So early this morning, I ran down to the allotment to help our friends Liz and Sarah clear the enormous pile of wood from the unsuccessful bonfire night mountain. The half plot has been covered by this stuff for months with no concrete plan to move it. Luckily, one of our friends owns his own... Continue Reading →
Fortifying Fort Knox
With a sudden influx of wheelchair orders, I dashed down to the allotment this morning intending to quickly feed the chickens. As it turned out, I spent quite a bit of time with Cliff trying to plug any tiny gaps in the coop to ensure no wild birds can get in. The sparrows are very... Continue Reading →
Coop Cleaning
This afternoon I ambled down to the allotment armed with antimite spray ready to do battle with the coop. I had borrowed a pressure spray contraption from Cliff to make the job faster. It's an important job but it always seems to take forever to do. Before I started, I checked on Pop and Leia.... Continue Reading →
Mid-season Tidy
It was a long day yesterday and I barely had time to stop let alone complete the blog. So here it is, very late! I walked down early to make a start. The greenhouse and the shed needed cleaning and tidying, weeding and general sorting amongst other jobs. It was going to be a busy... Continue Reading →
Late night weeding
This morning I ambled down to the allotment, enjoying the sunshine which has appeared from nowhere. Everyone had come down to their plots to make good use of the rare break in the weather. I had a quick chat with Geoff, Brad and Andy before heading down to the coop. I put Pop outside and... Continue Reading →
Never board at the Allotment
Today was an epic long day at the allotment. I arrived with one plan but ended up doing something else. Initially, I went to have a look at the stumpery. It's looking much better although I decided there was no point in re-organising the logs until we had enough to fill the stumpery. Pondering what... Continue Reading →
The day when everything happened
I walked down to the allotment this morning, never dreaming of how much would happen. There are weeks when nothing much happens then everything seems to happen on a particular day. Today was that day! After saying hello to everyone, I began to clean out the chicks. Steve dropped by and said they looked a... Continue Reading →
Beaten back by the heat
It was hot today. Really hot. The forecast rain has yet to appear - there wasn't even a token cloud in the sky. I arrived down, briefly said hello to one and all and made a start on feeding the chickens. The chicks are continuing to grow well and are eating everything I put into... Continue Reading →
Unsettling events
Over the past few days, my husband has been busy caring for the chickens and digging over the plot while I have been at work. When I arrived down today I was astonished to see how much bigger our chicks have grown in just a few days. They are massive! It looks like we might... Continue Reading →
Busy as a Bee
Today was the first day of lockdown due to coronavirus in the UK. No one is to go out except for specific reasons such as medical appointments and once a day for exercise. Fortunately, allotments look to be one of those reasons why you could be outside due to the need to feed chickens. Taking... Continue Reading →
Windy but dry!
Finally, after weeks and months of relentless rain, we have had a couple of dry days back to back. The wind has helped dry the soil surface and the lack of rain has also meant the pools of water have drained away. Upon my arrival, I was fairly certain it would still be way too... Continue Reading →
Seed Sale
And just like that, it begins again! The Allotment Federation's annual seed sale always marks the beginning of the new season - a time to plan in earnest, finish off digging the plot (assuming it isn't flooded) and clear out the shed/greenhouse/coop (delete as appropriate). I love the sale because it's one of the few... Continue Reading →
A humdrum update
Work has been crazy the last few weeks and I have barely made it down to the allotment, let alone had time to post an update. Now however, this shall be rectified! Over the past few weeks the weather has been horrendous, repeated deluges, high winds and cold snaps so it has been difficult to... Continue Reading →
Of chickens, weaving and weeding
This morning, free from the shackles of work, I walked happily down to the allotment. There were several people down at the clubhouse already so I joined Cliff, Coco, Steve, Chris and Mick the Greek for a while. I topped up Leia and Rey's food and water before hitting on a temporary solution to the... Continue Reading →
Death to weeds!
Today I got down to the allotment very late as I has several jobs to do in town. I found several people by the clubhouse although no one stayed too long. Geoff, Cliff and Cliff were all enjoying the breeze whilst Mick the Greek and the others were busy working. I chatted for a while... Continue Reading →
A plethora of Queens
Today I went down to the allotment ready for a full day of work. In the afternoon we were expecting Steve's bee mentor to arrive and I wanted to make sure that the plot was clear of weeds before they arrived. I joined Cliff and Michael at the clubhouse for a chat. It wasn't long... Continue Reading →
Harvesting potatoes
This afternoon I went down to the allotment determined to make good use the dry weather to tackle the mass of weeds the plot has turned into. Upon my arrival, I discovered all the usual suspects in the clubhouse. I joined them briefly before heading off to the main coop. All the girls were there... Continue Reading →
Greenhouse Renovation
Both of us walked down to the allotment late this morning. A rare day off for my husband meant we enjoyed a slow start before heading off to feed the chickens. We arrived to find Cliff and Mick the Greek busy with removing the back section of the greenhouse. They were working at a rate... Continue Reading →
A day in the sunshine
The weather was so lovely today that I walked the four miles home from work. It isn't something I will make a habit of, especially after a long day at work, but after a breakfast meeting, it was lovely. I arrived home, changed quickly into scruffs and headed out to the allotment. Upon arrival, I... Continue Reading →
S.O.S – Save Our Shed!
This morning, my husband and I ambled down to the allotment, to check on the shed. I have had to work lots of extra hours this week and that combined with the bad weather had left me dreading what we would find. Upon our arrival, we found Michael and Cliff attempting to cover the shed... Continue Reading →
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