Katrina’s Allotment Diary
I can’t believe it’s September already and the growing season has almost come to an end! I thought I would do one last tour of the polytunnel (below) to show how the plants have progressed with their new support and water systems in place.
Continue reading “September Polytunnel Video Tour”
It’s been almost a month since my last polytunnel post, when I planted out the tomatoes with string supports. Everything is growing well, the tomatoes are loving their support system and have lots of flowers and fruits. I keep the polytunnel door open permanently to prevent blight even though it’s quite cool. I also feed the tomatoes every Friday with a liquid feed. Check out the video at the botttom of my post for a tomato tour! 🍅😄 I’ve just harvested the first of honeybee tomatoes and they’re so sweet! I can’t wait to try these in a Mediterranean veg tonight.
I’ve learnt a few lessons from last year. I grew too many tomato plants in too little space which meant there wasn’t enough airflow and most of the plants succumbed to blight before I could harvest the bulk of the fruit. The plants grew in big plant pots which I sunk into the ground. I watered them from the top of the pots, but since I didn’t remove the base of the pot (I drilled it instead), the roots weren’t spreading or taking up enough water.
I’m doing things differently in the polytunnel this year. Gone are the days of wonky bamboo canes that inevitably poke me in the eyes, head and/or face. The future is string! At least, I hope it is. I planted out all my tomato plants at the weekend, using a new system that I hope will increase my harvest, reduce the risk of diseases, improve watering and take the frustration out of using those bloomin’ bamboo canes. Continue reading “Supporting Polytunnel Tomatoes with String”
Do you remember back in April, a sharp frost killed off a number of my plants and seeings? Well my fellow Instagram gardeners came to help and sent me free seeds and plants! Huge thanks to Jason for giving me two chilli plants, a tomato cutting AND a tomato plant! I’m so excited to try them, especially since they are all new varieties.
Continue reading “Thank you 💚”
Homegrown Garden 
