Allotmenticity @ The Isle of Wight Garlic Festival

Welcome to the Isle of Wight Garlic Festival "Special" Blog.

A year ago whilst on a sailing holiday down in the Solent I ended up in Cowes and bought a bulb of Isle of Wight garlic. Although it seemed rather expensive at the time, I was assured that I would never taste garlic like it. Well they were right, and on my return I tracked down The Garlic Farm website www.thegarlicfarm.co.uk and ordered 4 bulbs of Solent Wight.
I eagerly planted them and have had a great harvest of wonderful tasting bulbs, which I am distributing to all my friends.
So yesterday I had the pleasure of meeting the owner of The Garlic Farm at The Isle of Wight Garlic Festival where I was performing with "The Legend that is Alvin Stardust"
The photo above shows yours truly with Colin Boswell from The Garlic Farm.
I had a chat with Colin and proudly showed him a photo of my crop and he gave me some tips about improving the next batch. It was great to meet him and I'm now looking forward to planting the new variety he gave me.
"Thanks Colin, it was a pleasure to meet you and I hope you enjoyed the show".

As regards No87, I've been busy dodging the showers of late and am just about at the end of the early Arran Pilots which have been really tasty. The Calabrese is also fabulous and I'm picking the odd bunch of curly Kale. The Savoys and Greyhound cabbages are also looking good and are "hearting up" nicely. The Sweetcorn looks promising and there are plenty of cobs forming.
I'm working on the new raised beds. I've used the reclaimed timber from my recent "Skip-Surfing" and they're being treated to a mixture of sieved compost and B&Q multipurpose along with Bonemeal and a good helping of Growmore. I'm going to try some Japanese Onion sets, Shallots and my new season Garlic in them.
The Cold frame has been very successful with Lettuce, Rocket, Pak Choi, Basil and Parsley all flying out. I've also taken loads of Rosemary cuttings in an attempt to create a free Rosemary hedge down one side of the plot. I know it will take a while to establish, but if it works it provide a really attractive and fragrant feature. I'm also trying a few Lavender cuttings as well so wish me luck.
I've filled the bath I got from "The Country Bumpkin" and am now sourcing some Strawberry plants to fill it.
I've acquired some old carpet which is now covering the top end in an attempt to create a more welcoming entrance to the plot. The eventual plan is for a couple of fruit trees and a small flower bed. The Gladiolis are established now and I've just ordered some Lilies. I know you can't eat them but a bit of colour all adds to the picture.
So there we are, it's Sunday morning and I can't believe we left Brum at 8.30am yesterday drove down to Portsmouth, got the ferry, played the gig, met the Garlic Maestro and drove back all in one day. Rock & Roll!!!
Come On The Reds!

The Captain.