On Friday I returned to my plot feeling rather pleased – couple of 10 foot, 3 by 3′s for just £3 apiece….. brought them from TRIM.

Andy, a regular on the plot close to me, brought me down to earth – “Don’t go wasting your money, Paul” he said.

Well I expected the usual, “You should have told me, I’d have got it for you for …” but no!

“Yesterday afternoon, (Thurday 17th May) a helicopter flew all over the site and near-by roads obviously taking photographs. Must have taken an hour. It went to set positions like a grid – you could see the flash of the camera.”

“Bet it won’t be long before they build houses on here!”

What do you think?

In need of another scaffolding board, I popped upto TRIM this morning (Wednesday 16th May) – for directions look under ‘Find a Plot’/'Miscellaneous’

As you can see from my pictures, there’s plenty of wood there, especially for those who want to make raised beds and other DIY jobs on the allotment.

Firewood

They asked me at TRIM to point out that firewood is always available.

TRIM – Timber Recycling in Manchester – (0161) 223 4400 http://www.timberrecycling.org

Continuing down my plot we come to the last pair of beds 7 and 8. Bed 7 is this year’s main brassica bed and is already part planted up, with cauliflower,cabbage and sprouts. All these are planted inside a frame covered with polythene and covered with a net. The frame provides a micro climate for the plants to grow while the netting stops the over weight pigeons on our site from getting fatter.

Bed 8 is this year’s potato bed and as shown already they are coming on well. Between beds 5 and 7 is an area which is storing timber,tubs and other items for which I have not yet found a home, it will be a flower border in a year’s time. An other flower bed is just being started between beds 6 and 8.

Last week I started this year’s comfrey bin off. This are quite easy if you want to produce your own liquid fertiliser. First you need a bin with a lid, I use an old round dust bin. You need to make a small hole in the base to allow the liquid to seep out. The bin needs supporting off the ground to allow a collection pot underneath.
The bin is then filled with comfrey leaves and stalks, a weight placed on top and the bin covered. For the weight I use a piece of paving slab. The filled bin is then placed on top of the support with the collection pot underneath and left for a week or two, when the thick black liquid begins dripping out.

The concentrated liquid is then stored until needed, it is then diluted down until it looks like weak tea, and watered onto the crops. It is a high strength feed and contains trace elements, I use it on all my crops.

JOBS FOR THE WEEK
1 Weed and dig over the old brassica area on bed 5 (not done last week). – Done
2 Manure above area and dig the whole of bed 5. – Manured
3 Weed around the polytunnels. – Done
4 Cover the strawberries with netting to protect the berries. – Done
5 Plant out more brassicas. – Done
6 Harden off more seedlings. – Done

WORK DONE THIS WEEK
Sunday
Weed inside polytunnels.
Water.
Tidy up tunnel 1 and plant out some pot leeks.
Monday
Dig over half of the brassica bed after pulling out the larger weeds.
Water.
Tuesday
Finish digging over old brassica bed.
Cover strawberries with netting to keep the birds off the fruit.
Weed garlic and give it a feed of seaweed meal.
Water.
Weed round strawberry bed.
Wednesday
Dig over proposed path area alongside bed 5.
Transplant seedling up into large pots and some into small pots.
Water.
Prune plum on side of the shed to keep its fan shape.
Cut back shrubs in flower bed between the two tunnels.
Thursday
Weed round tunnel two.
Weed brassica bed.
Transplant sprouts and cabbage into brassica bed.
Weed round step over apples.
Transplant seedling into bigger pots.
Transfer seedlings into cold frames to harden off.
Water.
Friday
Manure the area dug this week.
Transplant seedling and plants.
Water.
Weed asparagus bed and half of tunnel 1 edges.
Saturday
Finish weeding around tunnel 1.
Clear side bed in tunnel 1 and transplant seed onions into it.
Weed round pears at end of bed 2.
Sow some winter cabbage.
Rake out area for climbing peas and beans.
Water.
Tie in leaders on the grapes in tunnel 2.

CROPS PICKED
Asparagus
Spring cabbage
Radish
Spinach

The weather this week has not been helpful for working but the rain has made many plants grow. I have managed to plant up the remainder of the brassica bed.

This rain has brought on the weeds hence weeding has been needed all over the plot. I have managed to plant up the front border with dahlia and chrysanthemum cuttings.

Crops in the tunnel are comming on well and the carrots in tubes are just starting to grow.

Continuing down my plot we come to beds 5and 6. These are again separated from the previous beds by a pair of flower beds. Bed 5 is looking a bit the worse for wear, as it has just finished with the purple sprouting broccoli and has yet to be cleared. I have not decided what I am planting in this bed yet.

Bed 6 is in a little better state, the leeks have been removed, the ground dug and manured. The manure still needs digging in and the area preparing for the peas and beans to be grown and a block of sweet corn.

JOBS FOR THE WEEK
1 Transplant seedlings into larger pots and/or modules. -Done
2 Sow the rest of the carrots. _ Done
3 Transplant out hardened off plants into ground. – Done
4 Dig the manure into bed 6. _ Done
5 Clear and start digging the old broccoli bed. – Started
6 Sow more beetroot, spinach, corriander and others in the root bed._ Done
7 Make first cutting of comfrey and fill bin. _ Done

WORK CARRIED OUT THIS WEEK
Sunday
Earth up potatoes.
Transplant seedling into larger pots.
Water
Dig manure into tunnel 2 border.
Manure old leek area.
Monday- Bank Holiday so a longer time on the plot.
Plant out swiss chard and cos lettuce into bed 8 at the side of the potatoes.
Earth up the potatoes, nearly done as all are through and growing.
Transplant more seedlings
Plant out cabbage and two varieties of sprouts into frame
Water
Take some tomatoes and cucumbers into tunnel to acclimatise them
Showers this afternoon, so working inside and out dodging them.
Tuesday
Earth up potatoes.
Water tunnel and frames.
Move plants into cold frame to harden them off.
Sow remainder of carrot in frame.
Weed potato bed.
Wednesday
Water.
Transplant seeedlings into modules.
Thursday
Earth up last potatoes.
Sow beetroot in bed .
Sow spinach, coriander, spring onions in bed.
Water.
Friday
Dig manure into half of the legume bed.
Cut comfrey and fill bin.
Finish this weeks round of transplanting.
Water.
Thin spinach and turnips in the tunnel.
Saturday
Finish digging manure into legume bed.
Water.
Sow beans in root trainers, runner,french, climbing french.

CROPS PICKED THIS WEEK
Asparagus
Rhubarb.

FROM STORE
Potatoes
Leeks
Tomatoes