Clearing up and putting to bed

It's that time again !! you know the time when the plot and the garden looks untidy, with dead or dying plants and it really all needs clearing up and putting to bed for the autumn and winter months. YEAH !! I look forward to doing this as it's a time of reflection and planning for next year.
My son moved recently and in the garden there was a brilliant cold frame that I had my eye on, sadly the elderly lady had died and her family didn't want it and left it behind.   So I have it now on the allotment  plot. I just need to buy some more glass and bits and bobs for it and it will be so handy. I love it.

We worked on the plot for two half days this week, pulling up plants that had finished, weeding (lots) covering some beds, moving my strawberry bed to somewhere sunnier and planting new runners and new varieties. I also planted a Victoria Plum tree that was in the sale at our local garden centre. It's in and staked and fingers crossed there will be plums next year as it is a mature potted tree.

The plum tree

The Cape gooseberry plant in the greenhouse has been very productive and I have had quite a number of fruits off it and there are still more to ripen. I will have another go growing another next year and put it in an even bigger pot and give it more room to grow.

Cape Gooseberries.

The chillies have been amazig this year. I grew about four different varieties, one in particular is VERY hot.



This year wasn't a successful year for the Pumpkins and squashes, but I have had some and they look lovely.

The Globe artichokes surprised me by having so many fruits on for their first year, but the hearts weren't very big and that's the best part for me especially pickled in olive oil and garlic. So I decided to not harvest this year and I allowed them to produce their amazing flowers. The bees love them and so do I.

And here is a photo of the plot looking tidy and although a bit bare there is still some things to pick for instance mangetout which is the second sowing and there is an amazing amount of spinach which is still producing tasty leaves. It looks even tidier now as the grass has been cut since the photo was taken.

That's about all my news for now. I know I have been a bit neglectful of the blog and my blog reading  recently, but we have been in London quite a bit.

I hope you have all had some wonderful harvests this year and if not ! Well there is always next year.

My first Globe Artichokes

I hadn't been to the allotment since last Thursday and there wasn't a sign of an artichoke then, so today I was excited and amazed to find lot's of little artichokes popping up on the plants that only got sown and grown this year. I can't wait to cut them and cook them.

Aren't they amazing plants ? I love them and need to find a recipe to pickle the hearts in oil and herbs.

I also have lot's of fruits on the cape gooseberry.

And the chillies are doing well.

Lots more potatoes and garlic

Runner beans are forming and there seems to be two different varieties, so I must have sown the ones with the white flower by mistake. I've no idea what they are.

French beans are forming as well. I have 'Fasold' and 'Blue Lake' and another mistake that's got sown which I think a neighbour gave me seeds from her dark bean crop last year. They look beautiful I can't wait to try them.

There are loads of flowers and still more to come such as the 'Astor's' the bees and hover-flies are loving the plot at the moment and the Cosmos and Lavender are a favourite.

The 'Echinacea' grown from seed last year are doing exceptionally well. So all in all the visit today was really worthwhile as it's all looking productive and pretty.

I've grown too much AGAIN !!!!

Last year I vowed not to grow excess amounts of veg on the plot this year, but I'm not sure how it happened but I have done it again.  Although it's lovely to share with the neighbours (which I did today !) but it all takes time to look after such vast amounts of plants. Trouble is I can't bring myself to compost healthy plants so even though I give away lot's of plants every year, I still have way too many.

I had a good harvest today and It's scary to know that although my fridge is full there will be more to harvest on my next visit. Next year I have to get it right !! how do you manage to just grow enough ? or do you also do as I do and grow too much ?

Here is some photo's taken on the plot today, it's all looking very lush. I dug up some garlic from the second bed  and this variety 'Cristo' is huge, it fit's into the palm of my hand.

The Globe Artichokes are enormous and growing like crazy.

The onions are growing well, they looked like blades of grass when I put them in as I grew them from seed.

I have lots of  self seeded Sunflowers and Calendulas, all brightening up the plot

The pumpkin and squashes are in

The Spinach has been amazing, but is slowly going to seed now so I have sown some more today.

The Runner beans and French beans have now reached the top of the wigwams and are all in flower.

The Tayberry has quite a few fruits now and I have been eating some for a couple of days.

The gooseberries have loads of fruit, the green ones are huge and the red ones are just turning from green to red and are delicious.

I am growing Cape Gooseberries in the greenhouse and this one is really getting big now and has quite a few fruits forming

And finally  here is the Broad beans, Mangetout, and Calabrese that I harvest today. I haven't grown calabrese before and I am so pleased with it as the heads have grown so big over the last week, I will definitely grow it every year.

It's been an amazing year so far, and there is so much more to come. All the potatoes are dug up now as I only grew first earlies. I will post the results on the varieties soon, as they were unusual  and I haven't grown them before.

Globe Artichokes

I have just received my Globe Artichokes from Stephen at  Victoriana Nursery . I am very excited about growing this vegetable as I only discovered that I liked globe artichokes last year when I had some that my daughter-in-law gave me, granted they were bought from the supermarket already prepared and in a jar, but they were delicious and then I had them in London as a starter in a Tapas bar. That's when I decided that I would like to grow some of my own. I would however recommend that anyone wanting to grow them buys a fresh one from the supermarket and tries them first as they can be difficult to cook and there are different ways to eat them. The French like to boil or steam the whole head and them pull of the leaves and dip them in garlic butter and then you scrape the flesh from the leaves with your teeth. Very tasty but I found it messy, so I will be finding recipes to use the hearts I think as they are yummy. In fact here some links  I found that might be useful if you are considering growing these delicious and architectural plants.
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/videos/1000/preparing-globe-artichokes
http://www.ehow.co.uk/cook-artichokes/


Here is a YouTube link to Stephen talking about his vegetable plants: In fact if you also click the link above there is another  video and lot's of good monthly advice to be had.
http://www.youtube.com/user/VictorianaNursery

I already had a packet of  the variety 'Green globe' seeds, but wasn't sure if I would be successful in growing them myself from seed so I ordered some plants from Victoriana nursery just in case ! Stephen sent me six plants ready to go out on the plot, but as the bed isn't ready yet I decided to pot them up and try and get them in next week. There are three each of 'Romanesco' and 'Imperial Star' both of which are highly recommended by Stephen. I am pleased to say that my 'Green Globe' seeds germinated very well and I have some very sturdy plants which I am giving to a friend and keeping a few for myself to go with the other two varieties. I found that all the bother of sowing and caring for them wasn't really worth the effort though as the plants from Stephen arrived safely packaged and ready to go in the ground and the price of his plants are so reasonable, and the size of the plants I grew took up so much space in the greenhouse.

My Green Globe

'Romanesco' and 'Imperial Star' which will be putting on a big growth spurt anytime soon, as the root system is so healthy .

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Now for a natter about  SWEETPEAS

I don't know if you like me have always grown your sweet peas in seperate modules ? well I always believed that this was the best way to grow them. BUT I find it time consuming, space taking and ALL those Toilet roll innards drive me mad !!! so having bought pots of them growing all together in one pot from the garden centre last year and I have to say that I didn't think that disturbing the little plants would work.  Well it did, and I carefully tapped them out of the pot separated them and popped them in the ground and I found them as sturdy as any that I had grown and mollycoddled separately in loo rolls . So this year I have done as the garden centres and grown mine in pots all together and they have transplanted very well in the ground and are growing nicely. I have now got lot's more growing in this way ready to go up to the lottie.

Finally to end this post here are a few photo's that I took this morning of a lovely creamy white pansy and a cheeky robin on the fence watching me and a pot of lovely spring primroses called 'Firecracker' in the foreground and 'Castillion' (at the back).  I love the colours of these and I think I will divided them and get more plants for next year.

Where is the month going ??  just two more weeks and we will be into MAY !
Have a lovely week everyone and let's hope the sun shines and has it's 'Hat On'  hip hip hip hurray !!