June 2021 has been hot but mostly cold. Growth seems about a month behind. So last year’s May strawberries were a feast of the month of June in 2021. Despite not bothering with putting up bird netting we had a good harvest of strawberries this year – with a three kilo harvest at one point which culminated in some jam making.

The clematis planted at the back of our seating area (at the top near the path to the pond) has done well and is in glorious flower. Malink is delighted.

By the third week of June we were able to harvest one of our plots of garlic. After digging up it needs to sit in the open air to ‘cure’ the outer skin. There are still two small plots of garlic at the allotment which have to be dug up, but since harvesting this first batch the weather has been cold, wet and rainy. We’ll have to wait for fair weather and the ground to dry again a little before we can lift the rest of our garlic crop. What a year!!!

But despite the poor summer weather, we were able to squeeze in a nice picnic dinner on the allotment one night after work. Smoked salmon, salad, crisps and wine. Yum!

Other good news includes the appearance – after 3 long years of patient growth – of flower heads on the beast’s beloved sea holly. There are fourteen flower heads all bursting into blossom…

Yeah, we’ve been up at the allotment a lot less this year than last – and though we’re happy there’s no more furlough, and a lessening of the global pandemic, we do miss being up there every day! But it’s all thriving and growing and blooming and fruiting and all that jazz. Even the foxes are happy!