Although having had an allotment since 11 years old, I don't recall having such a poor, slow difficult start to the growing season. Seeds failed due to a very dry March, plants raised at home in the greenhouse/cold frame once transplanted were very slow to respond mainly due to cold nights (even a damaging frost Mid May, unusual here) and all in all a frustrating time on the plot. I worry about our 'newbies' who having been told how wonderful it is to grow your own on our very fertile site see their initial efforts not perform as they should. The tip that they would REALLY enjoy a picnic on their plot just isn't happening unless they take hot water bottles and weatherproofs. Even our seasoned allotmenteers are complaining about the weather wrecking the crops and are resowing and replanting new stock hoping they will behave properly this time.
Walking around the site yesterday, I was pleased to see that the recent rain had at last started to move seedlings of flowers and veg but I was apprehensive of the weather forecast for the next day which gave that Devon and Cornwall was going to bear the brunt of a deep low pressure storm which was 'unusual' for this time of year. Sure enough I woke to the sound of heavy rain and gusty Southerly winds which at the time of writing have become worse in the strength of wind. Good job my wife's hanging baskets are residing in the kitchen having been brought inside.
I am not looking forward to seeing the aftermath when I return to our allotment site as it was just starting to recover and now from looking at the damage to my own garden o/s the window, know that bean rows, Sweet Williams, Lupins,
Cosmos will all have suffered.
We are a tough lot and will rectify everything, with a smile of course.
On the positive side, we don't grow maincrop potatoes here due to constant mid season blight problems but yesterday we were visited by a chap who donated 50kg of maincrop Sarpo Mira for us to try. According to JBA potatoes, this are the best blight resistant tubers available so we will give them a try.
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