Allotment/Veg Patch - Thread 7 - The Harvesters Arms

[bookbook]

Well, it's been an interesting summer, to say the least.
We are now heading into the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness :)
Everyone welcome to join in and ask for advice , share their woes and just enjoy growing!
previous thread here

Morning peeps.

So I have been bulb buying this week; some lovely blue irises and tulips. found out the reason that the bulbs have been sparse this year is the supplier was late getting them out and the range has been atrocious. But because of that, people went to buy them early and it means us faffers [aka me] got the best pick because the first batch of people round our way hadn't been back yet to get the later deliveries. Or something like that.

Also found a good supply of overwintering Radar onions and garlic which will be going in today.

Anyway - in my last name incarnation I took a job as head gardener and it has been the most horrendous job ever. I am never going back now, so I have some time whilst I apply for some other jobs to get that allotment done and move some wood from my garden to the lottie to make sides for the beds that are slowly being deeply covered in woodchip.

Oh no chuck - I'm so genuinely sorry to hear that. I was really hoping that the job was wonderful and that you'd be very, very happy there. It's awful that you've been treated so badly that you feel it's the worst position you've ever had. It sickens me that someone with so much skill and knowledge could be disrespected in that way.

I am sure someone will bite of your hand when it comes to getting a new position - I read your post a few pages back about what you'd achieved in a short time with awe and admiration. Anyone who can bring that kind of energy as well as knowledge to a job is incredible. You're amazing and I feel so inspired every time you post. In the meantime, I hope that your allotment and garden benefit from the energy you are able to put into them now.

Evening!
Had a lovely day out today, so no plot. It has been raining this afternoon, which is no bad thing here, and does mean it is not going to be quite so cold overnight.
Cedar - lead into temptation by garlic! :) Having to wait for someone before you can muck spread must be annoying- or is that me? I am such an impatient soul..
shove - well, I certainly hope I have the time - my weekend is getting rather crowded , and now have guests arriving Saturday afternoon, so I may try for tomorrow now with the broad beans, and manure shovelling now moved down to second on the priority list. Enjoy browsing windows - you are bound to see something you love, which will be double your budget ( that is if you are like me and DH anyway..)
Chuck - I will not say I am sorry that you won't be going back to the job, but so sorry that it was horrendous. With all the hard work you put in to turn it around, it must be really annoying. Certainly as shove says, your garden and plot will benefit from the extra attention. And with luck you will find something much more rewarding. Radar onions you say? may have to look out for them !

well, just been catching up on listening to GQT from Sunday. Has anyone tried growing turnip rooted chervil? James Wong ( hmmm) suggests it as a good alternative to parsnips - easy to germinate and tasty .

Thanks Shove and Book, unfortunately it is not just me, the person 'in charge' is unqualified, inexperienced and an abusive bully, i am able to walk away, the others arent and that is what saddens me.

I have another small plot at college now, due there tomorrow to plant up a few more winter crops. Plus of course this time of year sees me mowing up under peoples trees to collect the leaves for my next leaf mould pile.

Ive brought my salvias in, some were unnamed and i dont know whether they were hardy or not, so will be taking cuttings, repot for the winter and trim them back and keep them in the greenhouse. Same for the lemon verbena, and my wonderful honeydew melon sage. Ive really enjoyed having salvias this year, the reds, purples and blues have been stunning.

chuck - In my last job, I had a boss who was a homophobe (wouldn't share a bowl of crisps with a gay guy because it might 'infect' him), a sexist (openly rated women in the office out of ten), and a bully. His attitude to absolutely everything was to have a fight with somebody about it. It absolutely destroyed me having to go in day after day and deal with the kind of shit he used to create and I used to come home from work and just cry for an hour each night. After I left, it took me a long time to feel OK again! I'm saying all this as a preamble to saying: I know how awful it can be to work with someone who is a bully, and it can be utterly soul-destroying and undermining, even for someone who is really capable and strong like you. I hope you are OK - it is such a shame this has happened and it really, really isn't fair. I'm really glad you have loads to keep you busy in the meantime, and I know you're tough as they come, but do be kind to yourself.

book - enjoy your weekend! And yes, I'm bound to fall in love with windows that are crazily over budget, aren't I? I have never even heard of turnip-rooted chervil, but it sounds like the kind of thing that would be better for my conditions than parsnips! I always forget to listen to GQT -I really ought to!

Chuck what a disappointment about the job. It's horrible when something that should be good turns out to be a complete nightmare.

Shove enjoy looking at windows. We found that rare thing when we were looking for replacement windows a few years ago - a company that would come and give you a proper price and then not hassle you endlessly to sign up.

book I've never heard of turnip-rooted chervil either. We don't grow parsnips because I don't like them and I think DH likes them a bit but not enough to bother growing them.

I must try and make time to get some more of our emptied compost bin up to the allotment this weekend. The bags I've filled are cluttering up the lawn.

As I walked home the other night I walked over lots of lovely leaves on the pavement outside one house and decided that because its at least half a mile from my house it probably wouldn't be practical to come and collect them for leaf mould

I'm good honest. I was a target because I knew the law [employment, financial etc etc] and stood up to her, it started on day 1 and just got weirder and weirder.

I have grown Root Parsley which is similar but found it harder to germinate than Parsnips. Will try the Turnip rooted chervil if I can find any. I love my root crops. I am getting rid of a shedload of seeds on ebay this month in preparation for fresh batches next spring. Will add this to my want list.

Off shortly to the plot.
You reminded me Chuck - I have been given a nicely rooted cutting of pineapple sage - its just on my kitchen windowsill at the moment. I wasn't told it was tender though , so have just looked it up. Hmmm H3 on RHS, so I guess that is going in the greenhouse. I'm a bit surprised mind you - my friend has a tough love approach to plants
I am so, so lucky that in all my working life, I haven't had to deal with a bully for a boss.
Chuck - I am so hoping you gave it to them with both barrels ( but maybe couldn't due to the others working there) It's a shame you cannot give bad reviews re employers isn't it?
shove - just and so glad you did manage to get over it .

x posted with Cedar - could you not nonchalantly walk with an empty bin bag and a wheelbarrow back to sweep up leaves? :) That is a job for me this afternoon - the garden is carpeted with them

Chuck - I am so hoping you gave it to them with both barrels ( but maybe couldn't due to the others working there) It's a shame you cannot give bad reviews re employers isn't it?

Funnily enough it is a charity and works with vulnerable people [one of whom she assaulted but apparently it was never investigated or reported]. So yes we [me and others who have also worked there and witnessed key behaviours] will be putting our reports in to the safeguarding teams, the charities commission, the council etc etc etc. Thing is, to take the Board down too [who are not only useless but protecting her] we needed to go through the grievance procedure to show that we raised our concerns officially. No action ever taken of course. And yes, I gave it to them both barrels, to their faces as well. And considering that several of them have day jobs in which safeguarding is a key aspect, they may well all suffer as a consequence. But no action was their decision to make, not mine.

Onwards and upwards eh?

Assault and bullying? That is utterly shocking. You are doing the right thing to report, you really are. And good for you for standing up to them.

I would love to have a browse of your seeds when you put them on ebay! If you can post the link without flouting Mumsnet rules, I am sure I'm not the only one.

cedar - you reminded me that I need to get the leaves on the pavement outside my house, before the street sweeper machine comes!

And thanks book - you're so kind! But I am really fine now. I remain shocked that someone like that could be a director in the NHS, though.

Indeedy - it is shocking. You would think that the trustees would agree about that one!

I have been taking my anger out on kneading some dough. I have a loaf and buns in the oven as I speak. The house has never been so clean and I am on my 3rd load of washing in 2 days.

I am hoping that it is the kind of situation that people wake up to once a serious complaint is lodged. Sometimes dysfunctional institutions can run on rails a bit, and it's only when someone has the courage to question (and that often also means bringing in oversight from the outside) that the seriousness of bad practices and bad behaviours is really understood. I'm really hoping this happens for you! It sounds like there are a lot of cheesed off people, so hopefully you have some momentum.

And yay for baking! I am rubbish at it, though I do really enjoy it!

I hope so.

If anyone does want a lucky dip of seeds, they are on ebay now...50 packs out of my stash.

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/282237065704?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

I placed a bid, but I think it's already been out-bid! To be honest, 50 packets of heritage seed ought to go for way more than I can spare right now!

Don't worry - I am going to do second chance offers to all bidders as I have literally hundreds of the things.

Wow, great, I'm excited!

I remember on a thread once, some of us were talking about saving tomato seed, being all proud of our 2 or 3 packets, and you came in chuck and breezily said "Oh I have several hundred heritage varieties!!" And we were all but full of admiration!

It makes me feel better about the world that people are saving those seeds. Not only is it tremendously valuable right this second, but I do think it's quite possible that we may all need them one day in future.

Woooo, I think (hope!) I just bought some seeds from chuck! Hooray!

(Hope because I'm not very good at ebay).

It's bloody freezing here. All I've done today is to trek around a conference centre looking at windows. Yes, windows. It was very boring and I am still none the wiser really, EXCEPT that I now know the names of some of the companies that make them, and that they all hate each other with a fiery passion. However, I did discover you can get very energy efficient ones and this makes me very happy .

I DID, however, manage to get to a bookshop where I purchased that RHS book on plant Latin. Having not gone to the kind of school where such things were taught (!!), I am very much enjoying it and learning a lot!

Evening, everyone. Just checking in. No garden news to speak of. Dad's funeral was beautiful and simple, but I am finding it very early days in adjusting yet. Good days and bad - today very bad.

I did have a cathartic destroying attempt at a bloody huge clump of pampas grass which was in our back garden when we purchased. I hate it anyway, but suspect rodents were nesting in it recently - aargh! Also we are not swingers...
I don't have any power tools except for a strimmer which would not cope, so I set to with a new cheap pair of shears, which has done a great job to get rid of the top 4 feet. At least I could then open up the middle to discourage nesting.
Any tips for getting rid of the remaining 2 feet, maybe 3 feet in diameter? It's only a couple of feet away from the house otherwise I would set fire to it! Does the dreaded glyphosate work at this time of year if green still remains?

I'm afraid I do feel like spreading glyphosate around a lot of the weeds and grass currently ( still loads of green nettles!) but am guessing the only option for the masses of brambles which are getting brown and crispy, is to cut or strim out?

at the swingers comment!

I'm so sorry things have been rough today quince. Grief is such a different state of being - it takes much, much longer than you have had to grow around the loss (I am not sure you ever are 'over' it, so I won't use those words). A very wise lady who was a professional grief counsellor once described it to me as being like a tree with a limb that is missing. The loss is huge at first, and the absence is glaringly obvious. There is air and sky where there should be leaves. With time, it becomes less evident to an outside observer. Other branches grow around, twigs fill the space. But the tree grows differently than it would have had the limb still been there.

What about a proper mattock for the wretched grass? It worked on my bamboo, and that's the toughest bugger going. It is also an extremely cathartic tool to use. There is a pointy end, which is just aggressive and you can wield like a mad coal miner; and then there is a levering end that you can use to achieve feats of incredible strength that make you feel like superwoman.

[flowers[ for you.

ooops, that should be

Thanks Shove, very kind words.
What's a mattock, though?!

It's like a cross between a pick axe, a crow bar and a really sharp hoe!