THE PLOT 13

The first Saturday in June arrived and as well as spending a half hour then 2 hours down the plot watering, weeding, and attending compost and horse muck, I brought home a large shopping bag filled with crops.

I had harvested 8 stalks rhubarb, my first 4 spuds of the 2016 season, more than 165 broad bean pods, and my first bulb of garlic. the very next day I brought back another 4 large stalks of rhubarb and 20 broad bean pods...

June continued to be extremely prolific in the way of crops, especially broad beans. The second weekend arrived and here we go -

- two more bags filled with crops arrived back home. Exciting as it was, it still meant much time standing at the kitchen table shelling almost 1000 broad bean pods...

...which took me around 3 hours total. I was begining to wonder if I would ever get through them all, despite being able to store 3 large freezer bags filled in the freezer for use over the upcoming months, as I stood there shelling bean after bean after bean...

I have now cleared the two broad bean patches - one was getting its first few blackfly and the other a spotty leaf problem - and I was already with plenty of beans, so not in need of letting the plants crop a second time after picking.