October 16th, 2014

I've been rather busy elsewhere since my last post - and the weather seems to be against me! However, the rain is very welcome.

The old potato patch, dug over with leafmould dug in and ryegrass & vetches sown.

I am going away over Christmas so I am rushing to get everything done for winter. I've finished emptying the leafmould bin and dug it in under a patch for next year's sweet corn etc. I've also sowed Italian Ryegrass and Vetches on the patch, which I hope to dig in next spring.

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Part of my old legume (peas & beans) patch has also been cleared and sown with mustard. It is a bit late for sowing Mustard so it may not grow. I have used it there as my rotation scheme means I will not be using that patch for brassicas for some years as Mustard is in the same family.

I've harvested the last of my sweet corn as the mice/rats have been making a meal of them. I've chopped up the stalks using them as a base for my compost bin. Luckily I saw the last cob amongst the stalks before I chopped it up as it was probably the best one I've had! Now I need to transfer over the contents of the next bin to turn the material and help it finish composting.

Many crops are coming to an end as the weather cools but I have been pleasantly surprised by some. My late sowing of dwarf French Beans is still producing and the courgettes are only just slowing down. I have left a few to grow into marrows.
I also had a pleasant surprise when I almost tripped over a huge turnip from a late sowing. A neighbour tells me it should be OK and not woody just because it is big as it grew quickly. I'll let you now in a future post when I've tried it!

One other surprise was the asparagus spear that has suddenly appeared just as I should be cutting down the foliage!

My new asparagus bed with a mulch of lovely black compost.





The new spears showing just as I should be cutting down the foliage!
What do I do?

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