I spent a couple of hours at my allotment today which was absolute bliss in the sunshine. I managed to get quite a bit done, partly because I was the only one there (no chit chatting) and the weather was mild and pleasant which stopped me tucking myself up in the shed with a hot cup of tea. Well I did have one, it would be rude not to.
I finally took the carrot fly barrier down, I’ve been meaning to for a while now but you know how it goes, time just runs away and all that. There’s still plenty of carrots in the ground, maincrop Autumn King overwinters very well on my plot with minimal slug damage so I try to keep some back as long as I dare and hope some will make it for Christmas dinner, which by the looks of things is going to plan. The slugs have been very polite this year.
The cosmos is finished now after a couple of hard frosts, I’m sure the seeds have already dropped to bring more lovely blooms next year so I pulled the dead plants up, gave them a shake for good measure and chopped them up in the compost bins using some hand shears.
Another job I’ve been meaning to do is move the gooseberry and blackcurrant bushes over to my raised bed allotment (Plot 11w), the reason for this is to make life a little easier with regards to weeding. Bindweed is a nightmare on Plot 5, particularly where the fruit bushes are at the moment, also an annoying creeping weed (Creeping Charlie I think) from the lawn/car track running alongside the plot grows through the boundary fence. Both weeds strangle the fruit bushes because I cannot get in to weed them properly, well not without losing an eye which is not a good swap for happy berry bushes in my opinion.
The gooseberries were moved to their new position today, I was careful not to transport any bindweed roots or creeping weed with them.
The light was fading fast by the time I’d finished moving the gooseberries, the blackcurrants will have to be moved another day.
Allotment Haven 
Those carrots look good and the fruit bushes look great in the raised bed
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m really pleased with the carrots this year, so nice to have them late into the year too. Thank you, I’m sure the gooseberries will be happy in their new home, I sure will!
LikeLike
A productive and satisfying day. Bindweed is a nightmare isn’t it. I have some around my gooseberry bush. You’ve made a lovely job of moving the bushes though, and that will make the other area easier to manage.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh it is CJ, particularly when it wraps tightly around the bushes! The gooseberry thorns make it much harder to remove. As you say, I can keep the other area under control now.
LikeLike
I wish our carrots were untouched by slugs but the muddy conditions are their ideal hunting ground. I’ve never heard of creeping Charlie is it a local name? Our ground is far too squelchy to do any work on.
LikeLike
To be honest Sue, I’ve never heard of it either! My friend Google named it for me using images that appear to be the weed in question, but it seems to be a collective name for a group of lawn creeping plants.
LikeLike
Lovely post and pictures. It’s all looking, and sounding, good. A couple of hours plotting in the sunshine at this time of year is so worthwhile.
I have a touch of carrot envy as they’re something I’ve never done well with. xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you Flighty, it really is lovely to be on the plot in the sunshine and I enjoyed every minute.
I also pulled some ‘wonky’ carrots which I will post soon, I always find them amusing but they still taste lovely of course xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great looking carrots. Mine are a mix of comedy carrots and ‘standard’ shaped – from the same rows. Go figure.
LikeLike