Plot Update: Speculative Cauliflowers & Dodging the Committee
March on the plot is 50% optimism and 50% mud. Between dodging the committee’s 'prowl' and unearthing a single 'volunteer' potato that’s pushed my harvest over the 1kg mark, it’s been a busy weekend. Here’s a look at brassica cages, saved seeds, and surviving the 9-5 gardening life.
It’s early March, which means the allotment is currently running on 50% blind optimism and 50% mud.
If you read the glossy gardening magazines, you’d think this is the time of year to be lightly hoeing a perfectly dry seedbed. Back in the real world, I spent most of this weekend trying not to slip into a puddle while side-eyeing the grass. Here is what actually happened down on the After-Hours plot this week.
1. Building a Brassica Cage
Historically, my plot has functioned as a high-end buffet for local wood pigeons and cabbage white butterflies. Not this year.
My biggest win of the weekend was finally getting a proper brassica cage built, along with the netting for the peas. For the first time ever, I am actually set up for my plants to survive before they go into the ground. To celebrate, I’ve planted out two highly speculative cauliflowers. Will it be too cold for them? Maybe. But they are currently the safest cauliflowers in the county.
2. Committee Fear
The plot desperately needs a mow. The problem? It’s far too wet. If I take the mower over that grass right now, I’m just going to create a mudslide.
Of course, early spring is exactly when the Allotment Committee starts doing their prowling to see who has abandoned their plot over the winter. To keep them off my back while I wait for the ground to dry, I spent an hour doing a highly visible "scrap clearance." Hauling old wood, broken plastic, and mystery junk off the plot was incredibly cathartic—and hopefully, it proves to the committee that I do still exist.
3. The "Volunteer" Potato
While clearing up, I unearthed a completely random, surprisingly good-sized potato left over from last year.
I weighed it when I got home. With this unexpected bounty, my total harvest for the year has officially crossed the 1-kilo mark. Just the 99kg to go to hit my target. Small victories, right?
4. Saving Beetroot Seed
This week’s sowing consisted of a batch of beetroot. But I didn't buy these—they are seeds I saved myself from last year’s crop.
There is a weird myth that saving seed is only for master botanists. It isn't. Some seeds (like peas, beans, and tomatoes) are incredibly easy to save. I have no idea exactly what these beetroots will turn out like—probably red, hopefully decent—but that’s half the fun. Don't be afraid to let a plant go to seed at the end of the year and scrape a few into an envelope. It saves you money and you get plants that are genetically adapted to your specific, muddy patch of earth.
(Note: If you want seeds that have already passed the survival test on my plot, you can always check out Pippin Seed Co).
What did you manage to get done this weekend? Let me know in the comments, or just tell me I’m not the only one hiding from the committee.