🌱 Plot Updates

This week I planted yet more runner beans — I sowed far too many, but still found the space! With that, the plot should be full… but of course it never quite works like that. A quick look around and suddenly the broad beans, peas and carrots are all ready to harvest. That means an evening of blanching and freezing once we get home.

🧺 Making Space & Planning Ahead

As the broad beans will soon be cleared, I’ve sown four large pots of carrots which will be planted out for a late harvest. The onions are also nearly ready, and once lifted, that area will take the squash, pumpkins and a few dwarf French beans.

🌿 What to Sow Now

This is the time of year to look closely at your plot and make the most of any space that’s about to open up. Good options to sow now include carrots, turnips, beetroot, fennel and spring onions.

🥕 What’s Gone Well

Last August I sowed Senshyu onion seeds — August is the only month you can sow them — and with a bit of winter care they’ve grown brilliantly and are now ready to harvest. In the raised beds I’ve got strong crops of carrots, beetroot and more onions, and the self‑blanching celery is coming on nicely too.

🐦 And What Hasn’t

We all have our challenges: parsnips failed to germinate twice, carrots were over‑sown, potatoes caught the frost, and a few peas were eaten by pigeons despite being netted. A quick adjustment solved it, but it’s all part of the learning curve.

🔍 Reviewing Your Plot

Take a moment to assess your own plot — what’s worked, what hasn’t, and what you might do differently next year. The same applies to your flower borders; some plants simply prefer certain positions.

🌾 Still Time to Sow

There’s still a good window to sow directly outdoors: carrots, parsnips and dwarf French beans. You can inter‑sow these between crops that will finish within four to six weeks. Parsnips are slow to emerge, so watering nearby lettuce helps keep the soil moist for their first roots.

💧 Watering Wisely

The best time to water in summer is early morning between 6am and 10am. If you miss that, after 6pm is the next best option. Cooler temperatures mean less evaporation and deeper water penetration. Potted plants may need watering twice a day in hot spells.

🎁 Plants for Sale

I have just one Squash ‘Hunter’ and one Squash ‘Crown Prince’ left. If you’d like either, please email me. Between the 1,500 plants I grew and the generous donations from members, we have raised £500 for Willen Hospice. A huge thank you to everyone who contributed.

🛍️ Round It Up

You can still support Willen Hospice by rounding up your purchase at the till. We also have a few limited‑edition tote bags left at £3.99, with £1 donated to the Hospice.

🏷️ June Monthly Offer – 10% Off

All Tomato Feeds.

🌼 Happy Gardening

Mick Goodman

Membership Secretary

Dear Member,

Most of your crops should now be growing strongly, and many of your quick‑maturing vegetables will be ready for the table. But it’s certainly not time to relax. June is a month of momentum — watering, weeding, feeding, and keeping a close eye on pests all make a real difference to your summer harvest.

🥬 Fill Gaps with Crops

Early in the season the plot looks spacious, but it fills up fast.

Make the most of every pocket of soil by sowing fast‑growing salads and lettuces between slower crops. Empty ground only grows weeds — so you might as well grow food instead.

🍋 Citrus Trees

Citrus can now be moved outdoors.

Acclimatise them gradually by placing them in shade for the first two weeks before moving them into brighter positions.

🌡️ Greenhouse & Indoor Sowing

Greenhouses and polytunnels work hard in June. Good management prevents heat stress and pest problems.

• Ventilate well: Open doors and vents during the day — temperatures rise fast.
• Dampen down: Wet the floor to cool the space and deter red spider mite.
• Water regularly: Tomatoes, cucumbers, and melons need consistent moisture.
• Feed: Use a high‑potash fertiliser once flowers appear.
• Tie in new growth: Train tomatoes and cucumbers to improve airflow and avoid overcrowding.

🍎 Fruit Tasks for June

Fruit is developing quickly now — time for thinning, mulching, and monitoring.

• June drop: Apple and pear trees naturally shed excess fruit. Don’t worry — it’s normal.
• Mulch strawberries: Straw or biodegradable mulch keeps fruit clean and reduces rot.
• Check gooseberries for sawfly: These pests can strip leaves rapidly — act early.
• Tie in new shoots: Especially on trained fruit trees to improve structure and airflow.
• Thin fruit: If natural drop hasn’t done enough, thin apples and plums by hand to prevent branch strain and improve fruit size.

🌱 Plants for Sale

Still available:

• A few squash and pumpkins
• A couple of courgettes
• Newly donated sweet pepper plants

First come, first served at The Hut.

🧪 Comfrey & Nettle Feed (Very Effective… and Very Smelly!)

A simple, nutrient‑rich homemade feed for hungry crops like tomatoes and aubergines:

1. Half‑fill a bucket with chopped nettles and comfrey.
2. Top up with water and cover.
3. Leave for two weeks to ferment.
4. Strain into another container.
5. Dilute 1 part feed to 10 parts water.

It keeps for about a month — but be warned, the smell is legendary.

🌞 June Monthly Offer — 10% Off

All Tomato Feeds

Perfect timing as your plants begin to flower and set fruit.

Count down to the Produce Show – 79 days

Happy Gardening,

Mick Goodman

Membership Secretary

June is a rewarding month on the allotment. After weeks of preparation, early sowings are ready to harvest, summer planting is underway, and growth is accelerating. With warmer weather, pests become more active and regular maintenance becomes essential.

Here are your suggested jobs for the coming week.

Vegetable Tasks for June

🌽 Plant Out Sweetcorn

• Ensure plants are well hardened off.
• Plant in blocks, not rows, to improve pollination.

🍅 Outdoor Tomatoes

• Choose a sunny, sheltered spot with rich soil.
• Plant deeply, stake securely, and tie in regularly.

🎃 Courgettes, Marrows, Pumpkins & Squashes

• All can be planted out now.
• Water well and give each plant plenty of space.

🥬 Celery

• Apply the first collars to trench celery to begin blanching.
• Plant self‑blanching types in blocks to encourage mutual blanching.

🔁 Successional Sowing

Continue sowing every two weeks:

• Lettuce
• Salad leaves
• Radishes
• Spring onions
• Beetroot
• Carrots

🥕 Maincrop Carrots, Swede & Turnips

Sow now for harvests in late summer and early autumn.

🌱 Finish Harvesting Asparagus

• Stop cutting around mid‑June.
• Feed, mulch, and water crowns during dry spells.

🫘 Support Peas & Beans

• Stake, net, and tie in as needed.
• Keep sowing dwarf French beans — they crop in just 8–10 weeks.

🌿 Tip Out Broad Beans

• Pinch out the soft tips to discourage blackfly.
• Ladybirds will help by feeding on any aphids present.

🥗 Harvest Early Crops

Expect first pickings of:

• Radish
• Spring onions
• Early carrots
• Early potatoes grown in containers

🌈 Why Not Try Chicory?

Chicories and radicchio are colourful, versatile crops that shine in autumn.

• Direct sow or start under cover.
• Prick out seedlings and grow on to 10 cm before planting out.
• Keep well watered.
• Delicious raw in salads or roasted in quarters.

🌱 Pea Shoots

A couple of weeks ago I suggested trying pea shoots for salads. The five packs we had sold out immediately.

They grow quickly — ready in just three weeks.

If my order arrives this week, they’ll be back in stock.

🫘 Peas & Beans – Seed Packs

We still have our usual 100g prepacked peas and beans, plus a new selection from Kings Seeds.

Lots of varieties we haven’t stocked before — worth a look.

🌿 Plants for Sale

Thank you to everyone who has donated spare plants to raise funds for Willen Hospice.

Currently available:

• 2 cucumbers (best in a greenhouse or polytunnel)
• A couple of pumpkins
• More squash and pumpkins are growing on and will be brought down when ready

It looks very much as though plant sales will exceed £500 this year — a fantastic achievement.

Thank you all for your support.

🏆 WHGAA Garden & Allotment Show

📅 Saturday 5th September

📍 Caroline Haslett Primary School, Shenley Lodge

Now is the time to start looking at your produce and deciding what you’ll be entering.

💙 Willen Hospice

We will be presenting a further donation at our AGM on Friday 2nd October.

You can still support the charity by:

• Rounding up your purchases at The Hut
• Buying a WHGAA tote bag (£3.95, with £1 donated)

🛒 10% Monthly Offer for June

All Tomato Feeds

Perfect timing as plants move into their main growth phase.

Happy Gardening

Mick Goodman

Membership Secretary

June is a key month for planting, sowing, and keeping on top of fast early‑summer growth. Successional sowing continues to be the best way to ensure a steady supply of fresh produce.

🥗 Successional Sowing & Veg Plot Jobs

Keep sowing lettuce, radish, spring onions and salad leaves little and often. You can still sow carrots, beetroot and dwarf beans outdoors throughout June.

🧅 Onions

Onions put on strong growth now, which is vital for good bulb formation later. Feed with a balanced fertiliser and water during dry spells. A cupful of liquid seaweed in the watering can works wonders.

🥒 Cucumbers

Once established in warmth, cucumbers crop reliably all summer. They need heat, moisture and nutrients.

Commercial growers remove the tiny early fruits until plants reach 45–60 cm (18–24 inches). This encourages:

• A stronger root system
• More leaf growth
• Better yields over a longer period

Your first cucumber is always a joy — but giving the plant time to build strength pays off.

🥬 Spring Cabbages

A fun trick: after harvesting, leave the stump in the ground and cut an X in the top. It will re‑sprout with tender leafy greens. Worth a try this year.

🌱 Plants for Sale

Thank you to everyone who brought plants to The Hut last weekend — they disappeared quickly. I hope to bring courgettes this weekend. More squashes and pumpkins have been sown, but they’ll need time to establish.

🪴 Compost Update

Thatcher’s MP Compost is still delayed from the supplier. We’ll let you know as soon as it arrives.

💧 Keep Checking Moisture

Growth can be rapid in June. Keep beetroot, radishes, and turnips moist to ensure tender, quick‑maturing roots.

🍏 Fruit Trees

My apple tree is showing no fruit set, while the pear beside it is loaded. Common causes include:

• Lack of blossom (age or pruning)
• Poor pollination weather
• Frost damage
• Biennial bearing (resting after a heavy year)

If you have a plum tree, thin the small fruits to prevent branches snapping under a heavy crop.

🫘 Runner & Climbing Beans

If not already done, erect canes for runner beans. Climbing French beans can share the same structure — they’re happy to mingle.

🌸 Flower Care for June

• Pinch out fuchsias for bushier plants and more blooms
• Pick sweet peas as soon as they flower
• Dead‑head roses (repeat‑flowering types only)
• Cut back oriental poppies after flowering to encourage fresh foliage
• Stake tall perennials before wind catches them
• Tie in climbers such as honeysuckle and clematis with soft ties
• Prune evergreen clematis after flowering to maintain shape
• Cut back hardy geraniums once they finish flowering
• Harvest lavender for baking, crafting or garnishing

🌱 June Monthly Offer

10% off Tomato Feed Perfect timing as your plants move into their main growth phase.

Happy Gardening Mick Goodman Membership Secretary

Hopefully you have all come through the recent colder nights without losing any plants. Potatoes may have suffered if they weren’t earthed up or covered with fleece, but don’t worry — they will recover, though they may take a little longer to mature. I’ve held off sowing my runner beans, but I can’t wait any longer, so they’ll be going into jiffy pots very soon, ready for planting out in mid‑June.

🌱 We Need Your Help

Did you know The Hut is run entirely by volunteers? Over recent months our number of active helpers has dropped, and we are struggling to keep things running smoothly.

If you can spare a couple of hours on a Saturday or Sunday morning, we would be incredibly grateful. We especially need help with barrows and assisting members with getting purchases to their cars, though support with any duties would be warmly welcomed.

🌿 Get Sowing Now

There is still time to sow:

• Cucumbers, summer squash, sweetcorn, runner beans, and French beans
• Winter squash — sow as soon as possible; they need a long season
• Carrots, parsnips, beetroot, swedes, salad onions, leeks, and lettuce and chard

Do not sow now:

Turnips and spinach — they bolt too easily at this time of year. Sow them in early August, after their flowering season. That’s also the best time to sow rocket and mustards, which would otherwise bolt quickly and suffer flea beetle damage. Flea beetles are far less troublesome in late summer and autumn.

🥔 Did You Know? — Earthing Up Potatoes

Last week someone told me that first and second earlies don’t need earthing up. I’d never heard this, so I looked into it.

• Maincrop potatoes grow deeper and spread their tubers widely, often pushing them to the surface. Earthing up keeps them in the dark and prevents greening.
• Early potatoes stay smaller and tend to remain below the surface, so heavy ridging isn’t essential.
• However, earthing up early in the season provides vital frost protection for young foliage — and that alone makes it worthwhile.

🪴 Compost Update

There is still no stock of Thatcher’s Multi‑Purpose Compost from our suppliers. As a replacement, we recommend Clover Multi‑Purpose Compost, which performs very well.

💧 Raise Humidity in Greenhouses

To help prevent red spider mite, increase humidity by damping down and spraying hard surfaces and pathways with water.

Do this in the morning — it discourages mites without creating the damp evening conditions that attract slugs.

🥕 Parsnips — Another Germination Trick

Last week I mentioned I only had three parsnips germinating. A member has since shared another method:

• Sow seeds into newspaper pots (or jiffy pots)
• Once seedlings appear, plant the whole pot where you want them to grow
• The pot rots down, allowing the parsnip to grow straight on

A simple idea — and one worth trying.

🍅 Tomatoes — Growing for Success

For strong, productive plants:

• Choose a sunny, sheltered spot (at least 6 hours of direct sun)
• Use rich, well‑drained soil
• Water consistently
• Bury seedlings deep to encourage strong root systems
• Support vining types and prune regularly
• For cordon tomatoes, pinch out the small “suckers” in leaf joints to focus energy on fruit rather than foliage

🌼 Top Tip — Second Sowings of Courgettes

Courgettes and squash grow fast and fruit heavily, but they rarely age gracefully.

A second sowing in early summer often outperforms older plants that are slowing down or succumbing to mildew.

🥬 Brassicas — Protect Them Now

Cabbage white butterflies are active. Protect all brassicas — cabbage, kale, broccoli, sprouts — with fine mesh netting.

Once caterpillars appear, they can strip plants very quickly.

💷 May Monthly Offer

10% off all mainframe products throughout May.

Happy Gardening,

Mick Goodman

Membership Secretary

Dear Member,

May is the month when many of us start putting up canes for runner beans, building brassica cages and preparing beds for the next wave of planting.

But a word of caution — as this week has shown, overnight temperatures are still cold, so hold back on planting out tender crops for now.

🌿 Sow Your Beans Now

You can get ahead by sowing:

• Runner beans
• Climbing French beans
• Dwarf beans

Sow them into jiffy pots now and they’ll be ready to plant out in 3–4 weeks, just in time for early June when nights should be warmer.

🫘 New Range of Peas & Beans Arriving

A fresh delivery from Kings Seeds is expected this weekend, offering varieties not currently in our 100g bag range.

One that caught my eye is Pea Serge (for pea shoots).

Pea shoots are:

• Tender and crisp
• Highly nutritious
• Sweet and flavourful
• Perfect as a salad garnish or healthy snack

A great option if you want something quick, tasty and a bit different.

🌐 Previous Newsletters Now Online

If you’d like to revisit any of my earlier weekly updates, you can now find them on our website.

To access them:

1. Search for whgaa.org in your browser
2. Select Weekly Newsletter
3. Choose any date from the archive to view the email

🐛 Watch for Early Pests

With warmer days ahead, expect an increase in:

• Greenfly
• Whitefly
• Slugs
• Snails

Check plants regularly and apply your preferred method of control as soon as you spot a problem.

🐌 Slug Control – New Product in The Hut

Westlands Slug & Snail Defence Spray

• Price: £5.25 per litre
• Naturally derived alternative to pellets
• Effective for up to two weeks, even in wet weather
• Makes surfaces unattractive to slugs and snails
• Safe for use around children, pets and edible crops

A useful option if you prefer to avoid pellets.

🌾 Keep on Top of Weeds

Freshly prepared seed beds don’t stay clean for long.

A quick hoe between rows of onions or newly sown seeds will save you a lot of work later.

🍇 Gooseberries – Watch for Sawfly

Gooseberry sawfly caterpillars appear this month and can strip a plant in days.

• Check plants regularly
• Remove caterpillars by hand or use a spray
• Be vigilant — there can be up to four generations each year

🥕 Parsnips – Still Time to Sow

I sowed parsnips in a raised bed a month ago and only three have germinated — so don’t worry if yours are slow.

You can still sow more:

• Direct sow in rows 30cm apart
• Keep the soil moist in dry weather
• Use fleece or fine mesh to protect seeds from birds and cats

🌼 Broad Beans – Blackfly

Blackfly often appear suddenly on the growing tips and pods.

Unless the infestation is severe, there’s usually no need to intervene:

• Small birds feed them to their chicks
• Ladybirds (both adults and larvae) consume thousands of aphids over their lifetime

Avoid spraying — it harms the beneficial insects doing the real work.

🧄 Garlic – Remove the Scapes

Elephant and hard‑neck garlic will soon send up flowering shoots (scapes).

Snap these off where they emerge from the leaves.

This redirects energy back into the bulb, giving you a better harvest later in the summer.

🌱 Plants for Sale

Any remaining plants will be at The Hut this weekend — though there are very few left.

Thank you to everyone who donated spare plants.

They’ve all found new homes and helped raise a little extra for Willen Hospice.

🍺 Thatchers

Unfortunately, there will be no Thatchers available this weekend due to supplier shortages.

💷 May Offer – 10% Off

Our monthly offer is back.

For May, all mainframe products are reduced by 10%.

Happy Gardening

Mick Goodman

Membership Secretary

Dear Member,

📸 50th Anniversary Photos

For those of you who attended our 50th anniversary on April 12th, the first selection of photographs is now on display in The Hut. More are on their way and will be added to the notice board as soon as they arrive.

💙 Willen Hospice Fundraising Update

Thanks to your generosity, we have already donated £806 to Willen Hospice, with fundraising continuing throughout the year.

• 🛍️ WHGAA Tote Bags – £3.95 each, with £1 donated per bag
• 🌱 Tomato & Pepper Plants – 25p from each plant sold goes to the Hospice
• ✒️ Commemorative Pens – Free for members at the till

Your support is making a real difference.

🌿 Plants for Sale – Last Chance!

This weekend at The Hut:

• 🍅 ~150 Tomato plants
• 🥒 Cucumber plants
• 🥒 Courgettes & Squashes (limited stock)

I won’t be growing any more this season as my greenhouse now needs to be set up for tomatoes, melons and cucumbers.

🌱 Plant Sale Milestone:

You’ve purchased 1,551 plants so far—quite an achievement from an 8×6 greenhouse!

Your purchases have raised an additional £387 for Willen Hospice.

Brilliant result!

🍈 Grow Something Different: Cucamelons

If you fancy adding a bit of fun to your plot, cucamelons are a great choice.

They grow on scrambling vines, taste like a mix of cucumber and lime, and look like tiny melons—perfect for children and curious gardeners alike.

🌱 Sowing Now

Now is a good time to start:

• Runner beans
• Climbing beans
• Sweetcorn
• Pumpkins
• Squash
• Courgettes

Start them under cover and protect from cold nights. They’ll be ready to plant out in early June when nights are warmer.

🧤 Five Jobs for the Allotment in May

1. Plant out tender crops once frost risk has passed
2. Begin regular watering
3. Keep on top of weeds
4. Support climbing crops
5. Sow little and often—avoid a glut you can’t give away!

🍮 Check Your Rhubarb

Rhubarb is in full growth now. Hot or dry spells can cause thick flowering stems to appear in the centre of the clump.

🌸 Pull these out as soon as they form to keep the plant productive.

🪴 Using Raised Beds

Raised beds warm up quickly but also dry out fast.

Keep an eye on moisture levels, especially after sowing seeds or when seedlings are just emerging.

💷 May Offer – 10% Off

Our 10% monthly discount is back!

For May, all mainframe products are reduced.

Happy Gardening

Mick Goodman

Membership Secretary

Dear Member,

As summer approaches, we all become busy preparing the ground for the plants sown over the last month or two.

🌡️ Be aware: we may still get a few cold nights, so keep tender plants — tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers — indoors a little longer if you plan to grow them outside.

🥔 Potatoes – Frost Damage

If your potato plants have been caught by frost, don’t panic.

• ❌ Remove blackened or damaged foliage
• 🌱 Plants usually produce new shoots within 10–14 days
• 🕒 Expect a slight delay to your harvest
• 🛡️ Protect remaining growth by:
  • Earthing up soil
  • Using fleece, plastic or sheets to prevent further damage

🌿 Plants for Sale This Weekend

Due to demand, I sowed more Big Daddy tomatoes 3–4 weeks ago, so I’ll be bringing around 60 plants to The Hut this weekend.

I also have a small number of Tomato Principe Borghese (a cherry plum type) — only about a dozen.

Also available:

• 🍅 A range of tomatoes
• 🥒 Cucumbers
• 🍈 Melons

💙 25p from every plant sold is donated to Willen Hospice.

💙 Willen Hospice Fundraising Update

We continue to raise money for Willen Hospice.

If you’d like to donate or round up your purchase, please let us know.

🌟 Plant sales have already raised over £200, and when added to our 50th anniversary donation, we have now raised just over £1,000 this year.

🪴 Container Growing Tips

May can bring very warm days, and pots dry out quickly.

• 💧 Keep a close eye on watering
• 🌼 Begin feeding with a dilute liquid fertiliser, especially for flowering or fruiting plants
• 🪣 For late spring sowings:
  • Line containers with polythene
  • Add water‑retaining granules
  • This reduces how often you need to water

🍈 Growing Melons – A Challenge!

I’ve decided to try growing a melon at home this year — and it seems many of you have too.

🌱 Planting

• When plants reach 10cm (4 inches), move them to large pots or growbags under glass
• Provide support and tie stems as needed
• 🌼 Hand pollination is required
• Remove male flowers after use

🌿 Training

• When the main stem reaches 60cm (24 inches), pinch out the tip
• Select the four strongest side shoots
• Pinch each out after three leaves
• New side breaks: pinch out after two leaves, then again after one leaf

Now you know what’s involved — good luck!

🌽 Time to Sow (May)

May is a great month to sow:

• 🥒 Courgettes
• 🎃 Squashes
• 🌽 Sweetcorn
• 🫘 Runner beans (I sow mine mid‑May and put up the canes at the same time)
• 🫘 Dwarf beans — stagger sowings:
  • Five now
  • Five in three weeks
  • This avoids a glut and keeps the neighbours safe from surprise veg deliveries

🍓 Fruits of Your Labour

This is a key time for fruit set and swelling.

💧 Keep plants well watered to avoid checks in growth that can reduce yields.

🌻 Happy Gardening

Mick Goodman

Membership Secretary

Dear Member,

My allotment gardening always focuses on the vegetables I can grow — I leave the flowers to my wife. As a result, most of my weekly articles are veg‑based, but there’s always room for flowers to brighten up the plot.

🌸 Cosmos

Add some cheer to your garden or allotment with these wonderful blooms — they’re great for attracting pollinators too.

Cosmos are half‑hardy annuals, meaning they flower all summer but cannot withstand frost.

• 🌱 Sow under cover in April for earlier, more abundant blooms
• 🌤️ Outdoor sowing from May to early June, once frost risk has passed
• 🐝 Excellent for bees and beneficial insects

🌻 Sunflowers

Growing sunflowers from seed is easy — all you need is a sunny, sheltered spot and good soil.

• 🌱 Enrich soil with compost or well‑rotted manure
• 🐌 Protect young plants from slugs and snails
• 💧 Water regularly
• 🪢 Stake if growing in an exposed position

Choose your variety carefully:

• Dwarf types: ~50cm
• Tall varieties: up to 3m

Sow seeds in pots from April and plant out a few weeks later.

For height, feed weekly with a nitrogen‑rich fertiliser and stake taller varieties.

💐 Cut Flower Seeds – New at The Hut

New this year is a range of cut‑flower seeds ideal for growing at home or on the allotment.

• ✂️ Cut mature stems for vases, bouquets or arrangements
• 🌈 Mix colours, shapes and textures for beautiful displays
• 🔁 Many varieties flower again when regularly cut

A great way to bring colour indoors and support pollinators outdoors.

🪴 Plants for Sale

The first vegetable plants went on sale last weekend — lots of interest and lots sold.

I still have plenty of stock, so there will be more available at The Hut this weekend.

🥕 Carrot Root Fly

Carrot root fly is a tiny insect that attacks carrots, celery, celeriac and parsnips.

They become active in May, so now is the time to protect April sowings.

• 🕸️ Cover with fine vegetable mesh
• 🌱 Drape over hoops or lay directly on the ground
• 🚫 Ensure no gaps for flies to enter

I’ve never done this myself, but I may give it a try this year.

🐦 Feeding the Birds – New RSPB Advice

The RSPB now advises not feeding birds using feeders between May and October due to the spread of disease.

✔️ Do:

• 🧼 Clean feeders and water baths weekly
• 🔄 Move feeders regularly to prevent disease build‑up

❌ Avoid:

• Flat surfaces such as tables or tray‑style feeders

🌿 Instead, plant bird‑friendly species:

• 🌻 Sunflowers
• 🌾 Teasels
• 🌿 Ivy

These provide natural food sources and support healthy bird populations.

🌻 Happy Gardening

Mick Goodman

Membership Secretary

Dear Member,

It has finally arrived — WE WILL BE CELEBRATING OUR 50TH ANNIVERSARY THIS WEEKEND!

What better time to stock up on essentials such as tomato food, slug pellets, MP compost and netting? Most of you have already bought your seeds for this year, but with an extra 5% or 10% off this weekend, why not stock up for next year too?

EVERYTHING is reduced, depending on which day you visit The Hut.

We expect some items — especially composts — to sell out quickly, but we’ve done our best to meet demand.

All competitions are now closed, and the list of winners will be announced this weekend.

📅 Weekend Schedule

Saturday 11th April – 5% Discount

🕙 Open 10am–12 noon

All members receive 5% off all purchases.

Sunday 12th April – 10% Discount

🕙 Open 10am–2pm

⭐ 10% off all purchases

🥨 Light nibbles available

🏆 Competition results announced

🎖️ The Mayor will visit around midday

💙 A representative from Willen Hospice will attend to receive the total donations raised so far

Please make every effort to come along and celebrate with us.

🛒 Back in Stock

• 🌱 Thatcher’s 60L compost (60L) is now available again — but with this weekend’s discounts, it may not last long.
• 🌿 Replacement for Erin compost is now Clover.

🌿 Growing Tips from Mick

🌱 Broad Beans

My broad beans, planted a few weeks ago, are now growing well. Soon they’ll need support to prevent them falling over.

I place 4ft canes at 3ft intervals around the double row, then use string or twine to tie along and across the row. As they grow taller, I add more string to support the tops.

🥒 Courgettes

Courgettes are easy to grow from seed, and just a few plants will keep you well supplied all summer.

I recommend no more than three plants.

Try different varieties:

• 💛 Atena Polka (yellow)
• 💚 Zucchini (green)
• 🟢 Boldenice F1 (round green)

🫘 Runner Beans

Many people plant out runner beans in May, meaning they were sown in April — a risk, as they dislike the cold.

I sow mine in mid‑May, two seeds per jiffy pot. They’re ready to plant out in early June.

To protect them from cold or wind, I place 2ft-high plastic sheeting around the outside and remove it once the weather warms.

🌼 Plants for Sale

There will be no plant sales this weekend due to the anniversary celebrations.

Most plants need another two weeks of growth anyway.

The big rush will begin Saturday 18th April, when we’ll have:

• 🌶️ Peppers
• 🍅 Tomatoes
• 🍆 Aubergines

Cucumbers were sown later due to limited greenhouse space, so they may need an extra week.

🌻 Happy Gardening

Mick Goodman

Membership Secretary