Page 35 - Simply Veg Issue 1 2016

Aden) grow some superb specimens and John took us through his brassica growing year and though I have heard John speak a couple of times previously on this subject I still picked up lots of tips. After the usual Q&A session we retired to the bar for a relaxing evening and more conversation on our passion growing vegetables.
Sunday morning dawned with the rain still lashing it down with high winds stripping the trees of any leaves that were still hanging
on so there was absolutely no chance
of us venturing outside for the traditional group photograph instead we lined the
main staircase. Our nal talk was the much awaited talk by our own Onion Guru David Metcalfe. “Growing Large Quality Onions
for Exhibition”. As I travel round with David to many of his talks I have probably heard the talk more than anyone else but I always nd out some new snippet of information. David gave us a full review of his progression with all the ups and downs to where he is today, probably, the top onion grower in
the country. He explained how he carefully reselects for various traits in his current years bulbs crossing to further improve the perfect specimens which he had brought down to Wales to show us. David’s totally relaxed and unassuming style belies his vast knowledge on this subject and I know everyone came away much the wiser.
The nal session is a general question time with all the weekends speakers forming the panel and this always leads to some lively debate as different views are expressed and you get the chance to ask that question you always wanted to put to the expert but never had the chance, a very tting way to end the weekend. A wonderful Sunday lunch brings the weekend to a close, followed by lots of goodbyes and see you next year if not before.
In conclusion I would like to thank Medwyn for a superb weekend it must take a lot of work setting it all up, it is unique and long may it continue. Thank you Medwyn. If there is anyone who has not been to this weekend I can thoroughly recommend it Medwyn assured us that he has already got most of the speakers lined up for next year so get your name down I am sure you will enjoy it.
And nally I would just like to thank Bob Mason for the pictures in this report.
My Allotment by Gary Hartley
The allotment is situated in Bishopstoke which is a few miles north of Southampton. I have always been into tness and enjoy bike riding and walking so the hobby of allotment growing appealed to me. The idea of digging to keep me t and growing healthy food
I felt would give me great pleasure; although I must confess to owning my own tiller, which although was quite expensive has paid for itself with the use it gets. I use it to produce a ne tilth for sowing and
some holes with a pipe which I lled with soil and seaweed meal. Unfortunately I was not as successful as my carrots were small and my parsnips all foliage and no root. Practice makes perfect as they say so hopefully better luck this year with the experience I have gained.
The heads on my onions and leeks were big and I got plenty of seed from them so
I am hoping for a good germination and plenty of plants in the future.
The past couple of years I have planted my sweet corn in a block formation for
depending on
how dry the soil
is this will affect
how good a tilth it
produces. I have
found when the
allotment has been
dug over once the
tiller will soon produce a good tilth and I now use it every time.
When I rst took over the plot I would drive down to the local stables and bag up the free manure which was old and well- rotted. I nd it better to dig the manure
in as this seems to supress any weeds seeds in it, then I just put the tiller over it to mix it all in. my rst 3 rod plot rose quite considerably with the amount of manure I put on it, but the soil is now very good.
I also have a lawn mower so that I can cut the grass around the plot every week, this keeps the allotment looking nice and tidy, just how I like it. I nd that if I don’t keep an eye on the grass it starts to grow into the plot and reduces the size, so every now and again I go around with a spade to stop it and keep a nice edge to the plot.
I make sure the shed is well stained every year with a good wood preservative as this keeps the wood in good order and the shed looking nice. Over the last couple of winters the wind has got under the roo ng felt and lifted it up, so I keep a roll in the shed for such events. The tools in the shed are cleaned after every use and every now and again oiled to stop them rusting.
The crops grown are often sown in the greenhouse such as cabbage, cauli ower, Brussels sprouts, Calabrese and broccoli so that I can bring them on and evenly space then on the plot. Crops like carrots, beetroot and lettuce I sow directly on the plot and thin them out when big enough.
This year was the rst year where I have started to grow with the show bench in mind, so I brought the
potato bags, soil, Vitax
Q4 and seaweed meal and had some success with my potatoes. I brought a truck load of sand and lled some bins with it and bore out
pollinating reasons and have had a good crop before the badger has chance to get to them. I keep some seed and use them
next year. I planted a good row of French beans last year and got a heavy crop which I used as they became available. I usually freeze the surplus but I nd they taste so much better when used fresh. I use 2.4m sticks for my French and runner beans to grow up plus I have a frame made of metal with holes drilled in for the strings. This year’s runner bean crop was small again possibly owing to the dry early summer we had in the south.
I had a big crop of broad beans last year but they had a lot of brown spots on them which I think is a disease called chocolate spot. I also like to eat these fresh as
they taste better. I nd the black y are abundant but you can watch the ladybirds feeding and the ants farm them which is interesting.
The only problem I nd is the cabbage white butter y laying their eggs so I net
my Brassicas but I still nd the odd one seems to get through which I hand pick off which is a bit of a pain. The slugs and snails are present on the plot but are minimal and they are not bad to control. A mole is present but the only problem is the molehills everywhere which I now put onto the compost heap. I have been emptying the compost bin most years as I ll it; I nd it rots fairly quickly. The bin is made up of four pallets tied together, so to empty it
I untie one corner to open it up, remove the compost and then re-tie it. It can be fun in the morning when the blackbird and robin are present as these can be very entertaining.
In my fruit cage I have added an apple tree and have started to train
it. With my strawberries I have put black matting down and
spaced out my plants and this year have had a good crop
compared to previous years and I am expanding all
the time with new plants.
The tools in the shed are cleaned after every use
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