I started keeping an allotment journal after reading Richard Chivers’ post on the subject last year and it’s been an invaluable tool, so this year I’ve gone a step further and also made an allotment plan and spreadsheet. The plan and spreadsheet’s main purpose is to keep me on top of planting and sowing times, and … More Allotment Plans 2018
Work on the living fence has been going well, and we’ve not seen any recent evidence of rabbits on the plot. However, when I arrived today two very cute muntjac deer bounded away down our snicket. I stood for a while and contemplated their beauty as they disappeared amongst the treeline. And then I checked … More Oh, Deer!
It’s been a busy week on the plot as shed work continues. I’ve painted the inside walls to protect the pallet wood. We’ve used four 5 litre cans of Cuprinol wood stain so far (in shade Silver Copse). Rob helped paint the ceiling as finishing it meant he could start laying the floor. I’ll need … More Shed Update, Cold Frame Construction, and Other News from the Plot
We have both had flu for the last couple of weeks and it has prevented us from doing any work on the allotment. It has, however, given me the opportunity to pull the rocking chair close to the stove and delve into a few gardening and allotment books. Three of these were Yule gifts, and … More Allotment Reading
Since we have only had our plot since March last year we are still trying to find our feet. Our philosophy in 2017 was ‘try it and see’, and this best sums up every decision we made, every plant planted, and every structure built. 2017 was about getting to know the plot (clayey, compacted and … More 2018 – Allotment Aspirations
We were very excited last year to be given a plot with a well, but since the gravel extraction work in the quarry behind us intensified we have watched the well dry up. I also noticed that something slimy and possibly alien had moved into the hole so, for the greater good of mankind, we … More Goodbye Well, Hello Sinkhole
We have been collecting pallets since April with the goal of eventually turning them into a shed and, as you can see from the featured image, we are nearly there. Our family worked enthusiastically and tirelessly (and without being put under any duress) to build our shed over a very cold weekend at the beginning of … More Building a Pallet Shed, and Other News from the Plot
I spent Monday afternoon at the allotment re-doing and changing work we had previously completed. We do try and get things right the first time round, but plans have a habit of going awry. I guess this is because we are still getting to know the site and all its idiosyncrasies, and because this is … More The Convoluted Route (of Leaf Mould Bins and Compost Bays)
I was beginning to feel a little overwhelmed by the plot. I have no routine, I’m out of my depth, and I don’t fully know how the year affects the site. With the turning of the season into autumn I was left floundering and wondering, “what do I do next?” Luckily for me, that question … More Falling into Autumn with a Bump
It has been 6 months since we took on the plot. It feels like we have made decent progress in this time, but there is still a long way to go. We are lucky that there are no hard rules imposed by the allotment association regarding weed control and levels of cultivation – we can … More It Has Been 6 Months
If you have read any of my previous blog posts you will be no stranger to the fact that we have a rabbit problem on an industrial scale. There is a warren in one of the abandoned plots adjoining ours. The allotment association has no plans to tackle the issue and has left it to … More Rabbit Proofing Methods: Tried and Tested.
There’s a few things I’ve learned about gardeners since we’ve had a plot. They’re unbelievably generous with their time, knowledge, seeds, plants and produce, and they’re not keen on waste of any kind. We’ve experienced this generosity ourselves as at least three of our beds are planted solely from gifts and surplus from other gardeners. … More Food Charity
This week I’ve been digging a new flowerbed. I’ve been dying to get started on the area around the hazel tree near our gate. This end of the allotment has been neglected since we took the plot on in March. The ground is heavy clay and tough to dig, although there’s been plenty of thistle … More Starting the Flower Beds
We have potatoes! These are our second early Maris Peers. We waited a week or so after the flowers had faded before digging, and this just happened to coincide with family visiting so we had extra hands to rummage and join us in our first toast to the land. And, for favourable future harvests, we buried … More Our First Harvest, and Other News from the Plot
I finished digging and planting the second brassica bed before the heatwave hit. We now have a little row of Savoy January King 3 cabbages and a row of All Year Round cauliflowers. They’re hiding in netted tunnels away from the prying eyes of rabbits. I had plenty of seedlings left over so planted 2 cabbages and a … More Brassicas, a Heatwave and a Summer Solstice Photo Tour of the Plot
I admit it, I cried on Saturday. When I arrived at the plot I was met by a fleeing rabbit and I tried to follow its route of escape, but it was too quick for me. And by then the damage had already been done. Chicken wire and netting was no match for it and … More This is a Low
We were lucky enough to have an extra pair of hands on the plot last Thursday when our friend Chris popped over for “a tour.” The inverted commas are because we waited until we’d locked him into the allotment site before breaking the news that we actually meant manual labour. Chris is an ex-florist and … More Gifts and Helping Hands
I drew the line in the sand today – except I didn’t because we don’t have sand and the clay is so hard there’s currently no drawing anything in it. What I actually did was yell, “JUST BUGGER OFF WILL YOU,” across the abandoned plots beside us, and, because my inner charm was flowing, “OR … More A Declaration of War
I arrived at the plot a few days ago to find another hole in the fence. Rob patched it today. I could’ve missed it on my original round of fence mending, but I highly suspect the rabbits are devious enough to wait until we leave before making a concerted effort to break in again. They’re … More It’s a Nature Conspiracy
When I arrived at the plot today I noticed there was a little dip in the woodchip path near our gate. From certain angles, and if you squinted hard enough, you could picture a rabbit having made such a dent. But not on our plot because we’ve bunny proofed it. I didn’t spend too much … More Outfoxed, or Should that be Out-Bunnied?
Allotment groups on Facebook this morning were full of photos of frost damaged plants with comments like ‘…and this was inside my greenhouse under three layers of cardboard and some garden fleece.’ This made me nervous about what we’d find when we visited our plot. I tried to reason with myself that all the frost … More Fire, Frost, Angry Bees and Other News from the Plot
It’s been a busy week on the plot. Rob assembled the new greenhouse and I patched the fences where the bunnies snuck in. I helped Rob with greenhouse assembly where I could by propping things up and/or being too short to hold the roof frame at the required height. I mainly just got in the … More A Tale of Two Greenhouses and Other News from the Plot
It’s amazing how many people give you things they’re getting rid of when they hear you have an allotment. Since my last update we’ve acquired a haul of items, some as gifts and some in exchange for good deeds. L gave us some onions and potatoes in return for sharing the Jerusalem artichokes, and we’ve … More Freebies and Other News from the Plot
A Whole Plotta Love 
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