The first of the tomato plants have been removed from one of the raised bed in the poly tunnel to make way for preparation of the soil for future crops. This is the start of the season of the green tomato and the sign of pickling to be done. The chilli glut seems to have also arrived to join in the pickling season.
The bio-degradable cornstarch is making an appearance in the Go Local Food poly tunnels to see if we can keep down the weeds indoors as well as outside on the fields.
So far spinach has been sown through it and it has shown us a problem. When watering, the lower leaves of the spinach stick to the bio-degradable cornstarch and show signs of rotting but the central leaves seem fine. Grower Ian is contemplating what work-around can be used to solve this problem. There are ideas being contemplated but this is a learning curve.
Seed trays are filling up in the working area so that the poly tunnels can be kept producing well into the winter. Kale, lettuce, more spinach, pak choi, mustard, lambs lettuce and kailaan kichi are all in various stages of growth and will soon be appearing in the various empty beds.
The apple cucumbers are about to leave the poly tunnel for the compost heap. These have not been a success as there were plenty of female flowers but the male flowers are only just making an appearance – well out of sequence. But the nasturtiums are still thriving and putting out more shoots so there maybe flowers for the crop share for some time yet.
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