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Re: Allotment

Posted: Sun Mar 24, 2019 11:36 pm
by Fox3WheresMyBanana
That said, serious forestry work can be dangerous. I have just wangled my way onto a free Chainsaw Safety Course for next week.

Re: Allotment

Posted: Sun Apr 14, 2019 9:52 am
by Ex-Ascot
Well that is it, the last annual produce picked - sweet peppers. Now I just have to give him the planting plan for whilst we are away with orders not to blast the seeds out of the ground again with the hose. Absolute idiot. I will try to time it so things are ready for picking upon our return. Not much chance, he will screw up and we will have to start again as per last year.

Re: Allotment

Posted: Sun Apr 14, 2019 11:57 am
by om15
Four lines of spuds now planted, over winter onions, garlic and leeks are coming on well, complete plot re dug incorporating a load of manure. The two grape vines are budding well and raspberry canes are full of lush growth. There are still frosts, so the lettuce and cabbage plants are in the shed awaiting a weather forecast review.
Life at the allotments has picked up, there seems to be a competitive edge emerging, people strimming and weeding in order not to be shown up by neighbouring plots, I will post a photo or two in due course.

One of my neighbours has rather exotic bamboo plants in his garden and he has given me a large pile of canes that he has cut, so next job is trimming the best to length ready for use later in the summer.

Re: Allotment

Posted: Thu May 30, 2019 3:39 pm
by om15
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Re: Allotment

Posted: Thu May 30, 2019 3:42 pm
by om15
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Stuff coming up nicely, sitting area now flowered up ready to be sat in.

Re: Allotment

Posted: Thu May 30, 2019 4:10 pm
by ribrash
Not sure if its the quality of compost from Aldi but my Tomato's have failed dismally this year.They are the only things that I usually grow.The neighbours get fed up receiving free bagfuls.

Re: Allotment

Posted: Thu May 30, 2019 5:56 pm
by om15
I have four very vigorous tomato plants in pots at home, starting to fruit, I am very careful with compost, the cheaper stuff does not retain moisture properly, that might be your problem.

If possible make your own compost, some of the proprietary brands have animal waste or mushroom waste as a base, you could inadvertently then incorporate chemicals, anti biotics and insecticides into your soil. I use garden waste mixed up with local horse manure, well rotted and with a handful of feed thrown in. This seems to retain moisture and does, as far as reasonably practical, exclude unknown unpleasant elements.

Re: Allotment

Posted: Thu May 30, 2019 6:05 pm
by Fox3WheresMyBanana
On the advice of my mum, who's done this professionally, I get super soil compost (cheapest) and pure sphagnum moss, and hand mix it 5:1. I've had to get the sphagnum moss in a huge bale, 105 litres, but it was excellent value per litre (the combination works out cheaper than any of the more expensive mixes, and works better) and I have the storage space. Over here, they have noticeably gone cheapo on all the big stores composts, and they now won't tell you how much moss is in it (they did up to last year).

Just about to start planting here. Of note is that the leeks and parsnips that got frozen in last November by the 6 week early winter, and had a sheet of ice over them until early May, not only survived but taste great!.

Re: Allotment

Posted: Wed Jul 03, 2019 8:27 am
by Ex-Ascot
OM that all looks very civilised. Trust that one has a beer fridge in the shed.

We use worm cast compost produced in Botswana to plant the seeds in outside and our own compost goat and cattle dung to dig in. Had a report back today that our chap has started the planting programme as directed. Just hope the little bastard has not blasted all the seeds out of the ground again with the hose. All tomato and pepper seeds from the family farm here. Still awaiting the piglets here. Or baby porks as he calls them!

Re: Allotment

Posted: Fri Jul 05, 2019 2:05 pm
by om15
Have lifted the overwinter onions and tied them in robes, still have a couple of hundred red onions growing on, think that I might have over done the onions as there are only two of us and missus om doesn't like onions.

The first earlies are coming up, I have two rows of earlies and another four rows of main crop, these are Pentland Javelin, about ten decent size spuds from one plant.




overwinter onions.jpg

Pentland Javelin.jpg

Re: Allotment

Posted: Fri Jul 05, 2019 5:12 pm
by Fox3WheresMyBanana
Owing to time pressure, I am going with red onions, shallots and tomatoes this year, plus the orchard apples. Onion and apple storage will be this year's thing to learn.
I have 44 acres of potatoes in the field next door, so me growing spuds is rather pointless. The gleanings will keep me going all winter.

Re: Allotment

Posted: Fri Jul 05, 2019 5:39 pm
by om15
The method of storing onions that I use is to lay out the unions to dry, then string up into ropes and hang up in one of my lean too sheds, no windows so the unions will be kept in the dry away from sunlight, this will hopefully keep them edible until next spring.

Here is a closer photo of the rope showing how they are tied together.


onion rope.jpg

Re: Allotment

Posted: Fri Jul 05, 2019 7:02 pm
by Fox3WheresMyBanana
Got that, thank you.
It is the short shelf life of bought onions which has me growing my own.

Re: Allotment

Posted: Sat Jul 06, 2019 7:08 pm
by Pontius Navigator
Try plaiting them. Very satisfying.

Re: Allotment

Posted: Sun Jul 07, 2019 7:22 am
by om15
PN, I have tried that method but had problems as the stems died back and it unravelled, using string does overcome that problem.

Re: Allotment

Posted: Tue Jul 09, 2019 1:34 pm
by Ex-Ascot
One week to go before we see the state of our fruit and veg. Gave very specific written instructions. We will see. Probably a disaster again and we will have to start again.

OM do you plants onion sets or seeds. I always planted sets in the UK but you can't get them in Bots.. Takes ages to grow from seed.

Some good stuff coming from the hotel farm here at the moment but still no piglets.

Re: Allotment

Posted: Sat Jul 13, 2019 1:21 pm
by om15
Ex A, I use onion sets, the overwinter onions were a great success, however the overwinter leaks were not, they bolted and ran to seed, I have just planted a couple of dozen leaks that I grew from seed, so hopefully these will do better.
The brussels are coming on well, showing fruit, but cabbages seem to be struggling with the dry weather. I have just plant a couple of rows of lettuce and chard where the kale was growing, the kale was ok before our holiday, but came home and it had grown too much and the leaves were gone over, ditto the spinach, but still able to pick new leaf for salads.

I do hope that your agricultural specialists will be able to give you a happy surprise on arrival back home.

Re: Allotment

Posted: Fri Jul 19, 2019 4:15 pm
by Ex-Ascot
om15 wrote:
Sat Jul 13, 2019 1:21 pm
Ex A, I use onion sets, the overwinter onions were a great success, however the overwinter leaks were not, they bolted and ran to seed, I have just planted a couple of dozen leaks that I grew from seed, so hopefully these will do better.
The brussels are coming on well, showing fruit, but cabbages seem to be struggling with the dry weather. I have just plant a couple of rows of lettuce and chard where the kale was growing, the kale was ok before our holiday, but came home and it had grown too much and the leaves were gone over, ditto the spinach, but still able to pick new leaf for salads.

I do hope that your agricultural specialists will be able to give you a happy surprise on arrival back home.
Yep well 50/50. I think that he has done his best. The rape is doing well. Many seedlings nibbled by something. All under nets but we are re-seeding. Squash seedlings seem OK he has covered them in insect powder. The bananas are doing well. Sweet potatoes are not producing, have to look into it. Put in more tomato and pepper seeds this week all from Amorgos. A few winter lemons hopeful for some orange blossom this spring. Our biggest problem now is the lagoon drying up. May have to stop veg production but I am not going to lose the fruit trees. They do not like the bore hole water but it will keep them alive.

OM, did you ever say where you get your water from?

Re: Allotment

Posted: Sat Jul 20, 2019 2:51 am
by Alisoncc
Ex-Ascot wrote:
Fri Jul 19, 2019 4:15 pm
OM, did you ever say where you get your water from?
Don't answer Om, 'cos he's going to ask you to send him some. ;)))

Alison

Re: Allotment

Posted: Sat Jul 20, 2019 9:45 am
by om15
Originally the allotments were owned by the Crown Estate, as was most of the village, taken as death duties on the Lord Portman estate, in general the fields, allotments and open land were left pretty much for the village people to enjoy and use for fetes, keeping horses, running about in and so on. Quite recently the whole lot were sold to a famous development organisation and we are bracing ourselves for the consequences of that (there are plans for a further one hundred and fifty thousand new houses in Dorset).
The allotments are now owned by this organisation, however under the original terms of the lease there are no rules or regulations, there are two taps available, each allotment holder pays £10 per annum for unlimited use and as much water as they need. Who pays for the shortfall I have no idea.