It’s been our driest July since 2009, when Martyn set up a weather station in our garden. Our records, of course, only relate to our own garden, but it’s fair to say that conditions on the allotment have been much the same.
This July we have recorded just 0.6mm of rainfall. The average July rainfall is 56.9mm, so it’s been an exceptionally dry month.
The dry weather follows on from two equally dry months, May and June. Earlier in the year, wherever we travelled, flooded fields and reservoirs filled to the brim were a common sight. It’s such a pity we couldn’t have stored some of that excess water, as hosepipe bans are already in place in some parts of the country. We’d optimistically thought that the wet winter would replenish the soil and set us up for a good gardening season, but nature has a habit of throwing us a curveball.
The heat and persistent wind have only made matters worse. The highest temperature we recorded this July was 34.8°C. Although we’ve experienced hotter Julys in the past – our record is 40.4°C in 2022 – the prolonged dry conditions have made this our most difficult growing season yet.
Home Garden
One of the stars of the garden has to be the agapanthus. It’s been growing in a large pot for several years and is probably ready to be divided, but it has rewarded us with a wonderful display of striking blue flowers.
A trickle of tomatoes is coming from the greenhouse, and cucumbers are doing better.
At the Allotment
Work on the allotment has become rather repetitive. Every visit seems to involve me watering while Martyn continues lifting what can only be described as a rather disappointing potato harvest. It’s the poorest potato crop we’ve had in the forty or so years that we’ve had the allotments.
Many of the potatoes are tiny and it seems that we are harvesting less potatoes than we planted!
I’ve finally given up on the sweet peas. They produced very few flowers and those that did appear had such short stems that they were no use for picking and bringing indoors.
The healthiest flowers on the plot are a bed of self-sown cosmos, which are providing a welcome splash of colour, along with a hibiscus that was relocated from the garden.
Our parsnip bed remains a mystery. The plants at one end are noticeably larger than those at the other, even though the bed is level and both ends receive exactly the same conditions.
It’s not all doom and gloom, though. We are still managing to leave the plot with a harvest, even if it’s a smaller one than usual.
The plum tree that was damaged by strong winds earlier in the year has surprised us by producing a lovely crop of delicious plums.
The copious amounts of water I’ve been giving the climbing beans also seem to be paying off, as we’re harvesting beans on most visits.
Out and About
Nostell
National Trust properties take on a completely different character during the school holidays. Until the holidays are over, we’ll probably continue to visit in the mornings when it’s a little quieter.
Sadly, there are still only four cygnets on the lake.
We often comment that we rarely see ducklings or other young birds there, so it was lovely to spot two young coots swimming with their parents.
The cattle had gathered by the gate leading into the meadow, perhaps hoping it was time to be moved.
Ruby was fascinated by them, and they seemed just as curious about her.
Clumber Park
We also enjoyed a visit to Clumber Park. When we arrived, there was a queue of cars waiting to get in, and we wondered whether visiting had been a mistake. Fortunately, the traffic soon moved along.
Like many National Trust properties, Clumber Park has plenty to entertain families during the school holidays. There was a small fairground with a merry-go-round and dodgems, but we gave those a miss and headed straight for the walled garden.
We were particularly interested to see how they were coping with the drought. The answer, it seemed, was not much better than we were.
Like us, they had to prioritise watering. I suspect the National Collection of rhubarb was high on the list.
Beds that are usually filled with herbaceous perennials were either bare or full of drought-damaged plants.
The sweet peas, just like ours, had been abandoned, and the potato haulms had long since died down.
Like ours, their apples were tiny.
The lawns and orchard grass had turned yellow, and although there were still pockets of greenery, the effects of the prolonged dry weather were obvious everywhere.
At the entrance to the walled garden there’s usually a market barrow selling freshly harvested produce, but on this visit it stood empty, which perhaps summed up the season better than anything else.
After exploring the garden, we enjoyed a long walk around the lake.
Clumber has a small herd of rare-breed English Longhorn cattle, which are used for conservation grazing. They have a reputation for being gentle, inquisitive animals. As we watched from the other side of the fence, a couple wandered over to investigate us and enjoy an head rub. They rewarded our interest with a gentle lick of our hands.
Finally
Despite the challenges, gardening always teaches patience and optimism. We can’t control the weather, only how we respond to it. This year has certainly tested us, but there are still beans to pick, plums to enjoy and flowers bringing welcome colour to both the garden and the allotment. Hopefully August will bring some much-needed rain and kinder growing conditions, but whatever happens, we’ll continue to make the most of what the season has to offer.
As always until next time stay safe and stay well,
