With all the windy weather, I had tied the cloches down. However, it is apparent that I didn’t secure them well enough as one had been blown to shreds (not salvageable) and another had moved quite a way though still just about intact (a bit of the corrugated sheet broke). I have now secured this remaining cloche properly (I hope).
Other things misplaced by the gales were weed fabric which was used to cover the manure heap, and the new incinerator bin. Both were retrieved further up the allotment site.
Still on the weather, I had bought a soil thermometer at the weekend. I plonked it into one of the beds and after a while, read the temperature which was 8 degrees C. The back of the thermometer packet had a list of minimum germination temperates:
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5 degrees C (40 degrees Fahrenheit) lettuce, peas and radish;
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7 degrees C (45 degrees Fahrenheit) beetroot, carrot, leek, parsnip, spinach, swede and turnip;
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10 degrees C (50 degrees F) broad bean, broccoli, sprouts, cabbage, onion and spring onion;
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13 degrees C (55 degrees F) French bean, runner bean, calabrese, cauliflower;
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18 degrees C (65 degrees F) marrow, courgette, sweetcorn, tomato.
No sign of germination from the carrot tape things I had sown. Still early days. According to my old copy of The Vegetable Expert, the expected germination time for carrots is 17 days.
