Terry Walton isn’t le ing the weird weather beat him on the plot
Mother Nature has dealt us a strange hand but we won’t be beaten as our plots now play catch-up
Gardeners are good planners and prepare their soil to suit each crop. Sowings for crops follows a similar pa ern each year, and by late May all on the plot looks good. This year started with wet weather but by mid-March the weather had se led down and the plot was well prepared for an organised spring. At the start of April temperatures were on the rise, but what happened next knocked all that planning into touch. April showers failed to materialise and night-time temperatures dropped. There were more frosts in April than the whole of last winter! The greenhouse became full of crops desperate to be set free but were going nowhere. Those that got planted out required fleece protection and constant watering. On our allotments there’s no water supply on tap; we rely on good old Welsh weather and the abundance of streams that adorn our mountainside. However, such was the demand for this water supply that it ran at just a trickle. So much for all that planning as Mother Nature took control of our destiny! But beaten we were not and slowly things are ge ing back to normal – but a later-thanplanned season beckons! There are upsides to every gardening season – these early sowings weren’t plagued by the slug and snail! Also, the plot was kept completely free of weeds as the trusty hoe gently sliced them away and they perished during sunny, dry days.
The dry weather of earlier this month has brought out the bean weevil, leaving its mark on my broad bean leaves, making their edges serrated. There
isn’t a lot you can do about this beetle, but with feeding and tender care given to the plants it has li le impact on the crop.
Last week I went back to the allotments in the evening as well as my usual morning stint.
I had so much catching up to do. This reminded me of my working days when this was my normal recreation after a day at work. It’s a very pleasant time of day to be there. It’s strangely quieter and as the sun sets, the air is filled with the chorus of birds in the trees. I may go back to this routine regularly as I’d forgo en the tranquillity of an evening on the plot.