Newbies

[pixieface]

Just found this site on a link from another forum.

Retired couple just taken on a new allotment, try to be as self sufficient as possible and grow as much as we can of our own food.

Wanted to libe in France, but have not made it, so settled where we are using our caravan for trips to France for as long as we can afford.

[gunners71uk]

hi there pixies what part of uk are you, i have had my allotment just over 3 months had to clear it of all weeds triffids even! i have leeks ,onions and cabbage in i live in worksop i havenot got on to do anytrhing for a week blinking rain. some thistles growing done some winter digging.but ground wet when its dry need to slack the netts off as cabbage pushing up.what do you want to grow.your trips to france will have to fit in with growing seasons unless you get someone to look after your plot in buy times and let them harvest some of your veg in return for their help.

[pixieface]

We are in the Midlands, our allotment has not been used for 8 years, so has laid fallow, we are arranging to get it ploughed for a start and will then set it out with raised beds, do not plan to put anything other than garlic and onions in just now. We holiday out of season so harvesting is not such a problem and the other allotment holders are happy to water etc if anyone is away, they will swap produce for any they have picked whilst you are away.

This is not the first time we have had an allotment, previously we had a very big one, but found it too hard going, we no longer have the big freezers etc in the house we have now, so only grow what we can eat and store.

We had to get a skip moved off the site before we could do anything, but they collected that on Saturday, not too weedy, the grass has been kept cut so only the bit by the road which had been used as a rubbish dump had to be cleared, we inherited a cast iron bath complete with plug for water storage, although when we get our shed put up we will put guttering and a water barrel on that as well.

Will be planting some spuds in the new year to help break up the soil, do not grow main crop, but earlies and salad potatos, apart from that the land will be left to allow what ever frosts we have to break down the soil. I have some very well rotted horse manure which we will spread and leave for the worms to drag down.

There is a pile of wood chippings which we will use to make paths between the beds, were given some weedproof liner which we will put down first.

[Wombat]

G'Day Pixieface,

Sounds like you have a nice allotment there, what with the cast iron bath and all. Hope to here more of it as you work on your improvements.

Nev

[Millymollymandy]

And when you get muddy after working on the allotment - you can have a bath before going home!

Welcome to the forum Pixieface.

[ina]

Hello and welcome, Pixieface

Actually I thought of keeping a few ducks with your bath as a pond? They would solve your future slug problems, too!

Sounds you inherited quite a few useful things along with the allotment. Makes it all the more fun.

Ina

[Guest]

Would love to keep ducks or hens but we are not permitted to, the agreement forbids keeping livestock........My next job is to get the shed put up, we are meeting the chap with the plough tomorrow, hope its going to be ok to turn over the soil then at least we can start working the soil to get the onions and Garlic in and also move the fruit trees, two apples and a plum and the blackcurrant, gooseberry and raspberryand stawberry plants in..... then it will start to look like an allotment... I have taken some before pictures, once the shed is up and the soil turned over I can take some more.

[Andy Hamilton]

Hi there pixieface

So what part of the midlands you from? Myself and Dave (who started up the site) origniate from northampton, we have also both lived in Nottingham.

How's the allotment getting on? have you managed to do what you wished?