Allotments 4 All

Ground still frozen here in Coalville & partly covered in 4" deep snow.

Am hoping for better weather next week so can get started.

CC

Went to the allotment today. Tone put his spuds in for the Potato challenge and I edged all up and down the grass paths and spread the potash around the fruit bushes. Quite a nice day but went a bit cool at 4pm. Hope to go tomorrow and do a bit more

Just come back from the lottie and I've cultivated the soil and string lined it ready for the onions and shallots to go in next week, I washed my cloche bottles and tunnels and put down on the soil ready for my competion spuds and emptied out some soil from my old carrot tubs and added rooted manure ready for some spuds.  ;D ;D ;D

Two and a half happy, sunny hours down at the allotment this afternoon. Although the soil is still quite wet, managed to weed and cultivate a lot of it and was very pleased by the dark crumbly texture.  Prepared an onion bed. Turned the compost heap.  Had a bonfire. Harvested the last of the brussels sprouts, plus some red cabbage and some perennial sage.

Mud and ice in equal quantities on the allotment.  Dug up some leeks and picked some kale, tidied up the dead leaves on the strawberries a little bit, propped up the PSB which has a leaning tower look to it, sorted the netting and generally pottered about.  Too wet to dig or weed.

In the back garden I cleared the ice off the patio - doesn't get much sun at this time of year was still about 6 inches thick in places.  Once again looked at my fleece covered 'mini greenhouse' which had its top shredded when a pile of snow fell off the roof onto it last week - not sure what to do with it.  The cover was new in October so I am cheesed off about it.  Thinking about getting the sewing machine out and patching it with a piece of fleece from Wilkos, but not rushing into anything!

Planted some seeds for spinach, spring onions and parsley and put them on a window sill which gets the morning sun.

I did nothing on the lotty AGAIN  :'( 2 wet and cold and icy!! We still have snow in places.

I did however go to the potato day, not so much a walk but a slomp though mud :(

Picked up Anya (6), Cara (10), Nadine(6), Nicola(6), Golden Wonder(10), Yukon Gold(6), Kerrs Pink(10, Picasso(10).

These will be planted in my lotty before i move out and when i come back later in the year to clear i can also harvest the spuds. The ones in packs of 6 will be planted in the new garden to help test and condition the soil :)

Also partisipated in the seed swap got 4 packets of flowers and some chard and some JA which i made an additional £1 donation for. Well chuffed till i went to the man selling the net and hessian bags. I only needed one of each and he was selling them in packs of 2 hessian or 3 net bags for £1.50 I asked and got one of each for £1 :) very happy with myself !

Anyway we left or rather swam out of potato day :)

Planted some spuds for the 'challenge', dug up some parsnips, leeks and carrots, and put an inch of 3yr old leafmould on the asparagus bed
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Quote from: cornykev on February 14, 2009, 17:00:51
added rooted manure ready for some spuds.  ;D ;D ;D

'rooted manure'? pray tell, kev!! ;D ;D ;D

Camborne 7
My grand daughter is 11 and also called Cara.  It is an unusual name, Irish I think, and she is definately not a potato.
Did nothing in the garden but played 3 sets of tennis, outdoors with the younger working people and didn't disgrace myself, won some lost some.  Lovely sunny weather here today.  Went to the allotment yesterday, dug up two leeks, put in a stew.  Nothing much worth doing there as everything too wet. I was the only person there, can't wait for better weather.  PSB although netted looks dreadful, will give it another few weeks before I pull it up, hopefully it might recover.

Quote from: Borlotti on February 14, 2009, 20:05:23
Camborne 7
My grand daughter is 11 and also called Cara.  It is an unusual name, Irish I think, and she is definately not a potato.

:) cute name :)

Nothing on the plot either, but went to the Potato Day as well. Guess you went to the one at Stonham Barns, Cambourne - it was getting muddy when we left!!!

Got some Accent, Anya, Annabelle, Charlotte,Harlequin, Juliette,Lady Balfour, Lady Christl, Pixie, Riviera, and Vales Emerald but no Belle de Fontenay.

Did some seed swapping - best swap was some purple podded Dutch peas.

Tone this rooted manure is a new type I've started using, its a bit like rotted.    :'(          ;D ;D ;D

 :)  garden still overcome with snow, but glad to see the hills at the back are starting to melt, so today just cleaned out the guinee pigs and used all their lovely old hay etc onto the compost so will have good compost come this summer.  Did many of you get snow? up here in Brechin (just below Aberdeen) we had plenty fortunately in stopped in time for me to get down the track to our house with the car or otherwise could have been snowed in.
Regards to all happy gardening
cindy

I planted six rockets for the spud challenge, cultivated the rest of the soil for this years roots and harvested leeks, parsnips and swede, one of my lottie mates gave my six beetroots.  ;D ;D ;D

took cuttings from honeysuckle, st john's wort, london's prideand dicentra  :)
transplanted tomato seedlings  ;D

Nasty drizzly afternoon. Pruned a rosebush at the allotment, gave the rhubarb a thick mulch, weeded around the butterhead lettuces growing under a mini-polytunnel, checked on the garlic and onions (coming along well), then gave up and cycled home. A few more people down there yesterday and today, though.  It's been empty or nearly empty for the past few weeks.  Feels like the "season" is starting at last.

Went over the lottie today with Maryand both OH's. They were seconded to erect the shed. We were luck to be able to reverse the minibus with said shed bits in right down to the edge of the plot. As it was Sunday the managers were in the hut and gave us permission to drive down. Saved a lot of humping and moans and groans. Took about 3 hours but the shed does look good. We now have to try and diplomatically approach the lottie commitee to ask our next door neighbour to tidy up the huge pile of debris wood, carpet, lawnmower bits etc. There was a barrel full of stinking water that we had to empty out as the stench was making us heave. All in all a good day's work.

Relocated the bird feeder pole about 3 feet, we felt it was just a tad too close to the house, although plenty of visitors it seemed we spooked them every time we went by the window.

Moved the chitting spuds off the chest freezer (was such a pain to move them every time we wanted to get something out) into polystyrene boxes in the unheated greenhouse and covered with fleece.

Popped my excess garlic and shallots into niece's raised beds.

Planted, (staked and tied) 3 more fruit trees on the plot!! ;)

sowed cucumbers, peppers, chillies and greyhound cabbages  :)

Had another great day on the plot. Starting to loo quite smart now. Going again tomorrow just cos I can.lol