Lost my way

I haven't been able to get to the allotment for ages due to work commitments and now I feel I've given up. I'm not sure why I've lost my way, I am a little depressed with life my biological mother decided to contact me through a social media platform. I have lived in care all my life and probably thought I'd delt with the demons inside.  Perhaps not, but I really enjoy growing and gardening and need to find my gardening mojo. The garden is also in need of attention at thats where I live.
Has anyone else had this before and how did you get back on track?
HELP

Purple carrot

Wow look at that! It tastes excellent so fresh and purplish.... We grated it into a near home grown salad, just the toms and cucumbers were shop bought.  These came out of a funky veg kit my daughter Daisy gave me for Christmas. Along with red brussels sprouts, bright light chard and stripey tomatos. 

Gardenline Hedge Trimmer.

Slightly off topic but today I purchased this a 25cc petrol hedge trimmer from Aldi. This is a 2 stroke 55cm dual action blade with rotating handle, it has a 300ml fuel tank and the cutting width is 24mm The Code is 52721. Theres a 3 year warranty and after sales support.
ALL THIS FOR £69.99!

Wow, this is too good to be true so I unpacked the unit which is completely assembled bar the plastic saftey guard. Once this was screwed together I filled the fuel bottle with the petrol and oil mix as indicated on the bottle which was supplied with the machine.
Once filled with fuel and a few compressions of the intake pump and the choke on. I gave it a few pulls of the cord and it ticked over, no more choke and a few more pulls and it fired up.
Then it rained so I put it in the shed and went to work.
The hedge in the front garden is and has been overgrown for sometime so I put on some long trousers and a pair of glasses and fired it up again. What a tool it cut the hedge with ease it took about 10 minutes to trim my bush !
Excellent tool would recommend to everyone who wants a cost effective hedge trimmer. But hurry up as Aldi wilk sell out fast.

Tie up your tomatos

Just got home from work and looked into the greenhouse to find the job that I put off yesterday now needs doing. The tomatoes have fallen over and now need to be tied up loosely and adjusted daily untill the tomatoes straighten back up.
I grow beef, plum and cherry toms. Only two of each plant and I thin the amount of flowers to (try) and produce a better crop.
Fingers crossed the blight doesn't get em!

Comfrey

Comfrey, if you don't know is a herb that is used for making a high potassium tomato feed as well as it being a good compost activator.  I believe it's one of the quickest plants to break down or compost. The plant can be cut and used approximately 3 to 4 times a season. The bee's love it's flowers and it grows at an exceptional rate. I think there's a couple of types one that takes over your growing area and the other that has to be divided in order to spread. I make a feed for my potatoes and tomatoes by cutting down a stem or two and breaking them up, and putting them into a five gallon plastic tub with a screw lid filling it with water and leaving it to ferment for three or four weeks. Now this mixture is very strong and needs to be diluted  I add a couple if glugs to the watering can and feed the roots rather than the plant. This also has the worst smell ever, rotting dead things is a fair way to describe it.
Try this link:
http://www.permaculture.co.uk/videos/least-12-reasons-plant-comfrey-symphytum-officinale-your-permaculture-garden

Runner bean poles

I purchased my been poles from Croydon coppice man Robert (www.croydoncoppice.co.uk)
Who looks after a couple of woods making various items for the grower. He also makes charcoal which takes three days to burn!
The poles are very sturdy and make a great frame tied together with natural string helped by my daughter Daisy. I'm only growing a couple of beans as they produce so many pods.

Raised beds & screened topsoil

Managed to get the last two raised beds built with the help of my son Ryan who probably didn't enjoy the whole half term work day with Dad! We took delivery of 2.5 tonne bags of screened topsoil (loose) but wr managed to reverse the tipper truck down to my plot and tipped onto a tarpaulin. This is for my no dig bed which is 3.5m x 3m x 6 inch high and it took all of it. This allows me to plant straight away which is the everything else bed on my three bed rotation system. So after a load of earth moving we moved to the pub for a well earned pint.
Soil was from a company called Southeastsupplies who I found on ebay! The soil is slightly clay based so holds moisture well it's light, airy and weed free. Very pleased with it.

Cloche tunnel

ALDI are selling closhe tunnels for £5.99 these are 300 x 45 x45cm (approx)
How cheap are these!

Raised beds x3

Well today was very productive built the other 2 raised beds. My 3rd bed is a no dig bed as I've broken my back digging the rest over...
I have covered this bed in newspapers and cardboard and then I'm filling it up with 1part topsoil 1 part mushroom compost and 1part soil improver.
By the time the newspaper and cardboard has broken down the grass underneath should have composted down.
Next is the raspberries, these are overgrown with more grass...
TBC

Got to the plot at last

Not being able to get to the plot all weekend was doing my head in. I had dropped off the timber for the raised beds last thursday and not been able to start the build. This afternoon was different,  I got the first bed built and raked over (again). I uncovered the spuds from frost covers and they had broken through the soil so I back filled a little.
The tap has been fitted albeit badly as it's leaking in two places (council plumbers) and I've watered the ground to full extent.
I will build two more beds before I cover them all in cardboard and newspapers then fill them up with compost 10 tonne bags at a guess these are £40 a bag from my local Knights garden centre, and think that's a good deal? 

Pea net

Following the second dig of bed two which took 3 goes and thats not including the first dig to clear the surface grass. I managed to plant out a gutter full of peas which I errected a 22mm net to support using some batton and a bamboo Caine across the top.
The allotment is without a tap as this is disconnected each winter and yet to be reconnected, so I hope the gods will help out until such times. I am now going to focus on bed 3 which I will raise 6 inches with kickboards and this will become a no dig bed. I will add a layer of compost, several layers of newspaper, then alternate layers of compost and manure to fill the 6 inch.
I'll post the pics and results. 

WHAT ARE THESE

I keep digging these funky fellas up and I don't have a clue what they are or whether they're bad or not.
Anyone help?

Bloody foxes!

Wow we managed three varieties if potatoes yesterday only to be told the frost will get them if I'm not careful.
Then today I find a fox has dug up a load of them. And walked all over the rest.
What do I do about this invasion?  Well after some investigation I will be trying the wee method!!! I will exert my alfa male and pee all around the plot, across the paths and around the whole 14 plot space.
No not really,  I don't fancy the nicking or the embarrassing court appearance for urinating in a public place. So I'll discreetly pee in a bottle and sencesibly add the liquid to the boarders arround my plot.

T.B.C
First "wetting" yesterday 24th March

Potatoes in!

Excellent few hrs digging over and removing weeds. Managed to get 3 different varieties of potatoes in the ground.  Only to be told by the next door neighbour the frost this weekend might kill them!!!
Now looking for some fleece quick as
The new valentines flask came out for Ross "a friend digging the plot with me" shame the tea in it wasn't up to scratch.
The plot is slowly being taken back by the grower.

Beautiful day

I had a wall to finish building today I needed to hang a door plasterboard the stud wall and fit a lock the archives and skirting.
All I can think about is digging the allotment plot, so I left work at 12 grabbed a pastie and headed to the plot. I have some onions and garlic to get in the ground but the area isn't dug yet. So I quickly re-dug the first patch and planted the garlic. I finished the pastie and headed back to work.
I raced through the work and back to dig again by 3.30pm only managed two spade lengths deep bt 4m long before the back gave up.
Now I've just seen an article in grow your own magazine (growing help) Charles Dowding's No-Dig!  Why didn't I see this before.

More to follow on this No-Dig bussiness.

Sowed some seed at last

Sowed Cauliflower, Brussels sprouts nelson f1 & red delicious, 3 different types of Cabbage, Broccoli,  Chard brightlights, spring onions in heated propagator, Leeks, sunflowers, some sweet pea and Adonis (pheasants eye).
The leek seed is from a leak I let go to seed and this is the first time I've grown them this way so fingers crossed.
The allotment is proving very slow I've only managed one session on Sunday as it is still very wet lets hope the next couple of weeks are dry.

Leaf mould cage

I found a few meters of cattle fencing and made myself a cage 75cm wide x 80cm high. I'm open to offers if anyone needs one!
My melon seeds have germinated today after 7 days. Looking forward to getting these in the greenhouse.

Meteor peas

After the three day bedridden chest infection I ventured out to the garden centre for some seed compost. I then decided to rearrange the bench/shelf in the greenhouse which duly fell down.  I looked and looked for some clips to support the guttering for the first early Meteor peas and found if I wound some wire around a nut on the end of the a greenhouse bolt I could suspend the guttering.  And after fixing three of these wire noose's I found three large shelf brackets and started out all over again.
So now by the end of light I had managed to fill one lenght of guttering with grow more veg compost and forty to fifty peas.
I've hung a basket in the gh to acclimatise ready for some tomatos in the next few weeks. I planted up a pot of lemon grass but I've not had much use in the kitchen for this in the past so not sure why I bothered but I do love to grow stuff.

Ill in bed

This is day 3 in bed with a chest infection.  But looking out the window this weather isn't the best either.

Rain again

Due to the weather I decided to go to the garden centre and purchase a box of chicken manure. Then I got carried away and got two bags of tomato seaweed compost grow compost.  Then I couldnt resist the plastic seed tray and lids combo for £3.99. Down from £9.99. Bargain

Potting on compost shortage

Managed to get to Knights garden centre for some John innes number 2 to pot on the chillies,  but they hadn't ordered any in. So ended up with some Grow your own  vegetable and fruit enriched compost. 2 bags for a tenner 50ltr each.
Got a couple of seed tray lids (unheated propagators)

I added a load of W clips to the polycarbonate greenhouse sheets to stop the leaking roof due to the wind. Also WD40 on the louvre window, but didn't get to fit the opener. Another day...

Still got this cold

Just a look at the chillies and they look like they need potting on. John innes number 2 and into 3 inch pots over the weekend.

Help needed

The dreaded cold has arrived and laid me flat on my back. No gardening for the rest of the week I feel.
I ordered new w clips for the greenhouse which arrived yesterday via Ebay. I want to strengthen the polycarbonate sheets following the winds we've had lately which blew out one if the roof sections and moved a few more out of position allowing some water to get in. I have a louvre auto window opener to fit and then I'm ready to start planting.
Get well soon!

Chitting

Put the potatoes out to start chitting.  Swift, Arron Pilot and Rocket. The Swift have some shoots appearing already not surprising as they are an extra early variety.
Popped into the allotment to plant two new rhubarb roots, Timperley Early and livingstone being a late cropper (September to November). First year rhubarb mustn't be picked in the first year and sparingly in the second year to build up the plant for years to come. Once on the third year they can be forced but not for another two years to follow, so make sure you have a few of each varietie to crop all season.

Double digging with Ryan

Wow that was hard work. Spent 3 hrs with my son at the allotment and dug over the existing onion patch. Clearly too wet to dig, needs must and the new allotment won't dig its self. ..

Clean greenhouse

Clean greenhouse with my pond and strawberry patch (created this season) behind the fence.
Everything I grow in the GH is in the ground. Peppers, tomatos and melons this year. Most seeds and salads are started there also.

Greenhouse clean and veg delivery

Jeyes fluid purchased, I cleaned the greenhouse outside in purely as I wasn't going to clean the inside (lazyness) I know but I got into it and cleaned the pond filter two pumps and all patio area around. Pictures to follow.

Mr Fothergills delivered my Rhubarb one early one later, shallots, onions white and normal, reds to follow and potatoes first earlies Swift, Arron Pilot and Rocket. Excellent produce I will post results as and when.

Going to the allotment tomorrow (25/1/2014) with my son (16yr old) to continue the great dig over.... He will want paying may I add.

New blog, new allotment and Happy new year!

I have been growing stuff for 20 odd years but this year I have an allotment to dig over as well as a garden plot with 6x8 greenhouse.

So here goes!

In the garden:
All beds dug over, new strawberry patch planted greenhouse bedded onto base and dug over. Still needs a clean up of the polycarbonate sheets though! I have planted chilli's in a heated propagator  on 3/1/2014 and they took 8 days to germinate these will be potted on in a week or so.

At the allotment:
this is 4mx17m and hasn't been looked after for "6mts" so I'm informed. I have dug over a small section and found Rhubarb (keeping) potatoes that had been in the ground too long by the look of things. A large patch of onions & shallots which will be dug up and composted. these were under a plastic net overgrown with grass. I have filled a compost bin in one visit mainly with grass. There's a section at one end with soft fruit bushes not quiet sure of all but the very prickly blackberry will be dug up and replaced with a thornless variety. My kids will thank me one day!
Due to the rain this afternoon (23/1/1014) I cancelled my next dig lets see what tomorrow brings after work.
I have a delivery from Mr Fothergills in the next few days Rhubarb, onions, potatoes and garlic these need planting , chitting etc.

I will post what I'm growing the varieties and how, when they get planted.