Tales From The Plot August
August is normally a time of plenty and it’s been a strange wet then dry year so far. I’m actually writing this at the beginning of July – at this time we haven’t had any real rain for two months which I believe has held many plants back. We have spent the last six months setting seeds and planting out then needing to water just to keep them alive. The peas were a bit of a disaster. For the last three years I’ve told myself I won’t bother with peas again, they require so much effort for so little reward, although just walking past them when the pods are beginning to swell and eating them as you walk down the allotment path is a delight.
I would miss broad beans which were yet again a great success, all harvested and in the deep freeze. It’s been an alright sort of year for strawberries, again dry weather at the wrong time but we’ve had enough to make some jam and enjoy some fresh with cereals or ice cream, a similar practice is being carried out with the raspberries. Although my raspberries didn’t seem to make any size – I believe mine are old plants and need to be replaced, something I’m planning on doing in the late autumn.
Potatoes, cauliflower, cabbages, french and runner beans, carrots etc are all being harvested as needed – it’s been a particularly good year for beetroot which is rather handy because we both love it freshly boiled, I even like the earthy smell of beetroot being boiled. Don’t be afraid to have a succession of sowings as beetroot stands really well into the winter. You can still sow lots of crops in August for harvests into autumn and beyond, this practice is essential if you want your veg patch to supply you with produce throughout the year.
If you want fresh new potatoes on the dinner table on Christmas Day now is the last chance to set them, I have learnt this from previous experience – if later than August they will not have time to mature before the cold weather comes back.
Prepare to lift onions towards the end of the month, wait until the tops begin to fall over as this indicates that the bulb has stopped swelling, dry them before ‘stringing’ and putting into store and these bulbs will then keep until next year.
The apples and pears will soon begin to colour up along with plums and damsons being in full flow so harvest regularly, hopefully the late fruiting raspberries will soon be cropping.
Make the last of any outdoor sowings to provide a late harvest for this season, radishes and lettuce will still produce a crop.
The end of this month signals the time to begin summer pruning of your apple and pear trees (those grown as cordons, espaliers or fans, for trees and bushes, leave these until the winter to prune). The purpose of summer pruning is to encourage the development of fruit buds for next summer.
August is definitely the last month to prune stone fruit trees (plum, apricot, cherry and peach), and of course as always keep hoeing those weeds. I find it quite remarkable that it doesn’t matter how much care you give to your vegetable plants the weeds grow faster and more often than not look healthier! I’m sure it’s never been any different.
Richard Thorpe 15b Syston allotments
