Allotments 4 All
Allotment Stuff => Locations and Sites => Topic started by: Garden Manager on December 24, 2003, 20:11:01
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I dont know if this has been done before, but as a relative newcomer i would like to know more about your lotties (allotments). Not that I am nosy or anything. ;)
Tell us about the geography, soil, layout, what you grow, you neighbours, facilities, or whatever you like.
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Our plots are in Camberley Surrey. I've lived here all my life and it wasn't until late last year after receiving a Heathscene leaflet from the council that I found out about them.
They are both approximately 100x50 ft with quite sandy soil. We've hd a fair amount of success but have decided to improve the soil by introducing mushroom compost and well rotted farmyard manure. We had 10 cubic yards delivered a couple of weeks ago, 5 of each. We have only managed to shift half of the mushroom and a small amount of the farmyard into the beds so far. We haven't got much time at the moment as we are about to move house and need to start packing stuff into boxes.
Unfortunately we will have to start tackling it in earnest again soon as where it currently resides is where we are going to plant our potatoes this time round.
We generally only managed to spend weekends up there so only get to see the regular guys working their plots. They are all lovely and offer advice freely and also produce :)
We have a shop on site that is quite competetive with local garden centres. It gets quite busy when the potates and onions arrive in stock and have therefore offered our services on Sunday mornings (10:00 a.m. :o).
We have water but only allowed hand help hose pipes and not sprinklers. We are going to try and get away with using sprinkler hose pipe ;D
Also for a small fee of about £10-20 we can gain use of a rotovator or large trailer.
We grow just the usual stuff we like to eat e.g. potatoes, onions, carrots, leeks, beetroot, parsnips, sprouts, corn, brocolli, cauliflower, cabbage etc... We also have 3 apple trees, 1 pear tree, 1 plum tree, 1 greengage tree, 2 cherry trees and 1 damson tree.
We only get charged 6p a square meter plus £5 for water usage per year. Certainly worth it for the superior tasting veggies ;D.
Y
p.s. you forgot to mention your own ;)
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Sorry i thought i'd let some of you go first. Actualy to confess I dont as such have a lottie, I was perhaps being a bit curious about other peoples.
What i do have is a large(ish) garden with a fair sized fruit and veg garden within it. Over all i reckon the area i have for growing edible crops is about the same size as an allotment, so thats what i mean by 'not as such'.
Whilst the garden itself is generaly sloping with quite shallow soil in places, where the veg garden is is quite flat with the deepest soil in the garden. The soil itself is a 'marl' which is the name (I have recently discovered) for a chalky clay soil (clay overlying chalk). On the whole the soil is quite free draining, but still moisture retentive.
I grow my crops in raised beds and practice a rotation system (of sorts).
There are allotments close by, which I would consider, if I did not have the space for a proper veg garden. However the site is more sloping than my whole garden is, with the actual plots suffering from quite a gradient, so I dont envy the lotties there! The soil is good there and the lotties always manage to grow decent crops, which at times i envy. In fact I regularly go past the allotments, just to see whats going on and compare to my own garden plot.
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Your 'plottie' Richard - is it all your own or one you share with your parents, I wonder? They're great pix, btw. - Lishka
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I am like you Richard, no lottie, just garden.
South west facing, clay soil, some parts more fertile than others, still trying to improve with loadsa organic stuff. Dunno wot the size is, and weather too miz to go out and measure it up at mo! Probably including front 1/4 acre. Overlook water meadows and beyond that river, consequently lots of birds and wildlife.
Grow quite a lot in big tubs, like runner beans, toms, strawbs. Have grapevine against brick wall and also olive bush, which this year both fruited!
Clearing an area at the mo for more vegs. Probs is being SW facing suntrap and clay in winter unworkable and in summer bakes rock hard. :(
Used to have real prob with slug/snail damage but now have own resident hedgehog (hibernating at mo - btw his name is Jeremy) plus frogs and toads, this year least ever slimey sluggy damage ever :D
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One question? Now you have seen me and haveguessed my age, what makes you think its NOT all my own? ;) ;)
It could be couldnt it?
Ok confession time. Strictly speaking the garden is my parents', but i do most of the work in it so to an extent i consider it as 'my' plottie, since i dont as yet have my 'own' garden.
By and large i get a free hand to get on with things, but of course any major changes have to be discussed before action can be taken. Not a problem since we generaly like all the same edibles, in one way or another, so i dont find myself growing things I wont be eating myself.
I have ofen thought it might be nice to have an allotment as my own space to grow things i want to grow, but at the moment it would only be duplicating crops and tasks, and doubling the work!!
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Ava wanted to get me a lottie but I wasn't so keen. I had one with my dad when I lived in Sutton, Surrey, and as a family, we all worked it and loved it. Then suddenly in 2000, dad died of a heart attack, and I really couldn't bring myself to carry on there, to many memories - just going up to clear out the shed and dig up the fruit bushes was the hardest thing ever, believe it or not, harder than his dam funeral! :'(
Anyhows.........moved to Essex and altho we have a good sized garden with a small veggie patch, Ava wanted to get me a lottie to call my own, so after lots of phone calls, he found a wee site locally with plots going begging! My plot was 'owned' by a fella who takes on all the derelict plots and merely strims them and keeps them neat, just so the site looks okay and so the council don't come along and butt in.
I am a girl so am useless with measurments, but Ava tells me it is approx 20 paces by 7paces - his big manly ones not mine! It isn't huge, but it is mine! It is stoney stoney stoney ground, but wonderfully soft, not thick clay like my garden is! We have nettles and brambles and a good crop of mares tail, but no couch grass so not toooo bad really. We are down by the stream which is fed by a natural spring on the common, so water isn't too much of a problem. We have 2 apple trees bang in the middle of our plot and a row of plum trees right at the end.
2004 will be our first full growing year on the plot, and I am looking forward to trying anything and everything. Already on the plot we have broad beans, rhubarb (thanks Teresa), onions, garlic, shallots, leeks, black and red currants and we discovered 2 wee goosegog bushes which we are trying to revive!
Thats it really, what more can I say - shed will come thanks to father Christmas, compost heaps are built at one end out of old pallets, Ava is going to build the kids a wee hidey hole so they have somewhere to hang out when mum is toiling and Ava is brewing the tea.....and I guess thats about it. ;D
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That sounds absolutely idyllic EJ. The lottie, the kids, the no couch grass. Unfortunatly mine is over run with it. I got the lottie in Oct. I've had a few weekends doing a bit at a time. Digging out the roots as much as I can. Thankfully the next lottie to me trimmed it while it was vacant. I've got garlic, Shallots, raspberries, Strawberries and goosberries in the section I've done already. I've built my leaf bin but not compost yet. Still trying to get crates (and then find a way to get them to site as we don't have a car.)
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Hi
Had my lottie for approx 15 months now and is one of the best things I have ever done. It's on a site of about 44 plots and a 5 minute walk from where I live. Wasn't that heavily into gardening before, but after walking past the site constantly I just knew I wanted to sample the "good life"! ;D
The plot I took was totally overgrown with nettles, brambles, and as I was later to discover ton's of builders rubbish, concrete, chimney breasts etc. In all it took me 3 months to clear and hand dig one end to the other. I have since installed fencing, paths and even transported my old garden shed down there.
My first year was repaid a million times over, with succesful crops of, Spinach, cabbage, pumpkins, runner beans, peas, leeks, potatoes,celery,bruseels,salad crops,cornflowers,sweetcorn, sunflowers,garlic,onions etc
But to be honest it's the whole package, being outside, being surrounded by wildlife and different people around me of different ages, backgrounds with tales to tell and always on hand with advice when required.....oh and huge smiles on their faces....Allotmenteering must be the best kept secret ever.
I'm sure your just gonna luv it.
Good luck
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Hi all. I'm Helen and live in Guildford, Surrey with hubby, Pat and 10 year old son, Michael.
We recently applied for an allotment as there is a site about 10 mins walk from our flat (no garden!). My parents had a double allotment at Stoke Bardolph in Nottingham when I was a child and we used to spend all weekends there.
There are allotments available but the steward and the society had a meeting with the local council on Dec 10 as seemingly GBC want to build on the top empty ones - the site is on a steep hill - great views, mind. Most of the empty ones are in apalling condition and the steward wanted them cleared and rotavated which the council have agreed to do with some of them. He said that once that was done we could have ours so it is just a question of time.
We met a lovely lotty holder (as son and I were peering through the barbed wire, again!) and she took us around the site. The holders wish the unused lotties to be used for a public space instead of for building (Hmm, I live in that estate - give the kids something like that and the decent folk are scared of by the hooligans and dealers!).
Anyway, she said that the soil was quite clayey and, depite being on the side of a mountain(!!!) could become waterlogged. Looks like raised beds to me!
it was great for growing brassicas and water was very available.
Michael and I are so looking forward to taking one on. The poor kid is not having a great time where we live at the mo but I'll probably have a chin-wag in the Shed about that one day. Hubby eats but does not dig (unusual for an Irishman!). The last time I showed him a spade ;D - - he ran. :o ;D 8)
Have been browsing this site for a while and love it. I keep noting the snippets of advice tho' I don't think I can contribute a lot yet.
I CAN dig for Britain, mind!
Happy growing
Helen and Michael
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Hi micsmum - welcome to A4A. I am not a lottie owner (just a few veggies in pots and a small patch with some rhubarb) but I enjoy reading all about other folks lotties. Look forward to hearing all your news :D ;D
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As a picture paints a thousand words have a look in the 'Gallery' of my website and you will see a few pictures of my plots.
Plus it saves wearing my one finger and one thumb to the bone typing about it ;)
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i'm in whitley bay, tyne and wear and i got my plot in august after just one year on the waiting list (thanks to my next door neighbour who kept hassling the committee!)
its 90' x 30' ish and i have inherited rhubarb, strawberries, gooseberries, blackcurrants, blackberries, redcurrants, and unidentified as yet currant, raspberries (in a fruit cage), globe artichokes and comfrey. so far i have planted onions, garlic, cabbages, broad beans, sweet williams and tulips.
i have a shed and a falling down greenhouse which we are not using and are going to take down. i will put up a small polytunnel instead. there is a sunken bath which is home to frogs.
as of today shed is equipped with a gas stove and kettle!
i want to grow all sorts of stuff to see what works, without the use of chemicals as far as possible. we have a tap at teh end of the plot but i am going to try not to use a hose and to water with a can to try to keep water usage down and not to water weeds!
beds will have no edging this year as i am poor but i have trampled paths between the beds that define the spaces. i may or may not grow stuff in rows and i will do a lot of companion planting.
all the other lottie holders are great. no toilets or owt but we have a little shop on saturdays and sundays 10-11. manure and stuff egts delivered to the end of the drive and you take what you like.
soil is very good, it had been looked after well and the site is flat.
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ForColin & Yvonne;
Be careful where you put the mushroom compost. It could contain a lot of lime, so no good for potatoes but good for the brassica family......Just though I would mention it, hope you don't mind.
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Thanks for the welcome, folks.
The gardener - your web site is BRILLIANT!. Really helpful. Spent all evening on it (hence late reply) and son loved your photos!
Just got to wait for the lottie now.
Helen
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ForColin & Yvonne;
Be careful where you put the mushroom compost. It could contain a lot of lime, so no good for potatoes but good for the brassica family......Just though I would mention it, hope you don't mind.
Thanks for the advice :)
Luckily we have only used the mushroom compost on the veggie beds so far...
We still have 5yds of well rotted farmyard manure which has now been earmarked for the potato beds :D
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Hi ya all, just been reading about all your lotties. Some of you are so lucky to have water, access to have manure delivered and shops!
Here in west Wiltshire in a small town called Westbury that no one has ever heard of, I have had my plot since last May, we have nothing - I hear you all say "aahh"
There is only 7 plots on our site, there is only me and a very nice retired gentleman working on the site, his back garden backs on to the site so he very kindly gives me a butt of water. I have now got a shed so will be collecting rain water this year.
As a mother of 3 and working part-time I find my lottie a great stress relife. It's where mummy goes to have 5min peace.
even though I only get to go there at weekends, I love it so much that I have taken on another plot on the site, currently covered over with black plastic to keep the weeds down.
I really enjoy reading all your news and find it answers a lot of my questions, keep it up! :)
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i've heard of westbury ;D
your plot may not have all the facilities but it sounds lovely, gardening is fab isn't it, total stress relief. the bonus you have is that you can have 2 plots, we have long waiting lists here due to people being obsessed with giant leeks and pigeons!
hope you stay and enjoy a4all.
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Hi All,
I'm Steve, 5 years on my allotment, it's in Basildon Essex. Only a small site with only 38 plots.
Until last year we were Council run, but they approached us to become self-managed.
Over the last two years I have headed up the team negotiating the take-over with the Council.
We now pay all our rent to the society. Currently £20 for 5 rods. We have full use of water and small quantities of manure delivered free. As a society we were offered a truck for a day and a team worked together filling it up at a local stables and delivering it back to the site.
Part of the take over, required the Council to help us clear the site and get it to a nice state.
Since forming the Society I have noticed that everybody now works together and all the plot holders now take pride in their plots. The small amount of petty thieving has stopped. And we are now looking forward to our best season ever. And the occupancy rate has gone from 50% to 100% and now have a waiting list.
.... and I remember some people thought it was a bad idea being self managed.
This part of Essex is built on London Clay... and I think that we have the heaviest and wettest - LOL.
However, once the ground is cleared, surface drained and conditioned with organic matter it’s probably the best you could hope for!
We can grow just about anything except spinach and leeks. As a general rule we have the best of the weather so things like sweet corn does exceptionally well.
Unfortunately I don't have a digital camera, otherwise I would share some picture.
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derf,
My other half knows Westbury well, coming from Trowbridge. Just curious, where abouts in Westbury is the allotment?
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rdak... you beat me to it, I was about to post the same message... my other half also knows Westbury well because he is from Trowbridge!
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???Still waiting to hear when we can have an allotment.
I think that the lottie holders are still at loggerheads with the council over how to dipose of the unused ones and the Mercedes showroom at the main entrance is due to to close soon with the rumour of there being houses built there.
I know that some of the holders are attending some meeting in London at the end of January so we may hear next month.
We have had an offer accepted on a lovely little house with a big garden as we are desperate to get out of our flat br April. It is a lovely big flat with a great view and was pretty quiet... :( :( :( untill the downstairs neighbour from hell moved in 18 months ago. Slammin doors and other activities at all hours day and night is no joke. Still ;D she has been really quiet for a week and a half so perhaps the Council have had a word!
Ironically, the house we want, provided we can sell this noble pile backs on to our proposed allotment site!!!!!!
Yipee!
Take care all
Helen
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;D :) ;D Went to view our lottie yesterday with the steward and picked up the key today as he happened to be at a site store about 2 miles away buying seed potatoes.
Our 10 rod plottie is at the top of a steep north west facing slope (clay) but the steep incline becomes more gentle towards the bottom.
Have decided to terrace the plot forming 6 terraces - 2 small for runners, compost, Rhubarb etc and 4 two rod terraces for rotation.
It is full of brambles at the top which have been chopped to ground level and the rest is couch grass.
However, the Council are going in there on Thursday with a huge rotavator and, along with the remaining 4 lotties, are going to rotavate it to a depth of 18 inches.
First spuds should be in within a couple of weeks!
Have picked Rate, Rocket, Romain and Wilja.
Fingers crossed!
Helen
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Congratulations Helen. Great news - take photos won't you, I am intrigued by terracing and constanly impressed as I really wouldn't know where to start.
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:-/ Not quite sure myself yet Emma-Jane!!
The man on the plot next door said that his was terraced when he took it on a year ago but it's flat now!
Will probably have a better idea after rotovation.
I have a plan in my head and on paper but the practicalities may be another thing ::) :o ???
Helen
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Hi All
I'm Tony my first time on A4A I have just got my allotment,it has not been in use for 3 years, so it is well grown over. the council have go over it with a small plough, still leaves me with a lot of couch grass to dig out, So where do i start, My allotment is 90'x 30'. I would like some advise on lots of things.
The ground is still a bit wet, but i have dug about 10'x10' so far, I am picking out as much grass as i can, If i bury some of the roots will thay rot or do i have to pick it all out ?.
What should i plant out in this first patch,or is it too early for anything.
Any help or advice will be very appreciated.
Tony :)
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If it couch grass, pick as much out as you can, I think it will regrow if you bury it.
Ten x
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:D Thank yuo Tenuse, You are not dumb. ;)
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Oh yeah, boy will couch grass carry on growing! I think it originates from Australia and roots through the earth!
Not to early for hardy onions, garlics and shallots, so long as the ground isn't waterlogged. Also, good time to get your fruit bushes or trees in, if you are getting any of course. I believe some peas can go in nowish so long as they have some protection, and reading what others have said about spuds, again, I think if you can provide plenty of protection, they could go in nowish. Other than that, sow things in trays and pots and fill every windowcill of your house with them in preparation for the warmer spring temperatures! ;D
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Hi shifty
Congratulations on your plot!
Just a few random thoughts.
I'd be tempted to concentrate on clearing as clean as possible in whatever you can manage in the next few weeks. (Good advice on couch grass - each little bit of root left in the soil can grow into a new plant; if it's any consolation, the problem is a LOT less second year!). Better to have a few beds really clean, with whatever you want to grow planted a little late, than to try managing getting plants going early as well as try to get the plot in order?
It depends what you're planning to grow, but I think I'd want really clean beds or patches for peas/beans, onions, salads, roots. (Shallots and garlic could go in now!)
Potatoes and brassica could well go into beds less well-cleaned this year - depends on your time, and whether you want the perfect crop or something that is not at all bad for a first year!
Growing potatoes cleans the ground for you - to begin with, it's the work you do, digging, earthing up, etc; but once they develop to good size plants, they'll crowd out most weeds.
Brassicas also do a good job of clearing weeds, if they get a good start - I suspect they starve the b.....s out; but you have a bit of time between sowing, transplanting, and finally planting out into their final beds to get the beds ready.
Sorry - better shut up, as I'm sure I'm rambling!
Good luck - Gavin
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Please ramble on Gavin, I am noting every word, thanks for all your advice.
Started Plot No 2 today. This plot is going to be for Runner Beans. Broad Beans and Peas. Next plot will be for Potatoes
:)
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I've only just taken on my allotment, but i'm taking over a patch of ground some 35ft by 25ft that has already been well looked after. We're talking wonderful, rich loam, deeply dug and a perfect texture. Yep, i'm lucky with this patch!
The allotment isn't full size, obviously, and is on a small patch of land that is privately owned. I live in Oundle, a lovely, quiet small town in Northamptonshire, and the allotment is tucked away behind some Victorian terrace houses, overlooked by a paddock and a couple of horses (one of which my girlfriend used to ride when she was younger!) and is a lovely, peaceful, quiet place.
Despite this almost idyllic setting, i'm still trying to get the local town council to investigate the possibility of setting up new allotments somewhere. I can see the need for a full-size lotty in the not too distant future!
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Hi Sulis - welcome!
We were jsut along the road fron Oundle for a bit - in Raunds. Peaceful - yes; quiet - yes; metropolitan centre - hmmmmmmmmm!
After a month of going in every day, the newsagent eventually asked my partner where she came from; took a friendly half an hour to explain where Yemen was.
I must have looked a bit more forbidding - took another week for the newsagent to ask me where I came from. "Aberdeen," I said. Puzzled look. Whispered confab behind the counter . . .
"Is that near Egypt, then?" said she.
Lovely corner, but . . . :) ??? :)
All best - Gavin
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LOL! Sounds oh-so-familiar! I was born in the North East, moved to the area eight years ago and been living in Oundle for a year and a half. It took me a few months before I was... erm... 'accepted'!
After living in cities pretty much all my life, i'd never move back to anything resembling cosmopolitan again. I love the countryside too much. That and the relaxed way of life ;)
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I got the urge to have an allotment as a result of a programme by Monty Don waxing lyrical on the delights of the allotment. I got so excited that the next day i phoned the council and was offered one immediately.
Hubby and I have taken on an abandoned lottie about 5 minutes walk from our house. The plot (and our house plot coincidentally) have been agricultural land for centuries making the soil lovely! Even though our lottie has been ignored for 3 years before we got our paws on it, the soil is a sandy loam. Judging by how well our back garden did in its first year, I think we are in for a treat.
Our plot is approximately one third of an acre. It seems absolutely MASSIVE! The site was bequeathed to the local District Council from the Estate of the Duke of Portland about 100 or so years ago. The measurement of each individual plot is such that it could support a family of eight with few difficulties! I am expecting a glut of veggies for Hubby and I to deal with. (Canning, preserving, chutneys, jams and jellies coming out of our ears I think! If anything grows of course!)
We have divided the plot into 25 or so beds. There is one BIG Potato bed (20 foot by 20 foot) which has been dug up and prepared. The rest of the beds are 4 foot by 4 foot square, with the beans and peas beds being 6 foot long by 3 feet wide. The dimensions are such that I can reach into the middle of the bed from the outside of them without too much stretching and straining. Most of the beds have been pegged out, but we need to get digging them now. We have found that with both of us digging we can clear one of the beds in an hour. So with about twelve hours of digging each we should have all the beds ready to go.
Unfortunately the lottie is covered in couch grass. My Father in Law calls it "twitch" and apparently it is the worst he has ever seen. This is further complicated by the fact that the plot was home to some brambles which established themselves, crossed themselves with some triffids and generally decided to take over the world!!
A challenge this plot certainly is! I am very excited at the prospect of growing our own veggies and being in the fresh air a lot more of the time. I do feel a tad overwhelmed, but with the help of some great advice from the people hereabouts, I am feeling more in control! We got the allotment to provide us with some exercise and an absorbing hobby. It is not only cheaper than a gym membership... we will get some nice produce at the end of it too!!
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Helen,
You may find once the plot has been rotavated, and before you get to work the plot, it will be worth covering as much as possible. I have found a couple of large tarpaulins can be really handy. Would not recommend using carpet as this will not decompose and will be a problem to dispose of in the future.
B&Q sell Tarpaulins for £10. With reasonable care they will last for many years. I've had mine for 5 years so far.
Tarpaulin will slow the weed production, thereby helping to stop the encroachment that WILL otherwise happen.
Take Gavin’s advice and clear as much as possible. Get a scaffold board, a folk and a large bucket. Every bit that you pull out will be a lot of weed that you will not be re-visiting later in the season.
I think it’s important to remember, an allotment is a long-term hobby and as such you don't want to be too hasty.
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Many thanks for the advice Steve. Son says that it looks likr the Council have finally rotavated the allotment (he can see it from the school bus). We will disappear up there this weekend and take it from there.
Helen
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Hey Gavin, is just fear of unknown, stay with it an keep gentle, will be okay but does take time. Lived in chelteham for years, was still incomer. :) ;) :)
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I left a large garden and a plot that was through the gate at the bottom of the garden. I kept chickens as well as a hugh growing area. The greenhouse was 12 x 8ft and there was always something to do. I moved to Belgium almost 6 years ago and my growing aear was reduced to a small back garden. Lousy soil and apart from a couple of flower beds that was about it. At the end of '02 I heard of a plot going 12 miles away. I said 'yes' without even seeing it! What a state it was it. It does have a good solid dry hut which is a good place to start. It hadn't been touched for about 7 years and was full of almost shoulder height weed and grasses, including the dreaded couch! First job was to cut a way in...I did that with a small hand scythe. Gradually I cleared a piece sufficiently to dig over. Last year I grew leeks, beans, peas, spuds, onions, shallots, lettuce, cabbage, gourds, masses of sweetpeas, radish, beetroot, carrots and spring onions. This year I've cleared about twice as much ground, found a stable for manure and transported 80 bags of recycled park-land compost to lighten a very heavy clay soil. The plot is just about sea level so soon gets water logged, but it's very fertile. The area is very quiet and there's quite a bit of wildlife drawn in due to the hugh lake 200yda away. I draw water through an old fashioned hand pump. The frogs which turned up last year seem to have found a home in the 'pool' I made them. I have just finished building a plastic greenhouse down there to compliment the glass one I erected in the garden. Roll on spring. This link to my pic's might work!
http://www.hpphoto.com/servlet/com.hp.HPGuestLogin?username=chiro&password=63828135
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I wonder where my global flag is? I thought I'd plonked it down in Belgium but it seems to have gone walk-a-bout, it doesn't seem to want to live there. Please can I have my flag where it belongs?
Still searching for Belgium, eh? Look, if you want me to give a map ref: Just ask.
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Hi all
Progress report on lottie.
The council rotavated it but the clay is hard going at the mo,
Dug out the bean trench and put in as much muck and compost (compost and manure free from Surrey Wildlife Trust!). Made a Rhubarb bed 2 of our own heads planted and son found another 3 growing on the path at the end of the lottie so they have gone in.
Put in 2 rows of Rocket and 2 rows of Pink Fir pots. Hopefully they will improve the soil as the rotavated dead couch grass is lying like hay on the surface of the soil at the bottom of the patch!
Got to start work on the rest of the plot ASAP. It looks as though compost was added at one time as we can see the dark patches bit there are lots of bramble roots/chopped of stalks.
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ooh, micsmum, how did you get free stuff from surrey wildlife trust? I've had a look on their web site but couldn't see anything, is this a special thing or available to anyone in surrey?!
My plot is very heavy clay (site's called Clayhill which kind of give the game away) so I sympathise on the heavy going!
(is your son too old to enjoy making things out of handfuls of garden clay, because I can assure you that my 31yr old OH isn't!)
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Hi there, I'm new to this site tho have browsed it frequently and now I've joied up. We have had an allotment for a few years now - a sort of early enforced retirement idea it was which proved to be the best thing we have ever done.
Site in Edinburgh has 26 allotments Council owned, our part has pretty heavy clay soil while others are better. Was a wilderness when we got it and my husbands quick solution was to burn the lot down as it was tinder dry - I nearly died with fright but luckily he lived to tell the tale!!
We grow all the usual veggies, gradually settling on the ones we know we will use as well as strawberries, blackcurrants, redcurrants, rasps and now a cherry which I am hoping to train into a fan but which looks as tho it's been crucified :o. I keep pinching more ground for flowers and shrubs as I don't have a garden just a balcony trouble is I hate throwing anything away so they are becoming more and more crowded.
We have a shed, toolshed/leanto and the typical allotment greenhouse made of old windows ;D which has stood rock solid for years now.
Believe me I go thru that gate and I'm content - no need for tranquilisers and such with a lottie - tho alcoholic stimulants are still welcome :P!! The very best bit is the people on the other sites - such a variety of age, nationality and characters - life as it should be lived!
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Hello,
I've just registered with this forum, having been told about it by a friend (who may or may not be on here - he didn't say!).
I'm a newbie at allotments, but have a bit of experience with veggie growing from the fambly garden, many moons ago.
My allotment is in Hampton Wick, which is near Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey, UK. It's a private allotment association called Royal Parks Allotments (as it's on Royal Parks land - Bushy Park to be exact).
My girlf "bought" me a half plot (5 rods, whatever they might be) for Xmas, and it's got to be the best pressie ever. The site is great, and the ground is fertile, if the weeds were anything to go by. The plot was half grass and half 4' brambles when I started. I'm getting there slowly. Cleared the brambles, erected a little shed and garden bench (essential!) and dug out the first bed, in which I recently planted some onions and spuds. It's been hard work but great fun, and I'm looking forward to digging out some more beds and getting a load more veggies in soon!
Don't know if there are any more 'Hampton Wickers' here, I had a quick browse and didn't spot any. It's a great place, like stepping back in time when you walk thru the gates. Now the lighter evenings are here I am expecting to spend a lot of time pottering about down there after work!
Anyhoo, I'm going to have a bit of a browse around. Chat to most of you soon, no doubt!
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Bit late to tag this on the end but I've only just joined. I only have a garden, not a lottie and there are none in the vicinity. I live in a village in Bucks with my hubby and 2 teenage children though we're originally from the north. Our back garden is about 50' square plus a bit up the side of the house with raised seed beds and alpines and a small woodland bit across the road. The front garden is just a small, shady triangle. I'm absolutely obsessed with gardening - which is why I'm writing this in my lunch break. If I'm not outside, then I'm thinking about it. I wish we had more space but at the time we bought the house, I wasn't getting home until 8pm so gardening wasn't as crucial as it is now. I find gardening the perfect antidote to my dreary daytime role as a systems analyst and would like to do it fulltime someday.
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I'm new here too (great site), I rented my allotment in December last year and it was in a terrible state! It hadn't been cultivated for seven years so you can imagine the size of the brambles, overgrown raspberry canes, twitch grass and general rubbish that the other plot-holders just dumped there.
I braved all weathers, on there practically everyday through wind, snow, fog, frost...you name it! however, three and a half months later its nearly all set..potatoes, broad beans, carrots, parsnips, onions and shallots are all in and the buds are opening on the 20 blackcurrant bushes I rescued from the debris.
My plot is in Tamworth, I've only lived here for two years, before this I lived in The Netherlands, I was surprised at the lack of willing takers for allotments in this town...there are several sites across the town, mine is fairly secluded, there are 47 plots of which only 10 are taken, such a shame to see all that land going to waste.
I've done all the hard work ..now just waiting for some dry weather so I get on it with my hoe!
Chaz ;)
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Welcome Chaz,
Almost tempts me to move back to Staffs but praps not! ;D
However, have vision of you in full wet weather gear, braving elements, all in the very best of causes.
We will look foreward to your tales of enjoying the fruits and veggies of your efforts. :P
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Hi Chaz
The trouble with any empty land in Surrey - the council want to build houses on it! We have a few empty plots full of brambles next to our plot and they have already been skewered with pink markers,
Our site, although now council, has a self help group who assist those who are in difficulties with their plots. As the ground is such heavy clay, people frequently feel like giving up and this group will dive in and give a hand.
(Good life girl, I THINK the compost and manure is provided by the Surrey Wildlife Trust)
I sought the advice of Bev, the leader of the selfhelp group as, although I had turned over a small part of the lottie, Ithought it was too lumpy to plant my onion sets , some of which had to be discarded as I bought them about 2 months ago and had forgotten to undo one ogf the poly bags!
She advised me to borrow one of the wheelbarrows lying around the plots and collect a load of compost as we were late and had nearly missed our quota. She suggested lying several barrow loads on top of the clay and planting the sets in that. Have tried this and they were all still just poking above the ground the other day. We shall see!!
Helen
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Hi Helen,
I hope you have success with your onions...they should be ok though, a lot of people just dump the soft sets but they grow just as well as the firm ones.
Our allotments are owned by the Council but are run by the local allotment association, if they can avoid helping someone they will...my plot was a nightmare when I took it on, the chap a few plots along from me says his was in the same state when he rented his last year..he created a fuss at the allotment office and they generously gave him 1 box of Weedol ::) I fear that with so few plots taken on our site its inevitable that the Council will see it as unviable, its only a matter of time before they sell it off for building land >:( Its such a shame because, once cleared, the soil is a deep rich loam, and of course the site is a haven for birds, foxes and wild flowers..an oasis in this concrete jungle :)
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Hi all.
I live in Derby with my partner(Shirley) and 2 kids(Rocky & Lincoln).
I don't have an allotment but I do have a large garden and have closed off the top of it to build a greenhouse and veg area.
All my knowledge on veggies has been passed down from my dad who helps run the allotment society where he lives(Hunstanton,Norfolk).
I had a go at a few things last year with some good results.
This year I am going for it with,
Potatoes,
Parsnips,
Carrots,
Sprouts,
Sweetcorn,
Tomatoes,
Cucumber,
Radishes,
Spring onions and ordinary onions,
Lettuce,
Pumpkin,
Runner,French,Broad beans,
Peas,
Brocolli,
and last but not least
Butternut Squash.
Majority of these I have grown from seed but have been given a few of them as seedlings by my dad.
;)
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Here is a picture of mine in Feb this year just cleared up and started the fires
(http://img28.photobucket.com/albums/v83/lenbatten/Allot/P2100039.jpg)
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Had my plot just over a year after geeting the bug through a combination of my father in law who is quite a boffin on spuds and Monty Dons passion for all things organic. Spent 4 months digging up rotting carpets, clearing brambles and generally trying to do far too much too soon!.
Fortunate enough to have a shed on my plot along with a mature apple tree. Its quite a size, - 10 spit
The first year has been rewarding beyond belief although stuff like the mice tucking into my prized crop of sweetcorn was a bit of a bummer!
Alrready making plans for winter digging to get out all the bindweed. (why o why did I rotivate despite all the good advice of other plotholders!!).
Stumbled on this site by accident but very glad I did!
Kevin
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Hi Kevin - very nice to meet you so to speak ;D
Sam
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http://members.lycos.co.uk/washa/ (http://members.lycos.co.uk/washa/)
Our allotments have a help group and this is their link.
They have been brilliant and have covered the top part of our lotty with black plastic. Bev and her team hoed the grass and brambles from under the plastic so we now have a huge mound which we hope to get away with firing on Bonfire night (not allowed fires).
They also hoed the bottom part of our plottie to define the boundaries and what we assumed was a path is actually part of our plot so it is bigger that we thought. 10 year old son now loves it as he can make 5
or 6 small beds to plant his own veg in (he wants suggestions. I thought strawbs, courgettes etc) :D
At last we feel as though we are making headway - even the Washa members admit that we had atough allotment.
The society threw its first BBQ during the first week in September and about seventy people turned up so it was a really good day!
Helen
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New to this site but not allotments.
My wife and I got our allotment back in 1999. We were walking past the allotment gates and thought let's give it a go and 5 years later we're still here.
In the first few weeks I can remember some of the older gentlemen almost challenging me that I wouldn't be able to keep up the initial preparation of digging it all over. It was hard in August and we couldn't plant too much, however a lot of the other plot holders used to give us their spare veg, I think that kept me going. Once I had prepared the plot I planted as much over-wintering crops as I could (spring cabbage, spinach, garlic, onions, shallots, broad beans) to try and get some return, I've never got out of the habit, believing that if it fails in winter you can always plant again in the spring. Since then we've got another plot, next door but one. We thought about a third plot to plant just fruit but chickened out when we saw that the available plot had loads of bind weed.
There are hundreds of plots on our site (our plots are 182 and 167A) at the Moneyfield site. Across the road there is another allotment site (long meadow). Both sites have a shop and the plots have access to water.
We get free horse manure/straw/wood shavings delivered every week to the site and then it's case of wheelbarrow derby to see how many barrowloads you can get back to your plot before it all goes. There is also access to horse manure/bedding (from an adjoining stables and field. I prefer to pay for a delivery to the plot of a lorry load of well rotted manure around this time of the year.
Our plots are predominately clay based although over the years with digging and incorporation of manure and some chichester grit they have improved. They have always grown lots of tasty veg. I'll try and post some photos.
Jamie
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Hi Jamie
We would love to see your photos - welcome
Sam
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Photo as requested.
PlotA (http://img78.exs.cx/img78/6987/PlotA.jpg)
Here's one of my recent photos (05-10-2004) from one of my plots. From the carpeted compost bin, the plant to the right is horseradish, which needs to be contained. The runner beans, swede (inedible), lettuce and beetroot have since come out, so has the 2 french bean and 1 runner bean wigwam (visible) in the foreground. There are also 2 groups of leeks which are being harvested when required plus several spinach plants on this plot. The netted plants in the foreground are late planted calabrese, I'll probably take the centres out tomorrow before the storms. The white stuff on the soil to the right of the netting is Chichester grit which aids the breakdown of clay soil (it prevents the clay molecules from sticking together). Finally to the right, the tall ferny plants are 10 asparagus plants. They will soon be going yellow, that will be the time to cut them back. I've since edged with a spade all round this plot but I still need a final strim before winter sets in. I've prepared the soil between the far side of the asparagus and leeks for broad beans and will probably be planting shallots in this plot in a couple of months.
Jamie
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Good productive lottie, Jamie, and interesting to have the layout explained. I've started asparagus for the first time this year and am waiting to cut the ferns down - they aren't yellow yet. That's great having late sown calabrese - we havn't had any as late as this in the year so it may be worth our while doing a third sowing next year. Wonder why the swedes are inedible - I always think they aren't at their best until Nov/Dec when they ahve had some frost.
What a huge site (ours is only 26 plots) and so well supplied!!
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Jamie,
I'm glad you mentioned the asparagus going yellow. Mine are sown from seed this year and in pots. Was a bit worried when I noticed most have turned bright yellow- I thought it might be a disease or deficiency. When I cut them, how much should I leave?
thanks
Ross
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From what I have read and been told they should be cut down to about 1 to 2 inches from the ground, Ross, so that's what I'll be doing ..
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I think the swede suffered from inadequate watering during dry spells. I also had catapillar problems as swedes are brassicas. I popped to the lottie today and my Asparagus is starting to turn yellow. Wicker you're right about cutting down the Asparagus. I also make a ridge with well rotted manure next month. The main problem that I have with Asparagus is the Asparagus beetles in the spring and the grubs that will try and eat the ferns, have you had any problems with these beetles? Wicker your name isn't a reference to bowls is it?
Jamie
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Haven't encountered the beetles yet - pleasure yet to come :-\ Bowls? No - place of birth ;D
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This ex allotment of mine..now sold orf...most were old codgers like meself...go down on a Saturday morning for a couple of hours then off to the boozer round the corner.You could not get a more mixed up bunch. One plotholder had a zero line set up so as you would expect everything exact right angles to this line..but as well he thinned out the rows so that everything was in line, so looking longways ...carrots matched parsnips matched lettuces matched beetroot matched gooseberries matched the runner bean sticks and so on. 'Dis-organized' things like rhubarb were at the back out of site behind the runners.Now aint he off his trolley.Then there were the three Musketeers...one plot between them...supposedly shared the work and the veg. One of 'em..he said "this is like a commune"...you only saw him at harvest time.Delightful people.
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Hiya all, I have just taken over another plot as I wanted a shady one well it took me about 12 hours over 3 days to turn the lot over as it had not been used for a few years. As I have done before when I get a plot I strim it over, rake that lot up and start my compost heap, then I strip the top inch and a half and lay the strips face to face for some good loam in later years. The I dig a spit deep with a spade and turn it all over roughly and let the weather do its bit. As I start planting I dig and weed with a fork only doing enough at a time for what I need.
I am a gardener by trade and have been using this method for over 30 years, it works for me and keeps me fit. My allotment is on the Isle of wight so I enjoy a longer growing season than most of you on the North Island.
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The North Island!! I love it! ;D
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Hi all,
Just joined this group this week, its really great, lots of sound advice and information. I have an allotment in Dundee, which I acquired on Monday, I'm cleaning it out of old produce at the moment and the soil has been well cared for and nurtured. The plot came with a 17ft x 6ft x 7ft (aged) green house with a homemade "conservatory" attached, so I'm well pleased. The Lottie, which covers an area of 174.5 square metres, is just a short distance from my home
Whilst quite usable, the greenhouse could do with a bit of TLC, so there is a bit of work to be done on that, it also has an ancient log burning stove, which is usable but again has seen better days a bit of black lead will see that looking nicely.
The plot itself is excellent, very clean, an consists of two large beds beds , one of which is 4.6 m x 17.4 m and the other 15.4 m X 17.4 m. Some careful thought will have to be given to a more manageable subdivision of these areas.
We are not allowed trees or animals on our plots, owners dogs must be kept on leads at all times. Burning of waste is verboten as is smokey greenhouse fires, these must use either white wood, or smokeless fuel.
Water is available on the plot in the form of a standpipe and of course a water-butt. Being at the rear of the allotment area the allotment is protected by a three foot wall surmounted by four foot spiked railings above which are three outward pointing rails of barbed wire . The wall seperates the allotment from the local cemetery ans so, whereas some people have worms at the bottom of their garden, I have dead bodies at the bottom of mine :o