On the allotment

Barry Cuff takes a look back through his notes of what happened on his Sturminster Newton plot last month

‘ There was a timelessness about the hot dusty days of that July. Life seemed to come to a standstill in a world bounded by an endless blue sky above a dying landscape. The dry grass crunched under our feet. Baked and bleached by the sun the pastures looked more like fields of stubble’
The Great Drought of 1976 – Evelyn Cox

Standing on Bulbarrow 50 years ago this month and looking across Blackmore Vale and southwards towards the coast, there was not a green field to be seen. It had not rained since May.
Now in 2026 we are in a very similar situation, but we were lucky to have had around two to three inches of rain at the beginning of June.
Apart from a ten minute shower on the 30th, not a drop of rain has fallen on the allotments since 11th June. We are lucky to have a well on the site which supplies water to seven 300 gallon containers and troughs. To ensure each plot holder has sufficient water for their plots, these have to be topped up on a daily basis.
Some crops, despite watering daily, struggle in the intense heat. Peas, runner beans and lettuce become easily stressed in the hot sun, whereas French beans, sweetcorn, and onions have all coped well.

Autumn salad plants – We have sown Rossa di Treviso radicchio and three varieties of Chinese cabbage – Hilton, Yuki and Scarvita – in plug trays. These will be planted out in late August and September.

Beetroot – We are harvesting earlier sowings as required. Fairly poor germination from later sowings of Crimson King, Moulin Rouge and Cylindra.

Brassicas – Planted out from plugs: Rudolph and Claret purple sprouting broccoli, Aureo spring cauliflower and Stromboli calabrese. All the plants have been under stress in the hot weather, with the younger ones first attacked by small white butterfly caterpillars. Around the middle of the month they then succumbed to a massive infestation of flea beetles, with both young and established plants covered. We resorted to spraying with Deltamethrin insecticide, which solved the problem. We rarely use insecticides, but on this occasion the infestation was so severe we felt it was the only option.

Carrots – We are harvesting the earlier sowings. Later sowings have shown poor germination despite careful daily watering.

Celeriac – both varieties are looking well and are watered daily.

Celery – Growing well but requiring plenty of water.

Courgettes – Our two varieties, Defender and Astia, are producing good yields of dark green fruits. They are watered and picked daily.

Cucumber – The Bulgarian variety Gergana is producing well and is picked every other day.

Flowers for the bees – Tithonia, echinops, cosmos and echium are all in flower, along with a few mallows. Bumblebees have been particularly active on the plot.

French beans – Started podding early and are probably producing one of our best crops ever.

Fruit – Autumn raspberries have been disappointing this year. However, a cultivated blackberry, originally sown by birds into our hedge, is covered with large, juicy fruit.

Gherkins – Watered daily and producing good yields.

Lettuce – Not enjoying the intense sunshine. We are providing shade during the hottest part of the day. Germination has also been rather erratic.

Mangetout – We’ve had poor yields, largely due to the high temperatures.

Onions – The bulbs are slightly smaller than usual. All were harvested by the 26th and are drying in the sun before storage. This is the first year we have seen only a trace of white rot, perhaps because of the exceptionally dry conditions.

Parsnips – All are looking well.

Peas – Our final two rows finished flowering prematurely because of the high temperatures.

Potatoes
All harvested by the 22nd, apart from one late-planted row, and now stored in paper sacks. One of our best years for yield, quality and ease of lifting. Varieties grown were Orla, Charlotte, Sagitta, Jazzy, Desiree and Caledonian Rose.

Runner beans – Despite masses of flowers and daily watering, many pods have failed to set.

Sweet peppers – Ripening much earlier than we would expect most years.

Sweetcorn – Our 70 Swift plants are looking very good. The silks are beginning to change colour and the crop is watered twice a week.

Tomatoes (greenhouse) – Excellent yields across all varieties, from the 15g fruits of Consuelo to the almost seedless 150g fruits of Bellandine.

Winter squash – Looking well, with each plant receiving around three litres of water every day.

Witloof chicory – Growing well and watered daily to reduce the risk of running to seed.