The Gooden Life

It's midsummer and time to crop garlic and shallots, first early spuds IF the blooms have faded and plant for the winter and next spring.

There' still plenty to do on the plot and in the garden contending with a very dry spring, wet May and now more very hot sunshine in England. 

Tomatoes everywhere, and how exactly should you be watering your veg to get the best and prevent them bolting to seed?

Also the longest day means it's time to plant Pak Choi or is it Bok Choi? Same plant...... Did you know it loves the shortening day?

Keith & Freya are at the Nick Mason garden open day at his home in Wiltshire.

The Pink Floyd and Saucerful Of Secrets drummer opens his garden and car collection to raise money for charity and his kitchen garden is a beauty!

We've also more advice on growing your pumpkins this year and harvesting alliums at the right time.

Keith & Freya are on the plot this week planting their pumpkins and squash before the longest day and giving an update on their cos lettuce, greens and carrots!

Tips on how to resist the temptation to pull up your garlic and shallots before mid July... Stop!

Freya also gives you her award winning !!! ( We like it) Elderflower cordial... Sugar free and all natural, but remember to follow the recipe exactly as raw elderflower can give you a dicky tummy! 

Keith & Freya have a secret to share with you and it involves an onioney fave!

The Leek! Humble?  Yes! Delicious? Yes! Hard to grow? Sometimes!

But we know the secret to getting your leeks long with big white bottoms and you don't need to be an obsessive show gardener to do it!

How can 12 minutes change your life? Listen........

Keith & Freya are back on the plot this English Bank Holiday weekend with a list of jobs longer than a monster prehistoric worm! 

Time to get the runner beans in and play the , "Lady Di" game with your tiny little lips! Tips to make sure they don't dry out or succumb to a late frost.

The strawberries are forming flowers and fruit, so it is time to nettum and feedum! To protect them from greedy birds, slugs , snails and children.....

Just think of those warm English strawberries in July, with single cream....

Keith & Freya are busy in the wonderful English spring weather, planting out those hardened off seedlings, and looking forward to a healthy crop of courgette and collard greens.

Also, some tips on how to get the water to the roots and how NOT to feed those abundant Zuchinni...... We are also looking after the final weeks of the strawberry growing cycle, as the plants set fruit.

Join Keith & Freya this week at "The People's Show", the RHS Spring Garden Show in Malvern, at the magnificent showground!

This show is one of the most useful in the calendar for practical gardeners, with plants for sale at reasonable prices, lots of good advice from the growers and nursery staff and some spectacular show gardens as well! 

And its cheaper than Chelsea! And less snobby! 

Join Keith & Freya up the 'lotty as they reveal the results of their revolutionary (?) method of getting their parsnips going in toilet rolls!

We plant them out with our similarly grown broad (Fava) beans and make sure the raised bed compost is free of clumps, bumps and stones....

Time to plant pumpkin and squash seeds too and a good tip on how to give those Jack'O'Lanterns a boost on a big pile of ........

Also find out which life forms aliens would detect first if they were spying on planet Earth!

Keith & Freya are planting their runners this week, with three varieties and a little, tiny pencil mouthed competition! ( Listen to take part!)

Frost is our enemy and that goes for sunflowers too! We've got a ton of varieties and they're good for insects with seeds that hoomans cn enjoy, as well as feeding the birds in the winter..... 

Keith & Freya have been doing the final planting of this year's strawberry plants, making sure the young greenery is comfy in their new raised bed , ready for July cropping!

The lore of the allotment says Easter is the time to plant your first main crop spuds, but we've not even got the first and second earlies in yet! BTW: (We explain all that 1st/2nd/maincrop malarky).

It's also the time to start thinking about your Christmas table and the lovely beetroot pickles with cold turkey on Boxing day! Keith & Freya are planting an allotment favourite as well as something with a bit more colour to it!