I've been offered an allotment!

[Gro-Bag]

Oh - and what worked best for me in the limited time I had was potatos, broad beans, onions and garlic, leeks, herbs, courgettes, plus I have globe artichokes, asparagus, raspberries, strawberries (now in raised containers), gooseberries, and blackcurrants coming on. But I did lose all, yes all of my brassicas, peas and beans and half of the strawbs to rabbits and voles. The less time you spend there the harder it is to keep on top of the uninvited munchers.

[Two_Sheds]

The less time you spend there the harder it is to keep on top of the uninvited munchers.

Yep, and if you go less frequently it will always feel like you're taking one step forwards and two back, because when it rains you'll get a huge flush of weeds, and when it doesn't you have to be up there watering.

Crops that I find lowish maintenance:
- spuds
- kidney beans (French beans: keep them watered early on & watch for slugs). I don't eat many fresh green beans, so I'm happy to let them grow all seedy, that's how I like them
- self sown lettuce (always seems to do better than those I plant deliberately)
- pumpkins (keep watered early on & watch for slugs, then leave them to it. Courgettes need picking every other day though)
- strawberries & currants, if netted
- autumn rasps (summer ones get maggotty)

Peas need constant attention, fleecing & watering

Brassicas are more bother than they're worth, frankly

Carrots easily get overwhelmed by weeds, but if you can weed them every week they are good


You should definitely get up there half an hour twice a week rather than an hour once a week. I've had to do this for two summers now, as I've taken on the school gardens and I just don't have the time for it all to be done properly: it's just zip up, work fast, zip back home again. I haven't (yet) had time to sit back & enjoy it all, but next year should be easier

[Minamoo]

Thanks for the advice folks!

Got my keys and signed the paperwork this afternoon. So excited! The plot is in pretty good condition. There are about 100 strawberry plants that have even filled the paths (anyone in Leeds want strawberry plants?). I suspect that a couple of weekends should clear all the weeds out of it. There is a shed (with no roof), a pear tree (that may or may not be there after tomorrow when the current owner of the plot comes to clear all his stuff off the plot), a rhubarb crown, 2 wooden composting bins and one lidless dalek with some leaf mould in (off to the far left past the edge of the photo. 2/3 of the plot has raised beds in it and the rest of it doesn't. The top of the 1/3 with no raised beds is planted up with raspberry canes, the bottom currently has potatoes. There are also 7 odd brassica plants (some cabbages and some psb). Dh is going to fix the shed and build us a greenhouse using the shower doors we got out of a skip. He says he can rig us up a watering system that connects to the water butt to water the greenhouse plants so that we don't have to go and water the plants every other day in high summer. Now I just need to weed it, sort out getting some manure and decide what to plant!

[Bigmallly]

It was nice meeting you both today. I'm having trouble opening your pics but I suppose I could always have a walk down.................My fav tools were camera, tape measure, pencil & paper. Take your time & enjoy & if I can help in any way, give me a shout (not too loud though).

[Gro-Bag]

Not too shabby! Enjoy!

[Minamoo]

It was nice meeting you both today. I'm having trouble opening your pics but I suppose I could always have a walk down.................My fav tools were camera, tape measure, pencil & paper. Take your time & enjoy & if I can help in any way, give me a shout (not too loud though).

Your plot looks awesome BM. We were both well impressed and it has inspired us. My neighbour has offerred me cuttings from her redcurrants and blackcurrants (incidentally....would you like a redcurrant cutting BM? she gave me some berries earlier this year and they were the most incredible I have ever tasted and the size of marbles) and I am going to give her some strawberry runners in exchange (God knows I have enough on the plot! Lol!) I went to the harrogate flower show yesterday and came home with 2 bags of onion sets, and 3 bulbs of garlic and I have broad bean seeds left from this season. I have a deadline this Thursday so fingers crossed I shall be at the lottie on Friday (or Thursday if I can finish this assignment early). My cold/cough thing has gotten worse and I don't think spending the day outside would do me any favours until I am feeling a bit better!

There are some spuds to get dug up in one bit of the lottie which I shall do then spray the couch grass that's there with roundup. I wonder whther I should put my currants and gooseberries in the bit with the raised beds or without? HM pointed out that digging out spuds growing in a raised bed might prove to be a bit of a challenge so maybe I want to keep that section for spuds...

[taff]

Plan what you're going to do before you go each time, and do it. That way, you won't be going up there and thinking, right, what shall i do this time, and waste 10 mintues of your time there making new plans in your head...