It's my birthday today so I will be honest my allotment jobs will be pretty minimal. Mind you I'm saying that, but today I'm having a 'build a bigger chicken coop party' with my mates. It will combine an old shed and allotment cocktails so it should be a good laugh.

In preparation of a weekend off from planting I've had a week of weeding and planting out. All the cabbages, kale, sweet corn, beans, and broccoli are sat proudly in their raised beds. I'd say in neat perfect rows, but let's be honest, there's nowt wrong with a slightly wonky line of veg. The important bit is, it grows.

It was a big moment on my plot too. I ate my first black pea of the season! Remember me telling you in late winter I was going to try something new? I was worried they wouldn't pod, well they have! Between you and I, I had to sneak the peas into my mouth without my daughter seeing. She has this addiction to freshly picked peas and if she had known about it, I wouldn't have got a look in.

So fresh black peas then, they have been very easy to germinate 99% success, very easy to grow, they shot up much faster than regular peas. Their flowers are beautiful too and they taste lovely! Obviously they are smaller than a regular greenshaft pea and they taste like a cross between a pea and a spring cabbage. I have only had them raw, so if I'm lucky enough to get them from the plot to the pot I will let you know how they go. Considering I bought a bag of dried ones from the green grocers for 69p with no idea whether they would even germinate, it's safe to say, I'm chuffed with them.

My allotment to do list:

Make sure those little seedlings in greenhouses don't get too hot, keep it well ventilated during the day.

Keep on top of hoeing your plot those weeds will take over very quickly.

Sow directly into the soil squashes, pumpkins, butternut, marrows etc. a great task to give to kids.

Email: vixlot@outlook.com