The 2015 Allotment / Veg Patch Thread - it's here!

[TheSpottedZebra]

Yes, it's the thread you've all been waiting for, a place to chit chat about your allotment or fruit and veg patch - however big it may be. Even if it currently only imaginary or no bigger than a pot of growing basil from the supermarket.

Come discuss your plans, your seeds, your learnings from previous years and your goals for this year. All levels of knowledge welcome, from absolute beginner, to enthusiastic 2nd year-er (me!), to anyone else.

They had seeds in our Lidl, I stopped after leaving work (lunchtimes are chaos, especially on Thursday.

Ooh, did they, WhoKnows ? Did they have a big range? Did you get anything?
Did you get any fruit bushes from Aldi, agoodbook? Mine from last year did really well. Want more, but ony bought some, er, last week from Wilko.

Guess what I got? Yes, my allotment key. Then, in delicious irony, it started snowing. And has settled aa bit

They had one rotating rack full, different pack sizes. A reasonable selection of different things but only one or two varieties of each. Not that many flowers. I bought cherry tomatoes, radishes, parsley, cornflowers and French marigolds.

You got the key woohoo! I got my bill for next year's rent.

A key - joy ! The weekend beckons , hopefully snow free. I think we were let of today- too far east I think , no snow at all!
No fruit bush buying for me - I already have 2 gooseberries, 2 redcurrants, 2 blackcurrants in my fruit cage, a loganberry, and a row of autumn raspberries. At home I have summer raspberries, rhubarb and a jostaberry.
In the new half plot there is another row of raspberries, a blackcurrant, a gooseberry and more rhubarb! I am hoping to get a greengage ,a victoria plum and possibly some white currants, but that is for autumn I think, while I work out where I want to put everything. :)
I have bought quite a lot of flower seeds this year- was someone mentioning up thread about cut flowers? I have been growing sweet peas, but this year I am also doing sunflowers, and some nice cottage garden flowers to attract the bees hopefully.

agoodbook, I thought you might like to know that we had hail here today! ...still T-shirt warm between showers though

Along with the summer purple sprouting, our first round of peas and sugar (snap) peas are looking lively, as are the cucumber! Toms and peppers are still in hiding but the Sunflowers are about 6" already. Some of the companions (nasturtium and calendula) are starting to grow too, along with some frivolous non edibles. The sweet peas are just showing their faces!

I did swing by aldi for a look at the canes - I resisted, for now.

(...and I've just read what agb said about sunnies and sweet pea!)

Spotted, congratulations! Happy key day

Weather not too bad here today so I'n plucking up the energy to go out and do some tidying of the patch. It's a fenced off corner of a field and its trying its best to revert to grass...just googled couch grass though and now I'm panicking that it's this it's clumpy and kind of taking over. Does it make a difference re. how I deal with it as opposed to normal grassy weeds? Take out as much root as possible I presume...here goes then!

I went down my allotment ( )today to have a look around. I love it!

I found some rhubarb that I somehow hadn't noticed, in what will be the semi shade of the apple tree. That was where I had sort of planned to put the gooseberry so will have to rethink that. Lots of strawbs too, although they might be a bit spent, and I have a ton at home already. And the soil is in excellent nick, the plot has clearly been well - loved until very recently. Weeds not too bad (unlike poor Batman ). And I found some markers for what had been planted before, which was excellent help.

So I measured up and now need to draw up my map of the plot, and what is there now, and what I want to be there and thus ill have a bit of plan! Nothing super urgent needs doing I don't think - the apple tree could do with a bit of a prune, the compost heap needs turning and a slight mend, and I might try to fix the shed roof. A bit of a tidy up, and get some bare rooted fruit canes and bushes in, er somewhere. That's my list for now, I think.

With old rotting apples on the ground, should I add them to the compost heap but add in some dry material too, or would they be best off chucked away (into the council food waste collection)? There's quite a lot of them...

Ooh, continuing the cheap fruit plant theme, Aldi have £3.99 fruit trees in www.aldi.co.uk/en/specialbuys/thur-5-feb/product-detail/ps/p/fruit-trees-3/ . No mention of rootstock though.

Wow zebra sounds like it's already all set up for you! I wonder who had the plot before and why they left? (sorry if you've already said)

Amantes - you are putting the boot in!
had my DGS today and putting my feet up now - its easier to dig than run after a 27 month old boy!
No snow here, and not too bad , though a bracing breeze ( mind you- I go at 7 to pick DGS up and- it was -4º ! )
I'm hoping its not too bad on Sunday, so I can get a couple more hours in
And - I shall sow my celeriac -it's a slow germinator :)
Batmam couch grass has lots of intertwined white roots- just do the bet you can , and try to follow the roots - they go everywhere, particularly downward, and around other plant roots, but it's not the end of the world, you just need to keep at it and try to get as much out as possible - any roots left just spring up again good luck!

spotted - that sounds ace! My DH is the compost expert - he says no problem , chuck 'em in!, but not a big heap of them all at once.
I nicked my daughters old graph paper pad for my plan. I draw them up every year, and keep them so I know what to rotate and where. My mate at the allotment does hers on a spreadsheet!

batnam couch grass can be quite satisfying to pull up. Following the root like bootlaces.

There is a theory that if you sow turnip seed really thickly it gets rid. Not sure its true though.
Also sowing tatties can help as they will outgrow a lot of weeds but if the grass is to vigorous the sharp roots make holes through root veg. So a bit of both dughing up and planting in works. Just don't rotivate!!!

Hi. I have a half lot. Some fruit bushes. Globe artichoke. Brassicas. Lots of beetroot. Legumes.
this year I am trying shallots for the first time. Don't usually bother with carrots and onions as they are cheap in shop.
Giving up on celeriac, scorzonera, kohl rabi and chard either because they don't do well or because I just don't eat them.
At the mo it is covered in either cardboard, seaweed or phsyalia(sp?) And i still have broccoli, kale and oca on site.

I also have an allotment pest one of the other plot holders will not leave me in peace.

No idea, Batman. It's a little bit sad, as it wasobviously a well - loved place until very recently, so i hope that nothing awful has happened to the previous owner...

Ta for that, agoodbook and DH-of! I shall add them in phases. i have a nice, but unused, sketch pad so I will use that for my plan. There will likely be colouring-in done. I have secret good pencils that I hide from the DC. I do have a spreadsheeted month by month planner for all of my many seeds however...

I think I will start to sow seeds in February. Or maybe very late January. Hot chillis first I think, plus some salady bits too.

commiserations on the pest mink - I have one of those! The couple next to me are lovely really, but they are there every day with manicure scissors i think- I dash down as and when , and all they want to do is chat......!
I am growing over wintering shallots for the first time - according to Monty Don, they store for longer than onions, and we love them

spotted - very late January is tomorrow :)

marking my place. I'm hoping to pop over and tidy the shed tomorrow.

must make a list of seeds. I only got my allotment last April so I'm still on a steep learning curve.

Hello Mink !Yikes at the allotment pest. Is he chatty, or... worse. If 'just ' chatty, can you try headphones? They don't eve need to be plugged in, the wire can just be tucked into a pocket. That way you can prevent a condo from starting, as long as you're prepared to not take them out a be a bit rude with the gestures and the shrugs.

Condo = convo obviously.

Why yes, agoodbook so it is. Lucky that I got the propagator out of the shed already, hey?

:) spotted - I'm at work ...... :(

well, after watching that allotment challenge tonight, I don't think I shall be growing okra anytime soon :)

Me neither. That programme is pretty crap IMO, DD (9) loves it though.

Can't see me getting up to the plot this weekend, DS's birthday party, which is an afternoon out plus sleepover tomorrow, need to get the ouse straight in the morning and take DS to hockey practice. Then got more visitors on Sunday. Day off work Tuesday, hope to go then.

:) I don't have two veg that match ever ! . I have Sunday morning free ! So fingers crossed the weather is not too horrible - have quite a lot of tidying on the other bit of plot - there are still beans dried up on canes and 3 rows of potatoes to dig up!

Thats the plot I am taking over btw ! Not mine - its such a shame as the other tenant planted a lot of stuff, and then just seemed to lose heart in August, and barely came back

Allotment challenge really annoys me because it should be a league not an elimination. I always try to spot the eliminated contestants in the background when they are doing the seed planting bit0s.

My pest started out as just friendly, bit too chatty but quite helpful. Waters my plot in summer (along with several others). even if I ask him not to! then he started giving me stuff. Spare netting, timber, seeds etc. It was easier just to take it than keep saying no think you. And I was quite happy to give him spare seedlings etc. As i do with other plot holders.
Then he got totally over friendly texting, inviting me for lunch, buying jewellery making inappropriate remarks so I had to tell him to back off (repeatedly) and that I don't want anything.
And to leave me to my own plot and stop making me uncomfortable.
He can see the lot from his house so as soon as he sees me he comes beetling out.
Yesterday he turned up to tell me he had got me potatoes. I was quite curt with my no thanks. I didn't ask for them. He never asked me. And I have already got mine.
(Trying ratte this year). Tbh I don't go there nearly as much as I used to because of it.