Has it really only been one week since Dan and I took on our allotment? Time has flown by. It feels like we have been perusing vegetable seed catalogues, planning what is going in which bed and deciding on the shed paint colour for months.
I had a couple of days off this week so I decided I would use these to good effect and get up to the allotment for a spot of weeding. On Thursday I was there for a good two hours and managed to weed and dig three beds.
On Friday I managed to weed and dig a couple more, along with the removal of old runner beans and their canes.
I dug out old, woody, multi-stemmed parsnips, removed all the yellow leaves from the brassicas (we have sprouts, kale, broccoli and purple sprouting all cropping), took down redundant tomato canes and did a general weed around the beds themselves. I can report that the broccoli and curly kale taste lovely.
Today, for the first time since taking on the plot, Mr FG himself joined me, along with the dogs, and together we finished the last couple of beds that needed weeding and digging. We made a start on tarting-up the longest bed which is filled with raspberries, rhubarb, fruit trees and gooseberries. As you can see from the accompanying photographs (compare the top picture with the picture below), our plot is coming on a treat!
On our way home from the allotment we stopped by at our local garden shop where we purchased several potato varieties; ‘Anya’, ‘Pink Fir Apple’ and ‘Kestrel’ as well as some onions, ‘Red Baron’ (a reliable red onion) and ‘Turbo’ (a very reliable white onion) and some pink garlic bulbs.
We are taking a day off tomorrow, as it’s Dan’s birthday, and I am already looking forward to Monday so that we can plant the onions and the garlic in the prepared beds. The potatoes need chitting first and will be planted around 3rd week of February.
We have decided that the shed is going to be a bright, cheerful, sunflower yellow and, because I love a dahlia or two, it will have dahlias planted around it in all manner of exotic shades (but no Pom-Poms…..yuck!).
Happy Gardening One and All.
The Beau.
Categories: blogging, Fruit and Veg, Our Allotment, Uncategorized
Looking good; the allotment and you and the birthday boy. Sorry to be a party pooper but won’t a yellow shed attract all the insects or have you factored that in?
We’ll no doubt attract all sorts of pests, whatever the colour of the shed, but we shall be vigilant and hopefully we won’t be overrun by unwelcome visitors…..*fingers crossed*
What a difference with a couple of days work in the allotment. It looks like you are ready for business. It will be interesting to see the building painted such a cheerful color. It will certainly look good in the gloom of winter. Do carry on….
It’s all very exciting and I intend to grow a few unusual vegetables to add to the excitement.
Happy you are joining the blog Beau! Happy Birthday to Dan : ) How exciting to have an allotment so close. You both are going to be so healthy. I love when I get our farm share. Sometimes when it is just odds and ends I make Clean Out the Frig Soup. I use a organic chicken stock base, always and onion, whatever root veg are around and near the end leafy greens and herbs. We never get colds and I think it is this soup! All the best and happy gardening.
One thing I like making is soup…..especially squash, carrot and red pepper (so I had better grow those!!!) 😉
Well done. The allotment looks much better and tidier now. Enjoy the works there. I’m looking forward to reading your new posts. Happy birthday to Dan
Firstly Happy Birthday for tomorrow Dan have a great day I’m seriously impressed with the transformation it’s looking fab. Here in incredibly soggy West Wales we’re having to stay off everything despite being desperate to get out there so your efforts give me hope for my garden. Keep at it guys☺
It’s windy and soggy here at the moment so no allotment visits until the weekend probably…
I hope you’re getting drier…..
I enjoy reading your blog so much. I like to compare the things you grow to plants I grow in my Houston, TX garden. What is an allotment?
Your Texas trader,
Suzanne
Ah ha! An allotment is a small plot of land you can rent, on which to grow vegetables. Allotments were originally created to provide people in urban areas with an opportunity to feed themselves. Land is often owned or leased by local authorities and protected from development. Allotments are now in high demand, often with lengthy waiting lists. Here’s more information:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allotment_(gardening)
I used to wonder the same thing. I thought that they look like those planter boxes of a downtown mall, but set aside where those who tend to them can grow vegetables instead of pretty perennials.
dear “the Beau”: it is lovely to hear your voice alongside Dan’s.
From the upper Hudson valley in the USA,
Cathy
Hello Cathy,
Thank you very much! 🙂
Yes, simple collards and turnip greens are as good as the best of kale. I am none too keen on kale either.
Oops, that was a reply to Helen of Oz’s comment.
love this…. and the new layout of the blog!! Am very excited to see what you grow….. can’t say I am a lover of Kale no matter how ‘on trend’ it is – tastes horrid – we used to feed it to the farm animals when we were kids!!! You will have so much fun – the varieties you grow are so different from what we have in Oz…Potatoes YASSSSSSS! – nothing compares to a home grown potatoes (other than tomatoes…) Have fun – look forward to future Posts…. xx
Thanks Helen. The new layout is a work in progress – as per every time before I did it on the spur of the moment without thinking it through, so it will need some adjustments. However it was overdue a refresh and I’m impatient.
I don’t mind cavolo nero, it’s that frizzy kale I can’t stand. Weird texture.
Anyway, thank you for the fab card. Now settling down to a nice film and champers to round off the day. X
I LOVE growing tomatoes….as many different varieties as possible!!! xx
Yes, simple collards and turnip greens are as good as the best of kale. I am none too keen on kale either.
Just starting on my vegetable patch in Cornwall so I’ll be very interested to see what you grow and when over your side of the country. What a great start to the year, can’t wait!
We’re also eager beavers and can’t wait for it to start growing and cropping…..however, patience!
Happy birthday to Dan! Have a great day and a fab year! The allotment looks pretty big! All those beds to dig and weed and plant and harvest. My daughter once had an allotment, but she had to give it up eventually as it took more time than she had available. But picking your own dinner is most rewarding. You will both certainly keep fit!
It is a large plot, however, we are going to fill it to capacity with all things tasty and delicious and eat like Kings (and give the rest to the unsuspecting friends and family).
Go for it, lots of hard work & pleasure in front of you. I’m surprised that the allotment was left in such a run down state. Was it originally a community allotment? What are you going to do with all the produce & are you eventually going to involve other groups?
Actually it was in ‘nearly new’ condition – some others were not – so we counted ourselves lucky. The allotments are a ‘mutual’, so everyone is jointly responsible for the overall upkeep as well as their own plot. If we over-produce we will be sharing the loot with family, friends and work colleagues. Some of my team have already put in orders for what they’d like us to grow! Cheeky 🙂
RHUBARB! Yeah!