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| Allotment Advice For serious vegetable growers |
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22-10-2007, 08:11 PM
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 Pics of my new allotment http://www.flickr.com/photos/11566783@N07/?saved=1 Hope I haven't bitten off more than I can chew!!! I'm going to start by clearing the first few feet of the plot and getting access to the shed, then I'll clear the 'greenhouse' and see if that's salvageable or not. After that, I'll try and rescue what I think is a fruit tree. Then I'll tackle the rest little by little. My Mum is looking after my children tomorrow so I'm going down there with loppers and choppers to see what I can get done! Wish me luck!!!  Claire      |
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22-10-2007, 08:17 PM
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| That looks like a fun job! Get good strong gloves and cut the brambles into manageable lengths - stack them all together in one place ready to burn. If you cut them to the ground now you will have plenty time to dig them out - not really as difficult as it sounds - especially since the ground will have been dug at some point before being left (and obviously not walked over). I say this from the experience of clearing a bramble plot and making it into a veg garden. Mine is very slow progress due to rubbish health, I am sure you will see results surprisingly quickly! Take it gently though. |
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22-10-2007, 08:19 PM
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| Good for you Claire! See if you can rope in a few helpers too! May be worth hiring/borrowing a petrol strimmer to get through it? Very good luck to you.
__________________ Imagination is everything, it is a preview of what is to become. |
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22-10-2007, 08:50 PM
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| Metal bladed strimmer (rented)jumps to mind and a good bonfire for a start!! It'll be a very rewarding project- your neighbour will be pleased the land will be cleared too. Have you worked out where south is yet??? The trees may need a bit of lopping too this winter if it's to the left. Enjoy.....  |
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22-10-2007, 08:52 PM
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| Oooh, nice plot, looks like there's going to be some fun clearing it! Remember, its not a race, do little and often, plenty of tea breaks and enjoy yourself! Oh, and dont forget to take loads of piccies and to share them with us on here, so we can all tell you how well you've done and keep your morale up!
__________________ Blessings Suzanne (aka Mrs Dobby) 'Garden naked - get some colour in your cheeks'! The Dobby's Pumpkin Patch - a blogspot work in progress! Last updated 26th November2008 - more new piccies! |
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22-10-2007, 09:04 PM
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| SEAHORSE Dont bother with a strimmer try and get hold of a hedge trimmer you can cut from many differant angles reducing the brambles to a manageable size, working in grounds maintenance I always found this easier than battleing with brambles wrapped around the blade of a strimmer. |
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22-10-2007, 09:15 PM
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| well done ! you should start a blog and call it ( the secret garden )
__________________ ---) CARL (---- ILFRACOMBE NORTH DEVON a seed planted today makes a meal tomorrow! www.freewebs.com/carlseawolf  now in blog form ! UPDATED 01 / 04 / 08 |
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22-10-2007, 09:34 PM
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| Ah, you're all so encouraging and supportive Thanks for the tips on good ways to get it cleared. South is to the right(ish) as you look at it from the path, so the trees to the left of it shouldn't cast too much shade.I've started a blog here: http://thankyouforthedays.blogspot.com/ I think it'll be mainly pics and lists of things done rather than anything especially entertaining or interesting but I think it will be great to have a proper record to look back on Claire |
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22-10-2007, 10:19 PM
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| Quote:
good luck with it, little and often. you will hopefully get great pleasure once its cleared.ps, i think i see a theme going on (name of your blogspot and previous post re B.Bragg)
__________________ Kernow rag nevra http://www.cornishnotenglish.com/ The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits Albert Einstein Just be ordinary and nothing special. Eat your food, move your bowels, pass water and when your'e tired go and lie down. The ignorant will laugh at me, but the wise will understand Bruce Lee |
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22-10-2007, 10:34 PM
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| Quote:
I love Billy and was very tempted to name my blog 'A New England' but I wasn't sure if that might have some sort of BNP overtones to a casual observer  I was thinking of Kirsty MacColl's version of 'Days' too, so I went with that - my 'general life' blog is called 'In These Shoes', so it seemed fitting to carry on the tradition And of course Billy & Kirsty were good mates.Claire |
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23-10-2007, 01:57 AM
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| I can see it being a fine ol' bonfire night over your way, Claire! And if you burn as you clear (rather than having the bonfire in one place all the while) you'll get a load of free potash to feed the plot - hurrah!
__________________ Hazel www.hazelandjanesallotment.blogspot.com update Sat 20/12/2008......End of year report - plot d (legumes)!..... |
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23-10-2007, 04:32 AM
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| One special request please..... Can you check for hibernating hedgehogs ( and other wildlife) as you go along chopping it down?? It looks likes it has been a good, safe area to hibernate in for many years  Hedgehogs are now on one of the endangered lists and strimming is one of the sure ways of seeing a fair few off.  I'm sure PAULW is able to give us all some sound, up to date advice on how to clear land like that and yet be environmentally aware????? Thanks |
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23-10-2007, 09:30 AM
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| I think you'll probably find yourself a few rabbits along the way too. Having a blog is really helpful for me. When I feel as though I haven't really achieved much, I just look back at my first post and think wow! Done more than I realised... Good luck, and keep positive.
__________________ A simple dude trying to grow veg. http://haywayne.blogspot.com/ - 1st update of 2009 - 6th January http://tickers.baby-gaga.com/p/dev036pr___.png |
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23-10-2007, 09:43 AM
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| OMG Claire!! Not more than you can chew, I don't think - but you're deffo goin to choke if you don't take it in small bites!! Could you possibly have a 'clearing party'? Round up as many friends/relatives as poss (do you have any Grapes nearby??!!) & provide saws/slashers, free grub & some beers for everyone who turns up?! As Nicos says, there may be hedgehogs to contend with, but it should be easy enough to decide which bit of plot you're leaving overgrown for them this year, and relocate them. You'll prob need a long stick or something to 'lift & look' before you clear a patch and don't cut too close to the ground until you're sure it's clear of wildlife! It looks like your neighbours will be happy to have the plot-next-door cleared up a bit, maybe they'll offer help/advice too? Anyway, congratulations on getting it - persistance pays off!!
__________________ Sarah http://www.hypermobility.org “Tell me one last thing,” said Harry. “Is this real? Or has this been happening inside my head?” “Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?” |
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23-10-2007, 09:51 AM
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| When the going gets tough (and the Seahorse gets going!) remember those of us still languishing on waiting lists who would love to swap with you! I agree with the point made by many that the photos you take now will be a huge inspiration on the days when you feel you're not getting anywhere. One little browse through todays pics and you'll be trying to pat your own back (which is a little easier than licking your own elbow I'm led to believe!)
__________________ If a man is in the garden and speaks, and there is no woman to hear him, is he still wrong? www.vegheaven.blogspot.com Updated January 3rd - Birdwatching. |
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23-10-2007, 10:59 AM
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| Great Seahorse! You will get through those brambles, I did! Once you have removed the top growth digging out the roots is not too bad, just try and get out all of it as it can re-grow. I missed bits and it re grew but it is easy to pull them out when you see them growing next year. Good luck and take a flask of tea, Mandy
__________________ No mater when time you set out, you always get there at the same time  |
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23-10-2007, 11:24 AM
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| Fantastic Claire!! Just keep plugging away a bit at a time, and keep posting photos of your achievements - I shall be following you in December I hope so will use your inspiration! Congratulations and the very best of luck with it. Sue
__________________ Life may not be the party we hoped for but since we're here we might as well dance  |
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23-10-2007, 08:21 PM
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| Thanks everyone! Yes - I'm absolutely there re hedgehogs and any other wildlife I may be disturbing. There are also a fair number of feral (? I presume) cats and I wouldn't want to harm them or their kittens either. I didn't actually find it too hard to clear the brambles I tackled today with my manual loppers, so I may continue on with those and strim the scrub/grass when I can see what's what and what's where a bit more. Because the brambles are so massively overgrown, the ground is relatively clear underneath them, so fingers crossed I'll be able to spot any wee chaps before they come to grief. I've thought about a clearing party but there's a bl**dy minded little bit of me that wants to do it all herself. We'll see if it's still here in a week or two!!! Lol! Claire |
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23-10-2007, 08:30 PM
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| Well done Seahorse, What does it feel like having first day at the lottie? Brill I bet. Keep us posted, Mandy
__________________ No mater when time you set out, you always get there at the same time |
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23-10-2007, 08:35 PM
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| Schmaltz alert but... at lunchtime I sat down in the sunshine under my newly revealed plum tree to eat my bread and cheese and I almost cried, I was so happy I'm not religious but I just felt... uplifted, somehow Claire |
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23-10-2007, 08:42 PM
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| Good for you Seahorse. Bramble clearing is just so satisfying - it is the bit of sorting the garden that I can actually take at a pace I can cope with. Digging is where I start to fall down! but I am sure you will be able to keep on top of that too. I am right with you on the uplifting feeling of changing some wildnerness into a useful space (a lot to be said for doing it manually without the hulabaloo of a strimmer too). Go girl!! |
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23-10-2007, 08:51 PM
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| Talk is cheap ! WHERE ARE THE PICTURES
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