Hobbit Allotment!

[horticultural_hobbit]

Seriously, Sno, that onion hoe was flung everywhere. And I did the mick jagger pouty swagger too. Shaking my head, and feeling a lot like England had once against crashed out of a football tournament after penalties.

Think modularising is key, especially with the clay anyway. Carrots I will still do direct. Might have some early nante somewhere in the see stasher.


Have a stupidly long list of jobs to do. Will be very happy to plant out stuff. Then perhaps I will feel a bit better that I am playing properly. Need to really shoe horn more time in amongst all this being a grown up business. I can't go before school, and after school I try to do a hour or so if I have to fetch Ma from her school. Weekend playing is also done around school work. And as this is my first year of lotmenting, I'm easily annoyed but eager to get a good result.

[snohare]

in amongst all this being a grown up business

Sorry, can't give you any advice on that one ! Never managed it myself, still find myself bemused to own "adult" things like curtains, tools and furniture.
Juggling priorities - well, that is my bugbear, and hence perforce (kind of) my specialty. What I found - by doing things the wrong way - was that the first year on the allotment was very much creating the infrastructure - clearing ground (sound familiar?), making paths, setting up sheds etc - and in consequence the whole production line process of getting seedlings sown and grown suffered. Not least because outside influences - the world outside the gate - interfered endlessly, and randomly, and learning to cope with that is simply a case of adapting personal circumstances, which of course necessitates starting off from a position of inefficiency.
The second year, things were a lot easier, the third year began to rock'n'roll. (Or would have been, if the Monster called Poor Health hadn't been taking big random bites out of my life.)
Do the same thing several times over, and it gets a lot easier, setting up a garden is a known quantity; but nonetheless, on my fourth garden, I am still only really beginning to get into my stride big time in the third summer. I know it's possible to do better - but I can't with my resources.
I think the secret is to decide clear aims, have priorities labelled infrastructure and growing process, and have a list of tasks for each of the two categories which will advance either your short-term or longer-term goals. Every time you achieve in either one or the other, tick it off. (I do this in my head, that's how I think all the time, in logistics, but in the past when I needed motivation I found writing it down helps enormously, the sense of satisfaction is palpable if you look at a ticked off list.)
At the end of the day, we live in luxury; because our lives don't depend on how well the growing goes. (We hope ! Although I am probably closer to it than you given my malnutrition, and it's not a comfortable sensation.) No shaved tree roots soup for our lunch as they are having in the Sahel... so enjoy every little triumph, and remember that weather such as we are currently having is a challenging and at times grim apprenticeship for novice growers, such as may not have been seen in millennia.

[Two_Sheds]

Snohare's hit the nail on the head: don't expect to achieve a fully functioning lotty in your first year, or even your third. I've only just beaten the weeds into some kind of submission, after 4 years.

This year I find myself with even less time, so I planned to grow fewer things, but more of them: lots of ground-covering beans and pumpkins, and more green manures to cover some more ground that I don't have time to till.
Sadly, the weather isn't playing ball, and lots of my beans have rotted in their cold compost.

Instead of hoeing, start mulching: I use layers of newspaper, papier mache style, topped with grass clippings to hold them down. Look out Zazen's excellent photo showing the technique with excellent weed-restraining results.

[horticultural_hobbit]

I'm very glad for having an uncle Sno, aunties two sheds, VVG and Zazen as well as granny Flo.

[snohare]

Don't forget Cousins Taff, Sanjo and Binley ! And all those other First and Second Cousins Cybernetically Removed...
Ach well, on yet anither dreich, snell day when it's too wet to do onything on the lottie, what is more natural to do for growers than to congregate and chew over all the details of how I'd, when I's, and what you'd ?
Crikey though, it makes me think. What did people do before the likes of the Vine ? I have a friend up here who is a keen veggie grower, now on her second season - when I talk to her I feel almost Godlike in my omniscience. Yet I deserve no credit - it is all information gleaned from others here, my own experience is generally very scant ! When all the allotment plots were falling vacant and everyone was buying air-shipped asparagus and Safari beans from the newly fashionable supermarkets, things must have been pretty difficult for many a young wannabe(an), particularly out in the sticks.

[horticultural_hobbit]

I wil confess that the omission of these lovelies has been bugging me all day!

Went to the garden centre after school. Came out with a three sided hoe and a raised bed. The latter because ma's 1/8 is boggy and she is protesting that she doesn't want that bit any more. Went home, couldn't find dad or his drill. Tried to assemble it myself, as I didn't realise I needed a drill; just thought it would a lot together.

On finding dad-having a shave:

"Dad," said I. "I need your help putting a bed together."

looking at me as though I had rubbish timing, "Yeah, in a minute," he frowned face half lathered.

Ten minutes later, armed with a drill. Dad found me loitering. Looking at the bits of bed, he asked whose bed it was.

"S'not a bed bed, Dad," I said, "It's a plant bed."

I love my dad.

[Two_Sheds]

I love my dad.

I wish I had one. My mum was my dad (as well as being my mum, of course). By that I mean, she was always the one who fixed stuff, because she had to. Now I'm the one who always fixes stuff, because Someone Else would rather watch telly

[VirginVegGrower]

You can't beat a woman who can

[horticultural_hobbit]

Shredded newspaper

Just had a though. If i spread shredded newspaper everywhere that is currently barren; what would that achieve exactly? I'm sorry it's such a question. Just getting up-Ma keeps coming in and telling me she's bored-but I'm just wondering if that's usefull.

Best get up.

[taff]

What did people do before the likes of the Vine ? I have a friend up here who is a keen veggie grower, now on her second season - when I talk to her I feel almost Godlike in my omniscience. Yet I deserve no credit - it is all information gleaned from others here, my own experience is generally very scant !

snap!!

Just had a though. If i spread shredded newspaper everywhere that is currently barren; what would that achieve exactly? .

It'll get wet, matt together and act as a mulch The worms will eventually pull it down, but they don't seem to like paper as much as cardboard, or at they dont in my garden. I put some downlast year as a thick sheet mulch, but they've eaten the cardboard from this year first.

[Two_Sheds]

If i spread shredded newspaper everywhere that is currently barren; what would that achieve exactly?

I haven't tried it with shredded, I just lay down whole newspapers, soaked first. They mat together like papier mache, making a weed-suppressing mulch. It works really well, and saves a hell of a lot of time you would have spent weeding.

I'm doing my front garden today: laying down wet newspapers, topped with semi-rotted leafmold (about a dozen bags so far). I'll post a photo if I get round to it, I'm just off up the lotty to get more newspapers

[horticultural_hobbit]

Thank you

Could I then, theoretically, plant through it?

I feel smug today. Planted out my cabbages beneath a net, with collars, ceramic deterrent stuff and those evil blue pellets. Dedicated to my lovely grandad Rana who came down a few weeks ago and told me I can grow whatever I want. Years ago he would pickle them and I really want him to tell me how!

[Two_Sheds]

Could I then, theoretically, plant through it?

Zazen does, so I'd say so !

[horticultural_hobbit]

Interesting. I'm hypothesising, then. Sheets of the evening mail and the mirror; soaked and very wet. Carpeting each bed. Rather than shredded. Wonder how I would weigh it down...I wouldn't have grass cuttings til the lawns are mowed. Plan to plant out the triffids and tomatoes in a fortnight. Making holes in it wouldn't be difficult really.

Going to seriously try it. There will most definitely be comments. But it's my 88 sq yards, innit. Haven't got on too well with the bark and chipping mulch, so this could be a strategy.

[Two_Sheds]

Wonder how I would weigh it down...

Lumps of soil?