Rhubarb Problems

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Problems Growing Rhubarb

Flowering:

Some cultivars can be more prone than others.
Remove flower stalks as soon as they appear to prevent them weakening the crowns.
Flowering is usually worse after wet summers or where high nitrogen feed has been overused.

Thin, weak stems:

Lots of thin stems indicate the crown is losing vigour and needs to be divided (see ‘Propagation’).
Increased feeding may also help.

Split stems, sometimes exuding sticky sap:

This is sometimes caused by late frosts but is often an indication of erratic growth due to seasonal conditions.
Cool or dry periods followed by moist or mild weather means the hard outer growth splits when the new, rapid growth occurs.
Mulching and feeding may help to avoid the worst damage.

Green, poor quality stems:

Warm, dry summers can give rise to poorly-coloured, bad-tasting stalks.
Try to harvest earlier while the days are cooler and moister.

Slow or no growth:

Rhubarb will stop growing if the temperature rises above 32ºC (90ºF).
This can happen in hot summers.
Growth can also slow or stop if the plants are under drought stress so watering may help.

Category: Recipes

Pasta with Asparagus and Courgette

Asparagus and Courgette are made for each other in this dish!

Perfect Roast Potatoes

Perfect Roast Potatoes
My foolproof way of getting that perfect roastie!

This simple aubergine parmigiana recipe from Italy makes a cosy mid-week meal. Serve this cheese, tomato and aubergine bake as a vegetarian main dish, with some wholewheat garlic bread or a peppery rocket salad, or you can also make it as a hearty side for for a meat dish.!

Category: The Growing Season

The Growing Season

The Growing Season varies in different parts of the United Kingdom, but in Hatfield Peverel we are blessed with a milder climate and enjoy a longer season than many parts of the country.

In this section of the web site I have tried to separate the season out into monthly sections to help and guide you through the most popular tasks and crops regularly grown on the allotment site, but if you would like a feature made of a particular vegetable or task, please get in touch and I will do my best to add it to the web site for you.

Jobs to do in February

Time to do some groundwork

We get a glimpse of the early signs of the arrival of Spring this month. The soil begins to warm up around the middle of February and we can see for the first time this year the buds beginning to swell on fruit trees and bushes. Overwintering vegetables begin to look less sorry for themselves and they start to produce new growth.

Jobs to do in March

Spring is starting and the new season is here

Hopefully by now we are now standing on the threshold of Spring and the new gardening season. The days are beginning to lengthen and although it may not feel like it at times the temperatures are slowly increasing day by day. More importantly the longer days are the real trigger to new growth and you will find that with the help of a little protection you can really go for those early sowings

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