One advantage of a late Easter is that the weather has been unusually warm for a bank holiday. Usually bank holidays in the UK signal to the weather gods that it is time to throw a spanner in the works. In the media there has been much excitement and reports of it being the hottest Easter 'ever', however I remember one Easter when we were first married when we had such lovely weather that we went out and bought a couple of sun loungers. The story would have been completely different had Easter fallen in March or earlier in April this year when the media would have been all doom and gloom. Such is, and always has been the obsession with the weather.
The cardoons have appreciated the lull in the battering that they were being subjected to and so far are still reasonably unscathed.
Instead of daffodils being the symbol of Easter, this year it is the tulip that is the star of the show. I wonder whether the Easter cards have reflected this or, for them, does the daffodil still reign?
Fruit blossom has moved into the next phase with the apple blossom now putting on a good show. The flowers, on the right below, belong to the Tickled Pink apple that, as well as having dark pink blossom, has red flesh right through to the core of the fruit.
Hopefully, the current warm spell will be enjoyed by the plants on the allotment and in the garden.
The onions and shallots are shooting really well now.
The tops of the potatoes that were planted in crates and have been living in our plot greenhouse are also looking really healthy. Finger crossed that the roots are doing as well as the parts of the plants above the surface.
Last week we planted more potatoes. This time we planted Sarpo Mira, Cara, Vivaldi and the remaining Casablanca and Kestrel.
The improvement in the weather gave us the opportunity to plant out our new raspberry plants - I've posted a video about creating our new raspberry bed here.
We prepared and starting to plant up our new strawberry bed and planted out our first lot of broad (fava) beans which I will post about later.
Last week our harvest was very modest. The rhubarb is still providing rich pick pickings. Or should I say pulling as rhubarb stems are pulled from the plant rather that picked or cut.
We still have some rather tatty looking cabbages but hopefully once a few leaves are removed there will be some good stuff inside.
I picked a couple of meals worth of PSB. One lot went into a pasta bake. The plants will soon be spent but as I keep stating they have done really well this year. I'm just hoping that this year wasn't just a fluke!
As well as working on the allotment we have also spent some time in the garden but this post is in danger of overstaying its welcome so I'll keep that for another day and another post.
This week I am linking to harvest Monday hosted on
Dave's blog Our Happy Acres
Posts
I'm glad you had a good crop of PSB - as you know, it's one of my favourite vegetables! My fruit trees are "mixed" this year - good blossom on the apples, but hardly any on my solitary pear tree. Blueberries look a lot better too, after a near-washout in 2018. So many variables in gardening!
ReplyDeleteSo am I, Mark. It’s fingers crossed for the fruit trees.
DeleteWhat a delightful sight to see. I will spend most of this year sorting things out after three years of total neglect, but it will come. You inspire me so.
ReplyDeleteYou’ll get there, Deborah
DeleteWe are having some lovely weather too...unfortunately, I sprained my wrist so not sure I can take full advantage of it (although I'll try!).
ReplyDeleteI hope your wrist improves soon, Margaret
DeleteThat Cardoon is huge. Enjoy your warm weather.
ReplyDeleteThe cardoon dies right down every year, Lisa that is less than one year’s growth.
DeleteDaffodils are long gone here but then so are most of the tulips. We had a warm and sunny Easter too. Your tulips are lovely! And the PSB harvest is impressive. Mine has dwindled to nearly nothing, but it was a good run for my first-ever success at growing it.
ReplyDeleteMost of our tulips quickly went over in the last few days warmth, Dave
DeleteThat cardoon is huge! Do you ever harvest the stalks? I'm growing some this year but I won't allow it to get that large. Daffodils are long gone here and tulips aren't something that I bother with because they don't like our mild winters. But out in the wilds the lupine is blooming like crazy, that would be the Easter flower this year.
ReplyDeleteWe don’t use the cardoon stalks, Michelle we treat it as an ornamental. It dies down to the ground each year. All that growth is new growth this season.
DeleteI love the way that you've used wood chip so extensively, looks very neat and tidy too
ReplyDeleteIt helps that it all comes free, Steve
DeleteThis weekend has certainly seen some rather warm weather Sue. Temperatures have gone from one extreme to another. The Sunday before was so cold that we thought it might snow! I just managed to have some daffodils for Easter by deliberately planting late. Well daffodils and chocolate are synonymous with Easter :) I really like the sound of the 'Tickled Pink' apple and am off to investigate forthwith.
ReplyDeleteTickled Pink also goes under the name of Baya Marissa, Anna
DeleteIt's been lovely to have such a good Easter this year, there's definitely something to be said for it falling late in the year. I just wanted to thank you for the lovely comment you left on my last post about the death of my mum, it was very much appreciated and helped so much to know that people were thinking of me at this difficult time xx
ReplyDeleteI hope the good weather helped a little, Jo
ReplyDeleteSuch surprise weather this weekend! Good to get such excellent sunshine on a Bank Holiday. Not to mention that only the weekend before on scout camp, my scouts were waking up to frost on the tents!
ReplyDeleteYour raspberries are looking amazing - I fear we've lost ours as only 2 out of 5 canes have any green to them and then only very tiny leaves! Congrats on your PSB - once we get our early beetroots out of the way, I may plant some out for winter cropping. Have you ever planted yours late in the summer and has it worked for you?
It really was Dodoqueen, we thought that we had lost our old canes too but they have sprung into life. We planted our PSB on 5 May last year. It takes a long time to mature.
DeleteYou've certainly got a lot happening there for so early in the season Sue. Jealous of the broccoli, mine turned out to cabbages plants last year so none for me this year :O(
ReplyDelete