FYI

Clicking on any of the pictures will open them at full size in the browser window, which means you will have to use the 'back' button to return to the main pages, whereas clicking to the left or right of any picture will open them in a new window, if you fancy a closer look at any of the piccies we've posted! We've included a Google Earth satelite picture of our plots and this years planting plan at the bottom of the page, next to each other. If you choose the Earth view on the satelite image you can rotate the image until it is lined up with the planting plan, then use the arrows in the plan to scroll from Plot 2 to Plot 1.

Wednesday, July 02, 2008

Pre judging update + balance sheet n piccies!

Apologies for the delay in updates, have been busy and on holiday, so havent really had the chance to post much!

Its the Trafford allotment competition judging this week and next, and after all the hard work that Mr D has put in on the new plot, he's determined to get a look in (even a 'commended' would be great!), so following on from 6 days away on holiday, plus a day looking for a new bed yesterday, today has been all about getting the new plot (plot 1) back up to scratch!

We've now finished weeding all the beds and paths, sideshooted the toms, fed n watered everything, made a couple of (very heath robinson) signs for the plots (Plot 1 and Plot 2) and put them up, had a darn good tidy and harvested what was ready to come out!
As you can see, most of the crops seem to be doing well, the courgettes are now producing, the pumpkins and squash have started flowering, toms have set fruit, beans are flowering and its all looking good for a reasonable harvest, even tho we were late with a lot of crops after having to sort out the new plot!
3 sisters bed, squashes seem to be doing really well!

Brassica bed on plot 1, planting thru the cardboard seems to be working really well, plants are growing well and weeds are not a problem!

The plastic greenhouse toms are also growing extremely well, just look at the diference a few weeks makes!

Plot 2 (our original plot) is still a work in progress, with the paths still to be finished off and barked up, plus 2 beds to plant up and a lot of weeding to do, so depending on when the judges come to view, we 'may' be able to get it back into shape, but it will very much depend on the weather. As you can see here, the greenhouse is growing really well, and the overwintering onions are amazing!

Another view of the greenhouse, we're both waiting for the triffids to attack every time we go in there!
Although it would be nice to have all the hard work acknowledged, its not the be all and end all of having an allotment, the real reason we are GYOing is for the fresh, tasty, health organic veg, and as long as thats what we get, then its definitely worth while!

So, to finish this update, here's a run down of the current balance sheet for 2008!
Total costs so far this growing year
Rent (for 2 full plots and a half plot) #100Seeds # 30
Seed Spuds # 20
Compost / Grow Bags # 20
Fertilizers etc # 20
Muck # 10
Total costs #200

Harvests so far this year


2 batches overwintered garlic (97 bulbs) $40

Rasps 4lb $5

Strawbs 3lb $5

Courgettes x 8 $3

Rhubarb 15lb $30

Cucumber $1

Chillies / peppers $1

Spuds $5
Onions $2
Radish $1
Mange Tout 3lb $5
Broad Beans 5lb $5
Lettuce x 4 $3
Broccolli $2
Cabbage $2
Carrots $2
Total Harvest so far 2008 $112

So far that means we're 88 pounds out of pocket, but as we havent had to buy glass or greenhouse fixings, nor tools or fleeces etc, expenses are far down on last year as we're now getting established, and most of the heavy set up expenses were paid for last year!

As to crops still growing currently we have :-
Fruit
8 crowns of well established rhubarb
85 Raspberry canes - flowering
4 apple trees - lots of imature fruit
2 pear trees - lots of immature fruit
1 dwarf lemon tree (indoor) - flowering
1 dwarf orange tree (indoor) - lots of fruit
6 blueberry bushes - lots of imature fruit!
12 gooseberry bushes - lots of goosegogs
2 jostaberry canes
3 bramble canes
300+ strawberry plants - now have lots of green strawbs, just need some sun to ripen them!
3 melons
3 watermelons
1 huge grapevine - masses of flowers
2 blackcurrants bushes - flowering
2 redcurrant bushes - flowering
1 cherry tree - lots of imature fruit
Herbs
1 bay tree
2 types of mint
2 types of parsley
1 rosemary bush
2 types of basil
3 types of sage
lots of chives
plus cumin, dill and coriander growing from seed to be added once they are of a big enough size!
Greenhouse crops
59 tomato plants (9 varieties) (plus 8 outdoor already planted and other tomato seedlings ready to be potted up for the back yard and hanging baskets)
3 cucumbers
9 peppers (4 varieties)
18 chillies (15 varieties)
3 aubergines (2 varieties) plus another 6 seedlings
Vegetable - Peas and Beans
6 double rows of runner beans 9' long (2 varieties) - with another double row of seedlings still to be planted
48 Dwarf french beans (3 varieties)
18 Broad Bean plants (2 varieties) with further successional sowings coming along
2 double row mange tout - 10' long
6 double row peas 9' long
Vegetable - Potatoes
3 1/2 beds of spuds, 120 seed spuds in total, consisting of First Earlies (24 seed spuds), Second Earlies (24) Early Maincrops (24) and Late Maincrops (48), of 9 varieties in total
Vegetable - Roots
2 tubs carrots in and approaching edible size
80 parsnips
8' by 8' bed planted with carrot root fly resistant varieties in the root bed on plot 1.
Turnip (2 varieties) and swede(3 varieties) 3 rows each in a 8'by 8' bed
Vegetables - Aliums (Onions and Garlic)
450 onions from set (150 overwintered and approaching harvest) - 3 varieties
350 onions from seed - 3 varieties (sown in February and transplanted last month, methinks we should have sown earlier as they seem a bit small yet, but we'll see how they get on!)
200 leeks planted out (with another tray germinating ready to go in later)
Vegetables - Salad crops
15 Beetroot (further successional plantings planned)
40 radishes (nearing harvestable size) - further successional plantings planned
9 lettuces (in greenhouse borders - 2 varieties) with successional plantings planned
20 spring onions, further successional plantings planned
Vegetables - Brassicas
12 brussel sprout plants - 3 varieties
6 spring cabbages - nearing harvest
12 summer broccolli
12 autumn broccolli
6 Purple sprouting broccolli
10 red cabbages
20 white cabbages (4 varieties)
12 caulies
more successional plantings of cabbage, broccolli and cauli planned)
Vegetables - Cucurbits
12 jack be little pumpkins
12 courgettes (4 varieties) wwith another successional sowing planned
5 Mars Pumpkins
5 Baby Bear Pumpkins
5 Avalon Squash
6 Butternut squash
6 chestnut squash
5 carnival squash
Vegetables - Other
65 sweetcorn plants (3 varieties)
Jerusalem Artichokes - 1 bed 10' by 5' - already at 7' tall!
4 beds of trenched celery - approx 80 plants

4 comments:

Matron said...

Hope all goes well for the competition judging! Look forward to seeing the results.

Anonymous said...

Thanks, the new plot (1) is looking as good as possible, just a shame that in getting the new plot sorted after taking it over 8 weeks ago that we've sadly neglected the weeding on our other plot, still, its not the winning that matter (honest!), but the tasty veg that we grow! Mind you, I recon with a bit of reasonable weather we should be able to get our original plot (2) back up to scratch without too much hassle!

HappyMouffetard said...

That's looking fantastic!

Anonymous said...

Thankyou! Hoping to get some more piccies tomorrow on our day off (a whole day at the plot for us both!) With any luck we may even get plot 2 looking half as good as the new plot, possibly in time for the judging! lol!