Other squash we're growing at the allotment include the Bon Bon buttercup (4 fruits so far) and the beautiful Rosie F1 kabocha (3 fruits so far). We're going to have quite a lot of squash this year. #UKGardening 🌱

North Georgia Candy Roaster update, I know you’re all here for them. The vine of one plant now stretches 6 m across one of our plots and then takes a right turn at the edge and carries on for a bit. So far it’s produced seven 2-3kg squash, the other plant has four. #Allotment #UKGardening 🌱

Aubergines 8,9 & 10 harvested from the grafted plant in the improvised mini greenhouse at the allotment, with 11 & 12 lurking in the background. Because the plant is growing so vigorously I quickly built up the roof space using whatever wood was to hand, I'll fill in the gaps later. #UKGardening

Here's the final harvest of onions and shallots from the allotment. They were all grown from seed in two beds of 110 x 270, so just 6 Sq m, and they should keep us going well into next year. The next allium activity will be in about three weeks when I sow onions to overwinter. #UKGardening

I opened up the sweetcorn fortress and harvested the first cobs, plot to plate within 40 minutes was the plan. Effective sweetcorn defences proved their worth, a badger took sweetcorn from my neighbour’s plot last night, but I've now given them materials to save their crop. #Allotment #UKGardening

Part one of the allotment onion harvest completed, these are from one bed of just 3 sq m, grown from seed multisown in modules in February. Zebrune shallots top left, Bonus F1 Spanish onions below, Red Baron top right, Long Red Florence below. TBC, one more bed still to be harvested. #UKGardening

Morning allotment view, the self-seeded sunflowers are now 250 tall and flowering, time to crack on with the onion harvest before it gets too hot. #UKGardening

These Joan J primocane (autumn) raspberries are looking great and just starting to yield a lot of fruit for the first time since planting early in 2025. We planted them to replace some Autumn Treasure at the other end of the allotment that got the crumbly berry virus. #UKGardening

I like this allotment bed, it has tomatoes, borlottis, beetroot, shallots and flowers, all in a mat of lesser birdsfoot trefoil living mulch, the tomatoes include deep purple coloured "Alice's Dream" and the flowers, including my tallest ever sunflowers, were all self seeded! #UKGardening 🌱

Could this be our first runner bean? The plants have grown to the top of their supports and are flowering away, but it's been the same old too this, too that, maybe the cooler weather will now allow a few pods to form. #UKGardening #Allotment

This time around the Bon Bon vine may not be as strong, but it’s growing well and so far I think 4 fruits have set.

I tried but never got Sibley to grow well. I'm growing my all time favourite Bon Bon F1 one at the other end of the plot, highly recommended, it has an amazing chestnut taste, it's an improved version of Burgess Buttercup (Real Seeds), last time I grew it I got nine 1.5-3kg squash from one plant!

The Candy Roaster vine (R) is now 5m long, reaching the Styrian Oil pumpkin vine (L), the puddle is for birds and insects to drink and for swallows to collect mud for their nests. Some Candy Roaster squash have formed, they may be a fun size and shape now, but they can grow quite big. #UKGardening

An early harvest of Bloody Butcher tomatoes from the allotment, a new one for this year, flavour meh but maybe the later ones will be better. Elsewhere, heart shaped Gourmansun and stunning Emerald Brocade forming promising fruit, but the Rose Crush shown seems to have caught the sun! #UKGardening 🌱

The free veg table at its finest, a true reflection of the diversity of crops grown on our allotment site and the gardeners’ skills (/s). If they’re still there tomorrow I’ll put them out of their misery and find them a welcome home in my compost bay. #RateOurVegTable #UKGardening 🌱

I went down to the allotment early this morning to complete the sweetcorn fortress. It's based on stacked pallet collars with a mesh cage over the top, it'll definitely keep out the badgers, I just hope I can work out how to get in to harvest. @robbiehg.bsky.social #UKGardening 🌱

They grow well together, even in this case, when three bulbs have pushed the fourth one in the middle up out of the ground as the bulbs developed, but its roots have somehow stretched and it's still growing well.

The onions should be ready in a couple of weeks, bulbs are growing and their leaves are beginning to flop. “How does that even work, sowing onion seeds together in modules, do they grow to a good size?” I was asked last week, well, on this evidence I think it works very well. #UKGardening 🌱

I think this is the larva of a parasitic wasp emerging from a ladybird, it was on a thistle I pulled up at the allotment. It sounds grim, but the ladybird is finally left to survive in a zombified state to guard the cocoon, I heard about it on BBC Springwatch this year. @jeremybartlett.bsky.social

From above you can see how the grafted aubergine plant dwarfs the plants I grew from seed, an aubergine plant bottom right, and two red pepper plants behind. I may have to make more room for it by building up the roof of the mini greenhouse to raise it up.

The first aubergine from the grafted plant in the mini greenhouse at the allotment with plenty more on the way, I think the fruit develops quickly on a grafted plant so I'll have to keep an eye on them 🍆 🍆 #UKGardening 🌱

In fact this looks like it’s going to be our first ever Styrian Oil pumpkin, we’re growing them for fun and hopefully to get some seeds to roast and eat, a mutation results in the dark green seeds not having the usual thick seed coat.

The last untamed part of our second allotment is going to be covered with winter squash and pumpkin vines. There are two North Georgia Candy Roaster squash, two Styrian Oil pumpkins and one Rosie F1 Kabocha squash, they’re all vigorous and the five vines should meld in a few days. #UKGardening 🌱

Echinacea are flowering now at the allotment and are very popular with butterflies and bees. #UKGardening 🌱

Some roots and fruits from the allotment this morning. (Yes, I know, and tubers and stems). #UKGardening 🌱

The allotment cat has been on the gear again! (Before and after pictures) #UKGardening 🌱

The sweetcorn at the allotment really hit the ground running, I set out strong plants when it was hot, so no turning yellow and stalled growth. The pallet collars around the plants will form the base of the badger defences and are handy to shelter the plants from the strong wind. #UKGardening 🌱

Today I cleared a bed of broad beans and planted out red cabbage, because that’s how we roll on plot 20, roots in the ground all year round etc #Allotment #UKGardening 🌱

A first very early harvest of Bulgarian Giant leeks from the allotment. Leeks are definitely not just a winter vegetable for us, and these are going into a pasta sauce with thyme, mushrooms and ricotta. #UKGardening 🌱