A bit on the fresh side!

It was bloody cold this morning, even with the extra layers,the wind seemed to cut through me with ease. Got a bit of digging done on the new plot, but as it was with my first plot it`s such a slow job with all the perennial and deep rooted weeds that need to be got out. This added to the fact the ground was very wet and heavy, it didn't look as if I made much headway in comparison to the amount of hard work I put into it.

I have lifted my chrysanthemums and potted the spools up individual pots ready to over winter in the cold frame. I have three varieties, Molly Anderson, Daisy May and Billy Bell. Hopefully I will be able to take cuttings of these in the spring.

Shed full of rubbish

I was down the allotment nice and early on Saturday morning with every intention of getting a bit of digging done on plot 29b, but as I finished the mandatory cup of coffee it started to pour down with rain.

As I stood sheltering from the deluge my attention were drawn to the state of the shed. "What a bloody mess". A major clean up of the shed took precedence over the digging, and anyway I wasn't too keen on getting soaked.

An hour and a half and two black bin liners of rubbish later the job was done. Nice and tidy, everything where it should be, I just cant believe how much room I have in there now.

Dahlia Tubers

Back down the plot again this morning for a couple of hours to check everything in the greenhouses. The Dahlia tubers which I lifted about 1o days ago are drying off nicely. I have them inverted in wooden boxes so as to let any moisture which may still be in the tuber evaporate.

Once I am happy they are bone dry, I will turn them back up the right way and place them into sturdy boxes and cover them with peat. As long as I keep them frost free over the winter they should start to send up new growth in the spring for me to take cuttings.

At the moment I am attempting to propagate 4 different varieties, they are "Don Hill" which is a collorette, "Weston Spanish Dancer"a cactus, "Ryecroft Jan" a decorative and a variety call "Marys Jomanda"a miniature ball.

This will be the first time I have ever attempted to do anything like this, so I don't know how successful I will be. But "Hey Ho" lets give it a go, who knows if they turn out to be any good, I might even be tempted to enter a Novice flower show next year.

Update

Due to the wet weather we have been experiencing and with me coming down with an illness, I have been laid up at home for the last week or so, but I managed to get down the plot for a couple of hours today.
It was great to get out in the fresh air again even through it was a bit on the cold side.
I was still not up to doing any digging or anything too strenuous, but spent the time tinkering around and tidying up. I enjoyed that couple of hours that much I think I might tinker some more tomorrow.

And the next one...............

One morning while looking over my plot full of produce, it came to me that all that was needed to be done was to keep the plot weed free and harvest the crops when they were ready. How boring!!!!!!! I had just spent the last 18 months digging and preparing my plot and that was all that was left for me. "That's It!, I need another plot."

The couple who had the plot opposite me were not making much headway and seemed to be loosing interest, so I asked the secretary to give me first refusal on the plot if they decided to give the thing up.

A few weeks had past when he came and told me that they were willing to give up half of it and if wanted I could take on the other. I agreed and now plot 29b is mine.

Of course my half of the plot had not been worked for a good number of years and had weeds 4 foot high. If that was not bad enough, it turns out that the previous plot holder had gathered all the rubbish and assembled in one area so now the plot was split into two, I inherited the crap. The first few days were spent strimming down the weeds and clearing the rubbish.


Things are looking a lot better I have managed to get some digging done and have planted out my Japanese winter onions, Garlic, some winter cauliflower.

How The Others Do It...............

During our day out at the "Gardner's Weekend" we picked up a flyer advertising an open day at The Uplands Allotment in Handsworth celebrating its 60th anniversary and we thought it would be an idea to go and have a look around. We went with our friends Vic & Alison but it wasn't until we got there we realised that the place was so enormous, with over 400 plots. We strolled around the site and was amazed at the amount of crops being grown which we could not recognise, this being due to the diversity of cultures of the people attending the plots but they were only to willing to talk to us and let us know what the different crops were.



The plots were larger than the ones we tended back at Brownfied Road many of which were being used to grow maybe one or two crops, It was strange to see an entire plot growing say Mehti or just Coriander and nothing else, each to their own I suppose.



Then there were the Sheds! Oh the Sheds! the were brilliant. Some big, some small, some new, some old and some very very very old! and some down right dangerous. It was very amusing to see some of these sheds. You wondered how some of these things were still standing. One particular shed was leaning to one side at such an angle it seemed to be waiting for that final gust of wind to send it crashing to the floor, one even seemed to be held up with a row of 8' canes inserted into the ground 45 degrees the other ends wedged at the back of the shed to hold it upright. Amazing. All our attentions were now fixed on the sheds as apposed to the crops. Alison was in her element, it turns out that she is really into sheds, their quirkiness and the way they express the personality of the owner. Or so she says ! Her only regret is that she never took a camera with her to record them.

I took the opportunity while we were there to talk to a couple of West Indian plot holders about growing Sweet Potato. I have seen the Slips/roots advertised in the Thomson & Morgan catalogue and fancied having a go at growing them, but according to the chaps I spoke to, they informed me that the season is not long enough to grow them successfully and as the slips are around £12 to buy, I don't think I'm going to bother.

Open Days......

The allotment held a couple of events in the summer, our very first "Open Day" and a "McMillan Coffee" morning. Both were well attended by the public who had a chance to buy flowers, fruit and vegetables all of which were donated by a number of plot holders, sort through the bric-a-brac and bag themselves a bargain, or chance their arm on the tombola and raffle. Having relieved them of their hard earned cash , they had the opportunity to sit and relax with a cuppa and a cake, before having a wonder around the allotment to look at the different plots. It was surprising how many local people who attended had never been on the allotment before, and one chap saying that he never knew the allotment even existed until he saw the poster in the local supermarket advertising the event.

Best Newcomer?, Well nearly! .......................

While having a coffee and a chat with the allotment secretary one morning in June, he told me of a number of competitions organised by the "Birmingham & District Allotment Council"and of his intentions to enter me into the Best Newcomer Class. It turned out that my plot was due to be judged while me and the family were on holiday in Turkey,so the last few days prior to our departure the wife and I went over the plot picking up every weed and making sure everything was spic and span. I also new that our neighbours, Alison & Vic had offered to keep an eye on things ready for the judging.

We returned home and a few weeks passed before the results came out, and bugger me! I only went and got 4th place. I was well chuffed! especially when I found out that there were 31 plots entered, yep well chuffed indeed.

Brownfield Road allotment also received recognition and was awarded 3rd place in the "Most Improved Site Competition "& 3rd place for the "Best Managed Site Competition".

The winners presentation was held at the "Gardeners Weekend" at Kings Heath Park in August , both Dave the secretary and myself were well supported by fellow plot holders and friends when we went and collect out certificates .
This was the first time Brownfield Road Allotments has ever entered into any of these competitions and we have come away with 3 awards which is great .

Its Been A Long Time................

I cant believe that the whole summer has been and gone since my last entry, How time fly when your having fun, but as we now have the short days and long dark nights, I have the opportunity to get to grips with this blog.


Its been a good year so far on the plot with plenty of produce to harvest, copious amounts of tea and coffee drunk as well as the odd can of cider.


There are a few things I will do differently next year for example, sow more peas, even though at the time I thought I had over done the amount I`d sown , they soon ran out. Only grow a couple of courgettes as opposed to the eight different varieties I grew this year. You can only eat so many courgettes before you become sick of them. I had that many I had trouble giving them away. I reduced the amount of Runner Beans by 50% this year and still had too many, I don't think I am going to bother at all next year, but grow the French Bean type instead as the family seemed to enjoy them more. I wont be growing "Swiss Chard" next year due to the fact no one liked it. But I must say the "Bright lights" variety I grew looked impressive and added a splash of colour to the plot.


I must make a decision to whether I grow outdoor tomato's again next year as I lost all of mine to Blight as I did the previous year. Its a good job I like "Green Tomato Chutney" as I have jars of the stuff.


I did make few mistakes the main one being that I planted out things too close together. The distance between the rows of "Purple Sprouting Broccoli" "Leeks" and "Swiss Chard" seemed ample at first but it wasn't long before the leeks were engulfed by the foliage of the other two. This resulted in the majority of the leeks sending up a seed pods and some rotting, I presume due to not getting enough light. A lesson learnt!