavily floured backing sheet. Then it was rolled off the sheet onto the stone so that the soft underside was exposed and given a quick multiple slashing with the scalpel I reserve for this purpose. The results have convinced me of the need to (gently) turn risen dough over rather than slide it from the baking sheet to the stone.

Mixed results

Below is a risen dough, resting on greaseproof paper on a baking sheet. There's a generous amount of rice flour sprinkled around it to stop it sticking! By sliding your hand under the paper the risen dough can be rolled off onto the stone with minimal deflation.

Raised dough at the ready

Here's an underside view of a baked loaf that demonstrates what happens when you try to slide an overproved round loaf which is partially stuck to the baking tray onto the stone. It's a bit like a crash. On the positive side this does however demonstrate what a beautiful bottom crust the stone gives you!!

Bottom examination

Hope you enjoyed my little excursion into the home breadmaking domain!

Crusty

*Strictly speaking I should call it a "sourdough hybrid"

Runner Bean, Pole Bean or Climbing French Bean?

2011-08-19T13:30:00.001+01:00

Great news: the runner beans have started cropping. We've had them at the table for four days in a row now - without any grumbles. It's only one out of five wigwams producing at the moment: Painted Lady (more of which below). Of the other four two are Barlotti Beans for drying and the other two are my "Malagrowther" beans: climbers that appeared in the middle of my dwarf French beans Canadian Wonder. I guess they are a cross or a reversion and my research suggests the closest match is "Windsor". These climb, have purple pods and mottled creamy coloured seeds. They also have lovely flowers:

Malagrowther?

An old favourite with beautiful red flowers is Scarlet Emporer.

Scarlet Emporer

But first to crop is the two tone Painted Lady

Painted Lady

Someone (Hi Tany) asked if these were a novelty. In fact they are reckoned to be amongst the first batch of runner beans imported from Central America in or around 1633. In England they acquired an alternative name "York and Lancaster" representing colours of the two sides of the War of the Roses.

Flowers and Pods

There is the perennial confusion in my mind as to the distinction between runner beans and pole beans and climbing French beans. I take the last two terms to be interchangeable. I read that runners, unlike other climbers, always wind themselves clockwise around a pole so I'm off to check if this is true of all the varieties I'm growing.
Another curiosity - can anyone confirm that runner beans are not popular in the US? That would be a shame if it were true!

Grand Allotment Tour

2011-08-16T17:15:00.002+01:00

Recent reflection has reminded me why I started a blog. To keep a record! I've discovered that I have got rather too precious about revealing the true state of play at the allotment. So I'm going back to my roots. Welcome to the warts and all tour of my plot today:

The internal path divides the plot into a broad side and a narrow side. The path has been lost under piles of weeds that have never dried out with all the rain we've had this summer, so I'm excavating it:

Internal Path

Starting at the shed end of the wide side (on the right in the picture above) the raspberries are just finishing and the strawberries have definitely finished but require their winter tidy up now.

Next along, the broad beans and onions have gone and I'm using the space for leeks, recently planted out. Spot the remains of a row of beetroot - (lack of planning!)

Leeks + Beetroot

Moving along the three wigwams are runner beans barlotti beans and purple French climbing beans. Sadly the last one ended up as a mixture of leftovers - not a good idea. By the way I have two wigwams at home too (neither of which is a mixture).

3 sisters planting?

Next in line, the potato patch looks a bit shambolic now that the earlies have been dug up and the maincrop haulms are dying back, but I've resown the area dug up with all sorts of autumn and winter possibilities like lettuces, corn salad, radishes, sorrel, spinach beet. It was going to be green manure but I figured on growing an edible green manure instead! Also the remaining potatoes under the ground should be good judging from the healthy tops they grew. This was in sharp conntrast to the earlies which hardly managed any tops to speak of this year!

Potato maincrop + new sowings

Just over the wire is a riot of dwarf French beans. As usual the pods have come on strong but are rather hidden away under the leaves. Not to worry as most of these are Canadian Wonder which dries nicely to give a substantial mealy red kidney bean.

Dwarf French Beans

Next up is the area I reached up to when digging in manure last winter when it had leeks growing in it. It is currently my fire/compost/utility area...

Ugggh

Beyond that there are the remains of my bumper pea crop!

Peas plants

And at the end of the broad side there are the trusty rhubarb plants that have loved the weather, and my Cambridge Favourite strawberries.

Rhubarb + New Strawberries

On the other (narrow) side of the path there are two areas: Carrots, under the nets, and other roots (celeriac, beetroot, parsnip, turnip and artechoke)

Carrots and "other roots"

and last but not least: brassicas under their protective net (together with even more strawberries and some othe soft fruit bushes)

Brassicas

Hope you enjoyed the tour.

There is work to be done, but this year's food returns have been secured. It remains to be seen whether in the Committee's view this to come up to the acceptable standard.

Reflections on a Life of Grime

2011-08-13T19:18:00.000+01:00

I came across my first allotment diary while having a sort out. It's not exceptional. Most days are blank but some have scribblings about digging in manure, sowing seeds and chitting potatoes. Clearly there are high expectation... up until May when all of a sudden the record stops. With variations on detail, extent and timing this is how every vegetable diary I have goes in the last twenty years.

First Records

So I'm wondering why I bother. I don't have time to be a diarist and I guess this blog is a replacement for my failing attempts to keep a record on paper. Have I referred back to my notes within the same season or in the next season? For the most part, to be honest, no! Each year is a victory of expectation over real life. Conditions vary so much from year to year favouring one crop or another, or early or late sowings of the same cropp.

Take peas. Last year I grew peas Oregon Sugar Pod and petit pois Waverex. OSP was a success and the petit pois were a dismal failure. Undeterred this year - and really just because I had seed left over- I sowed some more this year. The Waverex did stunningly well.

Pea Pods

Peas Galore

Here's something I won't forget: the dismal results from my experiment with growing cucumber out of doors. Last year I got three fruit from one of these grown in a plastic greenhouse. This year in the greenhouse and outdoors - nul points!

Cucumber?

So to return to the point. You never know, one winters evening, when there's nothing on TV or the internet, I might actually review my diaries and see if there is any useful information to be extracted from them. Normally they are just a short term reminder of what I have done when or a way externalising thoughts and setting reminders for myself. Will they be anything more? I'll let you know.

A bean in the hand...

2011-08-05T14:56:00.000+01:00

Today I picked my first runner beans.

The bees are working away to ensure more will follow.

Back at home the Sungold tomatoes are looking good so far. I've never seen such a long trusses.

Other good news, under those nets there are carrots. Germination has been unreliable but the first sowings that survived are now big enough to dig up... and there will be more to follow.

A bone to pick

2011-07-30T11:48:00.000+01:00

Leeks are one crop I have grown every year (for 20 years). That's an indication of how easy they are to grow not of any skill on my part. You just sow them in spring in a pot at home and then plonk them into their holes in the vegetable patch around this time of year. In return for this, and a bit of weeding, you get winter veg that carries on throughout spring. Unlike other alliums they are not too fussy, not subject to major diseases or susceptible to pests. Some years they do better than others but this year I thought I would be a bit kinder to them and apply a dressing of "fish blood and bonemeal" fertiliser when planting them out. Sadly the resident fox family had other ideas and spent the night digging up the leeks I had planted during the day! Of course they don't like leeks, just the fertiliser. After repairs I'm sure I'll still get a reasonable crop.

I don't normally comment on the BBC Gardeners World programme, but I have to say that Monty Don infuriated me last night. First he showed how to grow leeks, the same way as I do (althought mysteriously straight after cutting back transplanted irises he failed to top and tail his leek seedlings in a similar manner (so they didn't sit well in their holes)) he then went on to plant out groups of leeks grown in root trainers without thinning them out at all. This sure looks like a case of a new product being used for unsuitable purposes just because it is new. I wonder if he will show the viewer how the two methods compare next spring! My prediction, the clumps of leeks will be poor compared to the individually planted plants.

Also have to mention that my new weed "Great Mullein" featured large in several of the London Gardens Carol Klein visited. What a coincidence!

http://malsallotment.blogspot.com/2009/06/leeks.html

Sorrel - unapologetically

2011-07-26T21:04:00.000+01:00

There's one herb in particular that has been thriving in my new herb bed - Sorrel (French or Garden)

It's like a large dock leaf but has a fantastic sharp lemon flavour.

Also thriving is its little sister Buckler Sorrel

"Buckler" comes from the shield shape of the leaves which are a fraction of the size of French /Garden Sorrel. This is the sorrel to add raw to salads whereas the larger variety is best cooked as a soup or sauce. If like me you like a bit of acidity to offset fatty meat, gravy, or bland foods like potato then sorrel is for you. Sorrel is packed with vitamin C, but most books do carry a warning that you can overdose on oxalic acid which can lead to kidney stones - so don't go too overboard about it.

If I had to choose I'd have to admit to having a soft spot for the less extreme Buckler Sorrel. It's beautiful and tasty!

Peas and Beans, Cabbage and Greens...

2011-07-24T23:28:00.000+01:00

Dry spring, wet summer, bad news for some crops but seems to suit others.

Peas...

and in particular broad beans

and the brassicas are looking happy.

...aside from the slugs and snails who are having a field day.

Won't be long before the runners and french beans are on stream.

Borage

2011-07-15T11:16:00.001+01:00

Borage flowers are so photogenic. Their five pointed petals are much loved in heraldic design, and they are also said to signify courage.

Borage Flower

The only problem is that the plants are a bit straggley and unkempt. They also self seed aggressively. The flowers tend to point down to the ground and there are precious few recipes that call for borage. (Pimms No 1 is reputed to include borage in it's secret botanic blend). I have read of them being used as a supplement to ravioli filling, but the mature leaf is a fearsome tough thing so either young leaves or finely chopped ones would be required.

Borage plant

Archeitecturally it is a treat. Here are the hairy flower heads before the flowers emerge.

Flower head clusters

The other wonderfull thing about borage plants is that they are bee magnets. I always leave a couple of them to flower each year.

On the subject of weeds with few uses, here's an update on the spike from the Great Mullein plant:

Mullein - still reaching for the sky

And here is a mystery solved. I allowed some nastutiums to grow alongside the brassicas in my nusery bed. The other day it looked as if the dreaded cabbage white had devasatated them overnight! On inspection there weren't any caterpillars in in sight.

Nasturtium carnage!

Then I remembered that in addition to torrential rain we had also had a hailstorm the other day. I even took photos to prove we had hail in mid July:

The culprits - hailstones

Here's another borage snap - for courage.

Thirteen + 2

2011-07-08T13:51:00.002+01:00

The challenge. "Enough strawberries to feed 13 adults at one sitting"

Of course strawberries ripen in stages and we have already been eating starwberries for a couple of weeks, so there is a careful line to tread between overpicking and underpicking.

Come the big day I went to the allotments at 8:30, the first visitor of the day. On approaching the plot two squirrels, each with a large strawberry in mouth, scampered off. The vermin had clearly found a point of entry. I was more than a little concerned - but here's the haul :

The plastic punnets contain my new varieties Cambridge Favourite and Florence the remainder are the "old" Honeoye.

Back home:

There was plenty, and some over for the Pimms

Perishing Parsnips?

2011-06-26T21:44:00.001+01:00

Parsnip seed is notorious. You have to use new seed every year because it doesn't keep. Each seed packet has more seed than you could ever use (400-800). After offering around you find, most likely, that everyone else has the same problem.

Rather than just throw out the last 3 years' seed I thought I would test them out for viability to see if the received wisdom was really true.

Here's my test beds:

From left to right

2009 - home saved Tender and True
2010 - Hollow Crown
2011 - The Student

50 seeds in each tray on top of moist potting compost sprayed with water every couple of days.

Two weeks later the score:

2009 - 10 germinated seeds

2010 - 28

2011 - 49

That's 98% for this year's seed! So, contrary to popular opinion, parsnip is a very good germinator. Also seed viability would appear to be better than we are led to believe being above 50% a year after the seal on the packet was broken.

In future I wont be throwing out my parsnip seeds each year. If I use them a year later I will sow 6 seeds at each station rather than three.

Just two activities at the plot this week: picking strawberries and weeding. Guess which one I enjoy more?

Parsley Sage Rosemary and Thyme... and Sorrel and Savory...

2011-06-19T23:07:00.002+01:00

Weeding has been the top priority this wet weekend. I've clawed back the jungle under the carrot nets to rediscover the remnants of the carrot rows. I think the slugs have been having a field day. Also strawberry production has started in earnest. Honeoye going like the clappers, Cambridge Favourite looking extremely big, and on the verge of ripening. I do hope these turn out to be as tasty as promised. Judibell and Florence are late varities so I have these to look forward to trying for the first time - and then there's everbearing Albion to follow. It's my "year of the strawberry". If all goes well it will just be the first of many.

Back at home I'm really please with how the herb bed has come on.

Didn't he do well?

The plan is:

                          C                        C

ROCKET                        SAGE                  ROSEMARY

                          H                        H

P         A             R          S          L          E           Y

                          I                          I

CORIANDER                SAVORY                 THYME

                          V                        V

P          A             R           S          L        E       Y

                          E                         E

FENUGREEK              CHERVIL               SORREL

                          S                         S

Probably the rocket, coriander, fenugreek and parsley belong in the vegetable patch instead of this warm dry bed. I'll replace them with oregano, buckler sorrel and tarragon, which I have elsewhere, before the season is out.

Surprise Surprise!

2011-06-16T22:07:00.001+01:00

From my last posting you might think I was a stickler for weeding, but I do have a a very liberal attitude towards some "weeds". A rosette of furry leaves appeared alongside the strawberry patch. I didn't know what it was or what it would turn into, but I left it to its own devices. Neighbours enquired what it was and I had to admit I didn't know. Well now "the thing" has revealed it's true nature and I am happy to say "Great Mullein, that's amazing!"

Great Mullein!

Leaves like lambs ears

Verbascum thapsus

It turns out that this plant has been used to cure everything from piles to earache, is immune to contact weedkillers (because of its furry leaves) and has at least 40 common names ranging from Adam's Rod to Cowboy Toilet Paper. It seems the dried stems make a good torch (it is known as the Candlewick Plant). I might try that.

Oh, I mentioned the strawberries. they are coming on stream, unimpressed by their imposing neighbour.

picked 16/6/11

Watching Flowers in the Rain?

2011-06-11T14:09:00.002+01:00

Not on your nelly. I reckon Roy Wood didn't have an allotment! Wet soil is ideal for weeding the vegetable patch, and if you've only got the weekends to do it, you do it rain or shine!

Before

Two hours later:

After

Spot the new shed making its first appearance.

And while I'm at it here's the Canadian Wonder patch all filled up.

Dwarf Beans

And here's the pea patch. I was surprised to find some podding up in the earliest row, with a second row flowering. Not long to wait now!

Peas galore

The strawberries in the foreground are everbearing variety, Albion. I've been picking off the flowers to encourage leaf growth as I don't want strawberries off this patch until the other three patches are exhausted.

I hate weeding but it is the stuff of the allotment right now. If you don't get it done now you might as well hand back the keys, because in another week or two the seedlings would have been swamped and the only option to dig the weeds in. The plants will get a real boost from the lack of competition, and the rain, so they'll be able to keep ahead of the weeds from here on, with just a little help. Generally I find it easy to weed when I'm getting the reward of a crop at the same time, less so when its weed, weed, weed and no return.

Happy Brassica Day

2011-06-06T18:07:00.000+01:00

Had a great day yesterday - planted the brassicas out - all of them

All my brassicas in one basket

Of course there was lots of preparation to do.

First rule of brassicas - never plant out until you've got pigeon protection. So up went the chicken wire and out comes the plastic netting (and repair kit) . I managed to salvage an old one.

Second rule: Ground preparation is vital. and plenty of water. Boy is that ground dry and dusty!

Wet and dry

Third rule : Brassica collars - fit straight away - otherwise you'll never get around to it.

Fourth rule: slug pellets (the more expensive "organic approved" ones). Otherwise you can forget it.

End result:

All planted

OK I just made up those rules but they're the ones I follow.

The yellow flowers (can you guess?) They're parsnip flowers from the one plant I've left to go to seed. I'm wondering now if it was such a good idea now it's in my brassica patch. Oh well.

After that it only rained! (a little) Woopee.

Ali. I have my nursery beds in my wee garden at home and grow plants on 3 or 4 miles across town at my allotment!

Hi Lorraine, Ruth (hope your Dad is supplying you with veg from his plot) and everyone who has joined me in my allotment blog adventure. It's great to see you, and get your interesting and encouraging comments.

Brick Raised Beds Update

2011-06-04T21:25:00.004+01:00

This winter I built 4 brick raised beds.

It took a bit of time...

... but we got there before spring sprung.

Here's how it looks today:

Right now the brassicas are ready for transplanting,

All except the Pak Choi which doesn't like to be moved.

(Tany, last year my pak choi at the allotment all bolted. It seems it likes pampering, Lots of fertility and lots of water. Temperature not too hot - like a Scottish spring)

The herb and salad beds have been a roaring success too, but the asparagus was a complete failure, producing just one viable plant. No problem: Now I've got room for my outdoor cucumber tomatoes and courgettes.

Asian Greens and Wind and Shed

2011-05-29T15:30:00.002+01:00

I'm trying to find something other than the wind to talk about, but it has been the theme of this past month now. It is interfering with all the usual tasks at this time of the year.

To make matters worse I finally bought a shed to replace my old broken greenhouse/shed. This should be a winter job but, hell, I saw an offer I couldn't refuse, and it is my birthday - in a few weeks time...

My 20 year old shed doesn't look too bad from this angle, despite the 'contingency woodpile' in front of it:

Old Shed

But from this angle:

Shed and a half

(That's the new shed flat pack resting inside the shell)

Back to wind. I planted out about 30 dwarf beans two weeks ago. After one week under fleece we had one calm day at the weekend - and I foolishly took the fleece off to harden the plants up. This weekend they looked like this (or worse). The wind took off the first two true leaves of every plant. This one looks like it will recover with the new growth. Quite a number have given up the ghost. Fortunately I've got plenty still sheltered at home to fill in the gaps.

Wind damaged bean

Back at home, and desperate to plant SOMETHING out I planted up two big tubs we have out front. Only the wind out front was worse than at the back.

Shrouded Tubs

At the (relatively) sheltered back, where my brick raised beds are, the salads bed is burgeoning. Its time to pick the radishes and 'asian greens' to make room for new sowings. Here's the the 'asian greens' which are all wonderfully architectural, succulant, peppery, textural, piquant, fresh and otherwise unobtainable :

Asian Greens

Mizuni

Green Mustard

Bok/Pak Choi

Rocket

Red Mustard

And here's a bowlful of joy :

Yum Yum

p.s. Just sorry that some of my pictures have reverted to their original orientation when uploaded. Blogger appears to be playing up something rotten lately, being logged on already when I sign in and then refusing to post my comments even on my own blog (sorry for resulting lack of response to comments) and by now all our personal details are probably in the hands of the internet pirates somewhere in cyberspace. Hope they like veg!

Blowin in the Wind

2011-05-23T21:32:00.000+01:00

I was moaning about the wind a couple of posts ago Today my plastic greenhouse got shredded. Here's some pictures from around Edinburgh today:

Bend with the breeze

The Meadows

Pollarded

Tree down

Words fail me. Except to say that perhaps it was a bad idea to leave my shed half dismanted this weekend.

Bye Bye Bay Tree

2011-05-18T18:47:00.000+01:00

..Bay Tree Bye Bye. (A version of the Four Seasons' classic recorded by the Bay City Rollers)

Is it serious? I'm afraid so!

This bay has been a stalwart over the years, but last winter was too much for it. I feel guilty for leaving it outside now. I cut it back and repotted it in the best terracotta pot, but have now recognised the futility of trying to resucitate it. I'll be kinder to the next one.

It's not all doom and gloom on the herb front: I divided the herb bed up like noughts and crosses (tic tac toe)with potting compost for the lines sown with chives and parsley. Each square has been sown with different seeds, which are now coming through.

Square foot herb bed - with rose petals blown in

Rosemary cutting

The one exception to the seed rule was rosemary. I plonked 5 twigs into the ground in the hope that at least one would take root. It looks like they all have. Several are flowering.

Coriander

Why do they come two to a seed pod?

Fenugreek

Pretty enough to grow just for appearances

Summer Savory

Ready for those beans.

The salad bed is taking off too.

so it's not all doom and gloom.

p.s. After a day of respite the strong winds are back. I hope all is well with my defences at the plot.

Rough Winds DO Shake the Darling Buds of May

2011-05-15T22:46:00.001+01:00

but which buds would Shakespear have been referring to?

I have a feeling these wouldn't have been around in his day:

Redcurrant (unripe)

But maybe these would?

Elderflower in bud

At any rate we've had wind bad for a week in Edinburgh and I'm fed up with it. Whereas I expected a break from zipping up the two plastic greenhouses as the weather got warmer instead I'm leaving them zipped up all day as well as night to protect the plants from the wind! My beans (all 130+) have outgrown their pots and need to be planted out, so what to do? Here's my solution:

Like shipes in the night

As you can see the whole plot is beginning to look like a badly run laundry. In the distance there's a tunnel of dwarf beans and the other white mounds are thrip nets over carrots.

Runner beans all aboard

Even hardy old rhubarb is protesting about chill winds:

Rhubarb in shock

The only protection my peas are getting though is from the birds. The picture doesn't really show the wide gauge pea netting strung between the posts (although the nearest, earliest, row has a more robust chicken wire tunnel). That's six rows now, three presprouted in toilet rolls and three sown direct today - Mangetout, Petit Pois and "ordinary" Kelvdon Wonder.

A proliferation of peas

The only protection for spuds is mounding. After the frost two weeks ago more have emerged.

Mounded potatoes

And to end my weekend roundup on a cheery note, our local pair of swans have a new brood:

New arrivals (1 day old)

Embarrassing Brassica Admission

2011-05-14T21:35:00.000+01:00

I was so organised this year. I prepared the seedbed properly and labelled each row. As you can see I made a frame so that I could protect the seedlings with fleece on cold nights. The problem? I got a bit carried away with multi-coloured supposedly indellible pens, and the white stick labels you see are now all unreadable.

The red cabbage I can make out - the rest....

There are no wrong answers...

2011-05-09T20:13:00.002+01:00

Here are my test results....

The top grid is my daily tally of emerged beans.

The bottom grid is the points awarded:
7 points for earliest appearance of leaves clear of soil level,
6 for the next day,
5 for the next day....

... down to 1 point for emerging on day 7.

No points for appearing more than a week after the first bean.

My hypothesis?

Sideways planted beans would score less points than those planted with the scar (helum) pointing down.

The result:

If anything the opposite was true.

Conclusion: the differences I recorded last year was down to chance variation.

At least I will get to eat my results as well as my pride!

You've bean rummbled!

You're a has bean, Mal

Everything's coming up... Beans?

2011-05-07T00:04:00.001+01:00

Here are some happy beans. They are part of an experiment but they are none the wiser. If only they knew. They should be looking at those innocuous labels...

...and that sinister board

Experimental results will follow soon.

And from the wild, what can trump these hawthorn flowers?

(There are miles of hawthorn hedgerow along the Union Canal between Edinburgh and Falkirk. Just now it looks amazing)

It's Official

2011-05-04T22:15:00.001+01:00

..the PM is an allotment supporter

Today's PM Question Time

Mike Gapes (Ilford South) (Lab/Co-op): "More than 100 years ago, Parliament legislated to make sure that local authorities provided allotments. Healthy local food is a very good part of good British values. Why therefore are the Prime Minister’s Government scrapping the obligation on local authorities to provide allotments?"

The Prime Minister: "I was as concerned as the hon. Gentleman when I read that report. I immediately checked, and found that that is not the case. It is extremely important that allotments are made available. Many Members will find that when they ask about that in their constituencies there are massive queues for allotments, as many people want to grow their own vegetables and food and understand more about where food comes from. It is a great movement, and it has my full support. "

Source Hansard:

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm/cmtoday/cmdebate/02.htm

Thanks to everyone who signed the online petition.

You know there are Council and Scottish Parliament elections afoot: - The man is telling his candidates - Just rememember there are votes in allotments (but not really commiting to anything in the process.) Oh, politicians make my skin crawl.

Here's something else I spotted today. It really cheered me up:

Summer Nights?

2011-04-27T21:46:00.002+01:00

April has been amazing. Temperatures soaring, not much rain it's been just like the best week from a Scottish Summer. But my max-min thermometer tells me that last night was a close shave. Max: 32C Min just 1 degree C.

26-27th April 2011

The thermometer is located in the plastic "greenhouse" where I am keeping my beans, tomatoes, courgettes, cucumbers and peppers.

Beans in plastic greenhouse

Today was another lovely sunny day, but all the above are indoors for the night, except the beans as they haven't emerged yet and are too bulky. My experiment may turn out to be short lived!!!

I've been on holiday since Good Friday and have been to the plot for a spell every day. I'm up to my third tent of carrots. 6 varieties so far, but I've run out of thrip netting.

Carrots and early potatoes

In front of the carrots is my potato patch. I've started earthing up the rows where the first earlies (Swift) are emerging. They need protection from these cold night temperatures too.

And here's another project. I came accross some discarded plastic piping which I've sawn into three foot lengths. A couple of these sunk into the soil next to the rhubarb patch should provide an ideal home for that horseradish I've had stored in the fridge for a month or two - too scared to plant out in the garden. A shower would use these pipes grow long straight parsnips, carrots or leeks, but I want to contain these rampant roots but still have a homegrown supply. Now, what to do withe the remaining lengths.....?

Horseradish pipe

Otherwise I have been busy setting up fencing to protect my brassicas and sof fruit. I've got time for the brassicas, which are still at the seedling stage, but the strawberries are flowering away already. I'm now regretting having them in four different patches this year (although it will keep the different varieties apart). You live and learn.

I Fought the Law...

2011-04-24T21:48:00.000+01:00

You will know from my "Green Taxes" posts that I have been protesting to the City of Edinburgh Council about their Allotment rent increases (which have ben ten times the RPI every year for nine years). Well since this process began virtually every council in England has started to bump up their rents.

An even more sinister development (that I have only just discovered) is that the government have declared a "consultation" on removing the foundation on which allotments are based. This is the law that states that when 6 people approach a Local Authority with a request for allotment provision then the authority is obliged to consider it.

Of course authorities have sidestepped the issue, mostly by establishing "waiting lists" in the good old British tradition of queing politely and awaiting your turn,. And of course it is a wishy washy law, but it is the cornerstone of allotment provision. Doing away with it will not just change new allotment provision, it will change the basis on which any existing allotment is held too. It will free up local authorities to 'hive off' their responsibilites. Allotments will henceforth be privately managed and rent will rocket. As soon as a developer can be found they will be sold off. It will be the end for allotments.

Here's the link.

http://www.allotment.org.uk/garden-diary/1238/allotment-threat-act-now/

The consultation ends tomorrow! Sorry. But there is a web petition that you can add your name to:

http://www.petitions24.com/keep_the_obligation_to_provide_allotments_for_those_who_need_them

p.s. My own rent complaint has been rejected by the landlord (City of Edinburgh Council) so I have escalated it to the Public Service Ombudsman who has the power to review such matters. I'll let you know how I get on.

Peas Please Me

2011-04-23T11:50:00.000+01:00

Kathy at her Allotment Heaven blog has shown me the way to grow peas ahead of the season and in a way that avoids rodents digging them up as so often happens at the plot. The cardboard rolls are toilet rolls or kitchen towel rolls cut in two. They need to be placed in seed tray modules because this allows the air to circulate and so avoids the problem of mould developing. The ones on the left need to be planted out now. The other two were sown later but have already developed wonderful root systems.

Tomato seedings are about ready to pot on. The second generation of Sungold (top) look very weedy compared the the F1 Sungold at the bottom. In between the "Harbinger" are doing very nicely.

Last year I experimente with cucumber and was encouraged enough to try mini cucumber this year:

The courgettes are already up and looking very happy in their peat pots:

Weather permitting, there could be a legume/curcubit bonanza this year!

Hot Cross Buns

2011-04-22T22:35:00.001+01:00

Good Friday is a traditional day for planting potatoes and eating hot cross buns. With Easter being late this year my spuds are already planted. But I did bake hot cross buns:

It's bean a long time....

2011-04-19T22:44:00.000+01:00

Last year I planted 88 beans in four different orientations defined by the direction the 'scar' was pointing in: Up, Down, Sideways Lateral and Sideways Vertical. The 'scar down' seeds emerged first and had no failures. The 'scar sideways vertical' beans did worst. But were my results statistically significant? I don't have the technical ability to judge this. So this year I'm planting 132 beans (of 6 different varieties). Half of each variety have been sown scar down and half sideways vertical. I will score them by day of emergence and failure to emerge. Will there be a difference between the two groups this year?

Here we go:

Stand by your labels

In they go.

Now lets just hope there aren't any frosts from here on....

Spring Roundup

2011-04-10T14:33:00.001+01:00

Spring Harvest

Leeks, PSB, Parsnips, Kale and Rhubarb

Brassicas - end of season

SSPPSB - Scottish Society for the Protection of Purple Sprouting Broccoli!

Carrots

Carrots under way

Next year's brassica patch is beyond the net, waiting for me to put up fencing and nets. The parsnip plant remaining is going to be left to go to seed, for next year's seed.

Potatoes

Potatoes under way

It may not look much but it's weed free! Beyond the post is the "Alliums and Others" patch. The white cube is my blueberry cage.

Alliums

Red Baron onon sets started in January

Leek seedlings started end of February

Lettuces

I tried sowing some indoors this year and transferred them to the outdoors. This tray has now been planted out:

Mini tray of lettuces started in February

Here's how they started out:

Lettuces sown

Can't resist rounding off with Friday's sunset:

And so to bed

Springvegwatch

2011-04-08T21:35:00.001+01:00

That ain't no toadstool

Just look at those legs:

Nice day out for ther vegetables:

There's onions, peas, lettuce, fennel, leeks and coriander... and (watch out Tany) celeriac!

And who says a row of newly planted potatoes doesn't look pretty?

And here's big news. The blueberries have survived the winter!

Carrots & Cancer

2011-04-07T20:33:00.001+01:00

It's official - (again). We all know that fresh vegetables are good for you. Nobody really knows how!

Rhubarb Rhubarb - Forced Conversation?

2011-04-03T10:27:00.001+01:00

We're going to have our first rhubarb today!

It won't need much sugar because it has been forced.

Last year the 'scud' was placed over the clump on the left. Next year I'll be forcing the third clump. The 'outdoor' rhubarb isn't that far behind, but that stolen week or two (and the novelty of the first taste of the season) make it worth it's weight in gold, (which the supermarkets seem to have realised as they certainly charge a premium for it!)

Below is a view from inside the chamber:

I can't help wondering why "rhubarb rhubarb" has become such a derogatory phrase. Perhaps it dates back to the Victorian rhubarb craze and some people got fed up with rhubarb enthusiasts going on and on about their obsession. On that score you can count me in!

The funny thing is that I don't know what variety we have got. It was inherited with the plot. Every five years or so I dig up and divide one clump in autumn, planting out the crowns at the opposite end of the plot. It has gone from strength to strength. Thinking I had a later season variety (we can pick as late as August!) I decided to buy in a new variety to extend the growing season. Timperley Early, I thought. So I places a postal order and two bits of bark duly arrived through the letter box. I potted them up as instructed before planting out. One produced a single stalk but shrivelled and died when planted out. The other never showed any sign of life at all and just couldn't be coaxed into life. A waste of money. Sometimes it is worth going to a nursary to be assured of the viability of what you are buying and avoid this sort of disappointment. The cataloge shows you the mature plant whereas they are selling offsets. Subsequently I have read that although Timperly Early is good for forcing, it is also one of the latest growing varieties too! So probably I managed to order the exact same variety as I was already growing! Nowadays I've accepted that we've got the right variety for our location and our tastes. Mind you if I could find a supplier of the all green variety Linneas I might just be tempted....

Spring Blooms

2011-03-28T23:30:00.001+01:00

After losing an hour with the clock going forward, I spent two hours at the allotment site this weekend. - for a committee meeting. To cheer myself up here's my favourite daffodil view:

Early morning by the canal

And here's a welcome spring display:

Open for viewing

Pasque flower

I'm sowing away at home - but that will have to wait as Blogger seems to object to uploading more than one batch of pictures these days!

Alittlement

2011-03-21T22:09:00.002Z

I've been blogging away through winter - talking about growing things and planning to grow things and marshalling my arguments about the unfair rent rises and also snapping things around about that cheer me up. I'm really please with my new parterre, although it took a while to build. It's been fun.

BUT

Right now I am a wondering why the blog has the word 'allotment' in the title. So this weekend I got in my first three hours work of the new season on site.

I planted half a dozen jerusalem artechoke

sowed my first row of parsnips

buried some broad beans

and even planted a row of spuds (Swift + Red Duke of York) A tinsy bit optimistic perhaps.

There - That feels better. At least when I'm clearing the rest of the site, and building those fences I never got round to I have something growing!

Then I dug two trenches where my runner beans are going to go and filled them with the leftovers from the brassica patch and compost and filled them in

Ouch - Thats probably enough for now.

Artichokes

It all starts here!

Brassica waste - roots not included

Skywatch - There be Dragons...

2011-03-18T21:03:00.000Z

Q. What's the last thing you expect to see on St Patrick's Day in Scotland?
A. Welsh Dragon.

Green Tax 6 - Let he who grants concessions pay the price

2011-03-15T20:00:00.000Z

For those far flung readers I hope you don't mind being dragged into the minutiae of grubby Edinburgh politics for another post. This information has to be disseminated as quickly as possible locally and this is the only affordable medium I have to hand.

Our Council has decided that Edinburgh Allotment holders, traditionally including some of the poorest citizens, are ripe for harvesting. To put matters in perspective, City of Edinburgh Council recently allocated £30,000 to commisioning portraits of the last two provosts ("mayors"), they have also allocated millions to a tram project that after 5 years has still to deliver one fare(!), yet they view it as unthinkable that they pay £2,000 towards the upkeep of allotments (community gardens) in this city. In fact they will be milking £100,000 from their greenest and most hard working citizens by 2015 !!!

And here is my reply:

Asparagus Tips

2011-03-13T22:15:00.000Z

It's been a rotten weekend for working on the allotment. Snow on Saturday pretty horrible today. But it brightened up enough today for me to plant out the asparagus I bought (on impulse) last weekend. Here's what it's all about:

To start with you need good drainage:

Then you need plenty of fertility:

These may have been the inspiration for the Alien movies.

Time to tuck them up for bed.

Phase one complete:

Petrified Parterre

2011-03-09T22:08:00.000Z

Woke up this morning to a sprinkling of snow - Perhaps I am not so far behind the changing season after all!

I'm delighted to have found a name for the collective bed arrangement. Together they are a 'parterre'. In the tradition of Versaille (but on a smaller scale). ;>)

Now that they are built I've had to narrow down what I'm going to give growing space:

1. Asparagus 2. Herbs

3. Salads 4. Plot Nursery Bed

The asparagus is a complete leap in the dark, but one of these beds seems ideally suited to providing the drainage and the fertility I understand asparagus needs. Of course I want shoots to eat (in a couple of years time) but visually I also love their 'ferns'.

Herbs and salads might overlap a bit as Mediterranean herbs like lots of drainage and even improve in flavour with 'poor' soil whereas parsley coriander fenugreek like the same conditions as lettuce etc.

My last bed is being used for the original purpose I intended (before I got asparagus aspirations). Seedlings need closer attention than weekend to weekend so they are best kept at home. Lettuces growing 3 miles away are not much help when you decide to rustle up a salad late in the week. I do keep them in bowls of water on the widowsill but you can't beat the crispiness of freshly cut salad leaves. I'm looking forward to a reliable supply and a long season.

Back to the snow:

I just have to share this work of art I came across this morning:

Springing into action

2011-03-07T00:01:00.000Z

First daffodil spotted!

And you have to hand it to Edinburgh Council - They know how to do massed crocuses:

Back at home spring preparations are nearly complete. Not a moment too soon...

....because the heat is on!

Harvest for St David's Day

2011-02-28T18:26:00.003Z

The Welsh have claimed the leek as their national symbol (they also have claims on the Daffodil -but the leek is more reliably available come 1st March) My patch looks a bit raggedy but they clean up nicely. Leek and potato soup is on the menu tomorrow!

The story goes that many years ago when the Welsh were fughting off the Saxon invaders they wore a leek in their headgear. This was a very effective way of identifying friend from foe! To this day Welsh regiments are ceremoniouly handed out leeks to celebrate this event. (I think they must have won).

I don't think the Welsh are big parsnip eaters but I might be wrong:

Curly Kale has a definite Scottish connection. This is Pentland Brig and Its coming into its own.

Last but not least the chervil has decided winter is over and is putting on a spurt! One of my favourite herbs!

Call it at Daphne's for more harvests from around the globe:

http://daphnesdandelions.blogspot.com/2011/02/harvest-monday-28-february-2011.html

Crikey Croci - It must be spring!

2011-02-27T22:34:00.001Z

This week's new arrivals in the park. Crikey it's that time again.

And talking of croakers this sign amused me on our walk in the Pentland Hills today:

At home there was another surprise in store. The much neglected Lenten Rose, a gift from about three years ago and still in it's original pot, weathered all this winter threw at it and is still alive and even thriving.

Back to the park: The snowdrops are in full bloom but the daffs have some wat to go yet.

It's been a glorious spring day. Here's a snap from our reservoir walk. That's Arthur's seat and the Salisbury Crags on the horizon beyond the dam. Edinburgh is in the dip between the two.

It's great to get out of the town and into the wilds:

Came across these in the hedgerow. Not sure if they are wild or garden escapees:

Went to the allotment too - but I'll save that for another post.

Weapons of Mass Production

2011-02-25T21:46:00.001Z

With the distinct prospect of spring it's time to roll out the secret weapons from the armoury.

The Germinator

First there's the germinator. A Christmas gift from the adoring family I have to admit I'm a bit nervous about using it. After a flurry of enthusiasm in my early allotment years I soon adopted a policy of "grow what can fend for itself". Stalwarts like potatoes parsnips strawberries and beans dominated my plot. But as the family has grown up and demands on time diminished I've got a bit more adventurous. Bluberries and carrots, onions - and last year tomatoes and cucumber - have been accomodated. By pandering to my whimsy for one of these the family is keeping the old man usefully diverted. Now I've just got to learn to use the force - wisely!

I've held off until now as there is no use producing masses of plants before the days are long enough and before you can plant them out. I think I'll start off with basil, tomatoes, peppers, cucumber to be kept indoors on our minimal windowsill space, and parsley, spinach, celeriac to go outdoors. It's too early for beans yet. They can follow later. Some things I believe are not suited to heat. Parsnips carrots broad beans. How about peas?? I feel all at sea with the new game plan, but I'll have some fun learning from my mistakes. Any advice or suggestions gratefully received.

My second weapon is the 'scud'. This has been deployed for a couple of weeks now on top of one of the rhubarb crowns. Having done this for the last couple of years I am more on home territory here.

The Enforcer

Hopefully this will bring on the advance guard of rhubarb stalks in a few weeks time!

Green Tax - 5 Text of Official Complaint

2011-02-19T13:24:00.001Z

I object to the rent rises declared by City of Edinburgh Council on the following grounds:

1. They change the historic tradition that allotments are an amenity supported by public funding (on a not for profit basis), and instead knowingly raise revenue over and above the cost to the Council of running the allotments. (See attached FEDAGA document submitted to the Council and adopted without amendment)

2. After far exceeding inflation as measured by the Retail Price Index (RPI) for the past 5 years, rents increases are set to outstrip the RPI for 4 more years in a row.

3. The Council has disregarded the benchmarks adopted in the first Allotment Strategy published in 2002. This cites two “comparability factors”:

a. The level of allotment rents in the rest of Scotland and the scale in England

b. Costs of other outdoor recreational or leisure activities provided by the authority

The 2010 rent proposal sees Edinburgh allotment rents , which are already head and shoulders above other local authorities, projected to widen the gap with the rest of Scotland and the rest of the UK. In 2011 Glasgow is charging £33.50 for a full plot, Edinburgh £70. Glasgow rent rises are in line with the RPI, Edinburgh is increasing rents by £10 per year regardless. There is no centralised database for allotment rents across the UK but I can produce evidence from surveys which indicate the average UK allotment rent is between £30 and £40. Edinburgh is £70 rising to £ 100. ( I have been unable to gather information on the second comparability factor as City of Edinburgh Council has hived off the provision of sporting facilities to Edinburgh Leisure who are subject to the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act – but I can find no indication that this factor was taken into consideration either)

The Unfair Terms in Consumer Contract Regulations 1999 deems such arbitrary increases to be automatically unfair and Guidance by the OFT indicates that unless increases are linked to such external factors as the RPI or evaluated by an objective person independent of the landlord they may be deemed to be unfair.

4. I do not accept that the CEC allotment budget has to break even. Some degree of public funding has been part of the equation since they were first set up under legislation in 1892. The current target of covering costs through rent clearly integral to the Council’s logic in setting rents. The basis of calculation used, being the total rental income, takes no account of the 50% concession granted to the elderly and unwaged by City of Edinburgh Council. If the Council requires a concession to be made, then the funding of that concession should be drawn from the whole of the Councils revenues and not just from allotment holders. Under the proposed scheme the base allotment rental has been increased to the point where income after concessions exceeds costs. Roughly 40% of plot holders currently pay a concessionary rent. Their rate is being increased to cover the discount and, by double this amount, so too is the rent of the 60% full rate payers. Allowing for the concessionary provision from outside the allotment budget, Edinburgh Allotments became self-funding in 2010. The £40 increase in rent thereafter represents an extra tax on allotment holders over and above those levied on all other Edinburgh Council Tax payers

This is indefensible, morally and probably legally too. I ask City of Edinburgh to halt their programme of increases now, and to return to a “fair rent for the purpose” as stipulated in the legislation. Allotments(Scotland)Acts 1892 to 1950

Our Daily Bread

2011-02-10T18:15:00.001Z

A lot of people who have allotments also bake their own bread.

It's the same mentality. If you want to be sure about what goes into your food and how it is produced, there one surefire way: grow it and cook it yourself.

I'm not overly proud of using a breadmaker, but it's the thing that means I DO make my own bread, all the time. Years ago I went about 6 months making it by hand and not buying a single commercial loaf in that time. Work and other commitments meant that went by the wayside, until the arrival of the breadmaker. One breadmaker has worn out and this is the new model.

My 'regular' loaf is 80% wholemeal and 20% Rye/White/seeded mixed. Getting a good crust can be a bit of a challenge. I find myself going for the lowest setting as it's needed for slicing. I'm happy with the results.

Green Tax 4 - A Fair Rent?

2011-02-07T21:57:00.004Z

City of Edinburgh Council's first Allotment Strategy "Cultivating Communities" (2002) (p28) adopted the following "comparability factors" from the "Growing in the Community - A Good Practice Guide for the Management of Allotments" (produced by the Department of the Environment, Transport and Regions, The Greater London Authority, the Local Government Association and Shell Better Britain Campaign (2001))

The three factors are:

- the level of allotment rents in the rest of Scotland and the scale in England

- costs of other outdoor recreational or leisure activities provided by the authority.

- rent concessions should be granted, on a published scale.

(I know that last one doesn't look like a comparability factor , but that's how it is written)

When the next City of Edinburgh Allotment Strategy "Cultivating Communities: A Growing Challenge 2010-2015" was published in 2010, setting in stone steep rent rises to £100 for the period up to 2014, no reference was made to these guiding principles.

So, how would they fare against these comparitors? Not an easy question as there is no central database of information. However various surveys have been run on blogs and allotment websites. They all show that Edinburgh is head and shoulders above the rest in pressing for higher rents.

Here is an extract of the figures from (of all places) moneysavingexpert.com (see link) who ran two threads in October 2010 and most recently January 2011.
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=2969206

£25 per year
£35 for a 20X150 feet plot
£11 for 5m x 25m
£60ish last year in South Notts
£17.50 a year for a full plot
£40 a year for 259sqft
£30 a year
Our fees will stay at £11 this year
£25 in South Wales
£20 for a full plot (80’ x 40’) ..the next council area costs £60
**“I charge £100 for a full plot 30 x 90 feet” Private site owner
£25 annual fee
Up from £17 to £19 last autumn
£65 ish for a year for a full plot in London
£30 for a 30ft by 80ft app
Birmingham council are increasing from £24 to £75 over the next three years (You can buy a lot of veg for £75)
£15 for 20 rod
£35 annually for a full plot (Glasgow)
£35 including water (Leeds)
£35 per yr with water
£50ish Manchester
£40 Leeds
£20 for ½ plot North Notts
£28 this year £40 next year
£27.50 for a 5 rod plot including membership to the allotment society
**£125 10m x 12.5m (a private allotment)
£50

Leaving in the two private allotment sites** of £100 and £125 the average is still under £37. (Without them it would be £31) Both a lot less that the £70 we are paying in Edinburgh this year

City of Edinburgh Council are allowed to charge a fair rent for use as an allotment under the laws governing the regulation of allotments , not an arbitrary one. They must make reference to some other factors rather than the law of supply and demand. I've already shown they are completely out of step with the RPI, now it seems they are out of step with the rest of the UK. So where is the justification? I am calling my local Allotment Association (Lady Road) to demand a rent review - asap.

Oops I Did It Again!

2011-02-06T15:25:00.000Z

Seed greed? I couldn't turn down the special offer of 5 coloured varieties with my £5 off voucher from T&M. As I already had three orange varieties on order that's a hell of a lot of carrots. It's kill or cure for me this year for carrots!

I like a challenge.

Unhalfbricking - Answering Ali's Question

2011-02-06T00:04:00.002Z

Ali's question was: "On a scale of 1-10, exactly how much skill would you say you needed to construct your beds?"

Well Ali, here's a picture taken today. The two beds in the background are finished. The one in the foreground shows the starting point- dug out ready to lay the foundations. As the experts always say, once you have got a level base the rest is easy(!)(?)
(The bed to the right is just a mock up from last year to check what it would look like and whether I had enough bricks).

In between these two stages is this stage: laying the foundations. You need sand/grit/cement to bed in the bricks sideways on so that it is double the width of the wall. If you don't have lots of bricks the usual advice is to fill the trough with concrete. (In our case all the materials for the garden have to go through the house so we don't favour bulk materials like hardcore and concrete)

And of course you need the raw materials:

They need cleaning up before they are ready to be used.

There are quite a few steps and you have to allow time for each step. One correspondent suggested that when it comes to bricklaying you should just do four at a time (thanks Iggy). I thought he was joking, and with 400 bricks to lay I was more adventurous. It turned out to be good avice. The main point is not to rush it. Bricks are quite heavy really and a bricklaying session is like a weightlifting session - not to mention mixing the mortar. And as for circular beds - that's beyond my expertise

Notes:

The foundations should be twice the width of the wall

Start the foundations from the LOWEST level.

Use a spirit level at every stage

The advice is that if you use a single width of brick (a halfbrick wall) the maximum height is 18 inches

So on a scale of 1:10 I would say 7, but if it is only 3 bricks high (like me) 4.

Another Brick in the Wall?

2011-02-01T22:24:00.001Z

This winter's project progress report:

The foreman has his doubts "All that digging and not one bone to show for it!"

Two down and two to go.

The white spots are lengths of polypipe through the wall for drainage. All the bricks are recycled. Each raised bed is about 100 bricks. The quality of workmanship has improved slowly from a very low base. I might have to do some repointing before building up the soil level.

It's a hard time of year just now. The carrots are running out, the spuds all eaten, cabbages and sprouts all gone. It's just turnip, parsnip kale and leeks left! With possibly some purple sprounting broccoli to come, that's not much to fill the hungry gap until the first salads. Also I don't feel like I've gardened unless I'm growing something, so here's my little (indoor) kick off of the year's sowing: six lettuce varieties (all but one from an already open packet - so nothing lost if they don't work). With some more soil and some fleece over the top one of the new planters should be the ideal place to plant these out into!

So there you have a whole post without a sideswipe at the Coucil...

..... mind you, Christmas trees on the street in February!!!

Green Tax 3 - A letter to the City of Edinburgh Council

2011-01-27T20:18:00.000Z

I'm paying my allotment rent today:

City of Edinburgh Council
Services For Communities - Parks
Business Centre C3
4 East Market Street
Edinburgh
EH8 8BG

Att Ian Woolard, Allotment Officer

27 January 2011

Dear Ian,

I have today received your invoice for £70.00 for Plot 15 at Lady Road, and now forward my cheque for £18.40 made up of the Association Fee of £2.50 and the first quarterly rental payment of £16.90. Three further quarterly payments will follow in a timely manner.

While the option for quarterly payment has been available for Scottish allotment rents over £1 since the 1950 Allotment Act (Scotland) I have not until now felt the need to invoke it. With the rent rises in the last five years, and those already line up for the next three, I now wish to exercise my right to do so.

Yours sincerely

The reason I have titled this series of posts Green TAX is because, in Edinburgh, EXTRA TAXES are being raised from allotment holders (In addition to the Council Tax we already pay). This turns the traditional ethos under which allotments were set up right on its head.

Here's the FEDAGA 2009 proposal to the Council:

Keep an eye on that bottom line. With detailed costings they are converting a subsidy of £8,425 into a tax surplus of £6,695 within 5 years (and pushing their members' annual rent from an already inflated £70 to £100 in the process.) Guess what the Council bought it!

In their first Allotment Strategy published in 2002 (Cultivating Communities) the Council proposed that when setting rents the following comparability factors should be taken into account:

- the level of allotment rents in the rest of Scotland and the scale in England

- costs of other outdoor recreational or leisure activities provide by the authority.

Neither of these two factors has in fact been taken into account. Edinburgh rents are far in excess of the national average (this year they are £33.50 in Glasgow) and in England. (...and incidentally those across the USA)

Charges for other leisure facilities have gone up but by nothing like allotment fees.

My protest is, I admit, a token gesture. I hope it is one that other Edinburgh allotment holders will adopt too.

Green Tax 2 - How much does it cost to run?

2011-01-25T18:37:00.000Z

This year I started to count what I spent but that soon fell by the wayside. So I am very gratefull to Kathy at Skippy's Vegetable Garden who kept track of her expenditure over a three year period. Here are her figures: (Reproduced with permission)

The figures are rounded and in $US. multiply by 0.66 to convert to sterling.

If you need UK corroboration then visit Dobbys Pumpkin patch where Sue and Lee are very good at keeping records (and brewing) dobbyspumpkinpatch

In any currency the costs are probably more than you think. To run a plot productively you need a certain outlay. All the more when you are starting up. Before you cover your expenses you need to produce at least £400 of produce. If you need a new shed, paving material or fencing it will be a lot more. And if you are spending less you must have a free supply of manure - or you won't be getting much of a return. What happens if you add another £100 to your expenditure? - Your break even point is that much further away.

Do the Council or those commentators who think it's a doddle to grow presentable fruit and veg realise the outlay required?

Now for the biggest cost:

The City of Edinburgh Council surveyed Edinburgh Allotment holders in 2007 and concluded that the AVERAGE time spent working on allotments was 11 hours per week in the summer down to 4 hours per week in the winter. Rounding the annual weekly average down to 7 hrs per week (or 1hr per day) means an annual total of 365 hours. Were you (perish the thought) to pay someone to take your place at the UK minimum wage (£5.93) that would amount to a tidy bill of £2,164.45.

This time and effort input by gardeners is conveniently overlooked when considering what it costs to run a plot and what suitable rents are. While there are undoubtedly rewards too (which I spend the rest of the year going on about) there are also sacrifices.

If I were unwaged or on a meagre pension (looking increasingly likely for a lot of people) the increase in rent, even the 50% rate, would be the last nail in the coffin. So I hope to persuade my fellow plot holders to collectively object to the Council's policy. The next problem is how, given that my local association FEDAGA has gone over to the dark side. Maybe I'll save that for another post!

Green Tax - Part One

2011-01-24T20:30:00.001Z

It's that time of year again. The time when the Council's bill for the allotment rent lands on the doormat. It is made up of two parts the annual rental and the Allotment Association sub (currently £2.50) There will be no surprise about the rental £67.50 bringing up a round £70.00 total.

Five years ago it was £30.00 in total so it has risen steeply.

Worse still the rate for the next 3 years has already been set:

That's up £10 each year. The red line is our rent (excluding the Allotment Society sub). The green line is what our rent would have been if it had tracked the Retail Price Index, which is the accepted measure of inflation. As time goes on the divergence is getting dramatically wider. The RPI for future years is, of course, unknown but out rent increase has been fixed.

One of the most painfull aspects of this is that the Allotment Association (FEDAGA - full name Federation of Edinburgh and District Allotment and Gardeners Association) to whom we pay the annual the £2.50 membership subscription is said to have agreed to this on our behalf. Indeed the Show Secretary no less drafted the proposal and declared it passed by the Committee at the AGM which he chaired. I went to the AGM this year as a site representative but too late for any consideration of rent which had already been rubber stamped by the appropriate Council Committee, declaring full support from Edinburgh Allotment holders.

The upshot of this unhappy tale is that any benefit of having an allotment is going to be counterbalanced by the extra tax the Council is charging. Our green tax, instead of encouraging good ecological practice in the city's diminishing allotment plots, raises more money for the Council bureaucrats.

Perhaps I should mention here that non waged plot holders get a 50% reduction so will be paying £50 at the end of the term. Not much leeway for the necessary outlay required to set up and stock an allotment. In my next post I'll have a detailed look at this aspect of running a plot on a budget.

Potatoes for Damo

2011-01-21T21:17:00.000Z

I'm a bit piqued because folk "down sowth" are getting delivery of their potatoes. Potato days are appearing like a rash in January. This is faaar to early to start chitting spuds. Here in Scotland - incidentally the potato breeding centre second only to Chile - the Edinburgh potato day is 20th February whereas the daddy of them all the BOGS (Borders Organic Gardeners Society) Potato Day is not until 6th March.

Setting my resentment aside, Damo has asked for some coloured potato recommendations and I just happen to be dusting off some of my older pics.

Top recommendation has to be Rooster. It is becoming rather common - and I can see why. It's heavy cropping, large, apparently pest free, has excellent cooking qualities (particularly mash or baking) and flavour! We grew it two years ago and again last year and will do again this year. The only criticism I have read is that it is becoming "ubiquitous".

Here's a cause celebre: Shetland Black. Promoted for eating, like a lot 'speciality' spuds by Waitrose. The idea that you are keeping a Scottish Island crofting tradition going is beguiling.

The reality is a bit more mundane. Poor yield, some disease and peeled they look like this:

Very floury they retain some of their colour but disintegrate in the blink of an eye. (Children may not be very impressed.)

Here's a newer introduction. Sarpo Mira. Supposedly resistant to all known potatoe diseases. Taste not brilliant. Curiously they are long and flat! Deselected on taste grounds.

Now for blue potatoes go for early Edzell Blue (named after a town in NE Scotland) Disintegrates in a split second. The story goes that boiling Edzells was how cooks were tested by prospective employers in days of old. (Not pictured because they look almost identical to) Arran Pilot (Arran another Scottish Island - spot the theme) is a maincrop that looks good and tastes good if you like a floury potato. A good standard.

I'll be growing Rooster this year but also something (anything I come across on potato day) new. I haven't grown Shetland Black again, but they are so photogenic I might!

If you want to read more about them try Rebsie's blog entries at Daughter of the Soil

As ever, the rider is that different soil and conditions suit different varieties, and tastes differ. Keeping as wide a range as possible is good for us and good for the future.

Did I Say Colour???

2011-01-18T23:10:00.000Z

Following on from my rather dowdy planning post - and with many thanks to Mojo (aka Vrtlarica) and No1 Son, here's the 2011 plan in technicolor.

... Should I be getting out more?

Harvest Monday - Terrible Twosome or Royal Cousins?

2011-01-17T20:00:00.000Z

The only things cropping at the moment seems to be purple brassicas.

But for all their genetic similarity and colour, how different are these two?

And Now In Magnificent Colour

2011-01-14T21:50:00.000Z

In 2008 my plot was a bit of a shambles. Half was potatoes (a lazy but productive way of keeping the weeds down), half was half weeds and half plants enjoined in natures battle against the law of entropy. I had half a dozen cabbages with a net draped over them in an attempt to renew my acquantance with that flatulant delight: the brassica! It was in a sorry state. So in the winter of 2008/9 I set about a bit of basic planning. As Dr Hessayan recomends, a three way division allows for basic crop rotation so that the needs of each family can be catered for while the pests that feed on them can be starved out for two years at a time. Here's the plan I came up with: (I also started my blog around this time).

Things went pretty well I thought. Parcelling up the tasks into smaller packages seemed to make them more manageable and more varied. I also made more time to carry out my plans. The results were a significant improvement on the dismal showing of the previous few years. Thus emboldened, that winter I expanded my scheme next winter to a five way rotation.

Guess what I had more fun and more produce than ever. So now I've added soft fruit at both ends, and a bit of colour to my plan to cheer up the winter blues. I'm rarin to get out there and put my plan into action.

And just for any skeptic out there, aside from the broad brushtroke plans I also keep a more detailed record of what went where on those rainy days or dark evenings when the conditions are not fit for man nor beast. Here's last years detail.

It seems that planning produces results - but it's also quite fun when you can't actually do anything!

Edinburgh Snow - again

2011-01-08T17:21:00.000Z

It took ages for the last snow (which started on 26th November) to melt away. And when all but the street corner stockpiles had gone we got more last night. Still, at least I feel exonerated from doing any work!!! Here's some snaps instead:

The Union Canal with Polwarth Church on the horizon.

Corstorphine Old Parish Churchyard.

Every twig has got its own sprinkle of snow.

Artechoke and leek soup for lunch, seemed to suit the weather!

First Harvest - Happy New Year

2011-01-03T18:44:00.000Z

I've posted a couple of harvests to Daphne's "Harvest Monday" in the past year -see http://daphnesdandelions.blogspot.com/2011/01/harvest-monday-3-janauary-2011.html but I have to own up that they were Sunday harvests really. Thanks to the bank holiday this one is a genuine Monday Harvest(!):

Trying to make my New Year's resolutions I kept on coming up with building jobs, necessary to get ahead with the growing or protecting of fruit and veg. Oh well better get on with one of them: using the bricks I'd gathered to make raised beds at home to bring on seedling for the plot. Off to get the tools of the trade. How's that for a trendy trug?

I've no experience of bricklaying or building generally, but having so many bricks I'm using them for the foundations as well as the walls themselves. Here's an idea of progress today. I'm doing 4 of these in a square with a cross shaped path running between them in what was an infertile rose bed before we moved in. It could take a few weeks but I hope to have everything ready before spring.!(?)

Do you believe in Santa?

2010-12-21T20:53:00.000Z

I was walking through the woods when a certain person caught my attention. Hat and long beard, and I'd swear he was winking! I took this picture to dispell any doubt. What do you think?

Here's somebody else I came across. Not walking in the air but dossing in the park!

Merry Christmas one and all.

Skippy Recycles Again

2010-12-14T23:06:00.000Z

2010 has been a year of recycling:

Here's my latest acquisition - Looks like 20m polyurethane piping that was on the way to landfill. Ideal for cloches, mini polytunnels etc.

One pair of these Ikea bunk bedsteads is our own. Coincidentally an identical pair was being thrown out in a local skip. That's getting on for a polytunnel's worth!

But king of the skip is the humble brick:

Mind you they take a bit of cleaning up!

This protective cage is from bed parts.

You've guessed - I can't turn down the offer of free hardware - more recycling and less landfill.

All I need now is the time to reconfigure these resources to best effect.

Snow photos added 27/12/10

Chardenfreude?

2010-12-09T21:29:00.000Z

Sorry - no chard visible in this post.

Prompted by fellow Edinburger Linda at Slow Growing in Scotland here here is a sad picture of collapsed brassica cages on a neighbour's plot. His newly constructed wooden frames have been snapped like matchwood.

...and I haven't fared any better.

There should be a net over those posts. Retrieving it proved impossible so I strung a new net over the top to keep the pigeons off until the thaw arrived. Instead we got 6 inches more snow the next day and I'll have two nets to retrieve and repair once it does. In the meantime I have to hope the pigeons are on diet.

Here's what we are up against. The spikes on the railing have disappeared!

Here's a familiar view with added snow.

Edinburgh Snow

2010-12-04T18:28:00.000Z

It's still here:

Remember that picture of the Castle I posted last week. Well here's how it looked on Thursday:

But this is an allotment blog, so here's the plot today (the view from the end). The brassica netting is well and truly buried. Those two black sticks in the foreground are signposting the jerusalem artichokes. Now I wish I'd dug up all the carrots and a few more parsnips. The forecast says less snow but cold temperatures. Maybe until Christmas...

Here's a slightly different angle. Not much to see but snow!

This sight made me laugh. If you look closely you can see the day by day accumulation on the roof. You can't see much of the wheels. A lot of people have been digging their cars out today, Saturday, as there were no new falls, it's the weekend and the temperature has gone up above zero for the day. (Now back sub zero.) Half the houses in our street have lost their gutters, brought down by the melting snow falling off roofs and taking them with it. Ours are still there, but so is the snow. It's only a matter of time unfortunately.

Walking nine to five...

2010-11-29T22:23:00.000Z

... or three actually: We were let home early.

Yesterday the signs were there...

...and this morning proved a slow start. That's the bus driver and two passengers bump starting the stranded car...

...and that's the next bus wedged against the bus stop (where it stayed for the next four hours).

So I guess its a calming walk on the canal towparth on foot for me.

All frozen at Harrison Park

In case you were in any doubt, that's Scottish snow!

It seems I'm not alone

Approaching the canal basin that used to be Scottish and Newcastle on the left, and the new developement ahead and on the right. Right in the middle...

the restored lift bridge.

...and so to work

I do hope I'm not on sentry duty today...