We managed to get to the plot on Friday, thanks to our allotment pal, Jan who came to pick us up and ferry us to and from the plot.
Once there it was just a case of a couple of hours steady harvesting. We couldn't have stayed any longer anyway as the weather was against us.
You may be able to spot the harvest stuffed in the greenhouse to keep it dry whilst we sheltered from the worst of the rain.
The wind had toppled the runner beans like a stack of cards. They were attached to a frame like the climbing French beans which are still standing. The amount of leaf was all the winds needed to do their worst.
I did manage to salvage a few beans from the mass of leaves but to be honest, because we hadn't managed to pick regularly, most were past their best. Maybe I can pod some and use the beans inside.
I expected the sweet peas to have given up but there were still plenty of flowers.
We did manage to harvest quite a lot. Our booty was arranged at home under the carport out of the rain for a photoshoot.
In the net sacks are ....
... Fiesta apples ...
... Egremont Russet apples ...
... and Invincible pears.
We also managed to strip our sweet corn plants. We were really pleased with the haul considering we thought the plants had been murdered by strong winds straight after planting.
We decided to strip off the kernels and freeze them straight away.
The All Gold autumn raspberries had hung on for us. Usually the berries don't stand up well to wet and windy weather but we managed a good picking,
You may have noticed - on the group photo - that we even managed a smattering of blueberries. The bushes are now sporting their early autumn colouring so that's the end of their harvest for this year,
The fruit of the tomato plants in both plot and garden greenhouse are now ripening faster than we can use them and so batches have been made into a tomato sauce and frozen.
We have continued to harvest grapes, tomatoes, peppers, watercress, spring onions and parsley from the garden as we need them and I occasionally remember to take a photo.
The Snackbite pepper plants have done really well and are ripening steadily.
We will grow them again.
They've been a long time coming but we have now managed to harvest some spring onions!
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That's a great harvest. I love sweetcorn but I usually ate them on the cob when I grew them, I always found it too faffy trying to strip them.
ReplyDeleteWe just don’t have room in the freezer to leave the cobs whole, Jo.
DeleteSounds as if your weather has been truly awful! We have got off quite lightly down here in the SE -(my beanpoles are still upright). Special congratulations on growing those Spring Onions; I know you have had some difficulties with them recently.
ReplyDeleteIt’s mainly been damp and miserable, Mark but we had period of fairly strong winds which must have been when the beans were battered. Wind doesn’t have to be too bad when the beans are fully clothed with leaves. The beans often develop lean over the season but this is the first time that the wind has blown them flat. Yes we were quite pleased to have managed to grow some spring onions at last. They’ve taken a long time to develop.
DeleteWonderful harvests - I bet you are glad you braved the weather. That corn is envy inducing - I'm still hopeful that one day I'll be able to grow some without some critter getting to it first.
ReplyDeleteIt wasn’t so much braving the weather, Margaret it was more just being able to physically get to the plot. We thought we were going to be without corn altogether this year so the pile of corn is a real bonus.
DeleteSpring onions in September - that's commitment! Wild weather. Is that common at this time of year for you? That's a great haul of sweet corn. I wish I had that stashed in my freezer.
ReplyDeleteThose spring onions were planted in spring, Michelle! The weather wasn’t exactly wild it was just a few days with gusty wind which is fairly common at this time of year.
DeleteOur blueberry bushes have turned color too and some are dropping leaves. The corn is amazing, having survived the early problems. Too bad about the beans though. A fully loaded trellis is surely a wind target.
ReplyDeleteIt is indeed, Dave. It was just unfortunate that it was windy when the supports were totally covered in leaves.
DeleteOh Sue did well for a dash and grab outing. A shame that the wind had done a smash and grab but at least you had already harvested most of the beans. I though that 'Aileen' might have toppled over my bean wigwams but was fortunate this time round.
ReplyDeleteThere were plenty of runner beans left, Anna but as our freezers are quite full now I wasn’t too upset.
DeleteMy beans went the same way this year. Your soft fruit is looking amazing. Do you cook the sweetcorn before you strip it? I'm curious how you make such a good job of stripping it. Egremont Russets here too, they really are a delicious apple, we can't get enough of them.
ReplyDeleteSweet corns are stripped without cooking, CJ. I strip off the leaves and Martyn is in charge of the knife. We really like Egrement apples too Martyn says it’s his favourite apple.
DeleteGlad to see you are still harvesting well, especially with the horrible weather. The sweetcorn is quite impressive.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Deborah
DeleteAnother great harvest, fancy still having a few blueberries. Those grapes do look nice. Good to see the corn harvest after the early damage.xxx
ReplyDeleteThe blueberries are totally finished now, Dina. The sweet corn certainly exceeded expectation.
DeleteI am impressed that you still have enough sweetpeas to fill two buckets like that! ours succumbed to mildew a few weeks back. Glad you didn't have too much damage from the wind this time around. It does cause issues on exposed plots doesn't it?
ReplyDeleteTrue, Kathy the wind has been known to upend sheds.
DeleteThat's good harvest besides the bad wind! ! I love looking at the apples and pears! So fresh looking fruits!
ReplyDeletePears were on the menu for dinner tonight, Malar
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