[Ourveggiepatch]

Hiya

Just wanted to say I am feeling a bit disapointed at the mo and a bit deflated.

Took on our plot in June, I wanted to spend all my time prepping the plot properly but instead got pressurised into growing stuff.

Now I have rather weak looking cabbages, dead tomatoe's due to blight which has started spreading to my Christmas spuds.  So I am percerveering with the cabbages, pulled out the tomato plants and dug up the blight infected spuds, the ones left which only has a very slight attack of blight i.e leaves only I have cut the leaves off hoping these will recover.

Going to buy some copper sulphate to hopefully combat any missed spores but, the plot next door has about 15 tomato plants which are all dead due to blight which they have just left in and am worried that this will now cause the problem to get worse.

Wish I did what I wanted to do in the first place and prep the ground properly first giving more time to growing in the new season rather than go against my initial instincts.



Moan over - sorry

OVP

[Yorkie]

Sorry to hear that OVP, it must feel very demoralising

If it's any consolation, (and I know it probably isn't), I doubt that any amount of clearance would prevent the blight - it either happens or it doesn't, depending on the weather conditions in any particular year. 

[devondave]

I think id feel the same, as for the blighted plants, you need to remove them from the area, dont compost them, it is better to take them away to somewhere that you do not grow either toms or spuds and burn them or put them in a rubbish sack and leave out for the rubbish collection

[zazen999]

Always hedge your bets with toms and grow some in as many different locations as you can; if you put all your eggs in one basket then the lot goes and you've got nothing.

I would agree with trying to get your neighbour to get their blight out of the way though - my lottie neighbour didn't clear theirs away until March this year [he took over from other newbies that just left it to go mental]....and I think that is why we got it so early this year when no-one round us got it. I grow in 4 different places; courtyard, garden, greenhouse and lottie and the lottie ones were dug up last week.

[SnooziSuzi]

Is there a reason why your neighbour has left them in that condition?  I'd be speaking with the committee to force him to get them out and burned asap; whilst it's true that once they have blight you can't do anything about it, just leaving the diseased plants in is only going to cause problems for other gardeners that may have managed, through luck or good management, to avoid it 

If they can't do it themselves, then perhaps one of the committee could do it for them if they are on holiday or unwell etc.

Don't fret too much about your poorly performing veg; most folks have a miserable first year or two and it almost makes you want to chuck in the towel, but stick with it.  Winter is long and you will have plenty of opportunities to prepare your ground ready for next year and I promise you will have learned so much this year that next year and the years after things, with the odd exception, will just get better. 

[sloworm]

Hi OVP
It is disappointing when things don't go as planned  I haven't had much success this year (my first !) absolutely no carrots only 3 beetroot out of about 4 rows planted 3 parsnips my onions didn't even grow (well I had about 2 red ones that were edible  ) But I look at it this way... I can only improve and the bugs and beasties have had a rare old feast this year ! Now next year is something to plan and look forward to and if I get double what I have had this year I have improved by 100% 

[richyrich7]

Hi OVP
chin up always a little disappointing if you have had a bad year or two, keep at it and do it the way you want to, be happy with what you do 
learn from what you have done look at the positives and use the negatives as hard earned lessons.
There's always next year   

[Ourveggiepatch]

Dear all

Thank you for your kind words of encouragement.  I think the plotholder didn't really want the plot it was his wife that wanted it and she has left it to him to maintain so he rarely comes up.

Also 2 plots down have done the same but they are away on holiday and have left the plot to another plotholder to look after, i did hint about taking them out but they didn't pick up on it.

If I see them this weekend I will ask outright for them to remove infected plants as about 1/4 of my young spud plants for Christmas caught it so have dug them out - the rest are really healthy.

I have no intention though of giving up as my plot is my chill out time and my total sancturary from a very busy job.

Kindest regards

OVP.

[aelf]

I have no intention though of giving up as my plot is my chill out time and my total sancturary from a very busy job.

Kindest regards

OVP.

Good for you! And I fully empathise - I also call my plot my sanctuary. Sometimes I think it is the only thing that keeps me sane  :blink: :blink:

[lucylike]

I lost all my toms to blight last year just when they were about to turn red. I was so gutted. Have been lucky so far this year and picked my first toms last week. So there is always hope for next year.

[chili]

like yourself i am new to growing my own i have only been doing this for almost 1 year. i would treat it as a learning curve m8.
my test of will this year has been weeds i think i am finally getting on top of them, and at the moment i enjoy going down the plot for a bit dig. just up rooted my spuds and am really pleased with them. pickled my beetroot and got blooming loads of runner beans.
chin up its all worth while in the long run

[TTG]

Look at it this way, you are doing better than those on a 40 year waiting list! You have a plot to try again next year. In the process of getting a plot after over 2 years on a list or two or three, so you are at least one year ahead of me. Keep on and keep one posting. Let us know how you get on and what you do as other newbies can learn from former newbies like you.

You are at least good for cabage soup over the winter. Isn't there something you can plant for winter or early next year? Look forward not back. New to this but you can always start over and do what you wanted to do by really preparing the ground. If you had done this at first you would still be where you are now less poorly cabages and blight, but still preparing the ground for next season. I might be naive and lack knowledge but you don't seem to have really lost much when you compare against not planting but preparing for the next season like your instincts told you to do. By that I mean you are where your instincts told you to be but with some experience and a few cabbages. Does that make sense? At least I know what I mean.

It is a bit off when people have allotments but don't really want them. That guy who took one on under duress from his wife should grow something and tell his wife to help or give it up! Someone will have been on a list for years waiting to have a go on that plot, someone who will put the work in, who will want to be there. I am like that person and find him selfish (or at least his wife is).

[madcat]

Too easy to judge ... Perhaps she's not selfish  -  just not succeeding!    

She may be trying desperately to get him out the house and doing something - for the sake of his health or her sanity.   

I'm sorry for you OVD - we have a similar problem with our neighbour not clearing up blighted plants.  He blames our toms for giving his potatoes blight - reckons they should banned on allotments (my dad never had no problem with blight. They didna allow tomatoes in his day ... etc etc)   Then he leaves his blighted haulms on the plot and digs them in for the winter.     The downside of being a little village site ...  no - one is going to risk the unpleasantness of fruitlessly explaining how it works.