Beaconsveggieboxes

Hello,

Just to let you know that the salad will be ours and Penpont again this week, with lettuces coming from Alan. We can also supply some coriander and basil this week.

We have had an interesting couple of weeks on the farm - slugs, weeds and flea beetles have caused huge consternation on the field - every brassica crop that goes in now has to be covered by horticultural fleece to stop the flea beetles attacking them - this of course provides a perfect habitat for slugs! We can regularly be seen in our field diving on cabbage plants with yellow sticky insect papers to get flea beetles to jump and stick, and prowling the field at night with head torches on, armed with scissors (aka 'weapons of mass destruction)!

But we will not be defeated - in a moment of inspiration Vicky bought me some ducklings for my birthday, who have been duly names Peking, Ho-sin, Pancake and Sweet 'n' Sour - collectively they are the SAS (Slug Assassination Squad) and soon they will out in the field, clearing areas of slugs before we plant there. Hopefully they will be joined by more ducks, and some chickens in due course - extra benefits will be their weeding skills, fertiliser and eggs for the boxes.

We have also been invaded by a particularly rampant weed known as Corn spurrey (also known as begger-weed, pickpurse and - wait for it - farmer's ruin!). It has invaded the carrots, beetroot, chard and spinach, and we are going to have to clear the whole area and re-sow - fortunately it is still quite early in the season and we should have time. We are also sowing these crops down at Alan's - and starting a lot of stuff off in trays to make sure we do get a crop this year!

Hoping your gardens are looking better than mine at the moment!

best wishes
Theresa