@DavidPB@mastodon.social
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

DavidPB

@DavidPB@mastodon.social

Allotment life.... Largely images and information about our successes and failures from our allotments in the centre of England. Mostly no dig, mostly raised beds apart from the fruit and potatoes which are in tubs. We keep chickens too and even though we have been doing this for a number of years we learn something new every week. It can be hard and exhausting but at the same time it can be rewarding and fascinating. We love it…

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

DavidPB, to gardening
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

It’s like a jungle in here ❗️ There are only eight bush tomatoes 🍅 each side of the 20 foot greenhouse but it’s become so busy it’s hard to find the watering pots 😢 We introduced an additional bush tomato plant this year called Hienz 1350 - and we didn’t realise how big it gets.

Bush tomato plants
Bush tomato plants
It’s like a jungle in the greenhouse

DavidPB, to gardening
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Last of the broad beans 🫘 (fava beans) The original spare plants were placed at the rear of the long chard bed. We picked nearly 4kg of the podded beans today to give to a friend whose children like podding them 😎

The beans plants clipped off ready to harvest
Almost 4kg of podded beans picked in a large bag

DavidPB, to gardening
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Just one kilo ☝️ Of fruit picked this morning to make some mixed fruit jam 😎 Almost every time we do this the dominant flavour changes but it’s always really tasty 😋

DavidPB, to gardening
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Sitting in the polytunnel waiting for the rain ☔️ to pass and the Vespa field beans 🫘 are starting to pod. These were from Real Seeds and although they are the last of the beans to be planted and therefore pod we are yet to see what size they will get to 👍

Vespa field beans with the pods about two inches long

DavidPB, to gardening
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

That’s a first ❗️ It’s decided to rain 🌧️ again (which is welcome) so we’ve been working in the polytunnel and the greenhouse when we spotted it 🤓 Our first tomato 🍅 of the year. One golden nugget

Golden nugget tomatoes starting to appear on a CV plant

DavidPB, to gardening
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

The next lot of brassicas are now in the polytunnel 😄 We will pot them into 3.5” pots later in the week 😎

DavidPB, to gardening
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Potato update 🥔 and an hour later 😎 All of the second early potatoes haulms have been removed and most have been taken to the compost area. The tubs can sit there for a while until we find the energy to empty them and store them 👍

All of the second early potato tubs have now had their foliage removed
A robin and a finch come looking for worms

DavidPB, to gardening
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

They come from nowhere 😀 With lovely weather comes the speed of fruit and flower development 🤓 I’m sure the courgette has doubled in size overnight and the bean flower was not there yesterday ❗️

Runner bean flower
Land cress
Spring onions

DavidPB, to gardening
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Strawberries 🍓 2/2 The three beds covered in straw have just yielded 1.2kg of Fenella strawberries. The third image shows the smaller tub of 350g we just picked of the Cambridge Favourite strawberries. We will be taking runners from the Fenella this year to replace the Cambridge Favourites 🙂

The second of two tubs of Fenella strawberries
A small tub of Cambridge Favourite strawberries

DavidPB,
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

@OxgardenZ another example of my cut and paste without checking 🙏

DavidPB,
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

@OxgardenZ The three beds covered in straw

DavidPB,
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

@OxgardenZ I recall reading articles on coloured matting and mulching for strawberries. I have tried normal black matting but choose to mulch these days as it allows the runners from the plants to root more easily than matting. We currently use the bedding we provide the chickens (easichick bedding) which is a dust free wood fibre. The slugs certainly dislike the texture and it helps with weed control 👍

DavidPB, to gardening
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Potato update 🥔 1/2 These are the experiment tubs of Charlotte potatoes. 👍 All placed at the bottom of each tub, one with two tubers, one with three and one with four. All planted on 01 Feb 2023. This post has be resent as didn't appear earlier...... ❗

Three tubs of Charlotte potatoes
Tray prepared to harvest the charlotte potatoes

DavidPB, to gardening
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Herby things 😎 Moved the coriander pots outside and they will stay there until we find a bed to put them in ❗️ The garlic chives need to be planted in the perennial herb area and the dwarf Greek basil needs to be harvested to make butter to freeze 😛

Garlic chives ready to be planted out
Dwarf Greek basil needs harvesting

DavidPB, to gardening
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Potato update 🥔 2/2 The first two tubs of 2 & 3 tubers produced 1.3kg each and the tub with 4 potatoes produced 1.8kg of potatoes. 😊 What was more interesting is that the tubers were all the way to the top of the tubs and not limited to the lower half. 👍

Charlotte tub with 3 tubers
Charlotte tub with 4 tubers
Bag of freshly harvested Charlotte potatoes

DavidPB, to gardening
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Cucumbers galore 🥒 Both the cucumber types are doing great this year 👍 Mini munch and Passandra 😊 Loads of tasty fruit at the lower half of every plant. The middle sections are struggling with pollination so we’re using cotton buds to help. 👍 The top sections of the fruiting nicely too 😎

Passandra cucumbers

DavidPB, to gardening
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

We do hope the strawberries 🍓 last until the weekend especially with this heavy rain ☔️ Jam making this weekend🤓

Strawberries in a raised bed

DavidPB, to gardening
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Potato update 🥔 The kestrel potatoes have flopped and although they were planted 13 weeks ago today, they can stay in the tubs for another week or two 🤓 We are about to empty the two small 10 litre pots of kestrel - one tuber in each (980g) ❗️

Two small 10 litre pots of kestrel
Kestrel potatoes in the turned out 10 litre pots
Harvested kestrel potatoes

DavidPB, to random
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Off with their nets 😆 We have removed the netting from the brassica beds and will decide on the weekend if we take the hoops off as well ❗️It’s far from perfect but it’s a start - braces on one side but as it’s windy today we have to see how it fairs.

Brassica beds
Brassica beds

DavidPB, to random
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Quite something really 😎 The spring onions are required for dinner so we lifted one 1 litre pot 🤓 Sitting at the bottom of the bed is two inches of sharp sand and compost. The roots have come straight out of the pot and into the bed below 👇

Two inches of sand and clay moist at the bottom of the bed
Roots from the spring onions

DavidPB, to random
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Feed me ❗️All 16 of the bush tomatoes plants 🍅 now have flowers 😊 Today we spotted the first fruit 😛 From next week we’ll have to start feeding the plants 🪴 We’ll alternate one week with comfrey juice and the other with tomato feed.

Tomato plants
First tomatoes on a plant

DavidPB, to random
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Both of the Pekin bantam chickens 🐓 are brooding ❗️ It’s usually one after the other but sadly both of them are tucked away in the nest boxes for most of the day at the moment 🙃 The faverolle chickens 🐓 have never become broody. We have to physically bring the Perkins out otherwise they would not eat. They are happy eating all of their chard today. Go girls

DavidPB, to random
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Just had to do it ❗️Emptied another tub of Charlotte for the weekend 🥔 and they are so tasty 😛 Just over a kilo this time 👍

DavidPB, to random
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Doing well 😊 The newly planted corn and beans may still be a little pale but they’re growing fast. The autumn raspberries are bushing out just fine, the spring onions are ready to pick and the thyme & sage flowers are attracting the bees 🐝

Autumn raspberry canes putting on a great bushy display
Spring onions are ready to use
Thyme and sage flowers attracting the bees

DavidPB, to random
@DavidPB@mastodon.social avatar

Bits and bobs ✔️ Planted more kale 🥬 and squash seeds plus some more coriander 🌿 The polytunnel has been watered & weeded again, we have our first padron pepper 🌶️ and the Welsh onion bed is rolling along 👍

Polytunnel has been watered and weeded
Our first padron pepper
Welsh onions

  • All
  • Subscribed
  • Moderated
  • Favorites
  • •
  • JUstTest
  • thenastyranch
  • magazineikmin
  • ethstaker
  • khanakhh
  • rosin
  • Youngstown
  • everett
  • slotface
  • ngwrru68w68
  • mdbf
  • GTA5RPClips
  • kavyap
  • DreamBathrooms
  • provamag3
  • cisconetworking
  • cubers
  • Leos
  • InstantRegret
  • Durango
  • tacticalgear
  • tester
  • osvaldo12
  • normalnudes
  • anitta
  • modclub
  • megavids
  • lostlight
  • All magazines
    •