Author Topic: What have you done on the plot today? (Read 251618 times)

Legs · « **Reply #900 on:** 27 April, 2017, 03:39:39 pm »

Put the bird-netting up over the top of our fruit cage, since the currants have emerged and the gooseberries are just beginning to swell.

ElyDave · « **Reply #901 on:** 30 April, 2017, 10:43:36 am »

Planted out squash, courgettes and outdoor cucumbers, brocolli and sprout seedlings as well.

Sewed more letttuce and beetroot.

Fleece off the beans and peas but over the brassicas to try and discourage the caterpillars

Bledlow · « **Reply #902 on:** 30 April, 2017, 09:39:17 pm »

Fed both robins!

There's been a half-tame robin hanging around recently that was obviously feeding another one. Depending on the person, he'd get pretty damn close, following any digging or other activity which might turn up anything edible (one plot-holder has him diving on turned-over soil while it's still on the spade he's holding), filling his beak & flying off. I've thrown cockchafer larvae a few feet to where he can conveniently pick them up, & he's grabbed 'em while I watched. We assumed Mrs R was sitting on eggs, & he was feeding her.

Late this afternoon Mrs B & I paid a brief visit to the allotment. He arrived, & Mrs B turned over some ready-to-use compost for him. He started fishing around - then another one joined him! I've always thought of 'em as fiercely territorial, but they seemed totally amicable. No. 2 was slightly slimmer & definitely more cautious of us, & only took food near us when no. 1 was already there. Looked very much like Mr & Mrs, collecting grub for the youngsters.

They love ant larvae. Presented with a load from a nest under black plastic, Mr stuffed his beak. There was a row of little white grubs sticking out of the side when he flew off.

ElyDave · « **Reply #903 on:** 04 May, 2017, 10:19:47 pm »

Male and female robins look alike, so your pair was probably Mr and Mrs

Bledlow · « **Reply #904 on:** 05 May, 2017, 10:52:27 am »

Yes. That's what I said. Mr & Mrs collecting food for their chicks.

MikeFromLFE · « **Reply #905 on:** 06 May, 2017, 05:46:12 pm »

After missing 3 weeks due to gallivanting round the Mainland of Europe today's visit to the allotment was always going to be a 'surprise'. It was seriously depressing how much grass can grow in such a short space of time, but thankfully not too many weeds have taken root in the beds - but not too much has germinated in the beds either. We must have had a touch of frost as the tips of my potatoes have just been burned off.
A good session with the strimmer, a while crawling around pulling out weeds, and a fair bit of earthing up the tatties seems to have made it look a whole lot better.

ElyDave · « **Reply #906 on:** 14 May, 2017, 11:19:34 pm »

Last week was big in weeding, this week big on planting.

All the flowers raised from seed went out today, cosmos, gazania, yarrow and mixed daisies. Also split and redistributed a mahhooosive clump of red hot poker.

That's almost everything out now. The courgettes were protected from the recent cold by a fleece tunnel, but it looks like the outdoor cucumbers have had it, but I ha e a couple of spares. Tomatoes still to plant into the greenhouse.

runsoncake · « **Reply #907 on:** 30 May, 2017, 12:56:20 pm »

Was on hands & knees pulling up weeds from the path by a raised full of chives in flower. My face was only a few inches away from about 30 bees of varying shapes, sizes and colours. It a delightful experience until the scent from the chives became too overpowering.

Bledlow · « **Reply #908 on:** 30 May, 2017, 01:28:38 pm »

Just had some home grown icicle radishes with lunch. More, & some kabu, to go with dinner. The first lot of Japanese spinach is pretty much finished, but more has been planted. Planted some ordinary radishes & did a lot of weeding. Everything's growing like mad. Mange-tout, green beans, komatsuna, potatoes, Japanese cabbages & leeks looking good. Garlic looking weedy, which is a pity. Got some in pots in the garden which is flourishing, but not enough to make up for a poor allotment crop.

Time to plant out the cucumbers, I think. They're starting to outgrow their pots.

Ham · « **Reply #909 on:** 03 June, 2017, 07:36:21 pm »

Today I planted out > 200 things.

What a difference a year makes

One year ago

Today

ElyDave · « **Reply #910 on:** 17 June, 2017, 06:50:43 pm »

Just found a huge clump of lemon balm in the garden, had some with my salad, and then on my fruitsalad of strawbs, raspberry and apples with double cream, yummy

alexberry · « **Reply #911 on:** 17 June, 2017, 10:07:07 pm »

made this

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Legs · « **Reply #912 on:** 19 June, 2017, 01:13:23 pm »

Quote from: Ham on 03 June, 2017, 07:36:21 pm

Today I planted out > 200 things.

What a difference a year makes

Wow!

Mrs Legs and Andrew harvested about 2lb of redcurrants yesterday morning. Nommy! There are stacks more coming.

Bledlow · « **Reply #913 on:** 20 June, 2017, 12:17:02 pm »

Quote from: ElyDave on 17 June, 2017, 06:50:43 pm

Just found a huge clump of lemon balm in the garden, had some with my salad, and then on my fruitsalad of strawbs, raspberry and apples with double cream, yummy

They get huge unless you wage war on them. I have one which the council once complained to me about because it was sticking out over the pavement.

Ham · « **Reply #914 on:** 22 June, 2017, 07:53:14 pm »

Today, I haz set up a trial website http://watering-exchange.co.uk

No idea if it is a good idea or bad, anyone interested in setting up a section for their own allotments, let me know.

Oh, and if a kind mod would point the way to disabling the point count boxes or whatever they are under the username as here, please let me know. I've managed to get rid of the newbie/super user etc groups (what Alt-255 was made for)

ElyDave · « **Reply #915 on:** 25 June, 2017, 10:53:26 am »

glyphosated a huge area of ivy, smothering everything in its path. Plan is knock it down chemically, and then deal with the regrowth using a blow torch I've just bought

Harvested blackcurrants, gooseberries - looks like a big crop this year, and more rhubarb - may make some wine with that.

MikeFromLFE · « **Reply #916 on:** 25 June, 2017, 05:08:55 pm »

All this week I've been barrowing wood chippings. Our allotments can have as much of the stuff as they can deliver. Trouble is it's always delivered a fair way from my plot. But I saw the bloke delivering some a couple weeks ago, and asked him (nicely) to drop a load next to my plot - which he did. Trouble is, I've now had another load (possibly a load and a half) dumped at the end of my plot - and it has been blocking the access for other plot-holders (it's between the fence to the real world, and my muck-heap) - so much shifting has been called for.
I'm mainly using it on top of the weed barrier in my 'orchard' area, and on paths, but I am experimenting with various ways of composting the stuff as well (with mixed results to date).

Tapatalk puts this signature here, not me!

MikeFromLFE · « **Reply #917 on:** 25 June, 2017, 05:09:57 pm »

While Mrs M was picked vast quantities of raspberries, (huge) strawberries, redcurrants and gooseberries

Tapatalk puts this signature here, not me!

ElyDave · « **Reply #918 on:** 27 June, 2017, 08:37:33 am »

I have a fairly large shrubbery that grows down the side of the house, and is a haven for bees in the summer, but does tend to get a bit above itself growing across a path and blocking light to the veggie patch. I started its 2-3 yearly prune yesterday. It tends to grow nice straight, long stems, almost like coppicing, so I also tend to get some pea/bean supports out of it.

Also finished up relocating the water butts to be able to link them, which I finished this morning, just ahead of the rain. A bit of a lash-up but let's see how it holds.

Some very nice thinnings of broccoli and home grown courgette to go with my venison sausages yesterday.

runsoncake · « **Reply #919 on:** 08 July, 2017, 07:19:59 pm »

Harvested some new spuds, growing them in reuasable bags, 5 seed potatoes per bag. Magnificent foliage but roots seem a bit overcrowded. will reduce to 4 per bag next year. The actual taters are lipsmacking tossed in butter 'n chives.

The bag method is less backbreaking than growing in the ground, AND no sign of the blight we are usually plagued with.

Bledlow · « **Reply #920 on:** 08 July, 2017, 09:59:12 pm »

Mrs B gave everything a good drenching, while I cut the grass on the paths & made a start on hacking back the hedge* which separates our plot (& the rest of our side of the site) from the outside world. The council used to send someone to cut it back once or twice a year, but that's stopped.

*Privet with hawthorn, brambles, a bush I don't recognise & a small oak tree.

ElyDave · « **Reply #921 on:** 10 July, 2017, 08:14:18 am »

Courgettes are now romping away and cucumbers and runner beans starting to produce. Peas just about done.

Spent some time yesterday and today tidying the greenhouse staging and shed, in particular the pot collection, rationalising and giving a bit of order to it, and throwing quite a few un-useful sizes and broken plastic pots into the recycling. Also did a bit in terms of tidying shelving, rationalising chemicals and tidying the kindling heap.

My Robinia Pseudoacacia bonsai, that I grew from seed 20 years ago is definitely dead. The large cloud shapes bonsai pot that it was in was replanted yesterday with a collection of drought loving plants, an aloe, a couple of cacti and some crassulas that I've been growing from cuttings. Looks quite good with gravel top dressing and a couple of small smooth polished rocks collected from one holiday or another.

Ham · « **Reply #922 on:** 25 July, 2017, 10:45:08 pm »

As above, a few weeks later, what a difference a year makes

ElyDave · « **Reply #923 on:** 01 August, 2017, 05:55:58 pm »

mowing, weeding, pruning, hedge trimming, sewed a few second crops of lettuce and beetroot

thinking - going to move some stuff around in the winter to make a Japanese-style area using some of the trees I'm training as bonsai, but are currently in the ground or in training pots.

Also picked the first raspberries of the year, early for the variety I grow.

ElyDave · « **Reply #924 on:** 13 August, 2017, 08:32:18 pm »

Fig tree is heavily laden, and lots ripe already. Cucumbers, chilli's, Tom's in the greenhouse all going great guns. Brassica massacre - caterpillars have moved in whilst I was away. Chard going well as well.

Spent about two hours today hacking at a pyracantha that was infested with bramble. Had to reduce it by about three quarters to get to the base of the brambles, some as thick as my thumb. Also removed a lot of deadwood from the pyracantha, but it should sprout back easily. Plenty of wood now for the next barbecue