Back

Liz’s Allotment Life: The start of summer abundance

As summer gets underway, RHS Wisley Edibles Horticulturalist Liz Mooney shares the planting, harvesting and seasonal jobs keeping her allotment busy

This is one of my favourite times of year on the allotment. The hungry gap is well and truly over, and the rewards of all that spring effort are finally arriving. Beds are overflowing with produce, harvest baskets are filling up, and meals are increasingly coming straight from the plot. Of course, abundance brings its own jobs, and there is still plenty to do to keep everything productive through the summer.

Current jobs

Harvesting

The summer salads are undoubtedly the stars of the plot right now. Lettuce and swiss chard are producing more leaves than I can eat, while spring onions, wild rocket and lovage provide plenty of flavour. My coriander has started to flower, but that doesn’t bother me – the whole plant is edible, and the flowers are beautiful‚ as well as being a magnet for pollinators.

The first beetroot and carrots are ready to lift, and broad beans are cropping well. They all find their way into simple dishes such as frittatas and stir-fries. Mint is growing vigorously too, keeping me well supplied with fresh tea.

One crop I won’t be harvesting, however, is strawberries. The plants were laden with fruit, but the local mice have beaten me to every single one.

Freshly lifted beetroot, radishes and carrots showcase the early summer abundance of the allotment
Cutting the grass

No Mow May has given way to Let It Bloom June, and I am happy to let the grass at the back of the plot grow long. It provides valuable habitat for wildlife and looks wonderful as it sways in the breeze. I do, however, keep a mown strip around the plot for easier access, using a battery-powered strimmer to keep paths clear.

Training plants

Tomatoes, cucumbers and French beans are growing rapidly and need regular attention. Tomatoes require side shoots pinching out and stems tying into supports, while cucumbers and beans need help finding their way up canes and frames.


Unfortunately, my French beans have been something of a disappointment this year, with mice making short work of many of the seeds. Thankfully, enough survived to provide a crop, while the tomatoes and cucumbers are thriving. Although it is a little late to start these crops from seed, garden centres should still have young plants available for anyone wanting to fill gaps.

Seed Sowing and Planting

This week I planted a few bush tomatoes, including my favourite cultivar, ‘Tumbling Tiger’, which produces slightly pointed, red fruits with attractive striping.

I also sowed fresh batches of beetroot, lettuce and swiss chard in module trays, protecting them with fleece. The plot may look full at the moment, but gaps soon appear as crops are harvested, so succession sowing is essential. Beetroot is particularly important for my winter self-sufficiency plans, so I always make sure I haveplenty growing.

Swiss chard, beetroot and other summer crops thriving on the allotment, with fleece protection still in use for succession sowings
Crop of the week: Broad beans

Broad beans are one of my favourite allotment crops. There is something deeply satisfying about harvesting and podding them, and I never bother with the extra step of double-podding. To me, they taste every bit as good without the additional effort.

My preferred varieties are the reliable Vicia faba ‘Aquadulce Claudia’ and the compact ‘The Sutton’, with the former being especially useful for overwintering. Although my overwintered plants failed this year, the spring-sown crop is now producing well.

Broad beans are now producing a plentiful harvest, with pods developing among the dense summer foliage
At the first sign of blackfly, I pinched out the growing tips, which seems to have kept the problem under control. While I enjoy eating broad beans fresh, most of my harvest is frozen for winter and early spring. I keep things simple: pod them, rinse them and freeze them on the day they are picked. I do not blanch them first, and they emerge from the freezer tasting just as good months later.

Coming up on the plot

With dry weather forecast, watering is likely to become a priority over the coming week. I’ll also need to turn my attention to weeding and dealing with the increasingly enthusiastic strawberry runners.
Save to My scrapbook

You may like

Liz’s Allotment Life: The importance of flowers

Liz’s Allotment Life: The importance of flowers

Read every edition of Liz Mooney's allotment life

Read every edition of Liz Mooney's allotment life

Get involved

The RHS is the UK’s gardening charity, helping people and plants to grow - nurturing a healthier, happier world, one person and one plant at a time.