Unofficial retrobike allotment thread....

[grumpycommuter]

Got another plot! Like I don't have enough to do pics to follow

 

[Silvergoat]

Hey, Hi Karl – despite the struggle, one plot is never enough and always leads to another – like most good things! Look forward to your pics...

I'm making a fresh start with mine, now the flood water is draining away. The rhubarb (Timperly Early) is romping away. Have dug out the remainder of last years spuds in preparation for onion sets and have started work on a 'dead hedge' project in the woodland area behind my shed and plot. This is a wavy assemblage of logs, fallen branches and prunings loosely woven together. Within this area, I'm going to plant bulbs, snow drops, hellebores and other woodland shade plants as a quiet hidden corner of woodland wonder.

The 'dead hedge' project got kicked into action after a recent Galanthus sale and open day event at Myddleton House (home of plantsman E.A. Bowles). Got there for 10am on a Saturday to find a baying crowd of several hundred 'Saga louts' and snow drop obsessives queuing round the house in anticipation of the sale. It's a sight to behold when it all kicks off and some of the old dears have quite sharp elbows.

 

[spike3]

So my plot was virgin ground and I didn't feel like forking over all 73'x35' of it all so I got a man with a retro tractor to give me a hand. It's done a good job.

 

[Silvergoat]

Forkin' hell! I could do with that tractor right now on my allotment – would save much digging. The year's racing away again and there's so much to start, grow and get in the ground.

 

[spike3]

Forkin' hell! I could do with that tractor right now on my allotment – would save much digging. The year's racing away again and there's so much to start, grow and get in the ground.

It has saved me a whole heap of work. Best bit is he is coming back later in the week with a tiller on the back of his tractor to get the soil ready for planting.

 

[grumpycommuter]

Forkin' hell! I could do with that tractor right now on my allotment – would save much digging. The year's racing away again and there's so much to start, grow and get in the ground.

It has saved me a whole heap of work. Best bit is he is coming back later in the week with a tiller on the back of his tractor to get the soil ready for planting.

Did you get to have a go?

Get some spuds in. My grandad, an old school Lincolnshire land worker pestered us to get some in so he claimed nothing cleans the soil better and it really, really works.

Looking really good spike.

Howard - pictures soon. Loving the 'woodland garden' section. It will be gorgeous in a few weeks. Get some celandine and stitch wort in on the margins and it will look beaut!

 

[Silvergoat]

Forkin' hell! I could do with that tractor right now on my allotment – would save much digging. The year's racing away again and there's so much to start, grow and get in the ground.

It has saved me a whole heap of work. Best bit is he is coming back later in the week with a tiller on the back of his tractor to get the soil ready for planting.

Did you get to have a go?

Get some spuds in. My grandad, an old school Lincolnshire land worker pestered us to get some in so he claimed nothing cleans the soil better and it really, really works.

Looking really good spike.

Howard - pictures soon. Loving the 'woodland garden' section. It will be gorgeous in a few weeks. Get some celandine and stitch wort in on the margins and it will look beaut!

Spike, love that old Fordson tractor. Some years back, we were cropping so many jerusalem artichokes, that we shipped off large batches to people. One bloke in Mid Wales planted them in a field with the aim of getting pigs in later to turnover the ground for him by rooting around and digging up the tubers.

Cheers Karl, I really like the Stitchwort idea. The woodland section is going well. I keep adding to the 'dead hedge' and we're planting all sorts of woodland plants and bulbs. The aim is to create a 'secret garden' bordered with British native fruiting hedgerow and filled with helebores, bulbs, narcissi, snow drops, bluebells, etc, all within a coppice behind our shed.

Were beginning digging on the productive part of the plot, now it's drying out from bog conditions.

 

[grumpycommuter]

Howard.....And don't forget some red campion!

 

[Silvergoat]

Howard.....And don't forget some red campion!

I like the that! Better than the pink. Reminds me a little of 'Fox and cubs'.

 

[TheGreenRabbit]

Re:

Any one going to the Edible Garden Show next week ? I'll be there on the friday