Posts Tagged ‘allotment’
Tuesday, December 27th, 2011
Being winter, the allotment is not really overflowing with things to do, but I am still visiting regularly just for the walk. My winter experiment in the greenhouse is going well and now we have passed the Winter Solstice and the days start getting longer again, I hope to see a bit more activity.
The mild winter means that all my garlic and onions are sprouting – some of the onions are around 6 inches tall. I hope we don’t get a sudden bout of violently cold weather that wipes everything out. Back in November I was given a pair of seriously good secateurs and now everything that can be trimmed has been duly trimmed. For Christmas I was given a stick chopper, which will come into its own later in the year, and a sharpening stone. That is already being used as I have started sharpening my Azada’s and spade. (more…)
Tuesday, November 22nd, 2011
It has been warmer than normal this month and it is showing at the allotment. The garlic is an inch high, the daffs are having a go and my peppers have just flowered – again! At this time of year the allotments are starting to look a little desolate; grey clouds make taking good pictures a challenge as the broad grey light makes everything look very flat. There are some bright moments, however.
One of the two blueberry plants that sit in brightly painted dustbins by the small green house has the most beautiful red leaves at the moment, and inside the larger, now insulated green house, lettuces, radishes, carrots and chard are pushing there way through the soil with fresh green shoots. (more…)
Saturday, October 22nd, 2011
I managed to get up to the allotment on this fine sunny autumn (ish) day and get one of the greenhouses sorted out for winter. This meant getting it all bubble wrapped (inside, I am not posting it anywhere) and sealing up a few of the holes in the windows where they don’t fit properly. I have bought bubble wrap from Harrod Horticultural, though you could just buy it from your local stationers. Some of the cheaper stuff is rather susceptible to UV and can disintegrate. I am hoping that the better stuff will last me a couple of seasons.
You have to remember that because this is up at the allotment I have no heat, so this is only helping to take the edge off at night; if we get a very cold period it will not do much if there is no sun to get the heat up during the day. But my hope is that I can get a few things going over the winter, at least to get some crops coming up early in the spring.
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Wednesday, October 12th, 2011
Over the years we have had out allotment with its cheapo second-hand greenhouses (amazing what you can get off Ebay) we have been meaning to grow some produce over winter. But we have never got round to it. When it is cold, dark and possibly wet, the allotment can suddenly seem a long way a way!
Well, since the allotment has now become part of my Lose Weight Before I Die campaign, I need the excuse to at least walk up the hill to it, even if it is only to water some carrots. However, doing my research (I really am very ignorant on all this stuff) I have found that I need to insulate the greenhouse so that it retains what little heat it gets during the days – basically to stop frost forming inside. (more…)
Friday, September 30th, 2011
I have started taking a bit more interest in the old allotment in the last few weeks. The main reason is that I am hoping that working on it, or even just walking up the hill to it regularly, will help with the excersise levels that I am missing out on.
This year has not been a great year on our small patch to be honest – we were away a lot over the summer and the lack of watering has produced a minimal crop. Also, we lost a few seedlings earlier so the plot did not get planted fully.
This time I am going to attempt to put a bit more life into the old dear. I have stripped away everything apart from the few remaining cabbages and have weeded till … well, we are, for the moment at least, weed free. I have set myself a few tasks that I have yet to complete. (more…)
Sunday, July 11th, 2010
New Potatoes with Rosemary and Garlic
There is a very good reason why have put the potatoes first in the title of this recipe – I picked them from our own allotment. These are Jersey Royal potatoes that we have grown ourselves, despite a conspicuous lack of rain. But by yesterday morning, the plants had died back on this crop and it was time to lift them. There is something especially wonderful about harvesting great product and dropping it straight into a pan. These were dug up at eleven o’clock in the morning and by six o’clock at night were boiling away in water. All that was required was to dress them up a little with rosemary and garlic to give them the respect they deserve.
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