Page 26 - ALG Issue 2 2019

on the...
Kings plot
December to the end of February
Well, I am pleased to say that all my winter digging was completed before the start of the New Year so I could sit back and relax. The winter weather in East Anglia has been cold, with some penetrating frosts, and a reasonable amount of rain, but to date very little snow. The hard frosts have helped break the soil down and I should have no bother in pulling my ground down with a crome to a workable structure. As I write at the end of February the weather has been very mild and the top of my plot has dried out nicely. Although it would be tempting to pull it down, I am resisting because if we were to get some heavy rain the pulled down soil would go like a pudding and would take longer to dry out than if left rough dug.
Just before Christmas I did pull a little bit of ground down and planted some shallots direct into the plot; these were then covered with a cloche. The traditional time for planting shallots is the shortest day, so they are fully mature by the longest day. I have
also planted a few in trays to fill in any gaps from non-starters. My large exhibition onions Globo, sown at Christmas under glass and pricked out, are growing well despite the low light levels – thankfully these are increasing each day now and plants are really noticing the difference. The leeks I grow from Pips (rooted back in November) are also putting on plenty of root in the pots and already stand 15-20cm tall in the greenhouse.
Peppers take a long while to get going, so these were sown early January and were ready to prick out into individual pots at the end of February. Seed potatoes have been delivered and
are lying out in trays in my frost-free greenhouse to start chitting, ready for planting in the spring.
Down on the plot I still have Brussels sprouts, Savoy cabbage and cauliflower Cendis F1 that I am harvesting; these will be followed by the sprouting broccoli. Another crop I am still harvesting in February is Carrot Eskimo. These were sown in June and were a perfect size to pull at Christmas. Many gardeners have difficulty growing carrots each year: See my Carrot Masterclass offering tips to success.
Well I am sure you were all itching to get out on your plots. But hopefully you remembered to wait until the soil had warmed up sufficiently before you got started. With a bit of luck this will be a good growing year. Plus, don’t forget
if any NSALG member has a seed problem and needs some free advice, the team at Kings Seeds are always at the end of a phone to help.
Happy Gardening!
Andrew Tokely, Horticultural Director for Kings Seeds
Well I am sure you were all itching to get out on your plots
26 Allotment and Leisure Gardener