Vinny's Allotment Plot

You're probably pleased the gh is still intact, you do have a gh on the plot don't you?

You're probably pleased the gh is still intact, you do have a gh on the plot don't you?

The greenhouse has half the glass missing to start with which allows the wind to blow through without causing any more damage!

A shortish session down at the plot  because the sun had made an appearance for a while.

I took cardboard down and laid a large section on a weedy non-growing area. Put a small pallet on top to keep it down. I also took an old carpet runne and laid this on a path for weed control.I really should know better as I once took over an allotment wich had carpet laid on paths and it was a nightmar to get rid of. I then collected up the broken glass (cutting myself in the process) and put it in a box to take home and add to the bin.
I bed that was once a seed bed for brassicas wa stripped of the unused brassicas and weeded. I pulled out a mountain of couch grass which was like a thick mat.
As the ground was really squelchy I decided to leave for home as the water had soaked through my trainers!

Over three weeks since I visited the plot because of bad weather and ill health. It was a bright morning this morning and I had a bad head so decided  I would take Kato for a walk to the plot to clear my head.

I was pleasantly surprised on arrival that stuff I had planted in Autumn was growing well without my intervention. The Aquadulce broad beans sown under cover are doing well,along with the Durham Early spring cabbage also planted out under cover.
The Elephant garlic is doing well and seems to have had a 100% take. The few Japanese Senshyu onion sets that I planted early autumn are also doing well.
I also have other Japanese onions planted a bit later which arn't doing as wellbut at least the greennery is starting to show.

The poor kale has taken a battering from the pigeons and is only feasible to grow if covered during the winter.

Picturs below show broadies under glass,spring cabbage under glass, Elephant garlic and Japanese onions in beds and lastly the devastationcaused by pigeons on kale (which I wasn't too bothered about,and at least they were enjoyed!)

Is it really one month since I was at the plot?

 Called in today and took the glass off the broad beans as they were bending over against the glass!  I also took the glass off some japanese onion plants for the same reason and hand weeded in between them.
I left Kato loose to wander around the plot then panicked a bit when he stood in the middle of a  broken glsss pane!  Luckily he didn'r cut his feet, but I  how. I won't be doing that again in a hurry and should really clean up the glass on my next visit.
The glass could have been removed from the spring cabbage as well but I know it will just become a feast for the pigeons!  I need to dig out he debri nettng for when I remove the glass to  keep the flying rats from having a feast.

Quick visit to plot today after excercising mainly to dig a few worms so my Son can fish with me at the weekend! He has a back injury so can't fly fish as I do, but is able to sit on his fishing box, sling his float or ledger out and drown a few worms!
I didn't mind because it killed two birds (or hopefully fish!) with one stone as I managed to turn over a bed ready for planting,and he got his worms!

I must admit the Broad beans haven't faired to well since I took the glass covers off them,but hopefully they will pick up?

I still had my gym gear on or else I would have done a bit more but I didn't want to get my trainers clarty. Ground is still very wet so probably best staying off it anyway?
Elephant garlic is romping ahead along with the spring cabbage and Jpanese onions so I am pleased with these.

The council have taken back our allotments under their wing, increasd the rents as well,so we shall see what changes they make? I have my own water collection as there is no mains water on site.I don't need mains water but maybe that could be something they could look into to justify the rent increase?We shall see?

Back at the plot today for 1.5 hours.

Managed to actually get around to my first planting of the seaon being white onion sets. After hand weeding a bed I forked it over and levelled it with a rake. I wored out how many sets I had  (40) and planted all inbed with three spare stuck in a corner in case any didnt take. After pushing sets in, and mainly to stop birds pulling them out, I covered bed with a sheet of glass. Once rooted I will take the glass off.
I also raked and levellled my parallelogram bed and planted Stuttgarter onion sets. This bed had Mooli in it last year..The mooli didn't survive the winter but rotted down well so I just dug it in as a manure.
I took the glass off a strawberry bed and hand weeded that too.I also hand weeded another strawberry bed. Some plants had been dislodged which were re-planted.
The elephant garlic is looking well along with the spring cabbage which is still covered.
Added a few piccies below.

..............and a few more!

Saturday sawme back atthe allotment again. The main reason for going was totake the glass off my spring cabbage andto cover it with blue debri netting instead.The cabbage was touching the glass and getting scorched and the addition of debri netting will stop the pigeon fraternity from having a feed and also allow the spring rains to get to the plants.. Aftr removng glass I ws surprised athow much weed growth was around cabbagessohad tospend some time hand weeding.The lump of debri netting is about at the end of its useful life so had to jiggle it around a bit to so that the rotten large holed area wasatthe sides.

I was surprised that the onion sets I had stuck in then covered with glass at my last visit were now touching the glass so I removed glass and replaced a few sets that had popped out.
The Elephant garlic is doing what it does best and is looking healthy asare the strawberry plants I planted in the Autumn.

WhileI was there Itied up a wayward blackcurrant bush and dug over and raked one of my long beds. I still have onion sets to go in buthad onions in this bed last year sowwillhave to think of summat lde to sow/plant in this bed.
The broad beans that were orignally under glass are flowering now.

It was bright so a visit to plot was called for. I took some lumps of plywood from some drawers I had broken up and after hoeing a path added the plywood. Hoedof another 4 paths and dug over a bed.
Elephant garlic is looking as big as some leeks I have grown in the past!

Will add a few piccies later as the site is playing up!