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General
spreading a heap of mushroom compost that had been delivered onto the newest of my plots. Once this was spread I started digging my plots; by the end of November I had already dug over two thirds. The rest of the spare ground I hope to have completed by Christmas. I always take out a trench and chip any weeds and compost into
the bottom, working backwards until the plot is all dug. Being so
dry, especially where certain crops have been, like the sweetcorn,
it was like digging in summer rather than winter. Hopefully we get some nice winter rains, frost and snow, and this will help break down the dug soil and replenish any lost moisture ready for next year’s crops. As well as digging on my days off, I also carried out some plot maintenance by painting my sheds and repairing the compost heap.
Once you read this article, Christmas will have passed and like me I hope you had a full plate of home-grown vegetables. This year the only item for Christmas lunch I will be buying is the turkey, as the Brussel sprouts, Rooster potatoes, leeks, Carrot Eskimo, Parsnip Gladiator and a Santero Onion will all be coming from my plot, full of avour and without any air miles.
2017, in my opinion, was a very good growing year, and I certainly harvested some superb crops. Let’s hope 2018 is just as good, 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!
By Andrew Tokely, Horticultural Director for Kings Seeds
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