techno torment

Haven't been posting so much this year but am experiencing the usual gluts:

Raspberries - 24lb of jam and fresh ones given away to relatives and people in the village.

Broad beans - the children are rebelling - I am freezing bagfulls to surprise them with later - oh and there are another two rows not ready yet as I did successional sowing.

Lettuce - another crop to be distibuted widely.

Sweet peas - make good gifts for teachers and grandma/nanny/aunty

Courgettes - and this is just the first week of that bounty.

The techno torment? Well currently no camera and no internet connection. If I'd wanted a job in IT...

He loves me

Whilst I was at w*rk one day last week OH made this for me -

my own private potting bench. I love it! And I love him for thinking of it and making it happen. Onwards to the potting bench, I have lettuce to sow.

When I said weeds...

When I said weeds I meant weeds. I guess the only thing to do is a bit of public humiliation and then I might just get on with it!

The raspberries.

The strawberries.

The critter damage.

So these are the before pictures. Who knows how long until I post the afters? Wish me luck, and let this be a lesson to you all  - don't take holidays in June.

Optimism

What is the definition of optimism?
Me hoping to get onto the plot without a machete after not visiting for a week?
Or my 91 year old neighbour frantically giving away tomato plants? "I've grown too many - I just enjoy growing them..." (Estimate of around 250 plants)
I hope when I am 91 I still have the optimism to grow for another season in magnificent volume and can share my plants with the village and don't get overtaken by the weeds in the meantime.

And of course tomatoes were my never again plant. 2008 blight, 2009 blight, 2010 blight
but how could I say no? Here we go on the emotional rollercoaster once more.

They're here again

You would think with the lack of rain in these parts (24.2mm since April 1st) that the weeds might be a little more subdued this year. But they aren't. I have just spent 2 hours weeding and I'm still too ashamed to post the pictures...

You can do a lot in half an hour.

As alluded to in the last post, time is of the essence these days at the allotment.
It is productive - look radish! ( Don't you just love the pained expression? "But why do you want a photo of me holding radishes?"). It is also still very weedy.  Grass paths were definitely a mistake and at some point this year they will go.
So the plan for managing an allotment in half hour slots?
1. 10 minutes weed what is already planted. Most important.
2. 10 minutes water. Else it will die. Hopefully a higher authority will help me out on this soon, otherwise OH will have to fix the hose.
3. 10 minutes harvest. Radish & rhubarb - savings to be made here my girl!
4 10 minutes sow/plant new crops. Ahhh...

Wait a minute my bean counting makes that 40? That'll be why I'm still behind then.
Maybe tommorrow?

The covers are on

OS signed up for another season of cricket on Friday. Tonight a ground frost is forecast - is it just me but is the start of the cricket season always bad news for the garden?
Anyway, armed with the weather forecast I rushed to the allotment, earthed up the potatoes, covered the courgettes, cloched the lettuce and fleeced the strawberries, and depressed a plot neighbour who had just finished watering. All in a world record time of 27.5 minutes.
I once read a book called " The Half-hour Allotment" (here should you be interested).
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Half-hour-Allotment-Royal-Horticultural-Society/dp/0711226059/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1304448700&sr=8-1
Half and hour is for softies...