First Time Allotment

[CatherineRuth]

Keep it up!

Hello Nat,
I am new on here and am new to gardening, my boyfriend and I have jumped head first into having our own allotment which we absolutely love (only had it since May)!

Although all of our friends think we are mad they have all been keen to come down to have a look and we have given them a BBQ on the plot with a little bit of work on their behalf in return. Each time we just cut a few more weeds down and dig a few more clumps of grass and that all gets burned too!

It's slow work and I have to move in September so won't be able to walk there any more but we can't bare to give it up! Its been so much fun already, not to mention the crop (which has only been courgettes at the moment and offerings from all our new friends) which has been YUMMY!

Keep up the hard work! I think everyone should be given an allotment, sorry to others on here that havn't got one, I will be hoping for you all that your time will be soon, they are bril!

Catherine

[Nat]

Hi again everyone,

Thanks for your advice again !!! i'm definatly considering planting soft fruits on it... may well be worth it, at the moment its waist deep in grass, however the other end is doing ok, apart from the lack of water, its just about managable, just got back from cornwall..... everything grows there well....i'd so love to live there and have a small holding, lol . when we came back we found the most enormous courgetts i have ever seen though !!!

Nat <<<still pulling hair out

[JET]

Hi Nat,

Have just taken over an overgrown allotment full of weeds and grass. Sounds daunting but I like a challenge. It would be a shame to give up half of it as allotments are difficult to get. Persevere with it, radishes are an easy veg to grow and don't take long either. I've just grown courgettes, turks turban squashes and butternut squashes in tyres stacked 2 high with great success, they flow over the sides.

Splitting the allotment into veg and fruit growing areas is a good idea, will probably do this on mine, anyway keep up the good work.

Jill

[Alison]

Probably a stupid question, quite like the idea of growing some fruit also when I eventually get my plot, in addition to the currants etc is it OK to plant a couple of apple trees (or similar) or would this be seen as too big?

[nick the grief]

You'll have to check with the site Alison, Some don't allow fruit trees cos of the canopy causing shade & the roots sucking out moisture. If you can have them try the Minarettes (Ken Muir) they grow as a column so shouldn't be too bad.

[Alison]

Thanks Nick - will mail the council, although based on previous attempts I won't hold my breath for a speedy response! Am hoping to get a plot in the next few months so will be mithering you guys like mad till I get the hang of it. It's a bit of a scary step up from my far too small back garden which I cram too much stuff into. Mind you, been pretty productive this year with a bit of a courgette and cucumber glut and now the tommies and chillies are coming on a storm although the beans are a bit disappointing and I'm not too hopeful for the butternut squashs (planted them out a bit late) and the sweet potatoes were a total experiment so might produce nothing at all.

[nick the grief]

Have you been given a plot Alison or are you still on the list?

If you've got a plot earmarked have a word with the site managers and ask what the rules are re fruit trees.

If you haven't got a plot yet ask the site managers what the rules are re trees when they show you round Lol!!

No problem with the questions fire away, the answers are the easy bit it's the questions that are tough

After all I know more than you so you won't know if I'm telling the truth or not

[anthonyjb]

peter you say visit my blog I am new to all this .please wot is a blog I hope I am not asking a silly question
regards
Anthony

[ugly gourd]

Nat my advice is get a petrol mower then dig a little and slowly work the allotment a little at a time the area left fallow mow until you decide what to grow on it if it gets really bad, if you do your rows a bit wider than the mower then mow between the rows just to prevent the weeds going to seed once you taste your own veg that will spur you on and dont give half up give it another year if it still seems to much spread the word among family and friends and share

[nick the grief]

peter you say visit my blog I am new to all this .please wot is a blog I hope I am not asking a silly question
regards
Anthony

Hi Anthony, a blog is a cross between a website & a diary (short for weB LOG I think) anyone can have one & it's a good idea, trouble is they become compulsive.... like posting on a forum

[Peter]

Athony, Nick has it spot on, just click on the web refernece and view what I have been up to on my allotments. Should be an update in an hour or two.

Just catching up on everything after a week away in lovely Dorest.

Oh how I wish I could od the "down sizing" thing and move down there.

[sloopy]

hi even when it all goes pear shape arnt plots great, as for your carrots i had a great sucess this year i grew them all in buckets rased off the ground carrott fly cant fly highregards sloopy

[Nat]

Hello again Everyone !!!!!

My legs are killing me !!!!! i have spent the weekend digging and pulling out that terrible grass ....and anything else that looks like it shouldnt be there , i suppose for my first time i haven't done too badly crop wise from what i had planted, not perfect but ok in my standards.... Yes now i DO remember why i wanted to do this !!!!!

I'm hoping to get myself on a headstart for next year ... horse poop at the ready, and lots of old pond liners (thanks to my hubby) to cover it.... i'm planning to dig over a small piece of land at a time put the poop on it so deep and cover it till spning-ish, occasionally digging it over ??? good idea or bad ??

I have put in a couple of sprouting broccolli plants where my beans were, will they do ok there ??

I have decided after much thought to give up the other half of my allotment, its way to 'long' for me to deal with, i think i have to get this bit sorted first before i take on anymore, with 3 kids running riot when im there, and not enough hours in each day i have given in !!!! after all i'm sure there is someone out there eagerly awaiting a turn at growing their own, i'm pretty sure it's big enough for what i need, i have all my fruit at home, so its just a veggie growing area i need.

Although it's been quite tough going this year, i already have massive plans for next year... i just can't wait for spring to come around again !!!!!, But i do wish i had made a diary of what varity i'd planted, when and what the conditions were when i did it... i'll definatly do this next year .

Nat

[Squirrel]

But i do wish i had made a diary of what varity i'd planted, when and what the conditions were when i did it... i'll definatly do this next year .
Nat

Don't we all!