Picked this week 15 July 2012

 Last week we had some torrential downpours, then some steady persistent rain with paths flooded, drains overflowing and allotments waterlogged. Fortunately, this week hasn't been so bad. Rain on several days but not too heavy and a couple of days were actually warm and sunny.

Our plot isn't anything like as wet as some but still has squelchy bits so we thought it best to start and lift some things - the remainder of the winter onions, the ones not running to seed. This is the first time we've really tried winter onions and they seem to have done quite well.

Then we lifted the extra early potatoes - Swift. Some were damaged, possibly by eelworm, and none of them very large. The second earlies look stronger, healthier plants so maybe they'll give more dinners.

Still picking broad beans - one bag was picked on Tuesday, the other on Thursday, so despite the weather they're continuing to  fill. The first row of over-wintered beans is now finished and lifted but we have another one growing.

Also lots of peas, now picking from 2 rows.

 A bit surprisingly the soft fruit continues to ripen. I'm picking strawberries a little under-ripe to get them before the slugs do!

allotment loganberries/autumn raspberries and 4 gooseberries!

 The gooseberry bushes at the allotment have a small amount of fruit on them this year. I think shaping the bushes will improve it. I'm not sure what exactly the red fruit is. The plants were in the allotment when we took over and I though they were autumn fruiting raspberries but as they have fruit so early I wonder if they're actually loganberries.

yesterday's pickings from the garden

The home bushes are still producing well - raspberries, redcurrants, different types of strawberries and what for us is a bumper crop of blackberries.

weird radish

I picked from two radish rows this week - the first was normal, the second was long white roots. I thought it was a row of mixed radish but it looks rather strange. I can't make my mind up whether I've lifted small turnips or something by mistake.

We've reached the end of cabbage and cauliflower for a while but still have kale which is OK but a bit chewy!