Anyone with an allotment?

Anything worth starting at home on the windowsill or potting shed at the moment?

Is it too late to plant lambs lettuce?

I do cut n come again salad on the balcony until December usually, still going strong.

I have rat challenges to overcome but its not impossible

Looking to make our polytunnel as cosy as possible for the winter. Sowed a few onion sets in there last weekend and our chillis are still going strong.
I’d like to overwinter the chillis in there(aware they’ll probably need cloches or a second mini tunnel) and hopefully grow a few other useful things in there.
What’s the best way to try to retain some more warmth in there? Layer of strulch or manure?
Was wondering if filling lengths of black down pipe with water and capping the ends would be beneficial by absorbing warmth during the day?
Ideally I’d keep it above 5°c inside the cloches/secondary tunnel.

Potentially doable with passive means?

Calum on Beechgrove used manure in his greenhouse beds to produce heat. Think it's this episode https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m0022hy8/beechgrove-garden-2024-episode-22

Surrey Docks Farm use wood chip in their hot beds

Removed all trace of the tomato bed today and moved a few herbs into the herb bed at the same time. Need a couple more perennial herbs to fill that gap but not sure what at the moment.
Chillis in the tunnel still going strong for now and the onion sets I put in there last week have come up already.

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Mixed results size wise on my Carrots, tasty though so a win.

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Last of the maincrop Sarpo Mira lifted today. Some good size tubers there.

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Romanescos are finally growing and my Chrysanthemums are starting to bloom. My grandad was a champion chrysanthemum grower so I'm hoping I can take some of these to my nan for her birthday next week. Have cleared half the plot for onions and leafy winter things, just can't be arsed to hoike over the compost today.

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Anyone had much luck with green manure and can share any wisdom?
Field beans recommended in today's Guardian but are they just going to get annihilated by slugs?
https://premierseedsdirect.com/product/green-manure-field-bean/

Similarly I tried broad beans last year as I had some seeds that needed using and they got annihilated by the slugs. They lasted all winter then the spring rains bought the army and poof they were gone in an evening.

I've grown and dug in a couple of years but given the faff a load of manure feels easier. 5 barrows onto this spot I cleared my failed squash from today.

Old guy from one of the other plots said there'll be no squash next year either "because Jesus is returning, with fire and brimstone" which will be worrying if he's as accurate with that prediction as he is with his allotment tips.

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Every time I think it’ll be the last harvest

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@jackbepablo looks like you’ve had a spectacular season this year! Chapeau.

Going to dig over a couple more beds today and maybe pull the last spuds. Manure is supposedly being delivered on the 26th oct so need to start acquiring cardboard.

Thats a huge pepper or some very miniature squash 😲🤔

Cleared a couple more beds.
Sadly our potatoes were a write-off: riddled with little centipede looking bastards :(

Harvested fuck loads more chillis.

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https://www.instagram.com/p/DA8mJdTOaHH/

Wondering how many committees would consent to these on folk's plots.

Oooh I’d love to know how you get on this winter if you’re putting one in?

I’ve considered doing this on a few occasions! If the entrance faces away from the path it’d just look like a cloche/low tunnel I guess?
I presume you need to shore it up somehow to stop it collapsing? It’s just a hole with a cloche on top, so can’t see how the committee would get too spicy.

Apparently better suited to equatorial places as sun is a bit low in northern hemisphere during winter to make the most of it.

Would be a fun project tho!

It's taking me all my energy to level the ground for the greenhouse base, I doubt I'd dig out any deeper tbh!

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^ crappy pic of spot greenhouse will go eventually

Would be a fun project tho!

with help from the local grave digger ?

Currently doing base for our greenhouse as well. Only issue is that it’s going on the bindweed hellmouth part of my site.

Have basically dug a rectangular trench which I’ll cover with weed membrane as well as the greenhouse floor. Will compact and level using sharp sand. Then once I’ve put the greenhouse frame into the trench I’ll fill the remaining gaps around the base with 10mm gravel to keep it fixed in place. Sound great in my head. Let’s see how it goes IRL.

I feel like you could make some hot beds in a greenhouse and keep it fairly heated. Ultimately long dark/cold winters are hard to fight against without using electricity.

Re: walpini. That’s a lot of soil to find a space for on your allotment.

I used to plant street trees commercially.
The drainage and shoring up is more concern than the digging…