Allotments 4 All

Helped with one of our groups, taking side shoots off the tomatoes, weeded part of the path, starting to get ready for the judges. Dug up some lady c spuds,  cut a couple of iceberg lettuce and some springeys for my daughter and picked lots of strawberries which are red and ripe looking but not very sweet so I'm having to cook them, first time in many years  ::)

Watched the rain fall then gave in and joined it for a while outside.

Squished the hoe / swoe through an island flowerbed and around the veg patch at my parents place, picked a long stemmed bunch of sweet-peas and dripped back indoors again.

I planted carrots and beet yesterday where my cabbages used to be. I'm hoping my wild-flowers and sweetpea will keep the carrot-fly away. What's the chances?

I made 2 more raised beds & filled with soil etc ready for sowing tomorrow weather permitting  :-\ (rain forecast for about 10 days solid).

Sorted out a hive which was preparing to swarm. I had planned to do something else after I'd checked it, but once I'd seen the swarm cells I had to do something about it.

Me and matthew weeded, had a lovely time looking at worms and other creepy crawlies in the warm sunshine ;D

Just sat nice and peacefully and thinned out the rat population

Just been on holiday for a week. So it's weeding, weeding and more weeding.  :(

I lifted and hung my onions. I also planted a load of marigolds in and around my recently planted carrots. Spent time encouraging my strawberries. They're so big! Did a lot of potting on with flowers to ensure winter has a bit of colour.

Quote from: davyw1 on July 05, 2012, 21:24:49
Just sat nice and peacefully and thinned out the rat population

Do you do foxes too?

Cut all the haulms down on the lady chrystl, desiree, charlotte and kestrel spuds. Here's hoping we can get some potatoes out of them, the blight hadn't gone down the stems yet

Quote from: manicscousers on July 11, 2012, 20:46:41
Cut all the haulms down on the lady chrystl, desiree, charlotte and kestrel spuds. Here's hoping we can get some potatoes out of them, the blight hadn't gone down the stems yet

Same here - set off to dig some potatoes for dinner - arrived home 2 hours later having chopped the tops off of 8 rows of spuds. This is becoming an annual event.

So what did you do with the the halm?

Quote from: Aden Roller on July 13, 2012, 20:16:36

Same here - set off to dig some potatoes for dinner - arrived home 2 hours later having chopped the tops off of 8 rows of spuds. This is becoming an annual event.
Bagged them for the tip, unfortunately, can't burn them at the moment. I hate tipping them as they'll probably be composted and put back into the stuff were sold

So what did you do with the the halm?

Put them in bags for the tip. hate doing it as they will probably turn up in compost that we buy as we're not burning at the moment

Quote from: manicscousers on July 13, 2012, 20:21:36

Quote from: Aden Roller on July 13, 2012, 20:16:36

Same here - set off to dig some potatoes for dinner - arrived home 2 hours later having chopped the tops off of 8 rows of spuds. This is becoming an annual event.
Bagged them for the tip, unfortunately, can't burn them at the moment. I hate tipping them as they'll probably be composted and put back into the stuff were sold

So what did you do with the the halm?

Put them in bags for the tip. hate doing it as they will probably turn up in compost that we buy as we're not burning at the moment

I rather thought that's what you might say and nearly everyone would agree it's the right thing to do but....

I had 8 rows of tatty tops which amounted to five cycle-trailer loads. The trailer holds, and I can pull, 100kg without a problem. My problem was I had to get back this evening to cook my elderly parent's meal...expected on the dot so...... there was no time for five round trips to the tip.

Now here comes trouble!!!  :( I put all of mine on the compost heap  :o and covered the huge pile with gradually rotting grass clippings.

Whoops....... stand back and wait.

Hi Aden, could you cut them up & bag up in black sacks that are sealed tight & then put a few out for the bin men each week? Definitely better than composting them I reckon xjane

p.s I mean better than composting them on your allotment  ;)

Quote from: Crystalmoon on July 14, 2012, 13:27:07
Hi Aden, could you cut them up & bag up in black sacks that are sealed tight & then put a few out for the bin men each week? Definitely better than composting them I reckon xjane

I'm sure you're right. The previous year I tired burning most of them as they dried pretty quickly. This year I need a nuclear power-plant to create enough heat. (There's a thought.  ;D )

Presently, as yet again, it is tipping it down and I need to rescue the wet washing over the road, re-spin it and bring it home here, I think the "helm" will just have to stay put.

The grass clippings that I piled on top were so hot I couldn't handle them without using a fork - I'm hoping the heat will help kill off any spores. :-\

Squelch - mud, squelch - slug , squelch -snail,  squelch - more mud.  Happy days.

Harvested Peas, Spuds and 3 carriers of Winter Onions.   ;D

Inbetween When it was raining I planted another dozen french climbing beans.
I hope they can swim.  :(