This was the summer when the plot, allotment and garden were going to get truly developed, but perhaps predictably that didn’t happen at all. Nothing major, but small things one after another meant that time has passed and the developing plot, in particular,  has been gently going to seed. Now summer is seguing into Autumn I will be having a hard think about this year and making proper plans for next.

This Spring and Summer work was too hectic to allow any time to get the proper supply of plants and flowers going to meet any regular market demand; so only did three markets. The small plants went well and the cut flowers slowly. Will need to plan planting better from this Autumn to keep  a succession of cut flowers coming. Only real developments over the summer was planting some shrubs for greenery from next spring so physocarpus, golden and dark and pittosporum, variegated and Tom Thumb, as well as philadelphus were put in around the boundaries.  Also spent time picking and dead-heading sweet peas until the stems got shorter and shorter. Despite taking them to a couple of markets, too busy at work to catch and sell them at their best so they  mostly scented our house in smaller and smaller containers. Now they are going to seed, will let the seed ripen for allotment planting next year.

So careful and urgent planning needed to get this plot productive for next year. First off, need to order bulbs for planting into pots and in the plot. Hopefully this will help extend the season at the market as there might be scented pots of paperwhite narcissus available to sell in Winter as well as iris reticula and crocus too. Autumn planting of annuals will be next, in containers to over-Winter and directly in the ground. Cornflowers, larkspur and nigella to start. In a week or two, the pots of  bright magenta sweet williams and blood red wallflowers grown at home will be big enough to plant out too.

Back to work in a day or too, but greatly reduced hours so optimistically there is a genuine chance this year of properly developing the plot…