First harvest!!!!!!

Not a big deal but…….a big deal!!!! A bittersweet moment….our broad beans have been attacked firstly by black fly and then by broad bean rust ….so no option but to get rid of the whole lot…..the washing up liquid method was working against the black flies but the rust was the killer…oh never mind some you win some you lose…..Alhamdulilah

Insh’Allah , we will be luckier with the strawberries…they seem to be doing very well……baby checks on them at least one hundred times a day in the hope of finding a red one…she loves shouting out whenever she spots a new flower or fruit or even a weed…..:)

Salaams y hasta la vista,

Ines

Green pea tepees …

and other plot 29 news…

They don’t look like much at the moment but I’m pretty sure they are going to be a pretty sight once the pea plants are climbing up the canes….Lincoln peas they are called

It was a case of using up the only corner left free and some seeds that needed using up too….the other peas which don’t need support ( dwarf variety) are doing pretty well

It is not as busy as past weeks at the allotment and not quite harvest time….can’t wait!!!! I’m thinking fresh beans salad, pickled beetroots, cucumbers drenched in olive oil and salt, Algerian mesfouf ( couscous with steamed peas and broad beans)….oh the possibilities insh’Allah

I leave you with our best looking cabbage …tabarak Allah

Salaams y hasta la vista,

Ines

P.S…I know I’m overdoing it with the slug pellets but I would hate to lose a cabbage to those pests…

Part two….

it happened…and I missed it and baby beat me to it….mummy mummy the lily opened up!!!!! subhan’Allah….

The other lilies around are not far from opening up either….insh’Allah ….

I was thinking to reserve a corner for flowers in the allotment too. It does not have to be all practical….a bit of colour and simply for aesthetics won’t do any harm , plus the bees will be happy ….yes, a visit to the local garden center is definitely needed…..

Salaams y hasta la vista,

Ines

I’m going to miss it…..

and there’s no much I can do about it…..it never ceases to amaze me….subhan’Allah……in the last few hours , gradual subtle changes….and I know, I just know that when I check first thing in the morning the lily will be open…..subhan’Allah…..I could be wrong and I might be able to witness it but then it wouldn’t be the same…..I just think is almost magical…..

To be continued……….

Salaams y hasta la vista,

Ines

Plot 29….

things are happening…let me show you round….

 

Subhan’Allah…first broad bean pods spotted today……

And look at these peas….after a four day absence on the plot, what a pleasant surprise….

 

The cabbages continue to do well alhamdulilah……just a case of adding more slug pellets….and the sweet corn is coming along nicely too alhamdulillah…

 

Another very pleasant surprise was these two pumpkins…..straight from seed on the ground…the ones we sowed indoors and transplanted out did not make it….

 

Then there’s the runner beans…..covered with a mesh for a few more days…we don’t want the birds to attack them thinking they are worms…..

Remember the cucumbers hardening off on my patio table? Well , we planted them today….my first cucumbers ever…insh’Allah I succeed…..

 

The courgettes and squashes are doing fine too…alhamdulilah…..and the rest I will have to show you another time as they are hardly noticeable…what a difference a few days make , subhanAllah…..

Salaams y hasta la vista,

Ines