Allotments 4 All

Wonderful Welsh spring - Happy St. David's day everybody. Snowdrops in gardens, along roads, under hedges, daffs waiting to burst there too and primroses, violets and crocus.

Spring is definitley on its way for me.  Up to seven daffs, forsythia is now gorgeous, trying to shame the sun into some actuion.  And I have seen my first lambs. 

My asparagus is showing - a month earlier than last year! Now that really is magic...

I think spring is actually here!  Seem to get so distracted by the cold that I fail to see it happening right under my nose.  Buds on the pear trees and hedges, new growth of things on the rhubarb and rasperry, green manure is now going for gold and the broad beans which are in the ground are galloping.

All the crocus and snowdrops are out here... along with some of the iris species... and the hellebores..  :)

Lots of signs of spring here in Suffolk;  on the allotment crocus and snowdrops out, also a really lovely new Daffodil on my plot - Spring Dawn, which has been out since mid January. Also lots of violets and primroses.   Lots of frog spawn in the allotment pond now but the Crows are getting the frogs, last year we lost all our just hatched tadpoles as someone put some 'American Crayfish' in our pond and we had a very dead pond but hopefully the crayfish have moved out so our school groups can enjoy looking for the tadpoles and young froglets this year

someone put some 'American Crayfish' in our pond  :o oh dear...I don't want to sound too negative..but two years ago we did go through hulabaloo with signal crayfish..somebody had some in captivity and they got out..we had some walking about all over the lottie..first I though I saw things ::)
Anyway..long story shortened..it is ilegal to anybody have/keep some in most of the Enland...and any seen MUST be reported as they are serious treat to our wild life..so I would get in touch to your local environmental health unit who can put you in touch to right people..basicly you could get in big trouble because somebody else dumped the crayfish in you pond..
We ended up picking all crayfish up..freezing them to death and then putting them into bin..with advise of the 'expert'

seems like a waste.  could they have gone on the barbie? ;D

Broad beans, peas and spinach in mini greenhouse sprouting and looking strong

Potatoes chitting away nicely in spare room

On plot, onions and shallots have survived winter. Picking and enjoying kale and cabbage. Rhubarb sprouting and fruit has green shoots. Fruit Trees not faired so well with 1 apple pretty defunct, but cherry and plum showing signs of survival

Every week more shall appear  :D :D :D

Garlic's all up, blackcurrant bushes bought bare-root adn potted up over winter seem to have survived.... look slike my Stella cherry (bare-root and potted) might not have..... WIll get another one Thursday.....

chrisc

seems like a waste.  could they have gone on the barbie?
Mmm..yes but we didn't know what sort of 'water'' they were kept on so thought better not..tastes nice though ;D
Well my elephant garlic is finally up...they were really slow this year..and I've had some cuts off from chives already.. ;D
If weather keeps ok..first planting outdoors happens this weekend..winter onions,..I know, late.. garlic pips and wild leeks are ready for bit of fresh air...
Some of the dandelions are showing odd flower buds.. :o

Fresh hedgehog poo !!  On the path down the side of my house !!! It is officially Spring  :)

(although the February Gold daffodils are only just peeking up above the ground).

Our Tete-a-Tete are out but the hedgehogs don't seem to have surfaced yet... seen frogs in the pond again today...  :)

No, it is very cold here today, in not so sunny Enfield.  Still washing the mud out of my clothes from last time I went to the allotment, and my shoulder hurts.  Digging in the wet. :( :(

the sap is rising- I feel it in my bones !

Magic of spring? Are you kidding? We have the magic of storm damage to arbors, big branches down, wood fencing torn off by animals, sheets of ice and a few piles of snow from the plow.

On the plus side, the goldfish survived and right against
the house bulbs are coming up with buds so hubby took down the Christmas lights.

There are little holes dug in the soil under the trees,  actually the hedgehog has been digging for weeks in the lottie.  Nice yesterday for a brief while,   But today when it is so cold and dull it is very difficult to think it is spring.  

I suppose on comparison with you GrannieAnnie things are quite warm here. 

Came home tonight (with rotavator) to discover a lot of seedlings up in the propagators.... tomatoes, aubergines, peppers, chillis, some onions (they weren't even heated).... lots more sowing to do this weekend.... forecast says -3 on Monday though......

REally beautiful day today - spent all day up the allotment. Did have a few layers on but lovely in the sunshine. Feel like I am beginning to be ready for the spring rush!

The Sun, 8), was out today and I was on the lottie by 2.30pm in my T shirt, a rare treat for the chicks on site.        :-*