It has been a busier summer than usual as the weather has given us some challenges. The only solace is that everyone here on the allotment complex has the same "problems", if you want to call them that. Long periods of dryness, cool temps and then excessive heat. There have been birds and rodents...blackflies and other insects. The green munchers are now appearing. A Green Munchera---a sort of green grasshopper/katydid-like creature. The strawbs have done exceptionally well though; however, they required daily watering. Now they are done and so it is the year to replace them. They have all been removed and their plots have been hoed and cleaned, raked fine and planted with a green manure (Phacelia). The spuds will go in this plot next year. The red onions were ready to lift, so those are out and are drying on a box with a metal gauze bottom. They are drying well and so I set them indoors when rain is forecast. Newly planted venkel (fennel) plantlets are standing proudly to the right side. They have grown dramatically in the past couple of weeks. We have been pruning our toms with regularity this summer as their growth has been remarkable; in fact, the foliage of many plants--blooming or veg has been surprisingly prolific. Here are the Ferline toms after their most recent suckering and pruning. Across the path, are the new trials of Rouge d'Irag. It is supposed to be a beef tom, but I do not see a very large fruit on their vines. The grooved red one you see in the piccy below has been consumed at home. We had a taste test of Ferline and Rouge d'Iraq at home just before enjoying the first BLT's of the season. Oo-WE! That was too tastey for words. These toms are as mannerless as can be--they just keep ordering food from the garden kitchen. Well, we know that they are bottomless pits when it comes to mineral consumption, so the comfrey tea has been going like hotcakes. In the foto below you can see the latest batch of "tea" and in the blue bucket is the new batch being made. The snack cues in the back of the greenhouse are giving fruits on a regular basis now. The paprika's are not giving as much as usual. I could not figure out why, but when I see the scar on this pointy paprika, I am thinking, "slug damage". I wonder if the slug(s) have not consumed the flowers. It is my own fault because I have not been paying attention to the paps at all. Normally I plant them, give a little water and food from time to time and otherwise just ignore them until the fruits expand and colour. Back out into the plots now--the corn survived the atrocious wind storm that we have just had, and are looking pretty darn good, I must say. They are producing ears, but I fear that with the extreme wind that the ears will receive no more fertilization so perhaps there will be empty gaps in the cobs, like the grin of a snaggle-toothed boy. The runner beans are doing well. They are climbing wildly and full in bloom. The bumblebees are really partial to these blooms. Here the bean plot from a distance.The most developed on the left are the runners. They were planted a good two weeks or so before the plants in front of them (to the right on the foto). I said they were runner beans, and they are...most of them. Except for the plants at the end of the back row--they are what we call "spekbonen". I do not know the english word for this...it is a cross between a french climbing pole been and a runner bean, as I understand it. They may be called, "snap bean" or "Pole bean"...I dunno. What I DO know is, is that they are very tasty. Over in the blueberry patch, the blues are doing pretty good, in spite of the extended period of dryness. Well, there are still some spuds to be harvested and I have four whole apples on one little tree, but that's about it for the fruit and veg at the moment. A couple of overviews of the flower garden. This year there has been a great deal of vertical growth and more foliage than usual, so the overall appearance is not really up to standard. This segment is near the entrance gate. Then a closer look at the varieties: . The bees are doing fine. The colonies all have new queens and seem to be developing well. Their populations and honing storage continues on course. That is about it from the lottie this time.
Great post, Sjoerd, it appears that despite some weather anomalies you are having fairly good success with your gardening efforts this season.. A testament to your skills and perseverance! Wishing you well and continued success in all your endeavors.. Hank
Your lottie has been really producing for you even with the odd weather. Everything looks great. You said that your strawberries a are ready to be replaced. How long do you keep them? I've always taken the babies of the mother plant and replanted them and removed the mother plant when it starts decreasing fruit. Just wondering if you had a hybrid or special kind that doesn't produce viable babies.
Your lottie seems to be doing just fine with your TLC Sjoerd. I'm so glad that the weather hasn't caused too many problems for you. I didn't plant either tomatoes or peppers this year but all the fruit is making up for their lack. I have blackcurrants ready to make sorbet with and the gooseberries and rhubarb are producing so well that I'm having to give some away. The clematis are going great guns and are flowering profusely as are all of my flowering plants. It's good to know that you're going to have a good harvest again this year despite the pests that the weather seems to be multiplying. Thank goodness your bees haven't been affected by the winds and rain and that your colonies are all doing well.
Hello HANK-- Great hearing from you. Thanks for your well-wishes and compliment. That is really nice. It has been a bit of a struggle this year, but I hope to be able to fill the freezer by the end of the season. Good evening 2-OF--Thanks for your nice words. The strawbs are something that we replace every 2-3 years. Naturally I used to take little plantlets on runners from the mother plant, but these days I find that I have such a great success with new plants that I have been going that route. There is a strawberry plant grower out in the polder and that is where I go. His plants are really are superb with enormous root systems....best of all they are ridiculously inexpensive. i have to tell you that if the chap out in the polder wasn't there, then I'd still be taking baby plantlets from the mother plant today. The types that we use are called, "Korona" and "Dar Royale". EILEEN--It is good news to hear that your fruit s are doing so well this year. Some of mine are and some are not.I believe that the plum tree that isn't doing well is because it produced so heavily last year. I reckon that it is taking a little rest this season. Interesting that your Clems are doing so well. I have noticed that mine are as well. I have great curtains of colour hanging over pergola's and arches. I cannot recall a better year for them. Do you still have dreams of keeping bees?
Yes but our neighbour who keeps bees has advised against it for the time being. He's been having problems with his hives because of the horrible weather we've been experiencing. If we ever get more settled weather conditions he's going to help us to make a start with one or two hives.
Hey, that is great news! The weather is holding us up over here as well. Well, tonight I have to go into the bees come what may. Sometimes it is just necessary. Lucky for me AND the bees, it is only the one hive. This unseasonable weather really is something else, isn't it.
Your lottie always is so well stocked to please the stomach and vibrant with flowers to please the sight. Visited a couple of lotties in Europe and yours still stand out.
Thanks KK--Things are going well enough in the lottie this year, but less than in other years. I can imagine that you visited several lotties in Europe, as they are all over the place. It seems that every lottie is a different in appearance and membership. I hope that you enjoyed seeing them and got a good impression.
Looking good Sjoerd! I really must go thru and sucker out my tomatoes too ... they are so amazingly full of foliage this year that I can barely see all the fruit on them. And there is a LOT of fruit under there! Everything on your lottie looks great!
Hi Netty, We here have also noticed an enormous amount of foliage on our plants...plants of all sorts. The tom and spud plants were especially thickly grown. We did not trim the spud foliage, but we did the toms, as we do every year. My compost bins were quickly full with all the trimmings. Please post some foto's of your toms and other things. I always so look forward to your piccies.
I sure would like to walk thru your lottie. The neatness is amazing, the colors are wonderful and the produce make me drool.
Oh Donna that would be so nice. Thanks for the very nice compliment. What a nice thing to say. There is still a bit more of season left here and the harvests are coming in hard and fast.
