Time is marching on....

Now you may think that a lack of posts means that I have been working hard up at the allotment, just not posting about it. Unfortunately, that would be wrong! The lack of posts is because up until last week, I just haven't been there. Things have been so hectic, and my 'weekends off' have been taken up with one thing and another.

However, I have been up a couple times in the past week and things are happening again.

My rhubarb arrived in the post at the beginning of the Easter weekend. It arrived as I was going away for the weekend, so in good ole me style, I plonked it in the garage to plant after the weekend. And then promptly forgot all about it. Until last week, when I just about falling asleep one night. Oops. Next day I grabbed the box and opened it up to find the rhubarb all covered in mold. Not good! I have planted it anyway, and I'll see what happens. Hope it doesn't do something nasty like infect the allotment with a bad fungus. Please don't let that happen!


I have also done a bit more digging. The ex-tomato patch has now connected through to the onion bed - woo hoo! When I first 'broke through' and connected the two patches of earth, I felt like the diggers of the channel tunnel coming at it from both ends, and finally making a connection!


I have also planted (yes planted!) some carrots and leeks in that patch. Just a short row of each - I think if I was truly expecting to live off the earth I would need a whole lot more!


On the next visit up I took the kids and we did some weeding, until they got bored and started making a den! Lil gal thought it was great to move soil around in the patch where I had planted the seeds, and of course sitting in the soil was also great fun. I think all three are responsible for walking over my blackcurrant cuttings - there are only 3 left now. I didn't factor kids into the success rate! The picture below was before the damage was done (I am quite impressed that they look so healthy though!):


Still got potatoes to plant though. I think I may try some strategic potato planting - to help with weed suppression, y'know? Not that I want to avoid more digging of course.....

Also this week, I have planted some seeds at home for growing on and planting out. I love watching seeds grow - I'll be posting pics as soon as the poke their heads up!

See how good I am at procrastination? As soon as I have marking to do, I am able to get a whole load of other things done.....

Daffodils

Passed by the allotment on Friday, and picked some of my daffodils. I am v. disappointed with myself as I must have picked up miniature daffs - grrrrr! I want BIG daffodils. There aren't many of them either, but there are more on the way. Note to self - READ THE LABEL next time.

The kids gave me 2 daffodils each from school as well, so they are in there too.

They do look pretty, if not big.....

You've guessed it - More Digging!

What more can I say. Lot's of couch grass in this bit - I'm sure I haven't got it all out. It took me ages to dig through that little bit in the photo. I've nearly joined it up to the ex-tomato patch bit though!

It's starting to get demoralising doing no end of digging. I know it's got to be done, and I know that time is running out to get it done (especially as I am going to be really busy over the next few every other weekends), but the enthusiasm for it is running low. Gotta keep going though - got things to plant soon.....

Here's my latest patch of bare earth:


You can see the ex-tomato bare earth behind it. Gotta keep digging....

Planning Out The Digging

Firstly, a 'Hello' if you have come here after I was brave enough to post about my blog on Beansprouts.

I have been up to the allotment since my last post, but I forgot to take the camera. The picture wouldn't have been very interesting though. Imagine lots of grass and weeds, with a bare patch of earth in the middle. And I was oh so proud of my digging too.

The amount of digging that I need to do is huge, and time is running out to get it done! I can only really get up to the allotment every other weekend, assuming that nothing else is happening. Unfortunately, there is a lot happening over the next few every other weekends. This means that I may have to be choosy over what I can plant as I am simply not going to have dug over enough ground to get it all in.

And so I need to plan out what seeds I have and when they need to go out so that I can dig accordingly. Boring, but I got to get it straight in my head.

• Potatoes will be going out quite soon, so I need somewhere for them.

• The carrots and leeks also need to go out fairly soon, so they are next in the list. The patch that I have been digging over had tomatoes in it this year, so I can't put the potatoes there. Leeks and carrotts have just had their new home identified me thinks.....
  

• The seeds that need propogating are (in order of sowing): Chilli peppers, tomatos, sweetcorn and pumpkin. They can all go in the allotment from May/June time, so that gives me some breathing space for getting some digging done. Will the first early potatoes be done by that time? I think so. Woo hoo! Less digging!

Okay, planning done. Now will everything run to plan? Course not.......

Spike Me No More......

.....or at least not until it's time to pick the gooseberries!

Yep, I've pruned them. That's another job off the list. It was a glorious day on Wednesday morning - really sunny. So I thought to myself that I would enjoy the sun and get the job done. I drop the lil'gal off at playgroup, trot down to the allotment, get out the car, and the sun goes away. Predictable really, but never mind.

Here's a pic of my pruned bush (oh er missus!):

Pruning those Spiky Things

Got up to the allotment today and did a bit of pruning. Only 20 mins worth, but 2 of the gooseberry bushes are done. Goddamn they are spiky! I'm supposed to aim for an egg-cup shape so that it is easier to pick the gooseberries. Well, I've tried, but I'm not sure how successful I've been. Anyway, I have lots of new scratch marks over my hands for my efforts, and the mother of all bushes yet to be pruned.....

Picture coming!

3rd Stint

So today I feel like I have actually made progress with the goosberry bushes - yay!


The picture isn't very clear as it was getting dark, but you can actually see the bushes. So now all I have to do is to prune them, and dig over all the rest of the allotment.

Oh well, at least I get to plant something soon!