Jam Today !

The recent warm weather has helped our 'Cambridge Favourite' and 'Flamenco' plants to produce a glut of strawberries.

Heather has taken this opportunity to produce some more of her excellent strawberry jam.

... and then it rained !

We've put in a really long shift down at the patch today and have now planted and sown everything we need for a Summer harvest.

• Tomatoes : Rutgers, Roma & Koralik 
• Squash : Uchiki Kuri, Black Futsu & Sunburst
• Courgettes : Bianco di Trieste & Jemmer
• Sweet Peppers : Rubens & Cabernet
• Chillis : Heatwave
• Sweetcorn : Seville F1 & Lark F1

We transplanted our Leeks (Bleu de Solaise) and have sown another row of Broad Beans (Aquadulce Claudia) which should be ready for harvest later in the year.

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We had been concerned that the crops we planted would suffer in such dry weather... fortunately the rain started as we were planting and has continued all evening.
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Waiting for the rain

It's getting rather dry down at the patch !
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We are spending most of our spare time watering our very thirsty fruit and vegetable beds.

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The brassicas (savoy cabbage, red cabbage, broccoli, calabrese, sprouts, kale & cauliflower) have all been transplanted from their nursery beds into their permanent beds.  They were looking extremely sad at first, sulking about being uprooted, but they now seem to have established themselves nicely.

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Everything seems to be almost a month ahead of what was happening last year. We have just about finished cropping our early peas and beans and have planted squash and tomato plants in with the garlic and onions so that they will be flourishing when these are lifted in mid-June.  We have taken a gamble with 'Early Crookneck' squash, planting these out early in the hope that they will escape any late frosts and they are already flowering... so will not be cross-pollinated with any other squashes, so we will be able to save their seeds and use these next year.  The courgettes we planted do not seem to have survived their move and we will have to use some of the spare plants we kept by for 'emergency'.

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Our order of 'Violet Globe' artichokes arrived last week and these were planted down at the bottom of the main bed alongside the wire fence. In front of these we are growing nasturtiums and a mixed row of flat-leaf parsley and bunching onions.

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We are growing many more herbs this year, for kitchen use and as a companion planting : Dill, chervil, carroway and marjoram have just been sown. The earlier-sown Summer savory, coriander, basil and curly-leaf parsley are all flourishing. 

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Return to The Patch

Returning to The Patch after a two-week holiday, we were delighted to find that our friends had been watering the young plants and seedlings in our absence.

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The peas and beans were ready for picking... and the first of the Strawberries !

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We have picked our last spears of Asparagus, allowing the plants to put on some Summer foliage that will put goodness back into the roots.  Tomatoes have been planted in amongst the Asparagus as, supposedly, this will reduce the risk of Asparagus Beetle.

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Swift as a shadow, short as any dream

Swift as a shadow, short as any dream,
Brief as the lightning in the collied night,

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Our first-early potatoes, 'Swift', are shown in the picture below.
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Asparagus Days

Our asparagus bed is performing really well and we have been cutting some nice thick spears every time we visit the allotment.

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For lunch on Good Friday, I made asparagus with an hollandaise sauce using a recipe from Delia Smith... see here.  The starter was served on the beautiful asparagus dish that was given to us as a present from our friend Ann.   Simple and delicious !

Good Companions !

This year we will be planting 'companions' alongside our crops. We shall have 'Poached Egg Plant' (limnanthes) growing alongside our soft fruit because this plant attracts hover flies which will attack aphids and other nasties. 

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Alyssum will grow alongside potatoes as an attractive mulch. 

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Chervil and dill will grow in amongst the strawberries, parsley and tagetes between the apples to reduce the risk of apple scab, summer savory alongside broad beans to help repel black fly and 'Love Lies Bleeding' (amaranth) in with sweetcorn... apparently it will bring nutrients to the top soil !