September 2024 update. Not a great tale. Is there Light :~? Part 1.

Howdy Friends.

i truly hope you are keeping well and have had a fantastic growing season up 'til thenoo. i begin writing this at 02:30am BST (British Summer Time) on Thursday 05th September 2024.

As the title may suggest, the year thus far hasn't been a year of success for me on the allotment. With my health being poor for most of the year, the desire to get stuck in was impaired by the inability to so. To do anything physical was indeed, a mighty challenge beyond my available energy.

anyway,... i'm not a total "WOE IS ME!" kinda guy. It's September. that's it! it's September. There are positives because the year isn't over. i have a new found energy...

A selection of seeds from 'Yorkshire Seeds' purchased August 2024

It's September which means there are still a few months free of frost or freezing temperatures that may prove to be quite an exciting time to attempt to grow a harvest of something this year. i'm thinking that it may not be too late too plant quick growing greens such as lettuce, kale, spinach, chard, collards or spring greens, any looser-leafed cabbage, beetroot and turnip leaves plus radishes, potatoes, bush beans, peas and carrots. There, is one positive.

One other positive is my seed order from Yorkshire Seeds. i discovered them on Ebay although they do retail from a website at Yorkshire Seeds. Please note that there is no affiliation link between myself and Yorkshire Seeds. i simply value their service and am supporting them for the benefit of the smaller business.

Another positive is my intention to visit the plot today and to give a videoed update, which is needed as part of the first video to be published on my YouTube channel - RiK's Allotment & Gardening Exploits.

Some seeds that can be sown in September can be found in the YouTube playlist - SEED SOWING SEPTEMBER Allotment Gardening.

Some gardening jobs that can be done in September can be found in the YouTube playlist - JOBS FOR SEPTEMBER Allotment Gardening.

That, my Friends, will do for now. i will update soon. If it's today, it will probably be edited into this post. It may, however, be published as a Part 2. we will see.

The importance of beginning a 'healthy lifestyle' earlier in life, such as from birth for example, is paramount, although we shouldn't live with regret that we've been misfed by 'the system', literally, all of our lives. Simply begin a more healthy option now. This includes what we eat and what we do.

Love and Blessings to one and all. With Thanks and all Praise to our Lord Christ Jesus.

And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the third day. Genesis 1:11-13

And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so. And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day. Genesis 1:29-31

🌱

'The TOPICAL COMMENT FORUM' ADDED

 As a trial i've introduced 'The TOPICAL COMMENT FORUM'

a place for thinkers

(Bring Your Own Refreshments)

'The TOPICAL COMMENT FORUM'

🌱

POTATO REVEAL 'BLAST FROM THE PAST' DEBBIES INCREDIBLE SPUD CROP 7th August 2011

In the challenge between Debbie and Debbie's dad, 'Who Can Grow The Most Potatoes In One Bag 2011?', neglect seems to have had a predictable effect on Debbie's overall harvest. With the amount of soil in the rather large bag, we were hoping for at least ten kilos.

"did we achieve this unscientifically (AKA 'ssschhhmientifically') deduced expectation?"

  For optimum viewing clarity and pleasure, watch this video on YouTube to see the result.

Some lessons learned, although the reveal, as all reveals are?, was both exciting and fun.

Check out 'RiKs Allotment' YouTube channel's 'Potato Playlists' listed below:

WEATHER PAGE ADDED TO SITE

Howdy Friends.  This is a brief introduction to a new addition to the website

The 'WEATHER' Page

Currently, the page features an up-to-date and location-customizable weather forecaster provided by AccuWeather (No affiliation) giving hourly, daily, weekly and longer term predictions for your area.

and a 'United Kingdom Average Last Frost Date Map' provided by 'PlantMaps.com' (No affiliation)

Links to both can be found on The 'WEATHER' Page 

☁

Don't get caught out in a rainstorm without a brolly.

☔

Be weather wise and prepared, check the forecast.

The 'WEATHER' Page 

Live Life Loving & Prosper my Friends

🌱

Visit 'RiK's Allotment & Gardening Exploits' on YouTube

Pretty much the hub of my allotment and gardening information harvesting and community interaction takes place either on my allotment with other plot holders or on YouTube via my channel

'RiK's Allotment & Gardening Exploits'.

As a 'non-telly' household, getting my 'fix' of gardening programs and updates plus un-censored current gardening and farming affairs is a must, particularly in these uncertain times of food scarcity with impending starvation-en-mass looming on the horizon, huge increases in food costs, impacted heavily by rising fuel prices plus a war on the 'home-grower', 'small business', 'off-gridder' and 'self-sustainer' by the corporate industry monopolised, centralised world government not-so-secretly-known-as 'The World Government Of Food and Everything', in what is becoming commonly termed #FoodWorldWar

For an up-to-date look at crucial news as i hear of it, check out the channel Playlist:

'FOOD WARS, FARMER HARMERS, 'The Great Reset Food Agenda' FOOD FARMING POLITICS #FoodWorldWar #FoodWars #FarmerHarmers'

 With that gloom out of the way, let's get on with growing some fresh, clean, healthy organic food

in abundance.

Happy Gardening Dear Friends

🌱

CROPS FOR 2024 - Part 1 LEGUMES

Howdy friends. With the time for 'direct-sowing-in-the-ground' almost upon me here in Mid-South-West England (zone 9b) due to the 'anticipated' 'last frost date' drawing rapidly nearer (30th April according to this useful map United Kingdom Average Last Frost Date Map (plantmaps.com), i feel it time to share some of the crops i'm hoping to grow this year. As a Plantivore, i'll kick-off with one main staple (and storeably stable) nutritious food for me, that being the Legume, a rich source of plant-protein and minerals with the added bonus that the simple-to-dry legumes are highly suitable and prized for long-term storage.

A POLISH/MIDDLE-EASTERN FOOD MARKET IN TAUNTON, SOMERSET, ENGLAND, A RICH SOURCE OF INTERESTING PRODUCE

Now, a Legume ('Legume' refers to a plant from the family of plants Fabaceae) is the edible fruit or seed of the plant and includes beans, peas, chickpeas, lentils, et cetera. Dried 'Legumes' are called 'Pulses'.

Check this interesting article 24 Types of Legumes & Their Nutritional Values nutritionadvance.com

Check out my YouTube Channel Playlist

~ BEANS ~

for all things bean.

Please, always check the ingredients lists on everything.

Just because it's on supermarket shelves doesn't mean it's safe, healthy or sensible to eat.

🌱

'RiKs Allotment and Gardening Exploits' New Opening Credit Video.

or is it?

Howdy Friends. Welcome to 'RiK's Allotment, located in Taunton, South Somerset, England (Zone 9b) Check out the new video opening credit to my videos here: RiK's Allotment Intro. Opening Credit

 If you want to discover your Zone then check out this website: https://www.plantmaps.com/interactive-united-kingdom-plant-hardiness-zone-map-celsius.php 

Visit me on YouTube: RiK's Allotment & Gardening Exploits

Finally, "Happy Gardening to you"

🌱

WELCOME TO MY NEW PLOT

Not every cloud has a silver lining, only this one did. i secured a new plot within a week and moved in, so my misery was somewhat lessened despite my disappointment with the result of my old plot.

Sunday 7th April 2019

"AT THE GATE TO AWAIT MY FATE"

ENTERING HOLLY CLOSE ALLOTMENTS

HOLLY CLOSE ALLOTMENTS WITH 'STOKE WOOD' VISIBLE ON THE HORIZON

MY NEW PLOT EAGERLY AWAITS ME

FIRST IMPRESSION,... MEADOWESQUE

SECOND IMPRESSION,... "I'LL LIVE ON DANDELION"

MY PLOT FROM 'The FAR SIDE'

"YEP! I'LL LIVE ON DANDELION AND CLOVER"

CHECK OUT THE LATEST PLOTMENT VIDEO

'RiKs ALLOTMENT OLD PLOT to NEW PLOT'

🌱

MOVING PLOTS.

   1st April 2019

i bid farewell to my Stoke Road allotment plot Due to ill health, my plot fell into a state of no~maintenance for an extensive period, for which i was eventually sacked as an allotmenteer.

....to be blunt.

MY STOKE ROAD PLOT ON GOODBYE DAY, MONDAY 1st APRIL 2019.

i have no qualms.

It was a sad moment, particularly bearing in mind the effort i'd put in, the excitement and anticipation that i'd had plus, i would miss the whole concept and community that i had come to know and, in the main, love.

Work on the plot had a rather blusterous beginning, fizzling through to a breezeless conclusion.

SUNDAY 14th JANUARY 2018

TUESDAY 16th JANUARY 2018

FRIDAY 19th JANUARY 2018

TUESDAY 23rd JANUARY 2018

THURSDAY 25th JANUARY 2018

TUESDAY 30th JANUARY 2018

THURSDAY 1st FEBRUARY 2018 09:17hrs

THURSDAY 1st FEBRUARY 2018 16:42hrs

SUNDAY 4th FEBRUARY 2018 11:58hrs

SUNDAY 4th FEBRUARY 2018 16:04hrs

MONDAY 5th FEBRUARY 2019

TUESDAY 6th FEBRUARY 2018

THURSDAY 1st MARCH 2018

MONDAY APRIL 1st 2019 ~ GOODBYE DAY

 🌱

 

 Sunday APRIL 7th 2019

WELCOME TO MY NEW PLOT

 

SUNDAY APRIL 7th 2019 - Day 1 on my HOLLY CLOSE ALLOTMENT ASSOCIATION PLOT

more to come...

Please tick the box.

GROWING RHUBARB (Rheum Rhabarbarum) Dividing Crowns

In early February 2018 I received a large crown of rhubarb in exchange for digging a small hole for a fellow allotmenteer, a good example of olde fashioned #Bartering. I have never bought rhubarb let alone attempted to grow it, or even cooked with it myself. I like rhubarb, known as a 'dessert vegetable' bytheway, when baked in a pie or under crumble, or just lightly stewed and reduced into a jam, with no artificially processed sugar added. of course. The crown has sat for a number of weeks where it was left as I investigated the finer details of planting and nurturing as well as seeking out some nutritional and health benefit information.
Having been informed that the first years growth would not be edible plus taking into consideration the large number of lifted crowns dotted around the allotments, there seemed to be no urgency in a need to get planting it straight away...
 

MY GIFTED RHUBARB CROWN AWAITING A PERMANENT HOME

until today...
TUESDAY 13th MARCH 2018

PLOT SHOT FROM 4th FEBRUARY 2018 WITH RHUBARB CROWN IN THE FOREGROUND. LITTLE CHANGE FROM THEN 'TIL NOW

Armed with basic rhubarb knowledge among the tools, today is the day for dividing and planting my rhubarb crown. I've decided to split the large crown into several individual ones, potting them up and burying the pots at Rhubarb Central. This way will help to get them established in soil now and allow them to be placed in different areas of the plot, or gifted, if desired, in the future.

A full length video showing the dividing and replanting process

plus real time digging can be viewed below and on YouTube.

A shortened length video showing the dividing and replanting process

plus speed digging can be viewed below and on YouTube.

After being divided into seven individual crowns of varying sizes and planted in locations both in the ground and in sunken pots, for simpler future relocation, my crowns settle in at Rhubarb Central for a summer of acclimatising.

THE LARGER PORTION OF DIVIDED CROWN SETTLED IN AT RHUBARB CENTRAL

IMAGES BELOW SHOW THE OTHER CROWNS POTTED & LOCATED AT RHUBARB CENTRAL

RHUBARB CENTRAL

 
RHUBARB CENTRAL TWO

Further up the allotment is the siting place for a lone rhubarb crown,
the prodigal son, perhaps, in Rhubarb Central Two

ONE DIVIDED RHUBARB CROWN PLANTED AT RHUBARB CENTRAL TWO

 
SOME RHUBARB NUTRITIONAL AND HEALTH BENEFIT INFORMATION

As shown below, rhubarb would appear to be one of those plants that has an amazing amount of health and wellbeing benefits. I have therefore decided to class it as a 'super food' and hope to maintain a regular consumption as part of my everyday diet.

The preserving of any unused harvest will be necessary to avoid waste and ensure a regular supply throughout the remainder of the year, so a number of different storage, cooking and 'canning' methods will be employed. To receive future updates and notifications of new posts, subscribe for email updates from the app. in the side bar.

🌱

RHUBARB AND SLUGS 'n' SNAILS

Rhubarb is known to attract slugs and snails, not good to have anywhere in the garden, so a slug 'n' snail deterrent, perhaps a slug repelling companion plant, is currently being sought. Chives have been noted as a possible solution, so I will try them out as an experiment, primarily planting them in pots that will be buried in close proximity to the rhubarb plant and can be easily lifted and moved relatively undisturbed if they fail to impress.

As a 'no~kill' pest controller, slug pellets are out. The only other option that springs to mind is to collect and relocate. In this case, finding an attracting plant or a highly attractive source is the mission to 'centralise' all snails for collection before finding them a new home. Obviously, the 'collect and relocate' method needs frequent monitoring with the aim being to achieve such time as all of the pests have been captured and moved on to pastures new and far away from my plot and the allotment gardens as a whole. If total banishment is achieved an option is to remove the attraction whilst continuing to monitor the area in case any homesick or new individuals 'move in'.

Will this work? I aim to find out!

COMPANION PLANTS FOR RHUBARB

Companion planting is the name given to the practice of planting certain plants in close proximity to another plant to offer a mutual benefit, including repelling pests, attracting predatory and pollinating insects, offering shade, providing nutrients, improving flavour and productivity and increasing the overall happiness of the garden.

Good companion plants, according to general consensus, for #rhubarb include:

Garlic and Onions  repel aphids. apparently!
Cabbage,
Cauliflower,
Broccoli,
Kale,
Columbines,
Strawberries.

The above list is not complete and possibly wont be
although it will be added to as knowledge is absorbed.

~ Please Note ~

 I am neither an expert gardener or a gardening expert.

This article was written in my first year of allotmenteering and of growing food en mass

so much advice picking combined with experimentation is par for the course.
This is
 ~ RiKs Allotment Garden Diary ~
the experimental professor of pottage

Who knows best?

the ones with the best crops?
or the nicest recipe?

I urge any readers of this article to treat it as a YeeHar!

Seeking and taking advice from more than one or two sources is both sensible and interesting.

For a list of gardening and health related websites that I frequently use to reference and source information

please click this link > USEFUL LINKS which takes you to the link page.

Please feel free to post a comment below
and subscribe for updates by email from the app. in the side bar.

🌱

Snowy Plot. 1st March 2018

"Typical!" With my plan for the day to include a return to the allotment after my recovery from a bout of digginflicted back pain, the icy cold Arctic blast named 'The Beast From The East' had a date with Sultry Storm Emma, which rolled in from the warmer southern regions of Portugal and France, causing the largest snowfall I've seen for years.

A BROAD VIEW OF THE ALLOTMENT GARDENS ON 1st MARCH DUSTED WITH TWO INCHES OF SNOW.

This blizzard came as something of a shock to me as I don't have a television, rarely listen to a radio and pay very little attention to newspapers. 'Up to date' news is invariably yesterdays news to me.

Despite the falling snow, increasing winds and dropping temperature I decided to visit the allotment anyway. I was hoping to split and plant the rhubarb crown today and do a bit of prepping for planting garlic, something I intend planting a lot of, not because I love to eat a lot, I don't, it's because I understand that rats don't like it, so, it's an attempt at repelling them. Well, those little jobs will have to wait. The snow seems set to remain until at least early next week. At least it gives the opportunity to get seed sowing indoors.

If nothing else, the visit to the allotment gave me the opportunity to get a snowy picture for my 2019 allotment calendar.

Below is a brief video taken during my visit to the plot.

REMEMBER

COLD KILLS THE VULNERABLE.

CHECK YOUR NEIGHBOURS, THE ELDERLY FOLK & THE HOMELESS.

YOU'LL BE THANKED SOME DAY.

⛄

Growing An Avocado Plant From Seed Plus Some Nutrition Notes

How tall will a tree grow?

HOW TALL WILL A TREE GROW? AS TALL AS IT CAN!

🌱

Growing a plant from seed ourselves gives such a satisfying feeling. Growing a more exotic or unusual plant, like an avocado, is even more satisfying. When watching something so tiny develop into something so much larger in comparison, I still ponder at how...

Growing an avocado plant from seed is obviously more involved than just burying a seed in a pot and leaving the rest to Ma Nature. or is it? The current status of my avocado plant is just that, a seed buried in a pot, only the seed was germinated and nurtured for a year in an adapted plastic bottle, to get it 'started off' before being potted up. It was left for a year to enable a casual study of the root structure and development. The root system is the part of a plant that absorbs water and nutrients from the soil to feed the plant.

 Pictured below is the basic technique used to germinate the avocado seed.

SOAKING AVOCADO SEEDS

SCRAPING WAY THE SKIN FROM THE HAIRLINE CRACK

After soaking the cleaned seeds for a few days in water, some develop a hairline crack in the outer shell indicating that something inside is expanding. Hopefully, it's the tiny seedling germinating in the centre of the great nut. To relieve a bit of tension from the constriction by the hunky shell, the brown skin of the nut is scraped off along the split line before being sat in water and placed in a warm area.

SEED GERMINATING

SEED IN WATER POT

AVOCADO SEED GERMINATION TRIAL IN A PLASTIC EGG BOX. 15th February 2018

 
The avocado shown in the images below from 15th February 2018, was germinated and has been growing in this pot since 14th February 2017. Twelve months is long enough. Time for potting up.

AVOCADO SEED AFTER TWELVE MONTHS ON THE WINDOWSILL. 15th February 2018

ROOT STRUCTURE OF AVOCADO AFTER ONE YEAR IN WATER. 15th February 2018

The roots appear to have a deep penetrating tap root with a strong developing root structure. Happy Days.

After potting on, the plant appeared non the wiser come the following day. No death!

AVOCADO PLANT POTTED ON 15th FEBRUARY 2018. Image taken 16th February 2018

The video below demonstrates how I potted on the rooted avocado seed and its' current state.

The two images above, taken on 25th February 2018, show how the avocado plant has adapted to potted life after ten days. The pair of top leaves, the newest growth, have flourished and increasing their size quite noticeably. It currently sits on a sunny windowsill indoors as avocados love the sun. Young plants should be protected from the cold during winter although the more established plant can survive outdoors.

🌱

MY GENERAL NOTES on AVOCADO GOODNESS

Avocados are generally accepted as a 'wonder', 'super' or 'marvelous' food based on their highly positive nutritional and dietary values and health benefits, obviously. The benefits of eating avocados are numerous, too many for me to mention and non of which are the results of my own deduction. I will urge people to research more thoroughly and with more interest and concern about what they eat, particularly as 'reliable' information is readily and freely available to many. With the agenda complicit corporates dominating the global food chain and showing signs of skullduggery between the ever developing cracks in the rind, knowing where food comes from should also be of suspicion raising interest.

Are We What We Eat?

🌱

The information detailed below has been compiled from a number of different sources from both online and hard copy publications and gives average values based on variations found in the different varieties and sources analysed. Whilst the information is, to my understanding and acceptance, accurate at the time of publishing, it is intended for my own personal use only and should not be totally relied upon to be accurate for your own personal acceptance or use. This is obviously a disclaimer of responsibility, written in to protect myself from negative retribution. The information should only be used as a general, non binding guide for furthering interest .
NOTE: I am not a nutritionist, a herbalist or a medical practitioner, so please do your own research.

The two website links printed in the above nutrition chart are informative portals for food nutrition and personal health advice and links to these sites have been included below. I am in no way affiliated with either website or company and am merely sharing their sites to enable a reader to access the information I frequently browse.

The George Mateljan Foundation is a not-for-profit foundation with no commercial interests or advertising. Their mission is to help us eat and cook the healthiest way for optimal health.

~ What's  New & Beneficial About Avocados? ~

~ whfoods.com ~

&

Self Nutrition Data use the motto "Know What You Eat" and is a mine source
of interesting and valuable information regarding food nutrition and personal health.

 ~ Avocados, Raw, All Commercial Varities, Nutrition Facts and Calories ~
~ nutritiondata.self.com ~

"Have A CaCado"

🌱