Planting Out. 6th May 2020

We have been blessed with lovely weather during lockdown so a lot of time has been spent at the allotment and in the garden. We feel very privileged to have this facility and the freedom it allows. The planting is now well underway and the weeds have all gone.

At the allotment we now have potatoes, broad beans, onions and a first sowing of beetroot planted. We start plants in seed trays or plastic rings (see photo) as it gives them a good start before going up to the allotment. Otherwise the birds tend to dig up the onions, the mice eat the broad beans, and rows of seeds often dry out if not watered regularly.

We are trying carrots again this year but these carrots arrived on strips of tissue like paper so they are ready spaced and you don’t need to worry about thinning them out. Thinning them usually allows the carrot root fly to gain access and the carrots then get attacked. It’s an interesting experiment and we will need to keep them well watered but we will see what happens.

Another experiment we are trying is to grow an early courgette in a pot on the kitchen windowsill and then in a week or so it will go outside inside a plastic ring and be covered by glass. Courgettes are not frost hardy so need protection and don’t grow well until the weather is warmer. We are just hoping that this one may make a head start and we will have some early vegetables.

The lettuce that I grew in a plastic ring in the back garden are now planted out and we are already picking leaves to eat. Much to my husbands consternation I always plant the lettuce much too close then pick individual leaves. He would like me to plant in rows and grow full sized lettuce but it would then be ages before we could pick any. As the back garden plot is mine he doesn’t get a look in!

It’s been so good having time this year to get on top of the planting and enjoy just being outside. Hopefully our work will be rewarded with lots of fresh organic vegetables