Underneath all that grass is tarpaulin, totally melded to the earth by grass roots!
My Allotment (est. 2019) |
I hadn't actively planned to have an allotment, but when I was offered one out of the blue, I felt very excited at the prospect and jumped at the chance!
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Underneath all that grass is tarpaulin, totally melded to the earth by grass roots!
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| My little bro came to the rescue with his industrial lawn mower. | Soon took care of all that pesky grass and weed wilderness! |
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Now it doesn't seem so daunting. |
Unfortunately, the beds in the foreground were not mine! Luckily (for me), the plotholder was grateful for my help. |
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| Next job, get the apple and cherry tree pruned. | They haven't been pruned for years, judging by the woodpile! |
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| I was given a greenhouse that was going to be thrown away. | This is where the greenhouse will be sited. There is a huge pile of earth under the wood... |
First Bed |
Second Bed |
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| First bed dug over and weeded. | Onto the next bed. | |
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| Give a sprinkling of manure. | Tore off the tarpaulin. | |
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| Weed barrier, ready for the winter. | Dug over and manured. | |
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| Potatoes, courgettes, spinach and beetroot growing merrily! | Planted with red onions, shallots, garlic, parsnips and carrots. | |
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| A few weeks later... |
Third Bed |
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| Dug over, manured and covered in weed barrier ready for winter. |
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| Planted the cabbages. | Netted, as I am not going to share any with those pesky pigeons! |
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| Lots of things are sprouting. As I am not sure what my shoots should look like, I daren't do any weeding. |
The Fruit Patch |
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| I had set myself a very limited amount of time to complete this task, one Saturday morning before "Grandparent Duty". I was like the Tasmanian Devil, digging for England! |
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| A couple of hours later... |
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| A few days later, I found a pile of border edging outside someone's back gate, with a sign saying, "Please take me." Would have been rude not to! I have made good use of it containing the woodchips. Planted with nine fruitbushes: raspberry, blackberry, chokeberry, gooseberry, cranberry, fig, redcurrant, blackcurrant and blueberry. |
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| Strawberries in a butler sink. |
Pond and Woodland Path Area |
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Herbery |
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| Needed a good dig over, then a sprinkling of stinky chicken manure pellets! |
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| Planted full of herbs: sorrel, parsley, cumin, coriander, borage, ginger, lavender, chives, garlic chives, mint, basil and dill. |
Legume Bed |
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The herbery is next to the legume bed.
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Dug over and planted. My neighbour, Alan, offered me some berlotti shoots that he had left over. Told me to help myself if he wasn't around. They were on the top shelf of his greenhouse. Needless to say, I took the wrong plants and now have a lovely row of asters to go with my berlottis! I have also planted broad beans, peas, runner beans and French beans.
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I used the garden edging to make a little bridge between the beds and lined pebbles along each side of the path.
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Kindergarden |
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| Picket fence and a slate step. Perfect little area for the grandchildren to learn how to love nature and how cool it is growing stuff! | Weed barrier ready for a little slate path in the middle of raised beds around the edge. Complete with washing up bowl pond! |
Cherry Tree |
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Sadly, I didn't even get one cherry, the "Jackdaw Mafia" scoffed the lot! Next year, I am going to net the lower branches, so at least I will get a share. |
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Washing up bowl pond. Planted with aquatic plants and a miniature water lily!
