Allotment Tales 2018 - March

It's that time of year again, namely time to start work on the allotment. I got an email from our allotment society the other day saying they expected plot holders to have started work on their plots by the end of this month. It's not the best timing for me as it's a busy month at work, with me working two full weeks this month, but I am virtually off for two weeks too, so for the remainder of this week, I decided my priority needed to be my plot.

Here's what it looked like after being completely neglected for the past 4 months:

You can't really tell from this photograph, but it is covered with small speedwell weeds, which need pulling out and the whole plot needs digging over ready for cultivation. I haven't touched it over the winter, as for the most part, the ground was just too wet. Digging it over when wet is not only way too much like hard work, but it also causes more damage than good to the soil structure, so I just left well alone.

Yesterday, however, was bright and sunny and after spending a few hours in the back garden, I decided to spend a couple of hours on the plot too and make a start. I'd forgotten how hard and back breaking digging the plot over is.  It is also, however, like having a mental holiday and completely clears your mind, so it was very useful in this regard.

I started in the back right hand corner and dug around existing plants that have overwintered, namely fennel, mustard leaves and chard. I was going to give up after doing this corner but then decided to tackle the back left hand corner as I hadn't done anything in this corner since the summer, after getting stung because of a wasps' nest in the bushes.  I assume that they died off or went into hibernation over the winter, as there was no sign of them, so I took the opportunity to dig over this area, just in case they come back. I'm sure it's highly unlikely, but I didn't want to take a chance.

Anyway, here's a picture of how it looked when I left yesterday evening:

I probably managed to dig a third of the plot over, which is a pretty good start. If I persevere this week and do a couple of hours of digging each day, for the next couple of days, I might even get it done by Saturday, when OH and I intend to add some compost to the surface to enrich the soil.  There's a big pile in the park that people can help themselves to, so we're planning to bag lots up and bring it to the plot, before it all disappears. (Unfortunately, we don't get it delivered to this site and it's way to expensive to buy it for this purpose)

I really need to sort out some sort of paths through the plot this year.  I haven't been lucky enough to find any free paving slabs as yet, but I keep looking when I'm walking the dog.  I may have to purchase some from B&Q if all else fails. It would really help to give some physical structure to the plot and make getting across the plot easier, especially when it's wet.

I haven't really thought much about what I'm going to grow on the plot this year, but I do know that I am going to try to grow some tomatoes, as other plot holders seem to have success with them. I will probably just buy ready grown plants for this purpose, as I'm not great at growing them from seed. I will also be growing cucumbers and lots of potatoes, as we use these regularly and I will also probably sow some beans again, but I'm not sure which variety.

I'm still thinking about what else I want to grow and having looked through my seed collection celeriac and more mustard leaves are very likely going to be among the things I sow this year. I've also got some borage seeds that I'd like to sow on the plot, plus some sunflowers, of course.  I suspect that marigolds and nasturtiums will self seed this year, so I probably won't sow any.  We'll see.

Anyway, I'll keep you posted with my exact plans, once I've made them.