Saturday, April 01, 2006

More allotment photos - just so that you can see the 'before' views.


This is the new long bed - doesn't look much does it for all the time it took, it is only about 15 or so feet long. It has more chrysanthemums in it and a stray iris. It is where I have the willow fence (if that took) and where I have added another layer of fencing - which took me over and hour and ruined my nails.

Another view of the same new bed. I know it looks a bit of a mess at the moment. The black membrane is to conserve moisture and cut down on the weeding, and the wood is to hold it down as it is so windy and exposed it would fly off. If the willow hedge takes I will weave it in and out and it will be a thing of beauty, and if not the chrysanthemums will look lovely anyway.


This is one of the beds alongside the fence that runs the width of the meadow area and where there are rudbeckia plants, that I tie to the fence - hence the bale twine. They are yellow and tall and majestic reaching 8 feet sometimes more. I love their cone centres and use those in flower arranging for texture. In front of them is the bed where I planted Yellow Cricket chrysanthemums, (if the labels did not get muddled up).


This is my 'spikey' flower bed, with plants with sword like leaves, like the irises and phormium, the middle bed of three in a row which you can see in the following shot beyond the fence.


This is a view standing in my little 'meadow' that I seeded last year, looking up to the top of my plot. There is a piece of my plot behind me, so from where I am standing to the metal compost bin, next to which are the rhubarb beds and gooseberries and currants and more asparagus, and in front are the strawberries with the plastic cloches hanging on for dear life by one spike (which I have now removed) and the broad beans where the canes are with cd bird scarers. This is about a quarter of my plot which goes right up to the farm buildings at the top in the distance.



This might not look much, but it is special to me. I did a college course a couple of years ago - Floral Design, which included all sorts of things including botany and horticulture, as well as design, flower arranging, history..............

It was Christmas time and we were doing our big arrangements, and I rescued out of the rubbish bin some of the rose stems - just small bits about 4 inches long that has been snipped off the bottom of the posh dutch roses. This is one that grew. I nurtured it, and it go one flower on it last year, but put on growth. It is protected by a square wooden planter without a bottom in it. To save it from browsing deer and rabbits and anything else that is likely to take shine to it. It seems to have survived the winter, and is looking good. I am really hoping for an abundance of wonderful red roses this year - so watch this space.


This is part of the rhubarb bed, and these are performing well without any extra help or protection. Hope they are going to produce a good crop. I have plans for those.



It really isn't trying hard enough even with a nice warm bucket on top of it!


The forced rhubarb is a bit slow, does NOT want to be forced even though it is destined for a vodka soak!


More flag irises have survived the brutal winter - boy are you in for a suprise in the summer when they flower!



A battered little primula, used to being tucked up in a woodland bed, protected by other plantes, not stuck in an open windswept plain. I should take pity on it and move it back home.

6 comments:

  1. Hi Al,
    Isn't it wonderfull how quickly everything is sprouting?
    Have put some pics of crafts on my blog, took ages! I WILL get the hang of it LOL!
    Rhubarb and vodka... sounds like an enamel(tooth) stripping formula to me Ha Ha!

    Have a great weekend!

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  2. Great to see pictures of the allotment springing back to life again! The weather must be improving soon!!!
    All the best, Mike

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  3. Anonymous8:59 pm

    Your allotment looks huge.
    In one of my books it says war time allotments were 90feet by 30feet but your looks a lot longer.
    Are there still standard sizes or does it just depend on the site?

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  4. Mike - you don't know how happy I feel to be out in the fresh air and the wild windy fields of Norfolk again. It was brilliant and brought back wonderful memories of last summer.

    Chris - there are standard allotment sizes - according to where you live. There is another site at the other end of the village and their plots are about 100feet and they pay £2 a year apparently.

    I will write a bit about them one day next week - and the charity trusts that own them.h

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  5. Anonymous3:35 am

    ok...whats this liquor/rhubarb thing that is being planned? some kind of preserves? also, are u using old rotted manure or fresh? i thought fresh burns the plants, ect, and has to age....? do you get deer of any kind in the field beds there? my garden is now fenced to all beasts except the flying kind...and toads, snakes, ect....
    hubby suggested we try guinea hens to eat insects, esp ticks....so i think we will try that as well as the chicks (which are now 2 weeks old)...
    just love seeing your gardens and all,,,very excited about your soap making and cooking.... reading your blog is a lil like tuning into a daily tv show or something, for the latest projects and news...its really a lovely pleasant part of my puter day...thanks so much for taking the time to share!

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  6. Just think, when I am fast asleep, you are sitting there typing me nice comments like the on above denise.

    To answer your questions.........

    As soon as the rhubarb is ready I am going to make some scnapps for Christmas presents. I will post the step by step instructions and recipe. It is basically vodka and sweet rhubarb, that is why I am forcing it.

    The other rhubarb I will let grow and harvest naturally, which I use in crumbles and pies, in yoghurt and of course jams. But more of that when the time comes in thes summer.

    The pig manure is very well rotted, and has turned more what looked like just a pile of barley straw into a black mass. It no longer smells of anything.

    And yes we do get deer in the allotments but not too often thankfully. Just the small munjack deer, about the size of an Alsation dog.

    Guinea fowl are so sweet aren't they and I love the little sound that they make.

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