A mixed weather forecast of warm sunny and rainy days for the next week which made me think it would be a perfect time to plant out some of the squash plants I have in modules. These are:

• cucumbers
• courgettes
• pumpkins
• butternut squash

For each of these (I didn’t get round to planting out the butternut squash) I dug a hole and filled it with compost before putting the plant in. Each plant is in a slight dip which allows for easier watering and lots of it without water running off all over the place. With the plot in direct sunlight for the main part of the day it is important for these plants to stay watered and not baking and drying up in the hot sun.

The peas haven’t really worked out on the plot, dug up by some animal and dried out by the sun. Fortunately those in the garden are doing better, even though the squirrels have tried their best. To make use of the netting I put up for the allotment peas to grow up, I planted out some of the cucumber plants that will hopefully use the netting instead. As before, I dug holes, filled with compost and put in the cucumber plants, watered well.

Meanwhile, the war of the strawberries has concluded and I have won against the mice. They have ruled for the last couple of years, eating them while they were green before I ever had chance to pick any. Last year, and the year before we had lots of promising looking strawberries but got to eat none of them. The frames and the netting I made the other month have done their job and for the first time in years we have not only been seeing lots of red strawberries but we have picked nearly 1kg of them. The netting has it’s problems, it is not high enough which means a lot of the strawberry plants are a bit crushed in and so air flow is not great and growth is prevented. Next year, I’ll either dig down and replant the strawberries lower down, or I’ll make the edges of the strawberry bed higher, possibly a bit of both. But for now, the war against the mice and the strawberries is over, with us winning.