Spring Clean II

With a taste of winter forecast to return next week, made the effort to get down to allotment and get some preparation done.

Saturday - In addition to some weeding and tidying up, finally got first early potatoes (International Kidney) in the ground - bed E1. Broke the 'no-digging after Xmas' rule to get troughs deep enough. Usually would set them in peat but trying multi-compost/sand mixture this time plus a little hoof and horn - and then well rotted chicken manure over top of soil. Covered up E1 & D1(after a quick rake) with a big tarp to keep warm and give spuds a boost to catch up - should have been in 2 or 3 weeks ago.

Sunday - Another sunny day, with a bit of a cool wind that only briefly dropped. Bought and potted on some red cabbage, swede, cauliflower and khol rabi seedlings - 6 of each (with a couple of small extra's in the cauli's) plus a couple of pots (16) Broad Beans. Placed inside 3 tier polly house, but set up only to two tiers to keep it out of wind a bit more.

Managed to weed and rake all the other main beds, save for F1 which am leaving wild for now and A1 that still has last year's leeks and wind sown salsify. Limed B1/B2 in readiness for brassicas and dug C2 into 4 troughs ready for 2nd early potatoes in a couple of weeks hopefully. Scattered organic manure into troughs and left uncovered to let rain wash into ground.

A New Hope...

Finally managed a quick visit to check on things today.

Although in the main it is a scene of death and rotting destruction, already signs of new life appearing with blackcurrants and blueberries budding well.

Seedlings (Cabbage & Oriental Mustards) coped with cold drought (in plastic box)to varying degrees and still plenty of them alive.

Garlic looking a bit sorry for themselves, but the cold should spark them into cloving well. Scattered a bit more sand over - partly to catch a bit more warmth if the sun comes out and partly for drainage as ground still saturated. Last year's leeks still doing well, if a little small.

Put bin over a rhubarb crown to start off this year's forced chosen one. No sign of life yet.

The deep snow seems to have rotted a lot of the anticipated spring cabbages, but few surviving well. Still a few reds coping ok and cropped a load of sprouts today.