Allotment plots in Baldock
The BALGA Members’ Shop will re-open on Sunday 18th April 2021 (10 am – 12 pm).
The BALGA Members’ Shop will open on Sunday 18 April 2021 and every Sunday thereafter until 21 November 2021 (subject to any future COVID restrictions). The Shop will be open from 10 am until 12 pm. Please observe a social distance.
The price list can be found by clicking here and clicking ‘BALGA Shop 2021 current price list March 2021’ button on the page.
Potatoe sales have been very successful. We’ve sold over 90% of our potatoes. Potatoes are selling fast and it’s not too late to make an order, but it’s better to do it sooner rather than later. Members can click here to place an order for seed potatoes, onion and shallot sets.
We have sold out of even more varieties and we have limited stock with some of our main crop and second early potatoes. It is not too late to buy your potatoes or onion and shallot sets, but we are selling out fast and you may want to buy your favourite variety as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.
You may want to try Premiere as your first early potato because the variety is resistant to blight and common scab and they are ideal for frying.
Did you forget to plant garlic in the Autumn? We have garlic that is bred for Spring planting. It would need planting straight away, but members can make an order by clicking here. Garlic is not on our pre-order form, but you can request it in the “Additional notes” or email our Trading Secretary by clicking here.
We would usually start the season with Compost Sunday at the BALGA Members’ Shop. However, due to COVID-19, we are offering a delivery service for BALGA members on our latest compost that has just arrived (please see below).
We are in a limited supply of Humax Multipurpose 60l because they are reformulating it to create a peat-free compost. If this is one of your favourite types of compost to use, then we recommend you make an order as soon as possible to avoid disappointment. However, Gro-well Multipurpose 60l at £5.00 makes a good alternative because it’s similar in quality.
Deliveries can only be made to addresses in Baldock. For members living outside Baldock, arrangements should be made with Stewart (the Trading Secretary) for convenient delivery to the member’s allotment plot or to one of our allotment site gates for Associate Members (non-plot holders).
We are now offering a delivery service to members for the following available types of compost:
Deliveries can only be made to addresses in Baldock. For members living outside Baldock, arrangements should be made with Stewart (the Trading Secretary) for convenient delivery to the member’s allotment plot or to one of our allotment site gates for Associate Members (non plot holders).
Following on from the Prime Minister’s announcement on Monday (4 January 2021), we would like to remind our members of the following guidelines to keep everyone safe during this national lockdown:
Autumn planting onion sets, shallots, garlic and flowering bulbs are now in stock and are available every Sunday until the end of the growing season (November).
We have the following varieties available:
Onion Sets (£0.70 per 200g)
Senshyu Yellow (limited availability)
Senshyu onions are a large round onion with a white flesh inside with a mild flavour that would go nicely in a salad.
Red Winter
Red Winter is a good quality large onion that can taste quite sweet. Red onion sets are prone to bolting but this particular variety has excellent resistance to bolting and pests and diseases.
Shallots (£2.10 per 250g)
Jermor
Jermor has a shiny brown skin with a pinkish flesh. This is a good sweet variety to try.
Garlic
Elephant garlic (£0.70 per clove)
Elephant garlic is not a true garlic, but produces stems like leeks and the large bulbs have a mild garlic taste that is ideal for roasting.
Flowering bulbs
Why not plant some flowering bulbs in your garden and allotment for some spring colour?
Mixed daffodils – £0.90 per 500g
Mixed Garden Tulips – 10 bulbs for £2.00
Hope to see you at the shop on Sunday. Remember to keep a social distance, especially if there are more than six people at the shop.
In the past, I had not been successful with onions or leeks because of the allium leaf miner. The adult flies appear from March to April and September to October and will feed on the leaves of your allium plants before laying her eggs. It attacks all members of the allium family. You can tell the female fly has fed on your leaves because you will see lines of white dots on the leaves on your alliums. The eggs will hatch and become larvae (small maggots) that will tunnel in the foliage, stems and bulbs of the allium plant exposing the plant to diseases and rotting.
So at the end of last year I thought I would protect my plants using insect mesh to stop the allium fly laying eggs on my allium plants. Back in October last year Monty Don on Gardeners’ World said to try planting onion sets in modules in the greenhouse as it will give the onions a head start and avoid cold and wet weather. I knew the allium fly would be unable to access the onions in the greenhouse over winter so I gave it a try.
In April, when the soil had warmed up, I decided to plant the onion plants out. I knew the allium fly could lay her eggs in April so I covered it with insect mesh (which is available at the BALGA Members’ shop).
Finally, it was a success! Have a look at the picture below:
Remember, there is no chemical available that will stop the allium leaf miner so it is best to use insect mesh in March-April and September-October. Perhaps you can try starting your onions in modules this year? It could give you a head start to the season next year and harvest onions early than usual!
Miles
Our potatoes and onion sets are now half price! In order to clear the remaining stock we have halved the price of the seed potatoes in the members’ shop down to 50p per Kg. We’ve also reduced the price of the remaining onion sets by 50%, down to 30p per 200g.
Now is the perfect time to plant potatoes for a ‘second cropping’ especially if you fancy serving new potatoes up with your Christmas dinner. Click here for more information on planting Christmas potatoes.
The table below shows our current stock levels in the shop. As you can see, after a very successful delivery service and click and collect service, we have very few potatoes left. So why not come to the members’ shop this Sunday (10am-11am) to take advantage of the half price seed potatoes? Alternatively, you can make a click and collect order, click here to find out more information.
If you’ve just taken on an allotment, now is a good time to prepare an area and plant some seed potatoes. It’s a good way to break up the soil AND enjoy a harvest this summer.
I know it’s a little too early to think about Christmas but if you fancy serving new potatoes up with your Christmas dinner, now is a good time to plant seed potatoes. There is no need to chit the seed potatoes because they will grow rapidly in the warm soil. They will be ready from September/October but you can leave them in the ground until Christmas Day. Make sure you earth up in October after the first frosts to protect them from any further hard frosts. I tried it for the last couple of years with great success and I know Mick (Chairman) does it each year. It’s a great way to enjoy fresh potatoes on Christmas Day!
Saxon is a good variety to try for a second cropping because it produces uniform long oval-shaped potatoes with a good yield. Saxon is somewhat floury potato and is excellent for baking and chipping. ‘Winston’ is another variety that is good for a second cropping because it’s quick to grow and is excellent for roasting and mashing. Perfect for Christmas Day!
Seed potatoes are currently half price at £0.50 per kg. You may have pulled up onions and garlic and this a great way to fill the empty space. So why not come to the members’ shop this Sunday (10am-11am) to take advantage of the half price seed potatoes? Alternatively, you can make a click and collect order, click here to find out more information.
Who would have thought after such a wet winter that we would now be so desperate for rain? Watering helps to keep our plants alive but not necessarily to thrive as they would with decent rains. Water use on both sites has obviously increased considerably but I remind of you on some steps that can help ‘stem the flow’.
Mick (Chairman)