Tales from the Plot
Where do we start? May is probably one of the busiest months of the year.
It’s a month I really enjoy: towards the end of May you can hopefully say that the frosts have now gone although I must say it’s never a certainty and as the old saying goes ‘beware of the last full moon in May’.
For me May is also a potato month, many will have already planted their seed potatoes, we all do our own thing, I’m pretty sure that a book could be written purely on the growing of potatoes. There are some plot holders who believe that the whole year is based on whether there was a good potato crop or not – so important is this crop.
I’ve grown many varieties over the years, but sadly never really keeping a reliable record, I’ll often bring some potatoes home and Jane will prepare and cook them and say I quite like these, what variety are they? and I’ll give her a blank expression and confess I’ve forgotten, I didn’t label them!
I buy my seed potatoes from Brooklea Garden Centre; you can just choose whatever you want and pay a set price per kilo – they often have 50 or so varieties. I walk round and think I’ll try some of those and then some of those and end up with about six different varieties. Last year I took the time to pack them up all individually and put a label inside each bag stating which variety they were, then on the way home I had to brake rather enthusiastically and all the potatoes slid off the seat onto the floor of the car all mixed up. So that year was very much a lucky dip as to what variety we had at any particular time.
I normally grow some Charlotte, they’re quite dependable – they can be used as a salad potato earlier on or left in the ground till later and used as a main crop. I also grow a few Sarpo Mira, not because they’re the best tasting potato – they most certainly are not – but because they are blight resistant: just an insurance crop really so if the dreaded blight strikes I will at least have a crop
Other plot holders often ask what variety they should grow I normally give the same answer you should only grow what you like.
May is also bean month, this year I’ll be growing a variety of runner bean called white lady. The reason is they have white flowers instead of red: I’m told this keeps the black fly away as it’s the red flowers that attracts them – we shall see. I shall also be growing some bush French beans called Annabel for no other reason than it’s my granddaughter’s name. I also grow French climbing beans called Cobra – they’re very reliable and grow profusely, don’t forget the word ‘Bingo’ when planting beans plant them eyes down whether it makes any difference or not is debatable.
I normally plant a few marigolds around the bottom of the runner beans this also helps deter the black fly, also a couple of sunflowers amongst them not only for the looks but they attract the bees and help pollination. As with all the bean crops try and pick them while they’re young and tender. It’s a comforting feeling that we have hopefully a warm summer ahead of us and all is well down the allotments.
Richard Thorpe 15B Syston Allotments.