 |
| St Ives Cornwall Allotment - Winter |
Another year on the allotment begins - with January blue skies and sunshine in West Cornwall.
This weekend I made a start on preparations for Spring sowing and planting.
I started on the bed where - under my crop rotation system - I'll be planting potatoes in March. I cleared the weeds, added a layer of leaf mould and then a layer of my own compost.
I found it really satisfying to be using stuff recycled and made from my own plot. The leaf mould has been rotting down since Autumn 2016 and is now ready to use and add structure to the soil. The compost bin that I've now opened was also covered and left to rot down in Autumn 2016.
The bed is now partly cleared. I'll clear the rest and then leave it for the weather and worms to do their work before planting the seed potatoes. It will just need a bit of weeding with the hoe and raking over in March.
This year I'll be using Pentland Javelin again, as last year they grew well as both a first early (June) and second early (July onward) crop.They also stayed blight free, although there is no guarantee that will happen again this year!
My Winter crops are coming to an end, with just a few leeks, turnips and swede still in the ground. My Winter spinach has failed to come through. But one unexpected bonus - this lovely Romanescu. We had this with Sunday dinner.
Finally to complete a lovely day on my plot, my little friend the Robin has returned and was with me for most of the afternoon.
More news as Winter passes and Spring returns - soon.
No comments:
Post a Comment