I realise that I haven't been a very good blogger recently ! that goes for posting on my own blog and reading other blogs also. I have been busy on the allotment and helping my son out with a recent house move, a niece's wedding in Italy, and clearing out my loft and selling things on e-bay which is all new to me. Some things I feel reluctant to sell, but hey ! they were only hanging about in my loft (for years) and I do need extra freezer space in the garage, so I thought why not sell a few items to help save up for a fridge/freezer for the garage to take all the extra fruit and veg I grew that had to be frozen. I am learning that if your not careful it can cost rather a lot to pay for all the bits and bobs (Insertion fees, photographs of the item, to name a few) to put things on e-bay and if one isn't careful you can actually be out of pocket if the item doesn't sell.
The allotment news is that most of my beds are cleared. I have halved my raspberry patch which had started off as 13 canes almost four years ago and ended up looking like a forest of canes which made it hard to harvest. I think I may have grown and planted too many globe artichokes, so I may take a few out as they take up so much space. But I wont make the decision until next year or I may end up regretting it.
Today I went up to plant the garlic, a bit later than I planned but still within the time needed for them to go in.
I dug up all but five of my precious 'pink giraffe' dahlias and now have an amazing amount of tubers which all came from one plant purchased a few years back at the Hampton Court flower show. I still have a number of them flowering in my garden as well, so a good supply for next year. Here's a photo of the lovely flowers , as you can see they aren't your ordinary dahlia, the spikey flower is quite unusual and anyone seeing it for the first time always ask what it is and never recognise it as a dahlia, myself included when I first saw it.
The pumpkins and squashes were a little disappointing this year, but the little 'munchkins' squashes were good.
I have been thinking about what i want to grow next year on the plot and making lists and now need to plan what is going where. I'm not very organised with my planning and have to guess what went where last year and rotate my crops a bit haphazardly, so next year I intend to keep a proper record ( my inner voice is saying -YEAH YEAH, heard it all before !!!!!) So that's about all my news and now I need to find time to have a read at what all you busy people have been up to and hopefully gleen a few tips and great ideas that you might have.
Have a great week-end
M xx
10 comments:
Hi Maureen; Glad to have you back on the blogging scene again. What are you doing with all the dahlia tubers you lifted? Will you store them for use next year, or just discard them?
Good for you tackling e-bay! I get so far with it then can't be bothered and would rather just get rid of stuff to the charity shops! Love the dahlia, have you lifted most of the tubers for winter protection? I don't know about growing dahlias but would like to put some in my mum's garden - a bit of a perennial show!
PS. Good reminder, must get my garlic in!
Hi Mark, thanks for the comment. I must try and make time to keep up my blog and read others. I always lift the special dahlia tubers and 'Pink Giraffe' is very special as it's never seen in the shops or garden centres and as far as I know only sold through specialist dahlia growers. I do lift lot's of other beauties as well and store and plant next year again
Hi CARO, I know what you mean about e-bay and they are obviously making serious money from the
1000's or millions who don't sell their item but still pay insertion fees. However I have sold a couple of really nice bits, far to nice to give to charity shops (although I do give them some things)
I always lift special dahlias and store them after dividing the many tubers to make more plants and then re-plant next year. Your mum would love dahlias as they put on a show all through the summer and lot's of mine are still in flower. You can leave them in the ground and many people do, just mulch or cover with cardboard to protect them from frost.
Hi Doc.
I like the pumpkins (pumpkin seeds are very good for you).
My vegetable garden is not doing that well but my fruit trees are spiffy (bananas and sugar apple now).
Hi Maureen, 'Good for you' tackling eBay. I should do something with all the junk in our attic. Love the dahlias. I grew some for the first time this year (plainer than yours though) and hope to store the tubers over the winter. I just got back from England -- was there for the heatwave, then big cooldown. It was a bitter-sweet birthday visit with my Mom, as she is in hospital. I need to return in a couple of weeks. P. x
What stunning little pumpkins. I sympathize with your raspberry cane issue, mine are just running riot and the suckers just don't grow where I want them to!
Hi Prospero, thanks for the comment and I am jealous that you can grow such exotic fruits. I have tried to leave you messages on your blog but I am having problems getting it to send.
Hi Pam, I do hope your mother is going to be OK, such a worry for you being so far away. I will catch up with you on your blog.
M x
Thanks Matron, yes raspberries are a real nuisance aren't they.
Hi Maureen, well done for tackling eBay, we've been doing it on and off for 5 years now and normally wait from free listing days to keep the costs down. Lovely dahlias as always, I'm really pleased with mine this year and hoping to have a bit more success storing them over winter. I'm now an allotment holder as well (half a plot) so the empire is expanding again!
Hi DAMO, thanks for the tip on e-bay. I have had a couple of days for free listing, but it's usually for the auction and I have been selling at buy now or best offer. I'm doing OK and on a roll !!!! well now I've said that it's bound to go the other way , sod's law & all that !!!
I hope to get some tubers off to you this year as the 'Pink Giraffe' has multiplied.
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