Allotments 4 All

I stood in the potting shed and watched the rain pour down whilst keeping an eye on just exactly where the drips were coming through the roof.

(Meanwhile avoiding my sister until she had gone!!)  ;)

Felted & boarded the main shed roof & creosoted.  Planted swede and g/shaft peas in paper pots. supped tea & coffee with mate ;D

watered and checked.

Greenhouse full of goodies,just need to get past this bad weather now.

Think my water collection system has a leak as my waterbutts are low on water,need to pull up all the hoses to repair/replace  :(

Planted a few more broad beans, some chantenay carrots, more beetroot, some purple sprouting broccoli, green chard and perpetual spinach.  So didnt do very much really.......  ;D

Mixed the compost bins, adding some ash
Weeded and dug up bolted cabbage plants
Cleared and tidied canes, poles and caging
Dug up strawberrys that have drifted onto spud patch and the path and took them home for the garden
20 out of 48 Sweetcorn have germinated in 5 days
8)

Quote from: JENIAN on April 11, 2012, 18:00:48
Felted & boarded the main shed roof & creosoted.  Planted swede and g/shaft peas in paper pots. supped tea & coffee with mate ;D

No rain today where you are then.  ;)

Apparently "we" are moving the potting shed to the far end of the garden before it has a new felt roof.  ::)

But.....today it poured.  :)

Quote from: davyw1 on April 11, 2012, 15:21:12

Quote from: gavinjconway on April 11, 2012, 13:56:39
Potted on about 200 Marigold seedlings in my Gh to plant on my potato ridges to try to chase them pesky slugs.. worth a try as I believe our site does have a slug problem..

Gavin you sure you got that right about marigold and slugs. you may find that slugs are very much atracted to marigolds or is the idea the slugs feed off the marigolds and leave the spuds alone

Ooooo...  was told or read somewhere on tinternet that marigolds were good to grow with spuds to deter slugs... I'll google to check up....

Quote from: gavinjconway on April 12, 2012, 18:55:25

Quote from: davyw1 on April 11, 2012, 15:21:12

Quote from: gavinjconway on April 11, 2012, 13:56:39
Potted on about 200 Marigold seedlings in my Gh to plant on my potato ridges to try to chase them pesky slugs.. worth a try as I believe our site does have a slug problem..

Gavin you sure you got that right about marigold and slugs. you may find that slugs are very much atracted to marigolds or is the idea the slugs feed off the marigolds and leave the spuds alone

Ooooo...  was told or read somewhere on tinternet that marigolds were good to grow with spuds to deter slugs... I'll google to check up....

I've known slugs and snails eat marigolds.... perhaps it may depend on the variety?

Quote from: Aden Roller on April 13, 2012, 09:27:43

Quote from: gavinjconway on April 12, 2012, 18:55:25

Quote from: davyw1 on April 11, 2012, 15:21:12

Quote from: gavinjconway on April 11, 2012, 13:56:39
Potted on about 200 Marigold seedlings in my Gh to plant on my potato ridges to try to chase them pesky slugs.. worth a try as I believe our site does have a slug problem..

Gavin you sure you got that right about marigold and slugs. you may find that slugs are very much atracted to marigolds or is the idea the slugs feed off the marigolds and leave the spuds alone

Ooooo...  was told or read somewhere on tinternet that marigolds were good to grow with spuds to deter
slugs... I'll google to check up....

I've known slugs and snails eat marigolds.... perhaps it may depend on the variety?

Looks like they do like Marigolds... oh well back to the drawing board..

Took today off for allotment work as having to go to visit poorly inlaws for the weekend...

So planted 4 currant bushes, prepared for 2 more when they arrive and then a line of PFA spuds.

Stripped a kids swing for using as a runner bean frame.

Then work got rained off..

Nowt did not get home till 7.30am (still 3degrees out but a heavy ground frost)
At a birthday party for one of daughters friends and now going back to sleep for a couple of hours :)

Did however come home to some seeds from T&M not looked at them yet but all seam like veggie ones :) i complained that there was no veggie seeds in my 'free' seeds i got with both propagator having been told it would be a mix :) i know i am cheeky!!

Still have a £10 voucher code to use up by mid april so am thinking i might get some seeds that last for next year or year after what would be good?? Parsnips? Carrots?? i need sprout seeds but am not stocked up for this year :) and want to get the most for my £1.99postage cost :)

Only got a couple of hours in today but did get the sprouts out hopfully have more luck this year as they always seem to blow on me trying 3 different variety's.
Only went up there to clear my head as went to a civil funeral today  a work mate of only 31 died of cancer, he was given a full service send of and i was proud to be in the guard of honor..

Quote from: cambourne7 on April 14, 2012, 18:39:27
Nowt did not get home till 7.30am (still 3degrees out but a heavy ground frost)
At a birthday party for one of daughters friends and now going back to sleep for a couple of hours :)

Did however come home to some seeds from T&M not looked at them yet but all seam like veggie ones :) i complained that there was no veggie seeds in my 'free' seeds i got with both propagator having been told it would be a mix :) i know i am cheeky!!

Still have a £10 voucher code to use up by mid april so am thinking i might get some seeds that last for next year or year after what would be good?? Parsnips? Carrots?? i need sprout seeds but am not stocked up for this year :) and want to get the most for my £1.99postage cost :)

Not parsnips, they need to be fresh pretty much every year or germination is very slow and  very patchy....I suppose you could chit and only pot into rootrainer or toilet roll tubes or whatever those which get going...

Afteer picking up my lathe from my mums place to get it into my workshop here I picked up a load of manure, spread on where the potatoes will be going, audited the potatoes to work out how much space and what sort of planting density I'd be looking at in space available.... hmm... 165... might try to find a home for osme of them in pots then....Sowed a couple of trays of peas (four strip modules per tray), a 24-module pack of toilet roll tubes with some sweetcorn (Swift) that will end up in the poytunnel, and did my rootrainer pack up with a mixed set of Gigandas. Half are selfsaved adn half are from a packet of beans I got from a greek deli... had to sort out the propagators too... 6 foot x 3 foot monster (150W soil warming cable) is now full, though onions will be out as soon as it stops getting that cold at night, all 8 tray propagators are full ... again....

Late Saturday afternoon:

Planted 5 rows of shallots - 12 in each row and 2 rows of red onions.

Green already!  ;)

Quote from: cambourne7 on April 14, 2012, 18:39:27
Nowt did not get home till 7.30am (still 3degrees out but a heavy ground frost)
At a birthday party for one of daughters friends and now going back to sleep for a couple of hours :)

Did however come home to some seeds from T&M not looked at them yet but all seam like veggie ones :) i complained that there was no veggie seeds in my 'free' seeds i got with both propagator having been told it would be a mix :) i know i am cheeky!!

Still have a £10 voucher code to use up by mid april so am thinking i might get some seeds that last for next year or year after what would be good?? Parsnips? Carrots?? i need sprout seeds but am not stocked up for this year :) and want to get the most for my £1.99postage cost :)

Just been though seeds i got sent for free :)

Tomato - Suncherry premium f1 hybid
Artichoke - Green Globe Improved
Tomato - Sungold F1 Hybrid
Salad - Salad leaves Speedy
Radish - Radish French Breakfast 3
Carrot - Carrot Flyaway F1 Hybrid
Beetroot - Beetroot Boltardy
Tomato - Tomato Vilma
Bean - Climbing Bean Cobra
Bean - Runner bean white lady

Spread manure on the bit where spuds will go, manured and dug it in on a small strip on plot two adn planted out 30 "Express" broad beans.... will also act as ....a test on the pooh to make sure OK... if it is then all the beans will get it, if it isn't then it'll have to go to the sweetcorn

Put in another five rows of spuds that's ten so far just three left,did a bit more weeding(there not going to beat me this year) and turned one of the compost bins,then back home and fired up the BBQ for lunch butterflied a lamb shoulder had that sliced in wraps with salad and a mayo and mint dressing. :P :-*

Quote from: Lottiman on April 15, 2012, 17:14:36
,then back home and fired up the BBQ for lunch butterflied a lamb shoulder

:o :o :o   BBQ  where in oxfordshire do you live???? it's been bloody freezing in Bicester, my lamb went in the oven ;D
did get a few seeds in the greenhouse ;)

Chalgrove Steve, it was a bit chilly with the wind but plenty of sunny spells though and it was worth it. :P