The 'What I Did Today' Archive - 2007

[Hazel at the Hill]

Decided that the courtyard garden (i.e. yard) needed more attention than the Hill today:

• whipped out a whole heap of those orange flowered wotsits which look a bit like lilies which are dying down anyway
• had a big scrap with the ivy which strives for world domination over the fence at the back of the garage. Not sure if I won.
• cut back and tidied up herbs, strawbs and grape vine which has given me no grapes at all AGAIN this year
• borrowed next door's leaf sucker thingy for the leaves on the chippings, thus disposing of leaves and not chippings
• filled 5 green bags with leaves for green collection tomorrow

Came in, put fire on. Having roast beef and all the trimmings for dinner tonight.

[pigletwillie]

Dropped off some slabs at the lottie to continue making paths with. A bonus was bribing a council roadsweeper to drop his machines whole cargo of leaves directly onto the plot with a 4 pack, lots of wheelbarrowing saved there. Also picked a big punnet of cape gooseberries.

[Flummery]

Still digging! Had another go at one of the 3 remaining old shrub boles on the side drive. I figure that with constant undermining they'll eventually take the hint and give up!
Sorted out half the greenhouse and planted another bulb of Solent Wight in one of my fish boxes next to the greenhouse. Going back shortly to sow a few heritage winter lettuce in the border I've cleared. Onwards and upwards!

[pigletwillie]

Today I unloaded onother trailer full of 12 year old vintage manure and filled another new raised bed. With what was left over I top dressed two traditional beds with 3-4 inches worth ready for the worms to do their business.

Our reclaimed slab paving is coming along wonderfully with the path between us and our plot neighbours nearly finished plus some other paths between beds started.

Now its time for a hot bath and a big glass or barolo whilst reading a new foodie mag.

[shirlthegirl43]

With help from mk1 son, emptied all the buckets that had things growing in them over the 'summer', harvested one orange-sized pumpkin (pumpkin still flowering so left it alone), harvested my single carnival squash (looked nothing like the pic pigletwillie posted). Generally tidied up ready to mow the grass when I have the energy

[Lizzy]

Today I (hopefully) have cleared the last of my Jerusalem Artichokes, turned over this years bean plot, and cut down the raspberries (I have a warm and aching back to prove it). Will have something medicinal to ease the pain later.

Liz

[pigletwillie]

We were bulb planting. Daffs and tulips in the main and lots more still to go.

[Snadger]

Today I went to the lottie for a supposed quick visit to harvest a few veg for the weekend. Devastation had reighned with my capet path material. The wind had picked it up and deposited it all over the lottie. After piecing the jigsaw of strips together I realised there were a few pieces missing (Aint't it always the case!) Anyway I found the carpet strips in next doors allotment!
Spent about half an hour carpet fitting, gathered my tatties,carrots,swede,onions, cabbage and calabrese and tottled of home. What had supposed to be a ten minute visit turned into an hour but what the heck, the joys of having an allotment!

[Hazel at the Hill]

Tidying up the order of the day at the Hill, today so:

• raked over the rest of this year's misc bed and sowed green manure
• started to put some manure on next years potato bed - this winters parsnips are still in, so am having to put the muck on as the parsnips are eaten
• took down the barlotti bean poles and the plastic grid tent thing that the last lot of peas grew up
• did Good Deed of emptying the sacks of manure from the stables into the manure skip
• came home with parsnip, leeks, cabbage and a small but very beautiful cauliflower

Off for a bath and then to make corking sausage and bean casserole

[Hazel at the Hill]

Collected Billy Scarecrow from the Hill for a makeover.

Had a fabulous amount of 'Blue Peter' fun, and inadvertant sex change so that now we have Belinda Scarecrow!

Piccies will be take when she is back in situ.

[Snadger]

Chopped logs, lit stove, warmed up main greenhouse. Sowed some broad beans in modules. Brought in four pots of unknown brassica seedling which I lost the labels for. Hope that once they are a bit bigger I will be able to differentiate. I know one is PSB and thats the main one I am worried about!
The person who lives ajacent to my allotment had apparently been wining that I had some timber leaning against his fence so I moved EVERYTHING away from his precious fence. Don't want to fall out with the locals!
Gathered some tatties from my clamp, a string of onions (cos the string had broke)a swede,carrots (nailing back enviromesh once I had gathered them), the last of the Chrysanthemums, couple of red ham onions and a bag of plum tomatoes. Tomatoes are now in the oven, drying!
Note to myself.........must crack on with the chook house as Spring is fast approaching!

[Vegmonkey]

went to a farm a mate knows and picked up a van load of poo today. Got home and spread it out all over the bed that i had previously planted with the green manure. Sort of defeated the point of planting it really. Planted onion sets too which will be ready in june.

[Winged one]

Went to the "other garden" on Sat for an hour or so - on the toddler's orders (she started asking in the car on Friday night!!)>

Planted a row of broad beans. Was delighted to see that the overwintering peas had sprouted, as had the winter lettuce. cabbages getting good and leafy and brocolli looking good too, but some of the caulis are developing poorly.

Harvested enough peas for a small taste each for me and OH and a helping for the toddler. Fresh peas in November, from outdoors!! Hooray for GYOing!!

[zazen999]

Tidied up mainly; dug up some seed onions that were very small and all over the place and put into pots indoors ready to go back out in the spring. Harvested huge swedes, smallish leeks, carrots and cabbage for a lovely soup. One of my supposed multi-headed caulis actually has a tiny head on it - at long last.

Chopped down some of the cosmos and my companion plants, and the OH put some bulbs in for spring; moved some grasses around.

Put some onion sets into any available space for the winter.

Have been told that I should have an allotment come april [the year ends in march - how daft is that], but going to the local parish council meeting and having my say might sway it my way a tad earlier apparently - ridiculous the way things are run if you ask me. So, being that I will never get earlies in on time, decided to use the compost bin for my earlies, so started to empty that and use it for mulch, and empty the dalek onto the top of the compost bin with some cardboard so that it is ready come early spring for those pots to go in.

[Hazel at the Hill]

Took Belinda Scarecrow back to the Hill this morning.

Helped to show 30 a class of primary school children that vegetables do not spontaneously ping into existance ready shrink wrapped on Sainsbury's shelves....