Sunburnt arms

The temperature reached 26ËšC today and I came back from the allotment with sunburnt arms of all things. All those months of cold weather, and now I have to resort to sitting under the apple trees to escape the heat. The weather was perfect mind you for the main task I set myself – to fill the wheelie bins with lots and lots of water. It took about five trips with the wheelbarrow, full of bottles of water from the trough, plus a bucket and a watering can. Naturally I slopped a lot of it around – especially when trying to manoeuvre my way off the grass path and close to the bins. But it was deliciously refreshing.

I seem to be the only person who isn’t using a now-illegal hose on my plot. But everyone does it with such insouciance that you know there is nothing to say or do. One of the advantages of this hose activity was that the man hogging the top watering trough with his hose pointed out a trough at the lower end, closer to my bins. I would never have noticed it as it is fairly buried under a tree of mess, and close growing stinging nettles. But it did cut some of my journey time down.

I should have done the watering work last, and the digging first. But I just didn’t plan for such a warm day. I found myself in the blazing sun digging away at the new path, shovelling heavy clay soil into the barrow and then using it to build up the potato beds. Hot sweaty work.

The good bit of the day was all the planting. White Lady runner beans, a row of basil seedlings, celeriac plants (planted a bit close I fear, as only six will fit in my narrow rows.) Two little dwarf French bean plants, four purple sprouting broccoli, three pepper plants, a row of soya beans, a row of scorzonera, half a row of beetroot seeds and third of a third of the row of rocket. It means that my original planting scheme is almost complete. Just the tomatoes to go. I have given up on the okra as most books say I don’t have a chance of growing them outdoors. There’s plenty enough without them.

Vegetable: White Lady Runner Beans
How many?: 2
How planted?: On beanpole supports
Notes: Middle of plot

Vegetable: Basil
How many?: 11 seedlings
How planted?: Directly into the soil
Notes: Bed 3

Vegetable: Celeriac Monarch
How many?: 4 plants
How planted?: Directly into the soil
Notes: Bed 2

Vegetable: Scorzonera
How many?: 1 row
How planted?: Directly into the soil
Notes: Bed 2

Vegetable: Dwarf French beans Maxi
How many?: 2 plants, 3 seeds
How planted?: Directly into the soil
Notes: Bed 4

Vegetable: Rocket
How many?: third of a row
How planted?: Directly into the soil
Notes: Bed 3

Vegetable: Peppers
How many?: 3 plants
How planted?: Directly into the soil
Notes: Bed 4

Vegetable: Beetroot Bolthardy
How many?: half a row
How planted?: Directly into the soil
Notes: Bed 2

Vegetable: Soya Beans
How many?: 1 row
How planted?: Directly into the soil
Notes: Bed 4

Vegetable: Purple Sprouting Broccoli
How many?: 4 plants
How planted?: Directly into the soil
Notes: Bed 3