Parish Cake Autumn 2020
Neighbourhood Development Plan Special
Neighbourhood Development Plan Special
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Badger’s plot<br />
<strong>Autumn</strong> Allotment Jobs<br />
A new column in <strong>Parish</strong> <strong>Cake</strong>, we hope that Badger’s Plot<br />
will inspire a new generation of grow your own enthusiasts and<br />
also be of benefit to the more experienced<br />
ONE OF the side effects of the<br />
lockdown has been the rise<br />
in awareness of the health<br />
benefits, both physically and<br />
mentally, of growing and<br />
eating fresh produce.<br />
Most gardening columns<br />
tend to launch at a convenient<br />
point in the calendar – usually<br />
early spring – when enthusiasm<br />
is probably at its height. This<br />
column begins at a time when<br />
either the harvesting is mostly<br />
over or, conversely, there has<br />
been much head scratching<br />
over perceived failures.<br />
Let’s begin by looking at the<br />
jobs that need to be addressed<br />
during September and October:<br />
• Plant or lift and divide<br />
rhubarb.<br />
• Plant spring cabbage and,<br />
towards the end of this<br />
period, plant out garlic and<br />
autumn onion sets<br />
• Later in this period, sow<br />
broad beans<br />
• It’s not too late to sow the<br />
last of your radishes together<br />
with winter-hardy lettuce<br />
• It might be worth trying a<br />
late sowing of French dwarf<br />
beans. They will survive at<br />
least until the first frosts.<br />
• Place boards under pumpkins<br />
or squashes to protect the<br />
bases from rotting. After<br />
harvesting, allow the skins<br />
to harden in the sun and<br />
prolong the storage period.<br />
Now is also a good time to start<br />
thinking about how you will<br />
manage your plot next year.<br />
Is your soil in good condition<br />
and productive enough?<br />
Have you ever considered the<br />
“no dig” method of growing<br />
vegetables? Should you<br />
consider organic gardening?<br />
These questions will be<br />
answered in forthcoming<br />
issues, but if “no dig” takes<br />
your fancy, you need to start<br />
planning now. This system<br />
abolishes digging in favour<br />
of continuously mulching<br />
the soil, with cultivation<br />
restricted to light weeding and<br />
hoeing. During winter, time<br />
should be spent removing<br />
all the perennial weeds<br />
like docks, mare’s tail and<br />
bindweed and preparing the<br />
ground to receive good quality<br />
compost. More about this next<br />
time and until then, happy<br />
gardening.<br />
Badger<br />
<strong>Parish</strong> <strong>Cake</strong> • <strong>Autumn</strong> <strong>2020</strong> 41
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