Weeded the two, now empty, onion and potato beds.
Tidied and pruned the small fruit cage............
............and the large fruit cage.
The tomatoes are looking very good this year and one or two are just starting to redden.
First time in a long time (if ever!) we've been down two days in a row. We needed to do some proper work down there as the last two months of heatwave have meant all we've been doing is watering or watering and feeding. This time we went down for just over three hours solely to tidy up, weed and cut-back. Weeded the two, now empty, onion and potato beds. Cleared and weeded the paths. Tidied and pruned the small fruit cage............ ............and the large fruit cage. The tomatoes are looking very good this year and one or two are just starting to redden.
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Went down specifically to feed tomatoes, squashes and beans etc but also cleared all the onions and one of the potato beds. The squashes look as if they're taking over the world! Cleared the onion beds. Cleared also, one of the potato beds. Got several pounds of decent spuds. Thought I'd look in on the two trees planted by the cemetery wall. Seem to be doing alright despite the drought, though I have given them a couple of good soakings. The rain we had a couple of evenings ago was a tiny fraction of what we should have had for June/July and as we approach August the forecast now seems to be for even hotter conditions. The Met Office has even advised that everyone should avoid going outside in the sun between the hours of 11:00AM and 3:00PM. It's already been drier and hotter overall than 1976, with another week in July and the whole of August to go; it's just not been as continually hot - yet.
Down this evening for more watering. Water-butts have been filled more times this year than all previous years combined. Well, we had a grand total of 2.25mm of rain last night. Not enough to do any real good but at least it moistened the surface. Unfortunately the forecast has gone right back to hot and dry, with slightly more humidity.
Went down and fed and watered and picked a bit more. At least going down regularly we're picking everything as it ripens. Dug up some decent potatoes and the onions are looking good. The weather forecast for the week ahead still does not contain any rain and over the next few days the temperature is set to rise to the low thirties degrees Celsius. Having said that we went down late evening today but just picked a load of fruit and veg and gave the watering a rest. What's the betting we're back down there watering within the next two or three days.
Picked the first onions and potatoes this evening. This summer is now starting to match, if not overtake, 1976 for the best summer ever. It hasn't been so continuously hot as 1976 but pretty much everyday for the last six and a half weeks has been between twenty three and thirty one degrees Celsius without a drop of rain.
Went down at seven o'clock again and just watered everything. It's now been over six weeks since any last significant rain. Went down late to water and pick a few more items.
Another early morning watering session. I was down here for 6:45AM and it would have been earlier.............. if I'd remembered the key!
With the World Cup and other things to get done it's not always possible to get down of an evening and the way the weather has been for well over a month it's not really advisable to leave the watering for more than two or three days. Back down here yet again; you can have too much of a good thing. With still no end in sight to the heatwave (it's five weeks and counting) we spent another three hours watering, filling the water butts up and picking some more produce. The watering is definitely paying off: apart from the clematis in the picnic area which has definitely had it, everything I doing extremely well, and here's the photos to prove it. Blueberries by the compost heap are doing very well. Cabbages too..... .......and after last year the carrots are unbelievable. Wallflowers and radishes. The sweet peas are growing up nicely through the grapevine. Squashes. What remains in the two beds of leeks are now looking OK. Parsnips Half a bed of tomatoes. Whole bed of tomatoes. Nice crop of tomatoes. Small fruit cage....... .........large fruit cage. Celeriac Potatoes More potatoes. Sweetcorn. Courgettes. Onions. More onions. The pea and bean "Wigwam" Beetroot. A couple of general views across the allotment. And finally, this is what we picked today. We seem to be going down every other day now. Exceeded thirty degrees today, not for the first time in this heatwave and for the last five weeks it's regularly been in the mid to high twenties with absolutely no rain in the offing. |
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