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We're having a grim January, with rain, rain and more rain and the plot is something of a quagmire. And what did I tell you about my plans to do masses of hard labour up on the plot? You might not be surprised to hear they've come to nought

We seem to be getting all possible November weather at once. It's a constantly changing merry-go-round of rain, wind, sunshine and frost, all on the same day, if not in the same hour.It’s all rather Wuthering Heights up here on the wind

I've never known rain like it (well, this being the UK, maybe I have). The poor old allotment is saturated, windswept and generally the worse for wear.I'm tidying up and securing all the brassica netting that's blown all over the plot these last few

I've been drying out onions to prepare them for storage. This batch was lifted - from sodden beds - during the non-stop rains of late-July, then spread in a single layer on crates and mushroom boxes in the shed. Ordinarily, I would have left them

. That was swiftly followed by a sudden warm spell bringing in steady rain. And when I say steady I mean it! The balmy Mendip Hills are, like Ireland, soft and green and lush - perfect for fattening the dairy cows whose milk makes the original Cheddar cheese produced

- never-ending you could say - period of rain, cold and cheerless, sunless days. My fervent enthusiasm after the excesses of Christmas usually fades as quickly as any glimpse of sunshine; the allotment lies abandoned until the first glimmers of spring

for clay soils and spring for sandy ones. However, I usually add compost to my clay beds now. It always bothers me that all the lovely nutrients in the compost are leached away by winter rains so I go against convention and leave composting until now.

-topped stems have appeared over the last fortnight - I've watched them developing, biding my time, waiting for the moment to pounce. This week I judged that the sunshine and rain would have matured the spears just enough to warrant picking them.My judgement

wonderful thing this 'circle of life' is - as some things end, others begin to grow. And that's especially true on an allotment. My seedlings sown outdoors are starting to appear, thanks to the recent lovely rain, sunny days and warmer nights. The first

The weather has been remarkable lately. A fortnight ago we had frosts and chilly winds, then suddenly we had sunshine, showers and the odd thunderstorm.The recent sun and rain have been fantastic for the allotment; everything seems to have leapt