There is a plus side!

'What difficult weather we are having on the plot!', said every allotment holder, every year, since the dawn of allotment history - except that this year, just maybe, we do have a bit of a point.

The sunshine when it comes is hot and lovely, but is interspersed with days of cold, and heavy rain too.  This has been brilliant in that everything gets a boost and jumps up in the sunshine (weeds inc.), and also nothing needs watering yet - hurrah!

Wet weather means that the slugs have made merry with the Maris Piper potatoes (although not the Pentland Javelin) and the cucumber plants bought from the plant sales a couple of weeks ago.  

One of my lovely little lavender plants is looking a touch suspect too (far left), for some reason.  No sign of the parsnip seeds coming up, either.

But we are optimist, of course, and on the plus side, the runner beans are bedding in nicely, and the broad beans are full of flowers and bursting with health.  

Perhaps in the same way that last year was 'year of the brilliant winter crops' this will be 'year of the brilliant beans'. Who knows?