It's taken me just over 3 years

[HeyWayne]

...but I think I'm starting to get a focus.

When I first started this allotmenteering lark I wanted to try everything. People would ask "what do you plan to grow" and, having never grown anything in the past I always found it a difficult question to answer.

Now I've a few seasons under my belt, and a little more experience of what grows well, how it grows etc etc I'm more confident that I have a bedrock of plants to grow and the rest will be "experimental".

This epiphany came last night when updating my blog (finally) and I had a quick scroll back to see what I'd grown in the past, what successes and what failures I'd had.

I'm now a little more familiar with types of plants - rather than seeing them all as "plants" (if that makes sense?).

Having "planned" my allotment in terms of what to grow where, and what "permanent" fixtures and fittings to use, I have also discovered that this needs some more work. Things need moving, and a re-think is underway.

I guess in some ways it reinforces what I thought at the beginning - that this is a constantly evolving project and that nothing is set in stone.

With Hayden now getting a little more independant it will hopefully get easier to take him along and (as we did yesterday) let him entertain himself meaning we (I) can get some stuff done. That said, I will still favour plants that can pretty much look after themselves like beans, squashes, roots etc.

This late in the season, I am full of optimism for next season.

Keep at it folks!

[zazen999]

Good on yer.

I'm in the middle of making all our beds with permanent sides; I've recently found the same sort of focus; and now I know how I want to grow things and am getting to grips with the methodology and techniques that I like; I want more permanent structures so I can concentrate on the planning and bug busting so that I can have full beds all year round.

[scarey55]

I think 3 years must be some kind of watershed.

I've been pretty much growing anything and everything in a haphazard way for the past 3 years but now the potager seems to be taking shape and I'm even going to try green manure this year.

Well, that's the plan at the moment... probably still be growing in a haphazard way 20 years from now

[piskieinboots]

...This late in the season, I am full of optimism for next season

Perfect - and remember September is the new January/Spring

[HeyWayne]

Perfect - and remember September is the new January/Spring

It's the beginning of everything for me.

[bluemoon]

Congratulations, sometimes you do suddenly feel confident, like the first time you drive a car and realise you haven't been repeating mantras in your head ('mirror, signal, manouvre'). Sometimes though, plain bloody-mindedness sets in, so you have to be aware of that, after 23 years of growing spuds; fighting blight, slugs, weather and for the past five or so OH's back giving up the ghost twice a year when they were planted and again when they were dug up, we've decided that this is our last potato year. We can use the space for extra sweetcorn and squash and plenty of other things we've wanted to grow, but didn't have the room for. What's forced us to grow spuds in the past is some weird notion that you can't be properly self-sufficient without a potato patch, well, so be it, I can't grow my own wheat either, so accept that I have to buy in the bread flour, same thing. Has common sense finally kicked in?
I think what you've reached though, Wayne is a combination of not just your growing expertise, but also a close awareness of your land, it takes a while to do, but suddenly seems to become instinctive (sorry if that sounds a bit mystical), but suddenly you seem to 'know' the right place to plant something, at what densities to plant it, if a plant will do well in your soil/weather, or even what's lacking from it. And you don't waste resources by chucking them everywhere 'just to make sure'. Best of all though, it's like the driving, you don't have to think about it anymore and you can read books, which after all can only give generalisations, and think 'Ah, but mine's different' and be right.

[gojiberry]

It is nice to see people progressing and becoming more proficient at growing veg. The beauty of it all is that although you are more confident and getting some good successes you have only sampled the tip of the iceberg as far as knowledge and experience goes, which I think is brilliant because you shouldn't get bored or stagnate and hopefully will still be growing veg in 40 years time. I have been growing for 45 years now and this time of year I start to get excited about the prospects of next year even when this year is far from over. Only hope your planning is better than mine. Put in raised beds 4 years ago and last year decided they weren't quite right, took them all up and repositioned them, hope I don't want to do that again. The whole point of it all is that I get a great deal of pleasure out of growing veg and would not want to be without.

Ian

[HeyWayne]

In fact - more proof that I can't count, it's been 2 & 1/2 years since I started.

[piskieinboots]

yer but - 2½ is nearly 3 isn't it! Ask any child

[Scottishnewbie]

this is really refeshing to read and gives me lots of hope folks - thanks. I've just spent a very wet afternoon thinking about where I'm moving things to for next year and also made the decision to grow less in terms of different varieties and more of the things that we liked - seems I'm normal after all!

[Hazel at the Hill]

I guess in some ways it reinforces what I thought at the beginning - that this is a constantly evolving project and that nothing is set in stone.

I think 3 years must be some kind of watershed.

I'm at three years too, and I agree with both of the statements above! The 'plan' in my head is both more relaxed (don't have to chant the rotation mantra anymore as I have finally grasped it, or come running to a reference book to check oon every little thing) but is also more settled and tangible - if that makes sense!

It'll all get done, veg will grow - to a certain degree it doesn't matter if you sow early to late - things will recover, or if not, there is next year. The bits that worked, you're likely to do again, the bits that didn't you'll do differently or not at all next time round.

The beds I've made have been the best thing I've done - but I waited two years before I was happy that I'd be doing the right thing - and even so, they've ended up too long not giving me room for permanaent beds, so there is still some re-jigging to be done, and always will be, I suppose.

I even get one or two of the newer plotholders asking for my advise now - although there's plenty who I still ask advice of and always will, I suspect.

Good, innit?

[piskieinboots]

Good, innit?

aye it is that lass

[jaykay]

I've had my plot for three years at the end of this month. It has been really easy to look after this year now that the beds are established and the soil is showing signs of improvement after a couple of years of adding manure/compost. I'd like more space but look at the uncultivated overgrown plots on site and think, do I really want to start again! I probably would though, given the opportunity....

Glad you're still enjoying your gardening, HeyWayne. It won't be long before your little one is digging stuff up as fast as you plant it!

[SarzWix]

I'm at a weird point now - I'm at the 3 year mark for my first plot, and feel like I'm getting to know it quite well now, as jaykay says, the soil is improving etc. But, I'm now trying to mesh it with the plot next door, which is set up completely differently with really big beds and poor soil, so it's quite confusing. Allied with my original plot getting a bit out of control this year, I think it's going to be a busy winter...

[Matt.]

Its it wierd how it takes three years to find your way and your post rings so true with my experinces. I'm in the same position as you (3 years) and have drastically altered my scope for the plot over the last couple of years. I think this year I pretty much had it sorted and will try to copy the plan. Like you its the simple care-free plants like squash that now dominate my plot and (sadly perhaps) its become more functional than creative. I realise I've taken on more than I can chew with a second plot that is in a quite frankly shameful state of upkeep. I wont keep rent on this once the last squash is harvested.

For me allotmenting has really dropped to the back burner but its one of those things thats just brilliant to have and keep on tick over. I love having a massive stash of home grown veggies to work our way through. Long term I'd love to gradually move to a mix of fruit and veg which would hopefully reduce the effort I need to put in whilst still getting the bounty out!

Single lesson learned in three years: Keep it simple.