Reintroduce Yourself!!

[bario1]

Hello

I'm Bario1 (not my real name), I got an allotment here in Edinburgh in 2012 - after waiting eight years!
It started out as a 'half' plot (more like a third), but after a few years the other 'half' became available and I optimistically took it on - now i really have my hands full! I use the original bit to grow annuals, there are three raised beds, a couple of 'lazy' beds, and a small polytunnel. The 'new' half I made into a perennials area, with asparagus, fruit bushes/trees etc, and that has a more organic feel to it, with irregularly shaped beds, a rock garden, pond, bog area, and a small lawn to relax on. It's still a work in progress, and I never feel like I have the time to do it justice, but it's also my sanctuary, and i think i'd go crazy without it.

[ESBkevin]

Hello, I'm Kevin. Carol and I took on a plot about 5 years ago and love it. At home we have nicely floural front gardens and a greenfouse round the back.
I'm a big fan of helping mother nature, so no dig is used over at least half the plot (hard to get enough organic material onto the site to do the whole thing). We're learning how to properly do successional planting and mostly having something to harvest throughout the year without getting inundated with one thing all at once, it's a slow learning curve.
Carol retired earlier this year, and through her hard work the plants came on well through the nursary stage. I like to do the grunting and let her potter about in her own happy way.
I can't see us stopping anytime soon.

[MyWifesBrassicas]

Good evening,
It's just occurred to me that I never introduced myself when I first joined in Dec 18, how rude of me!
So, I need to make up for that and do it now.

My name is Darren, aka mywifesbrassicas, named after the fantastic Wallace and Gromit film, "The curse of the were rabbit" where Mr Mulch said "look at the size of my wifes brassica's" hilarious and giggling now

I'm an allotment grower, where most of my things die, including all my trombos for the grapevines trombo fun competition, gutted.

This year I've decided to concentrate on soil building, I've a huge composting pile of wood chips that's now roughly 7 months old and composting very well, it's maintained a nice 60 C all that time.

[SarrissUK]

Wow Bario and Mr Bones - your growing spaces are making me green of envy! Wow, how lovely!!

[rary]

Hello, my Vine name is rary, I retired 17 years ago (no VC I retired very very young) and most of my time was taken up with hill walking until I had to get my knees replaced, after that I started to do more gardening, I enjoy growing flower and veg, though not very well but I still enjoy trying, I try to avoid buying chemicals (if you can make it yourself its usually cheaper) I was going to make a wild flower garden behind the house but one of my grandsons wants to give me a hand so I will be making no dig veg bed. Oh, and I don't like parting with money

[Nannysally99]

Hi I’m NannySally and a back garden gardener.
I never did introduce myself as I didn’t know how to do it.
My husband Ken is retired and looks after the garden now. I’m just an ‘advisor’ apparently
We used to grow lots of veg, but over the years this has shrunk to just runner beans, flowers have taken over.
Tomatoes will be making a comeback next season.
I volunteer at our localL Age UK shop 3 times a week

[MissPea]

Hello! I’ve never introduced myself but I’m MissPea, I have an allotment and a teeny tiny new garden we just moved into earlier this year, two kids a guinea pig (somethings gotta eat the leaves and spare veg) and just lost the plot and gave up my job to go back to college. I like to keep myself overly busy ��. My allotment is my haven away from the madness and I am no longer a climbing frame for a little while lol. It’s also for my mental health and helped me massively through this. I like coming on here asking stupid questions (sorry) and reading through your funny posts, I don’t have enough knowledge to input anything except what I have perhaps done recently, but it’s the nicest forum I’ve been part of and love the nutty-ness and the group tasks you all are part of.

[Baldy]

hello - my name is baldy - that is my real name - I sometimes don't tell the truth.
I no longer start rugby related threads.
Live in North Devon and help run an allotment site there.
Not really very good at growing - often I know what *I should be doing* but rarely do it that way with catastrophic results - but I'm stubborn.
Family are not at all into gardening so its a bit of a struggle and I'm working away a lot so stuff dies and weesd grow.
Quite like weird music - check out the 'just for fun' thread - probably the majority of my posts are there - perhaps one day I'll end up as a 'gardening guru' 'cos of my posts about anarcho-industrial-thrash-folk.

T'is a happy place on the internet this forum here... 'much respect to the mods'(mostly )

[Mark_Riga]

Another who has never introduced myself. I'm Mark and have lived on a small holding in mid Cheshire now for about 37.5 years. In that time we have kept a few of most farm animals and poultry as well as a dog and cats but currently don't have any animals except wild ones - rodents, snakes, birds, frogs, newts...
I am considering planting a small copse/wood in a 1.5 acre field for the badgers and owls but when I looked for acorns last autumn there were none to be found though currently the trees are loaded with acorns so may be this year. I use about 2000 square metres for growing vegetables and flowers and have a small (about 20 trees) orchard. This includes 1 Aldi bramley tree that has grown gynormous and must have a few hundredweght of apples on it now. I have 2 greenhouses and a polytunnel.
This last week I've been very busy picking plums (what the pigeons didn't ruin), apples, greengages and nuts (first time ever) as well as raspberries.

[veggiechicken]

Mark, lots of acorns coming off the trees here at the moment. One just missed my head today.

[Armorel]

I joined the Grapevine in 2008 but I admit haven't been around much in the intervening years

I live on the Isles of Scilly with a two thirds of an acre garden surrounding our large property, within 50 yards of the beach, protected on the shore-side by a 10ft tall Pittosporum hedge. I have a big greenhouse (16ft) for an assortment of plants and potplants plus propagation, and a small greenhouse (12ft) for cucumbers and tomatoes in the summer plus another assortment of plants, particularly hippeastrums, kalanchoes and schlumbergera. The islands enjoy a very mild and balmy maritime climate but can experience ferocious gales with salt and sand laden winds. We even had snow ... twice ... the February before last but, fortunately, it didn't do too much damage in my garden.

Sadly Folia, the gardening site where I was a beta tester in the early 2000s, is now closing in mid September so I've been saving all my gardening data and journals before it vanishes. Some Folians have moved to a new group on Facebook and many of us have gardening blogs as well. So I've returned here for my 'gardening fix' and hope to pop in when time allows

[Babru]

I didn't introduce myself when I joined about 18 months ago, so here goes. I was fortunate enough to be given early retirement three years ago, as was my husband, and we moved to a new house a couple of streets back from the sea nearly two years ago. The new garden was fully paved apart from about 40 foot of bamboo hedge in the middle. OH spent last summer digging it out. Since then we've been putting in flower beds, a summer house (for sitting in the winter catching the sun) and a greenhouse, which is now filled with tomatoes, cucumber, peppers, chillies, strawberries, seedlings and cuttings. I love my greenhouse .

Next year we plan to create a fruit area, as I figure that is what we like to eat and it costs lots of money to buy. There should be space for a few favourite veggies too.

Most of my vine input is about flowers, because they are what I know about. My queries so far are mostly about greenhouse growing, tomatoes etc. You can all look forward to being pestered with fruit-related questions over the coming months and years

I have found the vine to be very friendly and welcoming, so thanks everyone.

[bikermike]

Hello

I'm Mike, and like (motor)bikes!

I have a small (40') suburban garden with a greenhouse and pond in the wilds of north London, and an allotment that I am (after 5 years) almost going to finish putting beds on. I am going no-dig and have always been (mostly) organic, and have had reasonable luck with veg. My bad habit is growing far more Wisteria from seed than I have room for, some of which may even flower in 15 years time...

A small person adds to the fun and slows everything down.

[lottie dolly]

HELLO ALL,i am LD,short for lottie dolly,i have been a grape for several years,i love this place,i used to have 2.5 plots,gradualy reducing t 1,but the last aprox 10 months i have a small patch on our sons plots,i had to come to my senses and down size,as i could not manage since MR had a stroke nearly 3.5 years,i have always been the gardener,and MR my do for,plus we are older to boot,these days i do most things,only if i realy cannot do i reluctantly ask for help,i also have a large patch at home,since i had help to sort out the area,we have 4 chickens who free roam around the veg patch,had to fence of the lawn ect as the poop was getting to much on the patio and where we walk into the home,flies and the stink now eliminated,i built my own hen coop and run,age is just a no,and i do not act it,have 3 kids,5 G kids,and 4 GG kids,sometimes i just want to sit and do nowt ,so i do ,i also do my own decorating,slow but sure,and a darned site cheaper,i like collecting seeds,watching them grow,then the ultimate pleasure EATING,freezing ext,and sharing with friends my spares,like other grapes,the lotty plot is escape out the walls,the vine is not just a mine of info and encouragement,but support when needed,those virtual hugs and vibes go a long long way,i know from experiance,thank you all.

[bramble]

Hi, I'm bramble.
Seems like I have been here forever.
I am a back garden grower although at one time I had the luxury of using my parents garden which was huge and so I had a go at growing everything.
I have a greenhouse and my first love is tomato growing.
Growing dahlias follows a close second.
I try to grow a little of everything.
Am interested in growing fruit as I love to make jams and jellies.
Hobbies, gardening, reading and walking.
Love the outdoors and couldn't imagine being without a garden,
Family is very important with my kids and grandkids playing a big part in my life.
Getting older now but I will always be a gardener.