Saturday 24 November 2012

We love freecycle

Picked up a big bunch of wooden planks today.
Sourced off freecycle for nothing.

20 planks, 3metres by 30cm. Quickly knocked together 3 to create a raised bed. Simple and perfect, not half the faffing I've had making the other ones.

However, now thinking i could use them to extend the shed. Design in progress.


 
As i was leaving got talking to an old boy who has a plot opposite me. Friendly old fellow, retired and spends 3 days a week fishing, the rest down his allotment. Happy days.
 
Seems very knowledgeable. Showed me where i had Raspberry canes already growing so that's saved me a few quid buying more. I thought they were brambles. Will move them to my planned Raspberry bed next time I'm down there.
Told me about a guy down there who sells  manure at £15 a load & who i can buy fresh eggs off.
He also showed me what i can leave in the ground when digging & what i need to make sure i get out.
Apparently the tree on my plot is an Elderberry & attracts blackfly so would be a good idea to chop it down
 
Only a quick visit down there today but some valuable learns
 
Next jobs
  • Move raspberry canes
  • Creosote raised beds
  • Use planks
  • Start digging bed number 6

Thats it for now, not sure when i'll get down there next as the next 3 Friday nights are Christmas parties. Theres always a chance i wont over induldge in the alcohol but that is a very slim chance :-)

Happy Gardening

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Sunday 18 November 2012

Bonfire day

Great day down the allotment today.

Probably the most productive day we have had down there for a long while. Looks like the cauliflowers are coming through but i cant be sure, they may well be weeds ;-)

Burnt loads of old crap that was left on the plot, bits of wood and pallet i cant find any use for.




 
Collected up loads of the brambles & nettles we had chopped back since we got the plot & burnt that.




Arleya enjoying a good bonfire just like i used to with my dad. I also used the last of the dug up chicken wire which I've ran down from the shed. If anyone wants to break in and nick stuff I've made it pretty awkward now. If anyone trys to break in, they have to break two padlocks & will get nicely cut up on wire & bramble


 
Had a bit of a picnic


The good life.
 
Was a really nice sunny day today, so we had a picnic down the allotment. Excuse the Mo on my face. Arleya has given up a months pocket money for me to do it.
 
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Knocked together a frame for the last bed we dug. I only have enough decent wood for one more so will have to run up one of the garden centres to scrounge some more pallets.
 
We have four beds completely ready now & dug out a fifth today. Needs another going over and the frame built. Will go for a total of 8 beds for growing all down the right hand side. Although i need to work out where all the fruit trees are going to go.
 
 
 
Quite nice having the footpaths between the beds. Starting to look like everything is coming together.






Cleared out the shed


Got a little bench now, tea making facilities will be incorporated next time i'm there
 
Knocked up a third compost bin out of my last pallet. Filled that up with leaves to make some mulch.

Good days work

Will clear the are where the plastic table is next time i go down. This will be a seating area under the tree ready for next summer :-)




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