Our patch of earth: Lists, lists, lists

How it began...

So, we’d spent time walking past our local allotments, getting more and more interested in the mysterious things that other people were growing and the ingenious uses that people had found for stuff that non-allotmenteers would probably term ‘junk’.

In March 2007, we spoke to our council, and discovered that our local allotments aren’t council owned - it turns out they’re held in trust. So, we decided to find the secretary. We spoke to Mike and Louise who were really welcoming and enthusiastic, then eventually tracked down Alan the secretary and, a few weeks later, we chose a plot with a little blue shed, a water butt, a small bench, and a patch of oregano.

We dug. It was April, and for those of you who remember April 07, it was hot, hot, hot. The ground was like rock. Adam was having to jump onto the fork to get it into the soil. But we persevered – this was our new veggie patch! We had plans for a herb garden over there, and some rows of beans over here, a compost heap at the back and flowers planted down the edges… until, one week in, a little old Italian lady turned up and claimed the plot was hers. Wah! Much confusion ensued, until we decided we’d rather not have the hassle and uncertainty, and much less be known as the new guys who kicked a little old lady off her plot. Gracious, no.

So we found a new spot. South facing, with rhubarb, gooseberry bushes (I didn’t know they were spiky!), a damson tree (which we thought were plums to start with – till mum made Damson gin and we recognised the fruit) and the Biggest Strawberry Patch In The World.

Twas overgrown, tis true, but much better than plot number 1. Hurrah for little old Italian ladies!

And two sheds! His and Hers, obviously, mainly because mine isn’t quite tall enough for Adam to stand upright in. So, mine has the tea and coffee making facilities, small gas stove, radio, seed packets on nails and an assortment of gardening gloves, while Adam’s has all the manly things – tools, wooden crates, useful bits of wood, tangled netting and carefully wound up bits of wire.

So the digging had to begin, again. After assessing the plot, with some useful hints and random-plant-identifying by Mike, we headed home to get forks and other digging equipment. Ten minutes later we returned to our overgrown plot to hear a strange buzzing noise, and find Mike strimming all the thigh-high weeds with his petrol strimmer! Thanks Mike! A good start to our compost heap… (Add 'build compost heap' to the To Do list.)

And then, half an hour later, as we’re just beginning to curse the sun for being too hot and the earth for being too hard, around the corner of our sheds comes our saviours Mike, Louise and their mate Ali, on white stallions, (no, not really) all brandishing forks and ready to help us dig, till we’d dug the same amount we’d done on plot no.1. Bless ‘em.

And then it was all go! Nine months later, 2008 seems promising. We've read many, many more books, got more ideas and got much more ambitious. And we've actually grown stuff which tasted gooooood. It could still all go horribly wrong, but even if it does I can guarantee we'll still get some tasty fruit and veg from between the weeds, all for a few pence, and a bit of blood, sweat and tears... (well, hopefully not the blood or the tears... just good ol' elbow grease.)

And a bit of help from our friends and family. Any time, chaps - you're very welcome! We'll get the kettle on...

Sounds fun, eh?

Tuesday, 22 January 2008

Lists, lists, lists

We sat down and made a wish list last night of all the things that we would like to grow. It seems we each have a slightly different approach. I get excited about things I know I like, things that we’ll enjoy eating, and the interesting varieties of said items - like quirky shaped squashes, yellow courgettes and multi-coloured carrots. Adam, on the other hand, likes to add really random things to the wish list – stuff we’ve never eaten before, let alone know how to grow and what to do with. Things like kohl rabi and asparagus peas. I think we might have an interesting crop this year!

The list came to about £30. That initially seems a LOT to spend on seeds, but then you consider how much fresh food you'll actually get for your money and how much you spend in a week at Tesco (or on a night out), and it doesn't seem so bad. Especially when some of the seeds will be kept for next year too.

While he may pick out some strange veggies, Adam is good at thinking forward to next winter, and is keen to add stuff to the list like kale, parsnips, swedes and spinach, so we’ll hopefully get more winter greens and veg than this year. Our sprouts this year were nice and easy - thanks to Sian providing us with three seedlings - but, to be honest, three plants do not a hearty crop make. At the weekend we picked our first sprouts that've been ready since Christmas, so I think it’ll have to be the more the merrier next time on the sprout front. Also our spinach is a wee bit pathetic, having vastly underestimated the amount we needed to sow; our spring cabbage won’t be ready until (surprise surprise) spring, and although we’ve had a few beautiful baby turnips, about the size of golf balls, the rest aren’t yet ready to be plucked from the ground.

1 comment:

Nic said...: Good job you've got a big allotment to grow all of your wierd and wonderful crops ;o)
I wish Michael was more interested in growing veg.....the closest he gets is planting peas but then his didn't germinate and mine and Jack's did so he decided that he must be jinxed and stuck to building random paths across my veggie patch...I kid you not, he is a freak!
Kohl rabi is a bit like a turnip, we get them in our veggie box. You can make a lovely gratin with them or disguise them by hiding them in stews.; 23 January 2008 at 14:12

Blog Archive

Common ground - inspiration & motivation from other blogs

About Me

How it began...

Tuesday, 22 January 2008

Lists, lists, lists

1 comment: