Of course even the best laid plans don’t work out, and once again it’s been quite a while since I’ve been on the allotment.
The second raised bed was a total failure. I had one solitary strawberry plant surviving (from around 36 originally), so I took all the soil out, lined the base with cardboard (a good use for all those boxes from courier deliveries!) and replaced it with fresh compost, some grit sand, and home-made compost.
I do still need to replace the net though!
Looking at my ever so well-named “3rd raised bed”, ‘Just Add Cream’ is in flower. These plants don’t grow as large as my other strawberry plants, but the strawberries have a fantastic flavour. I have had a bit of a problem with some of them not liking cold winters.
Heading down to the runner beans, and we have flower!
Not the world’s best photo but the Blackberry is currently supported on some wires which aren’t attached to the posts any more, so it kind of ends up dropping over the path. I need to get on and get some new wires to keep it off the ground.
The Blackberry in front of the runner beans (the netting around the beans is just to protect them from Roe Deer)
I’ve got three blackcurrant bushes, and this is the healthiest looking of the lot (I know it needs weeding!). The other large blackcurrant doesn’t seem to have as many leaves and fruit as this one, so I’m not sure if it needs feeding, or if it’s just a different variety.
Cabbages! Ok, I admit it – these were grown to “fill a space” and be a form of green manure, But it looks like they’ve kept the slugs & snails occupied, which hopefully keeps them away from the fruit!
My creatively-named “half raised bed” (it’s only half the depth of a regular 1m square raised bed), with the rest of the chives, and a newly-planted herb.
Nasturtiums
There’s a strange space at the end of one my my planting areas, so that was just the right shape to plant some lavender. My aim is to keep this one cut back as necessary, so it doesn’t end up with woody growth.
Up into “wild flower corner” and you can make out the Penstemon through the long grass.
This seems to be a pink nettle (doesn’t appear to sting), but the bees seem to prefer this to a lot of the flowers I’ve planted!
Down to Raspberry Jungle, and it’s starting to live up to its name! These are wild-growing Autumn Raspberries, so apart from cutting them down to the ground in the winter, and making a pathway through the section each year, they’re pretty much left to their own devices each year.
The rhubarb came with the plot, and apart from splitting a plant several years ago, it’s very much just left to fend for itself!
As you can see, the bindweed is starting to take over again – this will be quite a bit of work to untangle everything, as there’s also some stinging nettles growing under the rhubarb that I don’t want to catch my arms on!
And the inevitable slug – I try to move any slugs and snails over to the rhubarb section, as they can munch on those leaves as much as they like!