Quiet at the allotments with many gardeners away. I am here in the early morning to water, stroll through the site. Sometimes to say hello to the young wrens and baby robins as they flutter among our taller plants.
Most days I take home a handful of beans, tidy a bit and keep the sweet peas in check. It is our first year of growing from seed and I have wildly underestimated the height, the spread and the amount of flowers from two tents. Luckily, they’re our favourite scent.
I am still unsure whether we will save the seed for next year. I am slightly daunted by this year’s opulence. Plus, I love to browse the Roger Parsons site for high scent and strong colour. Anyway, there’s time to decide.
We seem to be growing Nigella (love in the mist) for the first time, to Howard’s disapproval, in among the dill and fennel and close to our orange cosmos. There is a new amaranth, too, and soon “spinach red orache” from She Grows Veg. I discovered them in the great pavilion at Chelsea (most often more exciting for me than the show gardens).
The morning glory has finally escaped the clutches of the birds, snails and slugs and is happily clambering up their hazel sticks. The sole surviving tear pea now towers over me. I am resolved to save all the pods for next summer. Though I’m finding it hard to resist the call of sharing at least one with Howard.
The autumn salad leaves are small, but thriving (mostly mustards and other “oriental” mixes), broadcast in small patches. Our sunflowers are starting to bloom and are already out of reach. I am waiting to see their finished height and colours as I’ve lost track of which was where when they were attacked at an inch-high. So much to look forward to.
Note: we are away next Sunday for the bank holiday weekend, so this column will return on September 1. But now, please tell us about your favourite high-summer food and flowers.
Allan Jenkins’s Plot 29 (4th Estate, £9.99) is out now. Order it for £8.49 from guardianbookshop.com
