This picture is of Ronnie Sellars he has just harvested his first lot of onions he was delighted with the results. He is on plot 60 on our site & I’m sure he will chat to people about the varieties he’s grown & any tips he has.
Blog & Picture by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)
With the arrival of Summer soon upon us this brings rapid growth for our plants, with warmer days & settled weather comes the inevitable pressure to keep are plants hydrated & happy. If your not careful, hot sunny weather can make you a slave to the watering can – so its time to become water wise on the allotment. Many gardeners more often than necessary, which encourages plants to produce shallow roots which will make them ever dependant on water. Encourage deeper roots by watering less often, so roots draw on the moisture found further down in the soil. A thorough soaking once a week is better than a sprinkling every couple of days. In hot weather prioritise seedlings rather than established plants as they need more water to establish there root systems. Some plants require extra water at crucial stages of development for example peas, tomatoes, squashes & cucumbers as they come into flower & produce there pods or fruit. Plants such as climbing beans will need to draw a lot of moisture from the soil, so will need a lot more water than other plants.
How you water is important . Apply water as close to the roots as you can, avoiding wetting foliage as this can lead to diseases. A watering can will help you get in amongst the foliage enabling you to inspect your plants. Never water in the middle of the day when most of the moisture applied will evaporate. Sometimes the soil surface looks dry when, just beneath, there is plenty of moisture.
My next blog in part 2 will explain how to plant strategically & save water.
Blog by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)
Potato blight is a disease caused by a fungus like organism that spreads rapidly in the foliage and in potato tubers in wet humid weather, causing collapse & decay. The initial symptom of blight on potatoes is a rapidly spreading, watery rot of leaves, that shrivel & turn brown, also causing brown lesions on the stems. If allowed to spread unchecked, the disease will reach the tubers, affected tubers will have a reddish brown decay below the skin, firm at first but soon developing into a soft rot as the tissues are invaded by bacteria. Blight is airborne & travels at rapid speeds.
Keep a close eye on your potatoe patch for any signs of blight, and remove any infected leaves as you see them. Obviously the more diligent you are in this respect the longer you can prevent the spread of the disease. Removing infected leaves is particularly successful if the weather turns dry after doing it. If over 10 % of the foliage is affected cut of all the growth at soil level, this should prevent the tubers in the ground from infection. infected foliage should be removed or burned. There is no chemical spray on the market to prevent the disease but these good hygiene tips could help
Blog & Research by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)
In April this year our Association forwarded an application for capital grant funding to Leeds City Council to acquire funds from their (well being money). We put in a price to obtain electricity in our hut building which would have had many benefits for our members on site.
Unfortunately our bid on this occasion was unsuccessful as there were another nineteen applicants applying for money from the well being funds. It was however only over a year ago we received funding for our car park. We are doing all we can to continue to make improvements to our site.
Blog created by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary) For & on behalf of Old Lane Allotments Association)
Marie & Jim Darlow sent in this photograph of a hedgehog on there plot 4 last year they said it was about 9.30 in the morning when the hedgehog was having a morning stroll. So it got me thinking to put some hedgehog facts to there picture.
Hedgehog
While populations of this hedgehog are stable they are thought to be declining severely in the United Kingdom. The animal appears brownish with most of its body covered by 6,000 brown & white spines. Its diet includes slugs, earthworms, beetles, caterpillars, & other insects. Life expectancy is round about 3 years, starvation is the most common cause of death, usually occurring during hibernation. If alarmed, the animal will roll into a ball to protect itself, many potential predators are repelled by its spines. Some animals like owls do hunt them, an owl will grab the hedgehog by its face & peel its prickly back with its talons first making it safe to eat. Foxes are also a predatory problem. Hedgehogs are nocturnal but if they are seen in the day they are usually moving there nests
Blog & Research Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)
Picture Marie Darlow (Plot 4)
Please click/double click to see the show leaflet for this years Leeds City Council event The Great Middleton Park Show in September this year (Healthy Living).
Blog created by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary) For Leeds City Council
Radish is derived from the Latin word ‘Radix’ which translates to the word ‘root’ very apt for this little root vegetable that stems further back than the Ancient Chinese writings from 2700 BC. The radish came to our shores in the 1500’s where it was used on many illnesses such as kidney stones to acne. The labourers who built the pyramids of Ancient Egypt were paid in onions, garlic, & radish. The radish is part of the brassica family & is related to broccoli & kale despite the ascetic & taste differences
Radishes are powerful detoxifiers that are also rich in vitamins & phytochemicals. This allows your body to purify your blood stream & maintain a higher oxygen supply to all of your cells. They thrive in well-drained soil free from stones, that has had well rotted compost dug into it. A sunny spot with a little shade are ideal growing conditions, the radish make perfect fillers in between other crops
Always read the seed packet for sowing instructions
Blog & research by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)
KEEP THE ENTRANCE GATES LOCKED AT ALL TIMES
On Thursday 6th June at 7pm Tony Paine (Site Trustee) found the gate unlocked on his arrival to site. I also found the gate unlocked today 7th June 1.20pm on my second visit of the day to the site. We can not reiterate how important it is to keep both main entrance gates locked at all times. Even if you are only on site for ten minutes they need to be locked. We have many age groups coming on site including vulnerable people, & security on site has to be paramount at all times. Allotment life is very important to us all & we all take great pride in working our plots. This week three members have reported to me about plant theft & items going missing from their sheds. We don’t want to end up changing the locks & having our gates open at certain times over the course of the day as 24hr access to the site suits us all.
Blog Written by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary) For & on behalf of Old Lane Allotments Association
Plot rents for 2019/20 growing season
LCC have confirmed that there will be NO RENT INCREASES for plot rents for the 2019/20 growing season payable this October.
Thank you
OLD LANE ALLOTMENTS ASSOCIATION
June is a very busy time on the allotment the nights should now be frost free, and daylight hours are longer which should give you plenty of time to get on with jobs that need doing. Now is the time to protect your strawberries by mulching around them with straw to keep mud splashes off, & keep birds of your precious ripening strawberries by cover your plants with netting.
Keeping on top of the weeds is still very important hoe between rows & let them dry out on top of the soil. Continue sowing beetroot, This is the last chance to sow main crop variety carrots that will be ready to harvest in September/October. Courgettes, Summer squash, & marrows if you don’t already have young plants you have raised in pots, you can sow the seed direct outside now the soil has warmed up. The beginning of June will be the last chance to grow maincrop peas, towards the end of the month switch to early fast maturing peas which should be ready to harvest in September. Outdoor cucumbers are usually started off earlier in pots, but if you sow them direct this month they should give you a crop in August/September.
Sow Outdoors now – beetroot, broccoli, Carrots, French beans, kale, pumpkins & Winter squash, runner beans, swede, Swiss chard, turnips, radish, Spring onions, continue succession of salad leaves, cucumbers, herbs.
Blog by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)
friendly, locally-managed allotments in Beeston, Leeds
A place to return to education, and meet your personal and professional goals in a supportive learning environment. Choose from short courses to PhDs at https://warwick.ac.uk/study/cll/
Welcome to my world: digging, harvesting and other stuff
