In Full Flow. 2nd Aug, 2019

This is the time when we reap the benefits of all our hard work on the allotment earlier in the season. There is little to do apart from weeding and watering and enjoying the fruits of our labours.

We have had to water quite a lot as although we have had some rain the soil is dry to quite a depth. My husband dug up the potatoes and found that even 10 inches down it was really dry. We also uncovered our no dig potatoes and had a decent crop. Unfortunately my husband isn’t as entrenched in being organic as I am so when I asked him to grow some no dig potatoes he built a frame, laid out the potatoes and covered them in straw from a local farm. It hadn’t dawned on him that the straw was probably full of weedkillers etc. The straw however did hold the moisture and the crop was good and the no dig concept did work. I’m sure they won’t be as chemically adulterated as shop bought potatoes but I will use my organic ones first and hope I don’t need the no dig ones.

We are now picking French beans, courgettes, beetroot, chard, onions, broad beans, lettuce, raspberries and rhubarb so we are spending very little money at the supermarket on fruit and vegetables. It’s so lovely picking fresh produce and eating it within hours and even dealing with the gluts as we now have lots of courgette and broad bean soup in the freezer. I’m going to try pickled French beans next.