Update - Poor Harvest!!

Oh dear folks.

This hasn't been the best year for harvest at all. We had a great start to the year and I bet you were all thinking of all the yumminess to come way back in April. Well, I was. BUT it was not to be! The season died up here in Scotland, went colder and wetter with a few respites in between of some warm days. But the poor plants have suffered for it.

They have been very confused. Off to a great start with loads of seedlings and young plants, but planting out was delayed due to weather conditions. Growth came in fits and starts as the weather warmed, and cooled, and got wet and cold, then warm again. So many of my brassicas went and flowered and have gone to seed. Very disappointing.

My poor runner beans were very slow to flower and have been battered by the recent winds. I do happen to have a few beans in the freezer after they finally began to bear, but not nearly as much as I have had in past seasons. And now the wind has got them again. The sticks have been blown over a bit and some of the plants are dying off. The above pic was taken before all the winds came, just as the flowers were trying to set.

The French Beans were also incredibly slow and have only just produced a few beans to pick. I have about six pods in the fridge to date. Ooooo-er. My carrots on the other hand have been doing very well. Below are some of the ones I tried growing in a cardboard toilet roll before planting out. These got to be harvested sooner than other directly sown ones. Must remember next time to plant out before the root gets to the end of the tube!

So, mixed results this year so far. There are still some carrots in tubs. I am leaving those to see if they get any bigger. Parsnips are also doing OK, although some are trying to flower. My Kale plants were doing fine, but are showing signs of flowering too. The Redbor plants are very yummy - definitely one for next year! Not too sure about the Cavalero de Negro. Although it is pleasing to look at, the texture of the leaves is a bit stringy for my taste.

Sprouts were a waster of time and effort. NO buttons set at all, just leaves and the went off and flowered. BAH!! So far the Red Cabbage are OK, growing and setting hearts. Butternut Squash was a waste of time too. Thought they might be this far north. They did grow, and flower too, but no fruits were set. My Courgette actually bore fruits, I picked one small one as most of them are going rotten at the ends before being ready.

Ah well, this season is a bit of a write off. Me thinks the price of fruit and veg is going to rocket over winter due to the poor harvests on the farms this year. Just wish my plants had performed better this time.

Hope you guys had better luck than me! xxx