One of the best things about having an allotment is harvesting the fruit and vegatables, the product of the hard work, which starts much earlier in the year, and is sometimes wet and cold.
I have noticed though, despite trying to get a reasonable amount to feed me and G throughout much of the year, it is hard to get the amounts right. One year it may be too much so you grow less the next year, only then to suffer a poor harvest on that. So I thought I would note what has grown well this year and what hasn't. Weather wise it has been an odd year - a very harsh winter, a blazing hot June (duing the World Cup), and then July and August being ok, sometimes storms, sometimes sunny, but never really baking.
What has grown well
Courgettes
Squash
Broadbeans
Peas (although some failed that were shaded by the spinach)
Lettuce (finally might have cracked this)
Carrots (after an initial failure)
Leeks
Rasberries
What hasn't grown well
Onions (very small)
Brassicas (not going to be a good cabbage year, cauliflowers failed at the seed level and calabrese and swede aren't doing much either)
Rocket (moth eaten)
Green Beans (already seem to be finished)
Runner Beans (haven't picked any where as near as many as last year)
So the reasons for this? For the failures, perhaps they didn't get on with the weather - the onions I would put in this category). Perhaps not liking the bit of soil they are in - again, the onions are in the clay section of the plot so maybe another factor for them. I didn't manure this year to give the ground a rest so that it doesn't get over fertilised - this is what others do so I'm just following them. Change of type of plant - using a different variety might impact on produce as well.
Will probably never know, and is probably a combination of lots of these factors, will just have to try again next year.
Pickings from today - runner beans, courgette and tomatoes
