Life on The Weald - February 2025

and a few distractions

1 February

The first day of the month was a clear, dry day and I spent some time repairing raised beds and the pathways around them with layers of cardboard and woodchip. The cardboard will present a barrier to weed growth and will breakdown in a few months. 

1 February - tidying around a garlic bed

2  February

Sunday was Seedy Sunday in Brighton, the UK’s biggest and longest-running community seed swap event - but it is now much more than that, with lots of community and gardening stalls.  We were there with our allotment association stall selling organic seed potatoes, onion sets, garlic and shallots.

2 February - setting up shop at Seedy Sunday

2 February - looking the part as market traders!

3 February

Monday was a miserable day with fine mizzle all day, not one for working on the plot.  About one third of the Meteor peas that I had sown a few days earlier had begun to germinate in the conservatory.  Hopefully more will follow

3 February - Meteor peas

In the loft extension, the potatoes were chitting and hopefully the Red Duke of York will be ready for first planting at the beginning of March.

3 February - Red Duke of York potatoes

4 February

Another lost day for the allotment as I was in London for a Memorial gathering for a former friend and colleague, Doug Hoyle, who I first knew as President of my trade union, ASTMS/MSF when I was a lay representative. 

4 February - Memorial for Doug Hoyle

6 February

Thursday was a bright, sunny day, but very cold.  I did a lot of strimming around the area close to the eastern boundary with my neighbour, Louise's plot. She had cleared some of the overgrown area on her side to reveal daffodils that would soon be in flower so I thought clearing my side was long overdue.  Nothing grows there, apart from couchgrass, lemon balm, dandelions, brambles and bindweed, because of the apple tree and several plum trees.

6 February - the eastern boundary

6 February - the eastern boundary

In tidying up around the shed, I found a grow-bag that I had forgotten about and thought had been emptied, but it contained some Pink Fir Apple potatoes from last year which looked really healthy.  It was a good discovery as there are none of these to be found for planting this year.  The entire UK crop appears to have failed.  Our dilemma is, shall we eat them or re-plant them.  I decided that we should eat two thirds and save one third for chitting ready to be planted out late March or April.

6 February - Pink Fir Apple potatoes

Homebase stores have gone into receivership and the Hove store is one that is closing.  Most of their stock was being sold at 70% discount and I had bought some varnish and wood preservative at a very good price. I had also bought some sand and quartz pebbles which I can use to redesign the area around the pond.

As it was a dry day, it was a good opportunity to put my purchases to positive use and restore some of the garden furniture, especially the table which was looking old and tired.

6 February - staining and sealing the garden table

6 February - staining and sealing the garden table

It was a definite improvement.

7 February 

It was a dreadful day with high winds and pouring rain and I couldn't remember putting the strimmer away the previous day, so I braved the storm and found it leaning against the apple tree.  Hopefully no damage will have been done.

8 February 

And yet more rain!

At home a few more Meteor peas had germinated, up from 33% to almost half.

Getting there slowly.

8 February - Meteor peas

9 February

The initial weather forecast for Sunday was dry, and sunny, but that changed overnight and it was a damp, cold drizzly day.  Nevertheless, I braved the elements and did more strimming along the eastern boundary and dug up brambles near the apple tree.

I also removed one of the plum trees that had grown from a sucker but think I need to remove more if we are to have any chance of increasing the growing area.

9 February - some more strimming

We can't do much this year with the area that has been cleared, but we will lay down cardboard and mulch in the hope of  defeating the bramble, bindweed and couch grass and consider cultivating next year.

The cold frame, which I was given for free, is in need of repair, and may need to be moved eventually, but it was laid on cardboard and a pile of autumn leaves so might be usable this year as a hotbed.

9 February - the cold frame

The sides of the raised bed where onions are growing, have rotted or collapsed so I need to make a decision whether to replace the frame or just leave as a bed without sides. It is a kind of Hugel bed as I buried a lot of tree branches and other organic matter when I created the bed.

9 February - one of the Hugel beds in the foreground

At home, I made some spicy, pickled red cabbage, which I had brined overnight, and I sowed Sungold and Beef master tomatoes in trays and Damien’s chilli seeds Kung Pao (hot - internet says mild 7-10,000) Santa Fe (medium, milder than Jalapeños) and Early Jalapeño (mild 8,000 SHU).  

9 February - spicy pickled red cabbage

9 February - spicy pickled red cabbage

10 February 

Another overcast day with intermitent drizzle.  I stayed home and sowed the remaining chilli seeds from Damien, Aji Limon (hot 30,000-50,000 SHU) Aji red (hot) and purple jalapeño (medium). I also sowed tomato, Ruby Falls, a new one for me. It’s a Thompson & Morgan, British bred variety and should produce a dozen fruits per truss each weighing 40g (1.51 oz).  Well that's what the label says - let's wait and see.

14 February

I continued clearing the area on eastern boundary and laid cardboard on the cleared area, ready to spread with woodchip when it becomes available.

14 February and all quiet on the eastern front!

15 February

I cleared some of the area surrounding the pond and began to create a "beach" with the sand and pebbles from the Homebase closure, where I hope to grow some succulents.

15 February - the beach takes shape

 

At home, the mushroom kit had produced a couple more Oyster mushrooms.

15 February Oyster King mushrooms

15 February - Oyster King mushrooms

16 February

Whilst clearing the couch grass around the pond, I was pleased to encounter a large common frog, but we don't have any sign of frog spawn yet.

16 February - a friendly visitor

Clearing the area by the apple tree was a hard task as I had to dig deep to remove bramble roots.  

16 February - bramble roots

I have cleared enough space for another bed. Rosemary bushes have been planted by Louise on her side of the boundary, which is great because the flowers will attract pollinators and the smell of Rosemary deters a number of pests including aphids.

16 February - a potential new bed

17 February 

I had bought a number of Dahlia tubers for the garden but I think it's too early to plant them out, so I have potted them up and placed them in the mini-greenhouse ready to be planted out in a few weeks time when, hopefully, it will be a little warmer.

19 February

I continued work on the pond, carrying some very heavy stones from the front of the plot that had been given to me a few months ago. I also need to place some in the pond to ensure that any amphibians (and any other creatures) can get in and out.

19 February - the pond takes shape

I had arranged with a local tree surgeon for a free delivery of woodchip to the central car park for sharing with poltholders and I filled a couple of bags and advertised the availability on our allotment WhatsApp group.

19 February - 12.46 arrival of woodchip

I spread the woodchip that I had collected on the cardboard by the plum trees on the eastern boundary.

19 Feb - looking towards Louise's plot

I returned to the allotment a few hours later and all the woodchip in the central car park had gone.  Everyone is desperate for more but we get few deliveries because some tree surgeons find our site difficult to access.

19 Feb - 17.46 woodchip all gone

20 February

The tomato seeds sown on 9th February had germinated, but no sign of any peppers.  My son thinks my conservatory is too cold and that chillies need at least 22C, so I have moved them into the dining room close to the radiator.

20 February - Sungold & Beefsteak tomatoes

23 February

I turned my attention to the western side of the plot and continued to remove raspberries and bind weed which had invaded an earlier bed.

23 February - removing bindweed roots

The soil was in good condition as the area had been a "no dig" raised bed previously, so I thought it was ready for sowing/planting, possibly with some beetroot

23 February - new bed ready for planting

23 February - new bed ready for planting

I continued weeding around the pond, and then had a rest admiring my handiwork.

23 February - time for a rest

24 February

It seems a long time since I planted my Kalettes, but it has been worth the wait. Sadly the Kalettes that I had originally planted, grown from seed, had all been eaten by the hordes of invading slugs that we had last year and I only had three plants for a second planting. I must grow more this year. The ones we have picked, however, are superb in flavour.

24 February - Kalettes

Kalettes are a cross between Brussels Sprouts and Kale, and grow similarly to sprouts but produce open florets.

We also lost a number of Purple sprouting broccoli plants to the slugs last year. Thankfully the few which we saved are looking healthy but no sign of any florets yet.

27 February

Damien's advice was sound and the chillies that I had moved into the warmer dining room had now germinated.  I hope it's not too much of a shock but I will need to move them back to the conservatory as there is insufficient natural light in the dining room.

27 February - The chillies have germinated

28 February

Now all the chillies, except Kung Pao have germinated and they are now back in the conservatory with the tomatoes.

There have been some pleasant days this month but it has been very, very wet and the soil is heavy as a result and not very good for working or planting. Well tomorrow is the first day of meteorological spring, so I'm hoping for some drier, warmer days.

John Austin
Hove, February 2025

Life on The Weald - January 2025

Life at The Weald - January 2025

and  a few distractions

There were wild winds on New Year's Eve so we didn't venture down to the beach with our 12 grapes and bottle of fizz but stayed indoors in the warm and dry, watching the London fireworks on TV!

1 January

New Year's Day was another wet and windy one, not suitable for gardening.

2 January

By contrast, Thursday was a bright, dry but cold sunny day but, as the last day for our New Year visitors, was spent in the warm at home.

2 January - at home in the warm!

3 January

With visitors gone, it was time to see what damage the gales had done. Apart from damage to one of the polycarbonate panels on the half-finished greenhouse, the plot had fared well.

It was a cold, frosty morning, with ice on the tools that I had inadvertently left out!

I carried on clearing the area near the raspberries and the adjacent raised bed, where there had been a lot of encroachment of bindweed and couhcgrass (as well as spreading raspberries) and laid down cardboard.  I also put some cardboard trays filled with a mixture of leaves and worm compost in the raised bed that had been cleared of raspberries.

3 January - Area cleared of invaders!

The peas and beans planted out a few days earlier had survived the frost.

3 January - Meteor peas

3 January - Broad beans

4 January

I cleared the middle area next to our eastern boundary with plot 246.  There was some bindweed and brambles spreading but it was mostly annual weeds.  I will be laying some cardboard soon and spreading some compost and manure and this will be the site for my climbing beans. The northern end of the boundary, by the plum trees is completely engulfed by brambles, couch grass and bindweed as well as several suckers from the plum trees. 

We have blackcurrant bushes on our side of the boundary and our neighbour, Louise, had planted some Rosemary on her side, 

4 January - our eastern boundary

I returned to the area where tromboncinos had been grown last year, near the redcurrants at the front (the southern end) of the plot.  I was recently given a Yacón (Mexican ground pear) and thought this would be a good place to plant it; (currently it is dormant in a pot in the shed).   There should also be enough space to plant my Achocha, if I manage to get the seeds to germinate!  Removing the bindweed was quite a task and it has spread to the redcurrants.  The redcurrants are very old and woody and are not cropping as well as in the past.  They have been in situ for 8 years and came with us from London, where they had been for several years, so they are probably in need of replacing.  I'll give them another season and then consider what to do.

4 January - bindweed roots

4 January - a site for the Yacón 

7 January

I continued the job of clearing bindweed and couch grass near the raspberries on the western boundary but also had to dig out raspberry roots that had spread to nearby beds.  Some of the spreading raspberries were 2ft deep which makes a mockery of my "no dig"!

7 January - digging out unwanted raspberries

7 January and more digging

7 January - and more bindweed roots!

There was some good news.  The elephant garlic and the Meteor peas were surviving the cold bout of weather and afew of the directly sown peas were emerging.

7 January - Elephant garlic

7 January - directly sown Meteor peas

The real garlic was looking good too.

Solent Wight

1st planting of Eden Rose

Kingsland Wight

2nd planting Eden Rose

9 January

The weather turned much colder with a slight snowfall in Hove (unlike Scotland, the North and the West country, where there were real blizzards).  The snow didn't settle in our garden and not much on the allotment but what did froze with the accompanying sleet and subsequent sub-zero temperature. We are hoping that the sudden cold spell may reduce some of the pests.

9 January - remains of snow on the plot

The red onions had suffered from the cold but the peas and broad beans seemed OK.

9 January - red onions

9 January - Meteor peas

9 January - Broad beans

9 January - the herb wheelbarrow

9 January - frozen footpath

9 January - rhubarb appearing through the ice

An allotment colleague, Kate, took this photo of the snow on Hove beach

9 January - Hove beach

10 January

Friday was the coldest January night for 15 years. The lowest temperature in the UK was recorded in Scotland at -22.3C, with temperatures of -15C across northern and central England.  In Hove the temperature was around -5C.

In the warmth at home, my Oyster King  mushroom kit was bearing fruit.

10 January - Oyster King mushrooms

It was a sad day for the allotment.  One of the best loved plotholders, Peter Gorbach, had died before Christmas and today was his funeral.  I had known Peter before we became fellow allotmenteers through political activities. Born into a Jewish family in America, and experiencing severe anti-semitism growing up and with family members who perished in the holocaust, but he was aware of the great injustice done to the Palestinian people and was a passionate anti-Zionist and fought racism all his life.

10 January - Peter's coffin at the crematorium

The funeral was a secular one at the crematorium up on the Downs.  It was a bitterly cold day when I parked in the cemetery for the walk to the Crematorium chapel.

10 January - Brighton (The Downs) Cemetery

10 January - Brighton (The Downs) Cemetery

16 January

The earliest sown broad beans had suffered some battering from the winds, so I put in some stakes and strings to try to protect them from further buffeting. The later sown ones, which were not so tall, seemed to have fared better.

17 January

I planted out the remaining broad beans that had been sown in pots at home.

17 January - broad beans

19 January

The morning was cold but dry and we had some help from Luke who had volunteered to collect some manure for us - 4 wheelbarrows full!  We also brought the chainsaw with us and whilst I was muckspreading and Sylvi was repairing the greenhouse, Luke set to with the chainsaw removing an unwanted plum tree to allow some southern light into the greenhouse.

19 January - manure spread near Western boundary

19 January - manure spread near Eastern boundary

19 January - manure spread near potato patch

20 January

I bought a few Biztro shallots from the shop and planted these.  Previously, whilst clearing the bed that had been invaded by raspberries, I discovered some shallots that had been planted last year but had come to nothing and been left in the ground. Rather than chucking them, I separated the bulbs and re-planted these, next to the Biztro, hoping they might produce in a new environment, free of raspberries, bindweed and couchgrass, and which I am determined to keep as weed free as possible!

21 January

I harvested the first of the Oyster King mushrooms - which were delicious.

21 January - Oyster King mushrooms

22 January

The garden was looking a bit neglected and I decided to sacrifice some of the lawn to enlarge a flower bed where Sylvi would like to grow Dahlias.  I also took the opportunity to lift and divide some of the primulas before replanting and also planted out some Hellebores that had been pot-grown.

22 January Primulas & Hellebores  in their new home

25 January

The previous few days had seen more strong winds so I visited the plot to see what damage had been done.  We had escaped quite lightly!  The skylight was missing from the greenhouse, however, but I couldn't find it anywhere.

25 January - missing skylight

My mistake was that I was looking on the ground!  One of my near neighbours, Joseph, spotted it higher up, in the trees and brambles by the fence at the back of the plot.  Some wind!

25 January - skylight in the brambles

26 January 

There had been more gales overnight but, despite the wind this morning, Sylvi fixed the skylight in the greenhouse.  It was miserable weather and we didn't want to stay long but on leaving the plot we discovered there had been a delivery of woodchip, so we braved the weather for a little longer and filled a few sacks which we put in the boot of the car and left.

27 - 28 January

The wind and rain continued.

29 January

It was dry but cold, with a maximum temperature of 5C. I had a meeting on site with someone from Whitehawk Allotment anda representative of Brighton and Hove  Food Partnership to discuss the possible siting of a communal food waste compostor at The Weald, which is being considered by the Weald Committee. After the meeting I managed to deposit my woodchip which had been in the car for three days but then retreated as there was more  heavy rain that afternoon.

At home there was one more Oyster  mushroom to be picked, but the rest had come to little.

29 January - a lone Oyster King mushroom

30 January

It was a dry sunny day, so I took the opportunity of putting some canes and strings around the later sown broad beans, hoping that this might give them some protection from future wnds as they grow taller.

At home I cooked the last of the butternut squash - I had seen a "hasselback" baked recipe with Brie cheese, so decided to give ot a try.

30 January - Hasselback squash from start.....

......to finish

31 January

The Meteor peas had begun to germinate, almost 25% success so far!

It had been a mixed month.  The brief very cold spell was welcome but we had also experienced some unseasonally warm days and very wet weather with strong winds.  We are hoping February will be more consistent.

John Austin

Hove, January 2025