encouragement needed!

[raine]

Hi all, haven't been able to get up to the plot for a few weeks due to one thing or another and when I went yesterday it was a disaster! The weeds have all but taken over, mares tail has decided that it will pop up simply everywhere ( no sign at all last year ), my overwintered onions have got white rot which i'v just read means that I can't plant there for 8 years, my carrots have disappeared (slugs I think ) and one of my three raspberry canes have decided to give up the ghost.
Can some wise old grape out there at least tell me if i can eat some of the onions or am I going to have to lift and burn the lot.
I must admit I'm feeling very discouraged at the moment and wonder if I'll ever have the time to get it back to the way it was looking before. Oh and to top it all my 60 odd pound rent is due this month!
Well, i feel better getting that moan off my chest- i think it's time for a cuppa!

[shirlthegirl43]

Oh dear. Hope the cuppa helped. Sorry, can't help with your other problems - having trouble finding my intended garden spot at home just now as we cut down a 30 foot privet hedge a few weeks back and most of it is still lying where I wanted to plant. Cleared a spot yesterday but it doesn't look anything like it did before so I know how you feel.

Try to get a little area under control and get something planted - that will help make it all seem better. Good luck and don't give in.

[Helenclare]

Hi Raine,
So sorry to hear that things are not going too well. It's amazing how quickly things can get out of hand if you don't get to the plot for a few weeks. Is there anything positive there, maybe some other plants are doing well, but you only notice the things going pear shaped. I know how upsetting it can be when crops fail, my garlic and leeks got rust weeks ago and they are now going under big time. I try to stand with my back to them and look at the rest of the plot!! Keep your chin up and see if you can enlist the help of some friends/relatives to give you a hand for a few hours in return for a pizza or a drink or two!

[queen of the cobs]

you'll feel so much better if you give it a go and try and get rid of some of those weeds - like Helenclare says, see who you can persuade over to give you a hand. You'll be surprised what a difference even an hour can make.

[Mrs Dobby]

Sorry to hear of the probs Raine, but if it was all easy, then there'd be no challenge and you'd not enjoy it half as much, honest!

We spent 6 months double digging our plot, clearing it of 8' of weeds and putting in a greenhouse, paths etc, but once the weather started to warm up, then back come the thistles (how deep are their bleedin rots!), mares tail, dandelion, couch and bindweed, very disheartening! Makes you think you've wasted 6 months of digging, and thenh to add insult to injury along come the annual weed seedlings that follow any rain, swamping your crops if you cant hoe them down quick enough!

Its enough to dishearten any of us, and much worse if you've not been able to get to your plot for a while due to ill health or any other reason that life throws at you, as you come back and the shock of seeing the wilderness thats become of your well ordered plot is enough to shock anyone, but after getting over the shock, then you just have to pick up the pieces and set to!

With luck and some hard work it wont be quite as bad as it first appears, and you will get it back to normal, which will give you a great sense of acchievement once its done!

As has often been said on the vine, take it a smal step at a time, little and often and cover over any area that you cant deal with yet!

Good luck and hope you manage to get it back under control soon!

[Flummery]

If you've once had it looking good it's easier to get it back there than if it's been totally neglected for years. Small steps! (And big pizzas!)

[raine]

Thanks all, sometimes you just feel like having a whinge! Of course, you are all quite right, my peas have done really well, the lettuces look good and I've even got about 10 parsnips germinated and romping away and if i look postively at the weeds, although they are big, they were definitely easier to pull out than at the beginning of last year (see what a couple of hours and a cuppa can do? )
many thanks for your positive comments. One day I'll have a lovely plot that will rival my neighbours -oh and i'll probably have won the lottery, got a promotion and lost two stone too!

[Alice]

Keep going Raine. As you say, one day you will have a lovely plot. It will all happen a bit at a time. Do it step by step and enjoy the bit you're doing and the fruits of your labour. Happy gardening.

[rustylady]

At least if the weeds are huge you pull one out and it makes a huge difference. Things will improve and I know it's hard if you can't get to the plot regularly (things do seem to go to pot while you are away). The secret of gardening and allotment keeping is little and often. The onions may be OK to use. If they are firm use them.

[roitelet]

Don't get too discouraged Raine, at least some of your crops are doing well and given a bit of time I am sure that you will get it all under control again,

[DirtDobber]

Just as some one else said...do it in baby steps...It's so easy to let a large space overwhelm you...set yourself a daily or weekly goal and go for it...everyone here will tell you that when you finish that one chore, and stand back you will feel such a sense of accomplishment that it will spur you on to more...Good luck and keep on working on it a little at a time...

[Waffler]

I'm glad you've perked up a little - sorry you had such a bad lottie visit . I was going to say (then you confirmed anyway) that the weeds are easier to pull (usually!) after a shortish period of time - even if they have romped away. And of course that is one of the good things about all the rain; it also helps in the weeding process (although it does also encourage more weeds! hey ho!)

[moggssue]

Hi Raine, hope things are getting back under control again now, slowly slowly and all that. Just remember that one day you'll be able to eat your very own homegrown lettuce and parsnip and allthe work will hve been worth while. Then later on you can redo another bit and learn something new about a different crop. Mostly, dont give up, just enjoy yourself and take a bit at a time - and listen to all the friendly knowledgeable vines on here!

[yoanbob]

dont be too disheartened raine, with one thing and another our plot is almost as bad as when we got it, still with the help of some grapes in a months time should be looking better, and I'm sure once we get stuck in and make a little improvement it will be easier to carry on and keep motivated. you will soon have it back to its former glory.