2007 and 2008 top three and worst three crops

[ina]

I'm terribly ashamed - I don't think I even managed to get three crops in the ground on time... So nothing did really well. OK, I haven't dug up the Jerusalem artichoke yet - so there's still hope for one good crops!

Weeds definitely did very well, though.

[gdb]

best crops of 2008: lettuce, carrot and kale

worst: beetroot, beetroot and beetroot again - dreadful little things no bigger than a pea and as hard as nails!

[sleepyowl]

Best
Runner beans
Pumpkins
Strawberries

Worst
Tomatoes
Lettuce
Coriander

[Biscombe]

Best

Chillies (Over the moon!)
Potatoes (still got a crate in storage and loads of potato bakes in the freezer!)
Aubergines (Can't pick em fast enough and still cropping!)


Worst

Broccoli (swede midge)
Tomatoes (for some reason we didn't have bumper crops as we normally do)
Okra (again great last year, crap this year!)

[1st time veg grower]

Nottingham (but bear in mind my 'plot' is v badly located - v shaded)

Best 3:
Peas - kept going for most of the summer and have loads in my freezer
French Beans - plants have only just stopped producing
Early Potatoes - over 50 from 4 plants, was very pleased
(and chillis - growing outside and still going...)

Worst 3:
Pumpkins/squash (flowers rotting into the fruit then too late to ripen - only one pumpkin ripened on vine from 6 plants, 2 are on my kitchen work surface hopefully ripening, no squash at all)
Onions - pathetically small and some didn't even germinate
Broccoli - tiny heads in summer

(I would nominate my tomatoes but they produced LOTS of fruit...though it stayed green through lack of light and then the plants got blight because of the rain...fortunately I managed to harvest most of the tomatoes before they were affected - some ripened indoors and I used loads for chutney so technically not a complete disaster!)

HTH
L.x.

[Jules]

Best:

cherry tomatoes - still picking them off - but now have a kerosene heater in the greenhouse at night)
courgettes - been fabulous and huge
potatoes - all good - will wait and see how the winter crop are doing

Worst:
onions - shallot sized
fennel - didn't happen
pumpkin - didn't get enough bees to pollentate even though I put near edible flowers that bees adore
plum tomatoes (blight)

[Birdie Wife]

I'm in the far north of Scotland and we had probably the best summer in Britain - but it was charaterised by longish periods of dry weather (not particularly warm though) with periods of rain and wind.

Best crops:
Parsnips (lovely long shapely roots)
Beetroot (got some really lovely roots after a slow start)
Kale (Tuscan Black and Sutherland - really nice healthy plants, never even touched by caterpillars)

Worst crops
Peas (got mildew)
JAs (tiny)
Tomatoes (Aurora variety, got blight, IF I try these again it'll be under cover)

[JulieSherris]

Location: West Ireland.....

I only dug a few strips of planting area (rented house) so didn't get to plant too much....

Best: Has to be the herbs... all of them did really well, in particular...
Sage
Rosemary
Mint
Parsley

My peas did well, ok I only planted out 6 plants, they fed us thru the summer....

Worst: Tomatoes - planted outside - not doing THAT again!!
Runner Beans shame, because they're my all time fave home grown veg
Pumpkins... even though they were a 'kids pack'!

I would have had strawberries, had it not been for the Basset puppy, who nicked them all while they were green!!

Julie

[linzibean]

I'm in Mid Wales, so a wet summer was no surprise so me ;)

Best:
Potatoes (grown in buckets, we had a fantastic crop and no blight issues, they were maincrop)
Carrots Parmex (again pot grown, lovely tasty and pretty quick growing)
Chillies (jalapeno and purple something or other - I was stunned by how well they grew in this miserable summer, in my tiny plastic greenhouse!!)

The Worst
Pumpkin (not a fruit in sight, terrible year for these)
Tomatoes (just wouldn't ripen)
Peppers (again, just wouldn't ripen)

I didn't try sweetcorn this year, just don't get the weather here.

[Percy]

Best:
Runners
Broad Beans
Courgettes/Marrows
Although brassicas were very good this year as previous post.

Worse:
Carrots
Parsnips
Peas (mainly due to pea month)

[Percy]

Should also add tomato to last post, again due to blight, but i suppose that makes four worse.

[Maria]

First year of growing anything - other than indoor plants on a kitchen window. Or 'death row' as the OH used to call it.

Top

Carrots - all germinated got big and were eaten, with extra's given to friends and neighbours.
Peas - as above
Courgettes - as above
Shallots - as above - with a few saved to see how they keep.


Bottom (perhaps not much use, as more my mistakes than the weather)

Toms in poly - lots, yet lost many to blossom end, i think? (kitchen window syndrome)
Potatoes - had many, but dug up early, scared they looked blighted (beginners scare!)
Strawberries - mouldy. Me again, left in pots and neglected.
Beetroot - me again, poor soil.

Didn't do so well with, leek, soya, pepper and chill - again my poor care i think....yet....Everything else grew wonderfully. Have eaten french and runner beans, red onions, spring onion, cucumber, radish, lettuce galore, spinach, cauliflower, calabrese, pak choi, sweetcorn. Also grown and eaten sage, chives, chervil, corriander, parlsley, dill, rosemary,thyme, marjoram, mint, basil. Lastly I have some parsnips, brussels, purple sprouting broc, kale, chard and one lonely cabbage still in ground waiting to be eaten.

I've listed all in encouragement for others who, like me, have managed to kill off any ornamental plants. Growing and caring for what's grown seems to get much easier, worthwhile.....and fun....when you get to eat everything.

And it was all from seed, meaning fairly cheap, and all from mi own garden (in north Aberdeenshire)- don't get more local than that. Soooo happy. Next year, more of the same - and oooooh where's that seed catalogue.

[carolinej]

Best

Blackcurrants
Rhubarb
Globe artichokes

Worst

Peppers
Cucumbers
Pumpkins

With such a wet, cold summer here in S Wales, I wasnt expecting much better

cj

[Dave]

Thanks again all those who have posted, I'm getting a general picture of what has done well and what hasn't. If there's anyone else lurking who've had disasters or successes on the allotment this year then please, please post here.

[Masco&Bongo]

North West (Lancashire Coast)

Best 3:
Garlic
Carrots
Onions

(also had success with peas, raspberries, herbs, leeks, lettuce and calabrese)

Worst 3:
Sweetcorn
Potatoes
Tomatoes

(peppers, cabbage and cauliflower were rubbish too!)