Confused Plants

The weather over the last few months has been very temperamental. Yesterday there was fog and frost, whereas today we have lashings of wind and rain. It’s not only confusing for us when trying to decide what to wear on a morning, but the plants seem to be perplexed too. Yesterday, when I was tidying up the strawberry bed in the Soft Fruit garden, I noticed that some of the plants were flowering, either six months early or six months late! There are also fruit on summer-fruiting raspberries, and cowslips, a spring flower, are in bloom.

In the Pest and Disease Control garden, vegetable production is starting to wane, although there are a few plants still going strong. I was really pleased with the Florence fennel that I harvested few weeks ago. I’ve tried, and failed, to grow this before on my allotment, but it seems to have thrived in the warm Mediterranean-like summer we’ve had this year. Whitefly have been a problem in the Brassica bed this year. As well as making the kale look unappetising, they’ve led to sooty mould on some plants, as this fungus grows on the honeydew they secrete. However, the Brussels sprouts are still doing well, and there should be enough of them to last until Christmas. I’m also growing Tatsoi in this bed. Apparently this hardy pak choi can survive temperatures down to –10°C, so it has a chance of surviving whatever weather there is to come over the months ahead.

Over the coming weeks, my attention in the gardens will be turning to winter pruning. I also need to order seeds and start planning the gardens for next year – ideal indoor jobs for the further inclement weather that is no doubt on its way.

The Season for Pumpkins!

I love this time of year: the crisp mornings, hearty soups, and leaves on the trees turning beautiful shades of red, orange and pink in preparation for winter. And preparations have also started in Garden Organic’s gardens at Ryton. I’ve now harvested a lot of the vegetables from the Pest and Disease Control garden and started sowing green manures in the empty beds. These will prevent leaching of nutrients from the soil, maintain and improve soil structure and suppress weeds over winter. I’m using a mixture Hungarian grazing rye and mustard, both of which should still germinate and grow at this time of year, and the grazing rye should continue to grow over the winter.

Another thing I like about this time of year is the drop in temperature. It means the weeds aren’t growing as quickly as they were a few months ago, and I finally feel like I’m winning in the battle against them.

Elsewhere in the Pest and Disease Control garden, the leaf beets and kale are continuing to provide fresh greens, the courgettes are growing at a more manageable rate, and it’s time to harvest the pumpkins. The pumpkins (‘White Large’ variety) aren’t going to break any records, but I’m pleased with their size and can’t wait to make some tasty soup with them. I’m also looking forward to helping out with the pumpkin carving activities that are taking place at Ryton Gardens over half term. When I was growing up, I don’t think pumpkins were readily available in our town, so my dad had the arduous task of hollowing out and carving a face in a Swede every halloween. I’m hoping it’ll be a lot easier to make lanterns out of pumpkins!