Following a week away from the allotment we returned today and surveyed the changes over a fortnight of almost solid rain had made to the plot.
In some areas the increased moisture seems to have agreed with our crops in particular the pumpkins, squashes and courgettes we all thriving and showing signs of the first fruits. Some of the flowers on these plants were able to be hand pollinated at this point and make the promise of many happy and fruit swelling months to come in their care.
'Creeping courgettes and squashes'
The Swiss chard, tomatoes, and climbing / runner beans are also doing incredibly well and producing lots of flowers, however there are no signs of any juvenile pods on the beans forming yet. All in all the whole plot is looking very green and healthy however a few well deserved, yet not scorching weeks of sunshine would not come amiss at the moment, we can only look to the skies and pray for some warmer weather.
'Tented tomatoes & rainbow chard'
Not everything on the plot was looking so rosy, predictably there were signs on neighbouring plots of potato blight which was a very concerning sight and made us worry for our own crops. This prompted an inspection of the leaves of our plants and another test of the plants below ground in case of infection. On observation the Aran pilot plants were showing a few black spots on their leaves and as such we decided to try and overt disaster by using a natural fungicide to ward off any blight. This was something we were not hoping to do but from seeing the condition of neighbouring plot holders plants and some symptoms on our own, we felt it was worth a try.
'Pretective potatoes'
This treatment does not guarantee our crop will not be affected by the disease but rest assured we will always try to avoid using such substances in future and lifting the tubers as soon as possible, as well as keeping a vigilant eye on the weather.
There were continuing problems with the broad bean harvest, when we arrived the plants were utterly covered in chocolate spot and as such we decided to remove them in order to save any remaining pods from being further affected and the possibility of spreading the problem around. We left the roots of the plants in situ so as to take advantage of their nitrogen fixing properties, but hacked the plants down to ground level and removed any acceptable pods. As it turns out we reaped quite a reasonable harvest and managed so salvage about two kilo's of reasonable sized pods for use in our own and families kitchens.
'Bare Broad Patch'
The other worrying aspect of this wet weather is the possibility of white rot forming on our onion crop. There are no signs of this as of yet, and luckily our soil is not prone to watter logging however this extended damp period does not allow you mind to rest on the subject.
'Not rotting please .... we are British'
Other items we were able to harvest this week consisted of one small cauliflower, which we needed to take as it looked like it was going to blow, if left in the ground any longer. Another good kilo of gooseberries were obtained from their respective bushes as well as a large punnet full of slightly over ripe but delicious of early summer raspberries
'Harvest is Here'
A few routine tasks also needed to be carried out before leaving today in particular to mow the disgustingly long grass at the front and sides of our plot, as well as some more replacement weed proof material placed on the pumpkin patch and a decent weed.
We are hoping for some brighter weather next week and a harvest of potatoes, keep your eyes peeled for more news from the plot.