Moved the fruit bushes today. 6 raspberries (4 Malling Jewel and 2 that I can't remember what they're called). A huge loganberry and a little blackberry. We also transplanted the gooseberry.
I LOVE how it looks now - how it's been divided from the communal plot next to me. All those lovely berries in Summer mmmmmmmmmm!

View from on our plot.

View from the communal plot.

There I was, pulling up loads of these little baby carrots for tea , when out came this mad mutant whopper! It must've been left over from the first load I sowed that mysteriously disappeared. As it happened the little ones had all been burrowed into by some small annoying creature so the biggie was the one we ate. And yummy he was too!

WE HAVE A SHED!

And what a beauty she is! Not bad for free (bar some nails and coach bolts). Note the new panels at the bottom, seamlessly blending in with the rest of the woodwork. It took us two tiring days at the weekend - one to lay the slabs and one to repair the rotten base and sides, and to put together. It's pretty sturdy though and complete now with net curtains!! FAB! We need to preserve it, but other than a few gaps, it's pretty sound for an old gal.


The beds below are where all our fruit is going. So far I've got strawberries, a donated gooseberry bush (nice bloke over the road and a few plots up), a jostaberry and rhubarb (impulse buys!). I'm also going to move my raspberries, blackberry, loganberry and gooseberry from home to go in here next week (probably!?).

We've got two more beds in the top end of the plot to dig (Beds 8 & 9), one bed on the other side of the compost bin (Bed 12) and finally the beds for the spuds (13-16). Then all the basic structure will be done and we can start to think about paths, etc.

Can't wait (poor Hubby)!

Finally, we had a smashing time on Sat at the Allotment bonfire, fireworks and BBQ. The biggest bonfire I think I've ever seen and tonnes of fireworks (hubby was put in charge of these - bit scary!!). Everyone was really nice (if a little inebriated by the end!) - great fun!

After a chat with the 'sort of' Site Manager about what he follows cabbage/squash with, I have come to the conclusion that I have been making things quite difficult for myself with different 'families' of veg and fruit dotted all over the plot on my first plan.

I was told that I should try to keep all my spuds together in a block and then move this block to another area of the plot each year (made sense). Also I shouldn't follow brassicas with spuds as the lime in the soil gives them scab - (the whole plan shot then!!).

So a good hour sitting in the sunshine while Hubby helped the 'blokes' shift slabs and here is the new plan. Much simpler I think! Took some working out mind you, and couldn't follow ALL the rotation advice (as in following the legumes with the brassicas - just didn't fit), but it seems to work okay (give or take a few things I've already put in the wrong place - onions etc.).

The plot's coming together brilliantly though. I just had a look back at my posts from July and we've really come MILES! Actually looks like an allotment! Still got two beds left to dig in the first half, along with the area for the spuds (that currently has the shed on - so that needs sorting first). And we're dug. I'm all prepared with green manures for any vacant beds though so far I seem to be filling them as they are emptied.

Early July

3 months later

Bob here was supposed to be a family activity - but I ended up creating him all on my own (kids and Hubby not in the slightest bit interested). Still, he seems to be doing his job, I spoke to him twice thinking he was Hubby out of the corner of my eye, and looked up to see who was standing there more times than I can count. Just hope he works on the pigeons (and burglars too!!)

Hubby dug over all the remaining fruit beds ready for the currant and gooseberry bushes I ordered and to move the 'berries' from home into in Nov. We lined to bottom of the trenches with manure and are now going to give it a few weeks before we uproot them from our garden. Can't wait!


At last we managed to eat two of our sweetcorns. One was scrummy (didn't know I liked sweetcorn - cor!!) and one wasn't ripe yet - yuk! The best thing though, is that my daughter loves them - what could be better?