Broad Beans, French Beans, Runner Beans and Compost

Beans, Beans, Beans

Yesterday on the plot I noticed quite a few spaces between the broad beans that are starting to show on the plot. Since these are my favourite vegetable I sowed another 20 seeds in pots which I will use to fill in the gaps in the rows. Would have been sensible to have done this when I sowed but that would have ensured they all came up.

I sowed runner beans streamline and polestar in pots. I sow two seeds per pot and pinch out the weakest, if they both germinate. I’m looking for just six or seven plants of each so sowed into 8 pots. Both varieties I have grown before and they are stringless which has always been the down side of runner beans. 12 plants will be plenty for the two of us and probably everyone we meet in the season as well.

I also sowed climbing French beans Cobra and Blue Lake in exactly the same way. All went into the greenhouse so I’m hoping for fast germination although I wont be planting out for about four weeks.

Weeding and Clearing

Down to the plot where I cleared the field beans and weeds from the bottom of plot 29. The field beans are not for eating, although they are edible, but as a green manure. They’ve been retaining nutrients in the soil all winter and now I need to clear the space. I just hoed them off leaving the roots in place with all their nitrogen to rotovate in.

Moved the beams that will form the base of the greenhouse onto the path and then the meccano kit that will be a greenhouse on top of them. I think I’m going to need some help to put the greenhouse together. It makes flatpack furniture look simple and I’ve never been mechanical.

Sowing Spring Onions

Took a break by sowing some spring onions on the salad deep bed. First a new to me variety called shiminata a Japanese variety thats apparently leek like. Should be interesting.

Next some North Holland Blood Red. These are interesting as you can eat the thinnings and leave the rest to bulb up. They get quite large for a spring onion, about a  golf ball size and very strong.

Finally a few of ye olde standard White Lisbon.  Always good to have some safe choice available.

Compost

The big compost bin on plot 29 was my next target.  Last year I’d added a fair layer of the turkey litter to the bin and was surprised how little it had rotted down. I’ve put that (about 6 barrow loads) onto the bed where the sweetcorn is going and I’ll rotovate it in. The soil on that bed is really quite good now and I’m hopeful of a good crop of sweetcorn this year.

Started digging it out and removing the unrotted sticks etc which will go on the base when I re-build the heap.  I’m quite sure there has been a rat in there as there were burrows in the turkey litter and soil, No live rats though I did see a dead one on the path. Getting too many rats about for my liking on the site.

Headed back home around 8pm.