Allotments 4 All

Mr Aqui told me I was mad yesterday. I'm not sure why, though...

At 8.20am yesterday I was in the garden with a couple of egg trays full of chitted potatoes waiting to plant them. It was drizzly, but I had my wooly hat and the jacket in the picture <---- on, so didn't feel it.

After a while of mixing my special planting mixture (50% top soil 50% homemade compost), it started really chucking it down, so I rather sensibly retreated to the shed (attempting to switch on the light as I went in. It was gloomy. But there is no electricity in the shed ::))

Two Lady Christls and Two Red Duke of York are settling in to their new grow bag homes, as are three Charlottes. Another three Charlottes were planted in the recycling box the council gave us (we don't use it as we recycle more than we can get in it and just take it all to the bins two minutes walk away!), which fortunately neatly fits under the bench (otherwise I do not know where I'd put it!) I still have 24 (oh more god, is it really that many?!!) spuds left to plant. I'm giving some Charlottes to mum, nine will go in the new raised bed and the other 10 or 11 will have to go in more bags or something. hmm.

Then I pottered about weeding. In the drizzle. admiring my compost (it's beautiful, crumbly black gold) and discovering that my shallots have sprouted.

So am I mad? gardening in the rain.  ???  ;) I mean, what else would I be doing? Watching gardening on tele?

Mad no, dedicated yes  ;D

I dug my allotment in the snow earlier this year  :) Okay so it was only about 30 seconds of flakes  :-\ Also dug on a morning when all the water troughs had ice on the tops, and the water that settled on top of plastic bags had frozen too.  :)

Is gardening not for ALL weathers?

If it gives you pleasure why not!

I have done same - digging etc in the rain...

Debs ;D

Don't worry Aqui, you're not alone in your madness. I'm often out on a rainy day, my best activity for rainy days being turning the compost, out the bin and then back in again. The rain moistens it well and I can't do much else when raining, our clay goes all sticky so is impossible to dig. My husband thinks I'm completely bonkers.

My phrase is, 'it's only a passing shower', and I can be out in torrential rain the whole day through.  Who cares, when engrossed in gardening, you forget about the weather!  ;D

 ;D Well you can only get so wet and no wetter ;D

I did think that that perhaps I was a little obsessive when I was out there last year in torrential rain and a huge thunderstorm, I dunno whats wrong with people, there was no one else on the site! ::)  Then I began to think golfers get struck by lightening, I guess allotmenteers can too...................scarpered back to the car and came home! ;D

ok, compared to you nutters ;) i am a fair weather gardener. light drizzle - yes, downpour - absolutely not, thunderstorm - you are joking, right? ;)

but then i live 1 minute from the plot so there is really no excuse for me to get drenched :P

svea

mad?? NO!!! 

Dedicated??  YES, YES, YES!!!!

Last week for me:

0515 - alarm goes off, shower, dressed, breakfast etc, etc
0600 - in greenhouse sorting seeds, checking seedlings, checking strawbs taking to their new home (photos to follow)
0645 - in car & drive to work
0715 - start work surrounded by bleary-eyed folk who barely dragged themselves out of bed less than an hour ago & think I'm nuts.

CC

I take my hat ff to you carrot muncher - I'm one of the bleary-eyed workers!  If I did what you did I'd be sleeping by lunch time, not sure what the boss would think of that!