Rooko's November Top 10 Tryouts & Tips

1. With less time being spent gardening over the Autumn & Winter think about collecting re-usable items that can be used in the garden or down the plot next season. Plastic bottles with the spray tops, for example, can be cleaned after they are used up, and re-used for garden sprays.

2. If you are lucky enough to have poly tunnels and cloches, try using the cloches inside the tunnels to doubly protect crops sown over the Winter months from the cold weather.

3. Provided that the ground is not too wet, November is a good time to divide various plants, as well as adding a good layer of mulch to plants in borders and beds.

4. Bulb planting should be completed by the end of November. Hint plant bulbs to a depth equal to 3 times their diameter.

5. Kale, Broad beans, Oriental veg and Garlic can still be sown/planted in November. Some roots and over wintering greens can also be grown under protection, as well as Sweet peas, cyclamen and Lupins.

6. Many garden centres are selling discounted gardening supplies and other items at this time of the year, try a visit and pick up a bargain.

7. Mulching, manuring, composting on the allotment can be done now especially if the soil is dry enough to rotavate or dig the manure/compost in at this time of the year.

8. If you have been thinking about obtaining some plant/seed catalogues, try the following link which has a good selection of them, plus other home and gardening freebies, some are applicable to the U.S.A. too. CLICK HERE.

9. Don't forget to check any bonfires, before lighting them, some animals may have decided to hibernate in them!!

10.

SOWING/PLANTING IN NOVEMBER

1. Garlic cloves can be planted out.
2. Sow peas (round type) if the ground is not waterlogged.
3. Parsnips can be left in situ.

OTHER JOBS TO DO IN NOVEMBER

1. Lift and store any remaining carrots.
2. Harvest Winter Cabbage and Cauliflower.
3. Prune back fruit canes.
 4. Remove any rotting fruit/vegetation

  

If It Moves Fasten It Down

Well it looks like I spoke too soon in my last blog post about pleasant Autumn afternoons with some good spells of sunshine breaking through, almost daily. Since then we've had plenty of rain here, mainly heavy showers but with some extremely heavy downpours, overnight. In fact last Friday when I visited my plots in the afternoon No 2 bed on N2 Plot had about 3 inches (75 mm) of standing water on the lower end of it. This took about a day and a half to drain away and its not even Winter yet. With severe weather warnings already issued for most parts of the country for tonight and tomorrow, its still not too late to check your plots and secure those loose items of equipment before it gets blown away. In my experience of "allotmenteering" I've seen many different items strewn around the allotments after high winds have caused havoc, such as: Wheelbarrows, cloches, polythene and plastic sheeting, netting, rainwater barrels and even plant pots with plants in them. Sheds and greenhouses are not immune either. A few years ago on our allotments, one lady had just finished erecting a new shed a couple of days before some high winds blew it over. As it rolled across several allotments, blown along by the wind, it broke into many different pieces which needed a lot of repairing before it was re-erected.

Standing Rainwater Lower End of N2 Plot (25/Oct/13) and Its Not Even Winter Yet

So despite the blustery and general murky weather I've been able to get more preparation done down my plots for next year. Earlier this week my shed on N1 Plot had its roof repaired and was re-painted on the outside using a 50/50 mix of "Wilkos" fence paint and Creacoat. Hopefully this treatment will keep it waterproof for a while longer. My other shed on N2 Plot also got the same treatment on the back end panels with some more sealing around the panels being done, with silicon sealer, to keep out the rain and those annoying overwintering beasties like mice, slugs & snails. I don't mind spiders seeking shelter in my sheds over the winter, every shed should have 1. After the painting and sealing was finished another rainwater barrel was installed behind the shed on N2 Plot, running a flexible plastic pipe (from an old fish pond), fitted with an old bath overflow outlet, from the top of one of the existing barrels. Total cost, zero.

Another Re-cycling Masterpiece :) (24/Oct/13)

 The Gladioli that I planted earlier this year into the L-shaped bed on N1 Plot have been removed and stored in my poly tunnel, prior to being split and re-located next year. The soil where they were planted was too damp for them so they will eventually be re-planted in another part of the plot. Last Tuesday I removed more of my Summer fruiting Raspberries from N1 Plot. The ground has been too wet to remove the rest to date. Several of the plants were given to 2 of my neighboring plot holders and they are already installed in their new home. The remainder of the plants were consigned to a nearby bonfire.

Before & After N2 Plot Shed Painting 50/50 Mix of Wilkos Fence Paint & Creacoat (24/OCT/13)

More Autumn maintenance of a different type has been done during the week. My lightweight rotorvator, (rotortiller), a very old Landmaster, needed some attention as it woudn't start. After installing a new spark plug I managed to get it to fire and run, although the engine cut out after a few seconds, each time it started. Looks like it will need some more maintenance this week. The Land masters (gardenmasters) were manufactured in U.K. in the mid 1900's in Hucknall, Nottinghamshire. Another good British machine (now vintage) no longer being made. Some of the accessories for these machines included, hedgetrimmers, weeders and ridging blades.

Landmaster 85 (24/Oct/13)

Aspera Engine Fitted to Landmaster (24/Oct/13)

Several hours today and yesterday have been spent manuring this years Brassica bed on N1 Plot along with my Rhubarb plants and the whole of Bed2 on N2 plot. My stockpile of well rotted manure is now depleted but apart from rotorvating both plots are now prepped for next season.

The Final Pumpkin (25/Oct/13)

There's always tomorrow!! What to do next??

It Ain't Half Hot Mum!!

Nine days since my last blog post and with a few exceptions the Autumn weather here has been warm with many beautifully sunny afternoons, which I have spent, preparing my plots for next season, as well as tidying and cleaning the usual gardening paraphernalia away for the onset of Winter. Although rain has been plentiful enough to re-fill most of my water butts and tanks recently, it has been raining either early on a morning or later in the day after I had left the plots for home. So much for the predicted wet weather forecasts again. (Bring back Selwin Frogget and his pine cones)??

Butternut Squashes Ripening Up

Marigolds N1 Plot

  Both N1 & N2 Plots are almost fully prepared for next years sowing and planting. Now that the heavy digging is complete the other tasks preparing the beds have been leisurely and enjoyable for a change. The 4 main beds of N1 Plot have been turned using a garden fork. The soil being easy to manage with just enough rain lately leaving it in easily workable condition. 2 of the beds have had compost added to them and all 4 will be rotavated in the coming weeks. The main bed and bed 2 on N2 Plot are currently well dug and ready for rotavating soon. 3 out of the 4 smaller N2 beds are now weed free and also ready for rotavating. The French bean, Sweetcorn, Chard and Squash plants have finished producing and have been removed to the compost heap. The Sweetcorn plants have been placed into my last raised bed to be built, due to the fact that they will take quite some time to fully rot down. When the last of the waste vegetation has been cleared away, it too will be added to the same raised bed before top soil from the drainage ditch bank is placed on top of it. My Runner beans are still producing some good beans and have been left in situ, at the lower end of what will be next years Brassicas bed. Some time ago I decided to remove my Summer Raspberry plants from N1 Plot, keeping the Autumn fruiting plants only, on N2 Plot. Early this year the Summer fruiting plants suffered from phytophthora (root rot). Although some of the younger shoots survived many of the larger specimens were well rotted away. On the up side, when I started to clear the bed this afternoon the main plants and roots were relatively easy to dig out, due to their decaying condition. This bed has been left mainly untended this year and it hasn't taken nature long to re-plant the area. I have so far removed the following self seeded plants this afternoon. 5 small Currant bushes, 2 Hawthorn trees, several Deadly nightshades, Shepherds purse, Dandelions, Grass, Thistle (2 varieties), 1 small Mares tail, Toadstools, Scarlet pimpernel, Chickweed, Creeping buttercups, White clover, Groundsel, Bramble.

Summer Raspberries Being Removed From N1 Plot

Fungi Growing From Rotting Raspberry Root

 During a brief rain shower on Thursday it was time to get next seasons year planner out and make space for it my shed. A "notice board" was duly constructed on the underside of my potting table onto which the planner was pinned. The planner itself was a much appreciated freebie which arrived with my seed suppliers catalogue from Moles seeds.

Next Seasons Year Planner in Shed

At the moment the plots are looking tidy again after some neglect this year, although the grass is still growing due to the warm temperatures, the paths and verges have recently been strimmed and/or mowed. Several tasks are still to be done such as tree and fruit bush pruning, shed painting, some manuring, cloche making and rotavating. That being said, it feels like everything is in place and running smoothly, ready for some organized gardening next year. The only problem I can see at the moment is how to outwit next years weather conditions.   

N2 Plot Main Bed & Small Beds Prepped for Next Year

 

N2 Plot Bed 2 Ready for Rotavating

N1 Plot Brassicas Still in Situ Runner Beans to Be Removed for Next Years Brassica Bed

N1 Plot This Years Roots Bed Composted for Next Year (Bottom of Picture) Leeks Still in Situ With Overwintering Onions

Currant Bushes Salvaged from Raspberry Bed (Right of Picture)

 

Grapes Still Producing Well

Garlic from Underneath the Raspberry Plants

Lots of Spiders About Lately

Strawberry Runners Planted Into Barrels Until Next Spring

There's Always Tomorrow!!

Never Again

Whats been happening down my plots since my long lost last blog post (on Sunday 8th September)?? Quite a lot really, but double digging over most of Plot N2, I thought was too boring to create a post about. Most other things down the plots recently, apart from harvesting, have been neglected in favour of the digging, so I have some catching up to do before the onset of Winter. The compacted and parched soil where my main crop Potatoes were growing was re-dug down to the grey clay and broken down by spade which took me approximately 5 weeks to complete. (Better than the 5 months it took over last Winter). Then I returned to the task of clearing bed number 2 which was infested with mainly Dandelions, Docks, Clover and Creeping Buttercups along with many annual weeds. N2 Plot was the penultimate plot to be created in 2009 from old meadow/farm land which had been untended for 30 or so years before then. Needless to say double digging would have been easier to do, using a J.C.B. rather than a garden spade. From 2009 until the end of 2011 cultivation on N2 Plot had consisted of rotavating only, without the ground being cleared beforehand. So all in all I am the first person to actually dig it in almost 40 years, possibly longer.

The sub-soil was well compacted and below that, heavy grey almost white clay was evident. As I turned the soil and broke up the sub-soil, the grey clay underneath was loosened down by about 4 inches (10cm), before the next batch of mixed soil/sub-soil was dug away, along the length of the bed and deposited onto the top of it. Due to the vast amount of time the double digging was taking, I decide not to add compost/manure to the trenches at this stage but to add compost after the digging was finished and rotavate it into the soil, again keeping the soil from compacting. The gritty/sandier top soil I had left over from my front garden project earlier this year was also added to the clay at the bottom of each trench to hopefully aid drainage. As of today approximately 3 meters by 1 and a half meters at the lower end of number 2 bed is still to be double dig. It has been totally exhausting work for the past 2 months and not a job I would recommend to anyone, especially if they are gardening on heavy clay. After number 2 bed has been dug I have 1 more task involving digging, which is to remove my Summer Raspberries from N1 Plot. After that I have promised myself that its rotavating only from now on, except for very minor digging jobs!!!

Double Digging Bed 2 N2 Plot Almost Finished 9th October 13

The Final Few Feet To Be Dug 9th October 13

1 Container of Six With Roots/Weeds From Bed 2. 9/Oct/13 (6 More Containers Were Filled With Stones From Bed 2)

 A SUMMERY OF 2013 DOWN THE PLOTS

January

 Mainly spent avoiding the extremely wet weather if I remember rightly. With the organizing, digging and weeding of N2 Plot being delayed by rain. Hip replacement 25th January.

February

Not much happening and recovering from my operation. Weather still wet and cold. Plots desolate, wet & windswept.

March

Early March was again affected by wet weather with only a little weeding done. Overwintering Japanese Onions were thinned out and the thinnings re-planted. Probably the best Onion crop I've had to date, for size, taste and keeping quality. Peas (Hurst greenshaft) sown N1 Plot despite the wet weather. A good crop of Peas although the later sowings were affected by the hot dry weather conditions causing the plants to dry out despite adequate watering (tap water). Later in the month the digging of the main bed on N2 Plot continued in between rain and hail showers but the ground was finally starting to dry out helped by some breezy weather.

April

By the 10th of April I had finished digging and clearing the weeds from the main bed on N2 Plot, 5 months after starting the task. Up until then the weather had been wet and cold with outside seed sowing/planting being delayed. Spring had finally arrived. Poly tunnel erected on N2 Plot. Its been a huge help so far. Onion sets (Sturion) (Snowball) were planted. Good crop of Sturion but Snowball did not like the later hot dry conditions and they don't seem to keep well, for me anyway. Parsnip seeds sown on N1 Plot (2 rows) of Tender and true, a few germinated after 2 months. 2 more rows sown with very few germinating. It's back to (Gladiator) next season. After the heavy rain earlier in the year by the end of April the lack of it was becoming apparent. Main crop (Desiree) Potatoes planted. An excellent overall crop with some massive tubers, despite the dry conditions. Enough to last until about June/July next year. Carrots sown (Early Nantes & Autumn King) Again a good all round crop with no Carrot fly this year. The Carrots sown into my barrels were slightly sweeter than the ones sown directly into the ground on N1 Plot. Runner beans and Sweetcorn sown into pots and kept inside the Poly tunnel. Both germinated with difficulty and the Runner beans took a long while to establish when planted out. Again this was due to the hot dry weather conditions although the Sweetcorn crop was excellent (Lark F1). Runner beans were of low quality with many plants not setting their beans for most of the year. After some rain in September things improved and the plants are still producing some good beans into October. (Scarlet Emporer & Enorma). Other roots were sown in April and all did well, although due to the amount of d.i.y. jobs this year successional sowings took a back seat. Late April saw me digging out my front lawn and old drive (70 square meters).

May

The lawn turf was transported to the plots by car (40 trips) along with the top soil and 50 plus old paving slabs, more trips, The soil, subsoil and rubble was dug out ready to have the new drive installed. The turf is now stacked in several raised beds I built at the lower end of N2 Plot and the soil has been added to the beds on N2 Plot as well as on top of the turf in the raised beds. More Carrots, Spring Onions, Beetroot and Cauliflowers are currently growing well in these beds. More dry weather here (with vastly varying weather conditions across the U.K.), watering down the plots was being done mainly in the evenings. Butternut squashes planted out and Watermelons sown into pots. An excellent crop of Butternut squashes harvested this week (October). The Water melons were harvested last week, (grown in pots) 3 small ones about the size of  baseballs were nice and sweet with one large specimen still in my kitchen. Next years sowings will be done earlier direct into the ground inside my poly tunnel. Water butts almost empty. First harvest of the year end of May, Overwintered Cabbage, Radish & Lettuce.

June
Repositioning & repairing the shed on N2 Plot took place. Potatoes flowering, Strawberries ripening. This years Strawberries (Cambridge Vigour) were average compared to last years crop, again mainly due to the months of dry hot weather. A good crop of Apples developing. Cucumbers outdoors in the ground not doing well. A good crop of pot grown ridge Cucumbers were harvested last month the others were dire. Raised beds constructed at the lower end of N2 Plot.

July
Mainly seed sowing & harvesting in July with an absolute mega harvest of currants, red, white & black. More d.i.y. After dismantling the compost heap at the top end of N2 Plot my poly tunnel was moved to where the heap had been. 1 more raised bed was constructed at the lower end of N2 Plot. Summer raspberries were poor this year. This was due to the wet weather early in the year causing Cucumber root rot to many of the plants. Some rain in July & the Parsnips had finally germinated (some).

August
More harvesting with Sweetcorn ripening beautifully. Some welcome rain this month gave a boost to many plants suffering from the long dry spell of weather. Runner beans still not developing well. Onions looking good. Chard excellent. More Carrots & French beans harvested, along with some Apples, Raspberries and Yard long beans. First sightings of Hover flies & Honey Bees 2nd week in August.

September
Lifted my main crop Potatoes (Desiree), excellent crop. More digging and double digging on N2 Plot. More harvesting. Grapes excellent both in quantity and quality. Outdoor Tomatoes still only ripening slowly but good size and quality. Runner beans finally producing some good beans late September.

October
Still double digging bed 2 on N2 Plot. Much tidying of both plots is still needed before Winter. Composting and manuring still to be done ready for next year.

A Nice Harvest of Carrots (Flyaway) 9/Oct/13

Successes:  Sweetcorn, Onions, Potatoes, Chard, Yard long beans, Currants, Grapes, Apples, Rhubarb, Swede, Turnips, Lettuce, Radish, Watermelon, Squashes, Pumpkins, Peas, Overwintered Cabbage, Spring onions, Carrots, Gooseberries, Autumn Raspberries, Beetroot, Savoy cabbage.

Failures:  Runner beans (partial failure), Pak-choi, Khol-rabi, Summer raspberries, Pears, Cherries, Plums, Parsnips, French climbing beans (partial failure), Outdoor cucumbers, Alpine strawberries, Early Cauliflowers, Successional sowing, accidentally reversing my car into the poly tunnel, too much digging, hot dry weather, not fixing a leak in my shed roof before the weather turned wet, too much d.i.y. and not enough gardening.

All in all another trying gardening year mainly thanks to the weather again.

There's always tomorrow!!!