Getting to work...

Right- prep time!!

 This morning we had a leasurly Sunday morning, not getting up in a rush. Popped to Morrisons on the way to the allotment to grab something for breakfast and then went straight there. Stood for about 10 mins eating breakfast and just looking at the plot. There was a lot to do!! While the back sort of quarter is for a garden area- so I can ignore that part- there's still a lot to do! 

 A few months ago we were in JTF and saw they had rolls of garden liner 40metres by just over 1metre for less than £10. Bargain we though- so we got 2 rolls. And I'm so glad we did! Perfect stuff for the job!

 And to top it off, a few months ago I contacted the lady in charge of the allotments at the council about wood chippings. Someone happened to mention it- and it seems she can simply direct the woodchippings removed from

other council sites to which ever allotment site ask for them. A good bit of recycling! I was actually worried a few months ago that I was going to have to spend a fortune on something like that. But never mind! Not any more!

So before we started putting the liner down the ground was very uneavenly and while the majority of large weeds were gone due to the previous liner we put down, there was still lots down the side by the fence. So I'm sure out neighbours will be happy to see that gone!

So one side of the allotment is 3 rows thick. We took it to sort of where the edge of the path will be running up the middle. This was me taking a little break from some manual labour while my husband did wheelbarrow runs to the woodchippings. 

As I've said plenty times before- we have really thick clay soil. It does seem to have really good drainage- but at this time of year it's very thick, sticky and 'claggy' as my mum would say. Which meant you couldn't walk for more than a few feet without having plenty heavy mud weighting you down!! 

 And yes- my allotment boots are Uggs. They're warm, cosy and pretty old now- and due to their thick soles mud rarely goes past the sole. Makes for a much more comfortable day!

And the final photo of the day!! I'm really happy with it all. The whole area has cost less than £10 as I haven't even used one roll of the garden liner yet, and the bricks and woodchippings were free. So even better!! 

 It was safe to say after all that we were both quite tired and pretty achy!!

Mid winter and a year on...

So, it's the middle of the winter and it's not particularly cold today. Well, it hasn't been particularly cold at all this winter- yet! There's been the odd frosty cold day but not many. Today was around 8 degrees. So not bad really. 

 There has been a lot of rain though- even for us- on the north east coast of England rain wise we're not majorly effected. Yes we have weeks where it just rains none stop- but fortunately we don't ever get effected by flooding unlike other places. 

 This is a year on in the life of my allotment. It had never had an owner before me. It had been empty land for several years and before that it was a car park! So it's interesting to see how the land is effected by the things we do.

The soil is very thick clay soil- and at this time of year it's horrible to work with. You could mould shapes out of it!!

But we went along today- to plan tomorrow when we will begin working on it.

 We would have started sooner but my husband dislocated his shoulder and so has been out of action for a good while now. 

As you can see, it's looking like a bit of a shambles. Though the sprouts are still happy enough.

We plan on starting on the left hand side tomorrow in front of the shed. The council have kindly dropped off a lot of woodchippings at the entrance to the allotment site- so we will collect those as well to neaten things off and stop weeds from coming up in the spring.

My pond seems to be quite happy. It's the area I leave as wild- and it certainly looks wild right now!! But the actual pond seems happy enough- some of the pond plants are dying back but it took a long time for the winter to kick in! We had a super warm November! In the spring I plan on getting some more pond plants- I'm thinking more grassy things. 

We also saw these beetles today. They're called Rosemary Beetles. We've never seen them before, but it would explain why they're on the Rosemary!! They're so pretty- I was quite mesmerised. When I Googled them to identify them it came up with he RHS website; which says they're pests. They're meant to sort of destroy the plant while they eat it in late autumn to late spring- though my Rosemary has never looked better so they may have just arrived! I don't want to get rid of them though. Everything has a place on my allotment- and if it means I have to sacrifice a few plants every now and then to certain insects then so be it. I don't like to consider anything a pest if I can help it. 

Autumn is most definitely underway!

Well- it's been a month since I added an entry, but that's really because not a lot has happened, and I sort of feel a bit guilty about it. As Autumn has settled in I've figured doing too much on the allotment is probably a little silly as we plan on overhauling the whole plot this winter to create raised beds. So when it comes to cutting back the greenery and putting in some elbow greece I've really not had the inclination thinking that winter will soon set in and things will stop growing anyway! 

In the mean time I've been popping along every now and then which has been quite nice to see the season take hold. 

 Pretty much everything in the shed-come-greenhouse has been harvested- but for some reason everything seems to have decided to have a second flourish which I wasn't expecting! I've not got another cucumber in the making- and a lot of flowers on the plant waiting for their turn. I've also got a second flush of jalapeño flowers & my aubergine plant has even decided to sprout a fair few flowers with some little aubergines appearing. Not what I was expecting at all but it must mean the shed-come-greenhouse has been a good & useful creation of I have draw out the growing season so much! Hopefully I'll be able to start really early next spring too!

My butternut squash unfortunately hasn't really become anything! I had these two, and that was it! (The snails demolished the ones in the ground from the roots up) but then my husband ended up snapping off one of these two by accident- so now there's only one left! And it's not really doing that much to be honest so they haven't been a success. 

The carrots have been quite good, especially considering we just scattered random seeds into the thick clay soil. I'm quite impressed they didn't all come out looking like strange hands- and the lovely thick green tops have been very much appreciated by our bunny! 

Today I came across these pumpkins- unfortunately not on my plot! But it's made me realise (due to how unbelievably cute they are!) that I want to grow munchkin pumpkins next year! 

These two photos were taken earlier today at about 5pm (it's rather dark already!!- and the clocks haven't even gone back yet!) but as you can see- we have clearly given up on it for the season.

 We did make a point of pulling the taupawlin back that's been lying over the ground for months- we were worried frogs would start hibernating underneath it so wanted to take it up before that happens- luckily we were there in time! The frogs are still having a bit of a chill out around the pond which is still lovely to see- so I'm definitely expecting (and hoping) for frogspawn next spring. 

 We also spent some time today removing the dead leaves from the bottom of the sprout plants (they have been a success!- we've harvested some already and they're delicious- and still plenty to go!) We also harvested the last of the carrots so now that area is ready to cover for raised beds to begin at some point. 

My bird feeder has been a perfect addition- meal worms are the definite favourite as you'd imagine- there's a hedge row that lies on 2 sides of my plot and plenty birds sit in there watching the food get put out. So I'm glad I put that in place. Perfect timing for the winter months! I'll just have to remember to keep going along to fill it up! 

 

Need to stock up on bird food now!

Autumn has now set in, so plenty work to do...

It's frustrating that as soon as I go back to work at the start of September everything else just seems to be put on the back burner. Work exhausts me so by the time I get home on an evening I just want to sleep! 

Little bits have been happening at the allotment over the last few weeks, though not as much as I would have liked. 

I had a lovely brown and red onion harvest earlier in September. They're all sitting at home drying out to store- had the first one last night with our dinner and it was delicious. I'm just trying to think of a sensible way to store them when I've dried their skins out. 

My Sarah Raven order came in the post the other day too- so I've now got plenty tulip, alium and crocus bulbs waiting to go in!

This was my rather pathetic little greenhouse harvest the other day. The tomatoes have been an absolute disaster. There are still a few ripening on the plants at the moment but it really hasn't been worth it. They were given to me by an allotment neighbour at the beginning of summer, so might be more selective next year and grow my own. 

The cucumbers have been a success all summer though so can't complain there!

Last night my husband and I spent a fair bit of time on the allotment. After an insanely busy week at work I initially couldn't be bothered, but when we got there I really enjoyed it. It was a lovely evening, frogs were constantly appearing and I had to refill all the bird feeders- they've clearly been spotted now!! The mealworms are a clear favourite!

My husband began pulling back the tarp on the right hand side of the allotment- I wanted to get started on that sooner rather than later - basically before all the frogs move in to hibernate! Though as we started to lift it back there were already 3 frogs warming themselves at the edge. 

I had fun taking all the dead leaves from the bottom of the brussel sprout plants and collecting a few of the bottom sprouts to test those out.

I had heard mixed things- some people saying wait until the first frost, some saying it makes no difference. So I've taken this pile and I've just popped them straight into the freezer so I guess that will have to do! Will probably try and test them out on Sunday dinner this week. 

Next job is to keep working on the tarp area of the allotment, clearing that back and then starting to make raised beds over the Autumn/winter.

I also need to get some compost and gravel so I can sow my crocus and alium bulbs. The tulip bulbs will need to wait until the frost starts to plant though. 

I also need to start making my way around the pond pulling out the dandelion leaves and other weed like plants I don't want around there. Then I will be cutting it all back a bit waiting for the spring time when I can scatter new wildflower seeds and let Spring do it's job! 

August almost over...but still plenty going on...

I can't believe August is almost over. Despite being off over the summer I just find the time flies by and I always feel as though I haven't quite done enough. This summer has been my first with the allotment though, so it's been great seeing how it copes as the season passes.

Every time I go to the plot I automatically walk to the back to see the pond. I always hear half a dozen (sometimes more) splashes into the water as I walk up the path. I can't remember the last time I was there when I didn't see a frog though which is great! I also noticed last time I was there the arrow head flowers have started to open. I wasn't sure if they would this year but they look beautiful. The marsh marigolds have come into flower as well, which is just another reassurance that the pond is pretty happy. 

I also spent some time weeding the onion/carrot bed. I took up some of the stragglers from the edges and decided to take them home to pickle them. No idea what they'll be like, but thought it was worth a go! I'll give them a taste in a couple of months. 

The shed/greenhouse has also come into it's own over the last few weeks. I've been harvesting plenty of cucumbers and jalapeños (I decided to pickle those as well) and my tomatoes have finally decided to fruit! 

 We've had a fair few storms lately as well, a lot of heavy rain, wind and thunder and lightening over the last couple of weeks- so there was a true test on the shed which I was happy to discover it held up perfectly. So it was definitely will built and it now gives me confidence for the winter. 

My husband and I also installed a bird feeding station next to the pond. Complete with fat balls, seed, mealworms, peanuts and fresh water. I'm looking forward to visitors turning up for a feed. 

Plans for Autumn/winter

Well, it's safe to say that on lovely sunny summer days I'm glad that a turfed garden area was part of my plan. 

My husband has decided he finds the wheelbarrow to be a comfortable seat. He may get a little upset when I bring just a regular garden table and chairs along!

But after a bit of work on the allotment the other day it was time to lie on the grass, eat some blackberries and read my Kindle. Perfect!

I am now planning on installing a bird feeding station, an allotment away from mine is lined with older trees and we can always hear plenty of birds in there. So figured I'd continue to do my bit for the local wildlife and feed the birds. 

So, my to-buy list this week is:

• bird feeding station

• individual seed/food holders

• plenty of bird food

• manual hand-push lawn mower 

• lawn rake

The last 2 things on the list is because I couldn't have asked the grass to take any better than it has! So very happy about that- though now it's starting to go to seed so it needs cutting this week! I'm glad it took so well though, for the grand total of pretty much £20 it was totally worth it!

I've also developed an obsession with Sarah Raven. I ordered the autumn catalogue so I can plan my bulbs for the spring time. The website and catalogue is amazing. The colours are just beautiful so I plan on getting plenty tulip bulbs, albums, crocuses and bluebells. Can't wait to see the allotment in spring time!

We've also been planning our raised beds for creating in the autumn/winter so they're ready for spring planting. So another job this week is to removed all the weeds I'd put to dry out (which I'd left on top of the tarpaulin) onto the compost heap. There's plenty of bricks/stones on there too so it won't be the easiest of jobs but it needs to be done. I want to lift the tarpaulin and start making the raised beds on that side of the plot before the frogs decide it would be the perfect place to hibernate!! 

Dodging the rain showers...

Today the weather doesn't seem like it knows what it wants to do. One minute it's lovely and sunny and the next it's chucking it down. But- knowing I have thirsty plants in the greenhouse-shed on the allotment I popped down inbetween rain showers. 

Every time I get to the allotment I always have a look around the pond first. Now when you walk up the plot you can hear all the frogs jump into the water. There was loads today! Though some still had their heads poking out when I got there. 

Considering we created the pond in April/May I really wasn't expecting much from it this summer. But it seems, if you build it, they will come! I have been amazed- and every time I go there's more to look at. 

Beautiful flowers pop up all over the place around the pond it's just lovely to see, and lovely to see the bees, hoverflies and butterflies (as well as other insects) keeping it all well pollinated. 

My window box on the shed is looking beautiful too! These flowers which I paid about £3 for (and have some growing around the grassy area at the back too) just keep looking better and better! I don't actually know what they are- but I really need to find out as I'd definitely buy them again. I've literally just watered them a few times and that's it. Well- apart from admired them!

But I really do think it's important that we have areas full of flowers and areas just left to nature as much as possible. I don't think we need places to look immaculate and clinical. If you just let nature do it's thing (to an extent anyway) it can be beautiful. 

I seem to have poppies popping up all over the place. Along the pathways, and in the onion and carrot bed apparently. There's a few growing in here- it doesn't bother me though, I'm just leaving them to it! I love them- and as soon as they flower the bees are all over them! What's not to love?

 In fact today I went around harvesting the heads from the dead poppies so I can dry them and get the seeds for next summer...i'm going to be covered in them!! 

In my last entry I wrote about my butternut squash. I've grown them from seed and didn't know what to expect having never grown them before. I'd looked them up online and of course read the back of the seed packet and it said they needed loads of room! I'd left them in their little pots for quite a while, mainly because I didn't have anywhere to put them at the time, and I noticed they'd started to flower. So after giving away a few plants (I had far too many) I planted 2 in large bucket style pots and 3 in the ground. The ones in the ground, as I said last time, have pretty much died! However the ones in the pots are looking fab. As you can see some fruit has started to appear on both. 

Inside the shed/greenhouse is looking great too. (I never know what to call it!!) but there's a perfectly lovely aubergine in there, with a couple more flowers appearing. We have peppers, jalapeños, cucumber and tomatoes- which I noticed yesterday have 2 little tomatoes on! Sounds pathetic but I was getting the impression that I just wasn't going to get anything from them!

At least I'll get a few peppers!!