So in this article I take an eclectic look at things, some of which are a little off my normal track.

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1 Now that the good weather has eventually arrived it is a good time to take stock of all that is happening in the vegetable garden at home and on the allotment. So in this article I take an eclectic look at things, some of which are a little off my normal track. I don t know what caused this little chap to come above ground. He was in perfect condition with no injury that I could find. So I wonder what caused his demise. I tolerate moles on the allotment but there are moments when I wish they would dig elsewhere. Being a bit of a softie where animals are concerned, I could never kill one. Talking about animals. On the allotment farm the sow is with pig and should be producing in the near future. So far she has produced 12 litters and never lost a single piglet. Quite a mum. Of course allotments are perfect places for our snake population. They remain relatively undisturbed. This plump adder is enjoying the early summer sunshine. Because I know we have a resident adder and grass snake population, I avoid using plastic netting with small dimension holes. I once rescued a grass snake that was entwined in the stuff. Charcoal burning. There is a local organisation that my wife Sally and I act as volunteers and that is TWO TREES. We get involved in all sorts of jobs such as clearing non native invasive plants like Himalayan Balsam from various waterways. Last Monday we joined in with the local forestry group clearing woodland in a conservation area of the New Forest called Pond Head. We loaded the cut wood onto a trailer for transport to the charcoal burner.

2 This is the modern way of creating charcoal. It burns without the use of oxygen and turns out a very superior form of charcoal. Another by product is bio char, very handy for us gardeners. Tomatoes. Remember the wilting tomato that I featured in the last article. Well it was nothing to do with the roots being nibbled. In fact it looked like a form of stem rot. The plus side is that the other tomatoes remain unaffected, so hopefully that was just a one off, something that occasionally happens to us gardeners without a real explanation of how it was caused. Apples. As we approach mid June it is time to apply a spray of calcium nitrate to the apple trees in the evening. This is to ward off bitter pit. This will continue at monthly intervals until September. Aubergines. Once the aubergines attain a height of 12 the top is pinched out to encourage the side growths and cropping. They will do best under cover but it must be in a position of good light. And don t crowd them, these are going to grow into large plants that will need supporting with canes. Also keep that sprayer handy to ward off the spider mites. All my aubergines this year are the F1 variety Black Beauty. I am looking forward to the first fruits which with luck will be in early July. Aubergines can also be successfully cultivated in the open ground, if you can give them some protection. On the allotment I have delayed cutting the Comfrey because the bees love to collect pollen from

3 the flowers. As soon as the flowers die back this lot will be reduced to ground level and composted. With in a few days new leaves will appear to eventually provide us with an Autumn cutting. Just down from the Comfrey the Spencer variety sweet peas are coming into flower. In front is the asparagus, the fronds now supported with individual canes. The fronds will die back in the autumn, then they can be cut and the bed earthed up. Another very worth while crop to grow is Perpetual Spinach. These will need regular cropping or else the leaves can grow rather large and course. The plus side is that this plant is virtually bullet proof and will continue to crop all year, as its name suggests. So for me if it s spinach for cooking that you are after, grow perpetual. If it s spinach for salads grow a true variety like Amazon or Bordeaux. Moving further down the allotment, on the left under the netting is a row of Cornel cauliflowers. The plants are spaced a minimum of 2 apart. They are big feeders needing a fertile soil and plenty of water. These are intended as an entry in the New Forest Show. Each plant was raised in a pot and the planting hole was dusted with dolomite lime. These measures help to ward off club root as all our allotments suffer from the disease. Centre of picture is a row of Takmark onions and to the right two rows of Pendle blanch leeks. All doing very well. In the greenhouse are the peppers, Bell Boy and Torro Rosso. Most of these will be grown on in the green house but due to overcrowding some will go into the shallot bed once that becomes vacant at the end of the month.

4 Back home in the vegetable garden. The mint is flourishing and is the essential accompaniment to the new potatoes we have been harvesting. We grow our mint in bottomless barrels sunk deep into the ground. It is a very invasive plant and needs controlling. At most times of the year we have a sowing of radish underway. This is French Breakfast a handy addition to a salad or suppertime snack. Normally takes about 5 weeks from sowing to cropping. French Beans Hawkesbury Wonder. These were sown about 10 weeks ago. With regular sowings we shall have French beans right up to Christmas time. If you can provide a greenhouse and a little heat to keep them frost free. If you can t find Hawkesbury Wonder then seek out Prince, that s equally as good and widely available. I am impressed with these Di Monico broad beans. We haven t tried them yet as the pods are still filling out. But it looks lovely and could well win a prize or two on the show bench.

5 It s also all go in the greenhouse at home. The Cedrico tomatoes are filling out, the French marigolds are blooming and they seem to be doing a good job as I have not seen a single white fly. And to make maximum use of the bed we have a row of Lollo Rosso lettuce at the front. Well that s about it for the early June round up. Later in the month we shall check in the poly tunnel casting an eye over the progress of the exhibition blanch leeks and onions. Before that I have a talk to give on Show Craft to the Hampshire DA at West Wellow village hall on Tuesday June 13 th. Full details on the NVS home page. Hopefully I shall see some of you there. John Trim