The Gas Man’s Allotment 2023 – 25th March

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Disclaimer: I’m a professional anaesthetist, not a professional gardener. I do a bit of gardening and cycling in my spare time. I have grown veggies for many years and have learnt what works for me (sometimes!). These are my ramblings! I would be honoured to be corrected / advised by those with more knowledge than me!

We have fairly large veggie garden / allotment. Being in the far North of Scotland, the weather plays a huge role and the growing season is short.

I have already started with a good deal of my sowing under glass in the greenhouse, but decided today that it might be quite fun to produce a regular blog to keep those interested up to date on the progress (hopefully) of our veggies.

So here’s what happened today:

Shallots

One of the first crops to get planted out into the veggie garden is shallots. This year, I’m growing the Jermour variety. I planted the sets in February in the greenhouse and by the 11th March they had sprouted nicely.

Today the shallots were planted out into their raised bed in the veggie garden. Snow is expected tomorrow, but no bother, they are hardy and will not be troubled by a wee bit of cold!

Some birds, especially blackbirds, have a habit of searching for worms under freshly worked soil, and especially if new seedlings have been planted. This can be devastating for newly planted seedlings before they can have a chance to anchor themselves fully with a good root system.

So my newly planted shallots get a protective covering to protect them from the birds – oh all right, and a wee bit of protection from the weather as well!

Broccoli

My mail order of Broccoli (Calabrese) Marathon arrived yesterday. I potted them up today. Yes, they look horrible, but give them a week or so, and they will have perked up and will grow on nicely. I will keep you posted on their progress.

Harvest

Yes, I’m still harvesting last year’s crops. These are Picasso potatoes and the last two carrots (Sugarsnax). There were also a couple of handfuls of Brussels Sprout, but I forgot to take a picture of them – I will get better!

Next week

I’m away off to work tomorrow for the week, leaving my newly planted and sprouted seeds and seedlings in the care of a fairer hand. I am sure they will be safe 🤔😊

I will give a fuller description of what I have planted already in the greenhouse and hopefully we will have some germination happening. I still find it amazing to see the barren looking seeds start to sprout and produce such wonderful life from “nothing”.

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