Took some bulbs up the allotment this morning, that I dug up while making a new path in the garden. Think they are mostly tete a tete and thought I smelt some alliums.
Did some weeding which was easy enough in the cultivated parts but have an issue with buttercups that have grown up through the layers of clay I've laid on the surface, need my big fork for that.
What do others do with weeds? I think they might re-root on my compost heap. In the garden I put them in the bin.
Meant to prune the currants today but only had secateurs, need loppers really. One of many good things about getting a greenhouse is I will be able to keep a set of tools up there.
Replanted some of the winter onions, I wondered if the birds are pulling them out but it looked more like the soil had shrank away from them. My plot neighbours look a bit skew-whiff also from what I could see from the path.
Found my allotment notebook today and have made a list of the fruit I've got so far and started making notes of when to prune etc, don't want to get my raspberries all wrong.
Hi Victoria, Jean here, thanks for the Christmas card, we were fortunate to go on holiday before Christmas but because I ran out of time few cards got sent.
Anyway onto gardening..I've always recycling binned killer diller weeds here at home but a friend who has an allotment like yourself has always just chucked them into a lidded black plastic bin and left them to dry out / rot down. There's really nothing to lose if it doesn't work.
Congratulations on the purchase of your greenhouse, my lovely little cedar octagonal one is 20 years old and although not on its last legs wont last forever. I'm having to think in terms of easier gardening as me and the chief labourer aren't getting any younger. When the times comes to replace the GH I'm thinking of a larger one I can grow more hobby plants in with a summerhouse on one side..That's us gardens all over isn't it ..always optimistic.
Hello , busy as ever , weeds , personally I put them in the Council Garden bin or burn them , got enough weeds without getting more in the home made compost
Just bought 10 Autumn Raspberry canes for a new bed this year
Thanks for the tips, Jean and GWRS. I might try a bin as I don't really want to carry all the weeds home. I suspect they will carry on growing with the clay stuck on their roots if left out.
Hi Victoria, I'll be digging out some Autumn Bliss runners in the Spring, they aren't heavy croppers but taste nice. They are in heavy soil in shade so might do better in your allotment.
Your welcome to them if you want them. Hope your continuing to make progress.
Ooh, raspberries, been thinking about them today as well.
I skipped the allotment last week so slid up there this morning, treacherous under foot. Took 11 bags of mud up in the car but daren't load more than three bags in the barrow at the time in case it slipped and dragged me over On the allotments it was fairly crunchy and safe but outside was like a rink.
My greenhouse got delivered (to my house) this week. I wasn't expecting it to be in 10' pieces for some reason, thought it would be in smaller bits. It's all sat in my kitchen at the moment as have no intention of putting it up til later in the year.
I feel like declaring my plot flood-risk free as none of it has been under water or even squelchy so far this winter. I know the trenches I dug filled but they would do I think. Either there hasn't been sufficient rain this year, or it never flooded, or the rainy season isn't over, or I've solved the flooding problem.?
Revised the plot drawing, wanted to make sure I didn't get carried away with fruit and forget about boring veg space. Should end up with 4 large and 4 smaller beds which hopefully will suffice.
More excitingly and back to the raspberries, I've allocated my current onion area to be next year's Raspberry Enclave. I can fit 18 new canes around three sides of the area, quite excited about it. Got 10 months to make a decision but have been looking at Cascade Delight, Tulameen and Paris amongst others.
This means I can fit 5 cordons along the new fruit line (the north facing edge of the plot) plus some other bits and bobs like a spare piece of Glen Coe I found and who knows what.?
Hi GWRS, yes, I was thinking jam, it doesn't seem too difficult or time consuming.
Looking through my preserving carry-on books I also liked the sound of rasp gin, vodka and vinegar. I also thought they would be nice on their own as a snack at work, thought that recipe up myself
I've added more to my rasp wishlist but don't have room for them all.
Took a car load of topsoil up this morning and have bagged up more to take in the morning and some other time as there's more than one load. Also took up a Glen Coe piece I found left over from a plant I moved out last year, still in a pot and two rhubarbs also potted.
Have applied a decent layer of topsoil to about half the area where I dug the trenches and back filled with crap and bark chips. I'm hoping the worms in the soil will somehow mix it all up, if the robins stop eating them.
Was happy to see no signs of flooding or mushiness after the snow melted and on Wed AM it hammered it down so glad to see the defences have held up thus far.
My test blackcurrant in the flood zone has buds so it's not yet drowned. Don't want to be over confident that it's fixed though, so later in the year when I've got nothing to do I'll dig a sump in the area I've marked above.
Posts
Took some bulbs up the allotment this morning, that I dug up while making a new path in the garden. Think they are mostly tete a tete and thought I smelt some alliums.
Did some weeding which was easy enough in the cultivated parts but have an issue with buttercups that have grown up through the layers of clay I've laid on the surface, need my big fork for that.
What do others do with weeds? I think they might re-root on my compost heap. In the garden I put them in the bin.
Meant to prune the currants today but only had secateurs, need loppers really. One of many good things about getting a greenhouse is I will be able to keep a set of tools up there.
Replanted some of the winter onions, I wondered if the birds are pulling them out but it looked more like the soil had shrank away from them. My plot neighbours look a bit skew-whiff also from what I could see from the path.
Found my allotment notebook today and have made a list of the fruit I've got so far and started making notes of when to prune etc, don't want to get my raspberries all wrong.
Hi Victoria, Jean here, thanks for the Christmas card, we were fortunate to go on holiday before Christmas but because I ran out of time few cards got sent.
Anyway onto gardening..I've always recycling binned killer diller weeds here at home but a friend who has an allotment like yourself has always just chucked them into a lidded black plastic bin and left them to dry out / rot down. There's really nothing to lose if it doesn't work.
Congratulations on the purchase of your greenhouse, my lovely little cedar octagonal one is 20 years old and although not on its last legs wont last forever. I'm having to think in terms of easier gardening as me and the chief labourer aren't getting any younger. When the times comes to replace the GH I'm thinking of a larger one I can grow more hobby plants in with a summerhouse on one side..That's us gardens all over isn't it ..always optimistic.
Happy gardening in 2018.
Hello , busy as ever , weeds , personally I put them in the Council Garden bin or burn them , got enough weeds without getting more in the home made compost
Just bought 10 Autumn Raspberry canes for a new bed this year
Hoping to go to plot on Tuesday
Thanks for the tips, Jean and GWRS. I might try a bin as I don't really want to carry all the weeds home. I suspect they will carry on growing with the clay stuck on their roots if left out.
Hope you had a good holiday Jean
What kind of raspberries did you get GWRS?
Hello , Rasberry s are Autumn Bliss
Yesterday bought some 1st & 2nd Early potatoes from Wilko for chitting
Have Been going to plot for a couple of hours a time to do pruning , hopefully finish off tomorrow
Hope your plot is going well
Hi Victoria, I'll be digging out some Autumn Bliss runners in the Spring, they aren't heavy croppers but taste nice. They are in heavy soil in shade so might do better in your allotment.
Your welcome to them if you want them. Hope your continuing to make progress.
That would be fab Jean, thank you?
I set aside a new line for raspberries as they're my favourite soft fruit
I skipped the allotment last week so slid up there this morning, treacherous under foot. Took 11 bags of mud up in the car but daren't load more than three bags in the barrow at the time in case it slipped and dragged me over
On the allotments it was fairly crunchy and safe but outside was like a rink.
My greenhouse got delivered (to my house) this week. I wasn't expecting it to be in 10' pieces for some reason, thought it would be in smaller bits. It's all sat in my kitchen at the moment as have no intention of putting it up til later in the year.
I feel like declaring my plot flood-risk free as none of it has been under water or even squelchy so far this winter. I know the trenches I dug filled but they would do I think. Either there hasn't been sufficient rain this year, or it never flooded, or the rainy season isn't over, or I've solved the flooding problem.?
Revised the plot drawing, wanted to make sure I didn't get carried away with fruit and forget about boring veg space. Should end up with 4 large and 4 smaller beds which hopefully will suffice.
More excitingly and back to the raspberries, I've allocated my current onion area to be next year's Raspberry Enclave. I can fit 18 new canes around three sides of the area, quite excited about it. Got 10 months to make a decision but have been looking at Cascade Delight, Tulameen and Paris amongst others.
This means I can fit 5 cordons along the new fruit line (the north facing edge of the plot) plus some other bits and bobs like a spare piece of Glen Coe I found and who knows what.?
Hello , o/h also makes rasberry jam with ours , it is surprising how many you can get
Glad it is still going well
It will be interesting to see what plots like when snow melts
Done all my prunings and managed to burn the lot at the allotment , need to think about Garden prunings next
Hi GWRS, yes, I was thinking jam, it doesn't seem too difficult or time consuming.
Looking through my preserving carry-on books I also liked the sound of rasp gin, vodka and vinegar. I also thought they would be nice on their own as a snack at work, thought that recipe up myself
I've added more to my rasp wishlist but don't have room for them all.
Took a car load of topsoil up this morning and have bagged up more to take in the morning and some other time as there's more than one load. Also took up a Glen Coe piece I found left over from a plant I moved out last year, still in a pot and two rhubarbs also potted.
Have applied a decent layer of topsoil to about half the area where I dug the trenches and back filled with crap and bark chips. I'm hoping the worms in the soil will somehow mix it all up, if the robins stop eating them.
Was happy to see no signs of flooding or mushiness after the snow melted and on Wed AM it hammered it down so glad to see the defences have held up thus far.
My test blackcurrant in the flood zone has buds so it's not yet drowned. Don't want to be over confident that it's fixed though, so later in the year when I've got nothing to do I'll dig a sump in the area I've marked above.