Holiday

I've just had a week on holiday down in Looe, Cornwall. I managed to get along to the Eden Project and it was interesting to see their runner beans almost to the top of their poles. My beans are still struggling to make a start up their poles. All the weeds had grown around them and were harbouring lots of slugs and snails. The beans had provided a feast but there was still plenty left to work with. There was nothing for it but to hand weed all around them. The Borlotti beans hadn't been eaten much. That was worth noting for the future.

The potatoes are doing well. The plants are getting bigger. Soon their dense foilage will stop most of the weeds growing around them. I'm already looking forward to harvesting them.

Luckily there was plenty of rain while I was away so the plot didn't suffer from a lack of water.

Wheelbarrow

Luckily for me there was an old wheelbarrow on the plot when I took it over. The frame is broken so it can't take much weight but it has been invaluable in moving the weeds and grass that I have dug up. Sadly I wouldn't be able to leave a decent barrow on the plot as I'm sure it would disappear so I don't know what I'd have done without this one. Has anyone yet designed a vandal proof shed?

Progress

Here's a picture to show how things are progressing. You can compare it with the picture on the right showing how the plot looked when I took it on. It's a shame the plots either side are uncultivated as they're a constant source of weed and grass seeds. I'm not sure how long they have to be left before they are passed on to someone else. It would be good to have some neighbours.

Slugs and Snails

I think the only way to beat slugs and snails is to sit up all night and pick them off one by one. They will always attack your young plants as can be seen in the picture of one of my beans. Even though it looks bad I am hopeful the beans in the picture will recover. The dry spell this week seems to have kept the slugs and snails away and the beans will soon be climbing and growing strongly.

There are many methods for keeping the slugs and snails away but I've never found one that works.

UK Bank Holiday

Now there's a surprise. The Whitsun bank holiday weekend was a washout. It was cold as well. However one week later and I have been digging away in temperatures up to 26 degrees. Having started with a 5 pole plot that was completely covered in grass, weeds and spinach I have now cleared half the plot.

On the back half the grass is about three feet tall so I gave it a spray with some Round-Up. I'm not keen on using chemicals but sometimes it's just about the only way. The council website promises to supply a plot covered in black fabric. However I wasn't fortunate to get any and from talking to other plotholders it sounds that even if you do have some it tends to disappear rather easily. Once again it's a shame that there are people like that around.

On the plant side the first potatoes have burst through in leaf. Hopefully it won't be long before they have enough leaves to keep the weeds down. The tomatoes are struggling a bit but as I said, it has been a tad cold this week. The beans are OK but as ever they are a target for slugs and snails. Plant three beans to each pole - two for the slugs and one for yourself. It seems to work and if more than one survives it can be moved to a scene of a particuarly savage attack! Perhaps this drier weather will deter them a bit.

The leeks which were kindly given to me are still upright and getting bigger so I'll look forward to having those with some boiled bacon in the autumn.

My daughter's flower patch is thriving. I can see a few flowers but it looks like there are a lot of weeds in there. I'll be able to tell as they get bigger. Her strawberries are big and green with the first hint of red on one or two. Now is the time to cover them with netting to stop Mr and Mrs Blackbird having fresh ripe fruit for breakfast, dinner and tea! So they are under green netting and hopefully safe from hungry beaks.

If this hot weather keeps going it won't be long before I'm watering again!

Rubbish

Over the bank holiday weekend the council provided us with a skip into which we could place rubbish from our plots. I found an old iron bed, 10m of ventilation ducting, various parts of a car's suspension, lots of old rotten carpet and some rubbish sacks full of something smelly. It was a good gesture from the council but I was saddened to see an allotment holder drive in to the car park with a car full of domestic rubbish and promptly place it in the skip. By the afternoon the skip was full and plotholders trying to clear their plots no longer had anywhere to deposit their rubbish. You don't want to carry a bag full of rotting vegetation in your car. It's a shame the space was taken by bits of clean carpets and lampshades.

It's similar to the people who drives miles into the countryside to dump a car load of rubbish when the council run recycling centre is half the distance away and would take all the stuff! I never have understood that.

How it all Started

I had enjoyed growing vegetables in the small garden of my terraced house. I decided to get an plot in the nearby Callowland allotments. I applied to Watford Council and duly met the lady who could allocate plots. I chose a '5 pole' plot, ie half standard size. It took about 4 weeks to get a key. The first year costs nothing and it's about £2 per pole per year after that!

The weekend I got my key we had to put our house on the market! A week later we were living in a two bedroom flat. That was at the end of January. With so much going on I wasn't able to get to work on the plot until Good Friday. I managed to clear enough to enable my daughter to plant some flower seeds and for me to plant the strawberry runners that I had saved from my old garden.

That was how it started. This blog will tell the story of how it progresses. The successes and failures. The hard work and the rewards. Was it worth it? Let's find out......