Important winter jobs – recycling plastic from the old polytunnel, so the lean to can be recovered and making a start on weeding the autumn raspberry patch. Note the long stinging nettle root.

A glorious winter’s morning; sun in a blue sky.

A trench is in the process of being dug around the new poly frame, in preparation for the fitting and weighing down of the plastic cover.

Other jobs today were the on-going removal of old, lower leaves from the brassicas and today’s harvest of cabbages, leeks, brussels sprouts and curly kale.

Odd jobs done –

collecting loads of leaves to be cut up later with the lawn mower, to aid breaking down for compost, has entailed transporting them in wheelbarrows and builders’ bags;

painting marker posts for the beds;

and removing the plastic and the frame of the old, largest polytunnel – as the new frame is in place 🙂

We’ve had some frosty mornings but beds have already been covered, ready for the next crops, while others still in production have enviromesh to protect them, not only from the cold but from rabbits, deer, etc.

Under the cover of the old poly, work is continuing on the new one.

Work progresses on the poly.

Work continues to progress on the replacement poly.

In another poly salad plants are slowly growing, while outside we’re harvesting brussels sprouts.

Work continues on our new poly. The extensions being added will bring the size almost to that of the one we’re replacing.

A healthy take home box of curly kale, parsley, turnips, parsnips, leeks and red cabbage.

One crop being sown and another harvested; garlic in and leeks out.

Elsewhere on the field, poly 3 needs a makeover. Fortunately one of our members has donated a frame, which we (with many hands) have started constructing inside the present structure, to see size etc and it’s looking ideal, with discusions about extensions either end.

“Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness” – yes, we have had some early morning mists and mellow fruitfulness; well we’re still harvesting, although future take home boxes will contain less.

Tomato and pepper plants have been removed from polys but we certainly can’t complain about the yields we’ve had. Now it’s autumnal jobs like soil prep for next year.

The season of harvesting; the last of the borlotta beans, some to eat now , others dried for future months. The plants have cropped well and the beans taste so good that somehow we never manage to retain seeds for next year!

Empty beds are being cleared, weeds removed and the soil sieved.

The courgette plants were nearing their end of productivity, put paid to now by our first frost of the autumn.

The Uchiki kuri squash are awaiting collection and the Crown Prince have now been harvested. We hadn’t noticed one squash had grown within it’s collar (originally to protect the young seedling).

The companion nasturtium plants in one poly are still looking good, providing an extra salad ingredient, while some tomatoes are yet to ripen.

The celeriac are great; now all harvested, (a few seen here in a wheelbarrow), they’re the largest we’ve grown.

Again a worthwhile take-home box.