New allotment site

About 3 years ago when we joined the waiting list for an allotment in our village, we were told that it would probably be at least 5 years before we got a plot. Then a couple of years ago the parish council were offered a site for some new allotments and this year they have been busy turning a field which had been left fallow for a number of years into 48 allotment plots (7m*10m). Last Saturday saw the official opening ceremony attended by a crowd of keen new allotment holders who then streamed on to the site eager to inspect their plots.



It's a bit late to do much this season apart from some planning and setting out beds but we're looking forward to having even more growing options next year as we will continue with our Landshare plot which we've invested a lot of time in over the last couple of years.

 

Wow !

Looks like a lovely site .. you'll have a great time I am very sure. Only downside that I can see, is that everybody will be new and will be trying to outdo everybody else ... the first runner beans, the first potato shoots popping their heads through the soil, etc etc.

I got my allotment about 3 weeks ago, so I too am looking forward to spring 2014.

Best wishes !

 

So they're what would be classed as quarter sized plots? (based upon a standard plot being 10 poles), but better than nothing much better than nothing when many councils these days want to sell off their allotments.

Have you got a water supply?

 

Yes there are 4 water troughs with piped water controlled by a floating ball valve. Fortunately our plot is fairly close to one of them so not too far to walk.

 

Cor, they'm posh

 

I've seen a new private site where each plot had not only a shed, but also a small greenhouse.

Are there any specific rules about only filling water cans for immediate use, or can you fill a barrow with several 4 gall containers to wheel back to your plot and sluice your veg? I have no water so have to transport everything by car, which prompts me to ask whether you have vehicular access/parking.

You can plant garlic and autumn planting onion sets now, useful to maintain you interest over winter, plus if that field has lied fallow for so long it's highly unlikely to be harbouring white rot.

Are you allowed to erect poly tunnels on your plots? Now is a good time to get one cheap and get it ready for next spring, or even some overwintering stuff.

 

Hey...real snazzie HsuH.....

@Scrungee .... A GH too....our lotties round here still have the old Anderson Shelters....still look great though

 

The sheds don't feel like they are able to survive very long though, a bit flimsy.

The rules are that we need permission for any structure, including poly tunnels, more than 1 metre high.

I've got a greenhouse at home which we use to grow cucumbers, aubergines, peppers and tomatoes. But to rotate plants each year is always a bit problematic. I'm wondering whether I could get a grow tunnel that is 1m high with a cover which rolls up / down ? Then I would be able to move peppers and aubergines to the allotment and leave my GH solely for tomatoes and cucumbers

Yes, there is a car park that can hold more than 10 cars. And also space for local stable holders to deliver manure, and tree surgeons to download their wood chippings. Each allotment holder then just helps themselves with what they need and wheelbarrows it to their plot.

Don't think there are any rules about how we use the water. Since our plot is not far from a water trough, we'll just take water with our watering cans whenever we need it.

I've also got a veggie plot through Landshare which is located a bit further away than this new allotment. I am planning to use that to plant things that don't require constant picking and can look after themselves for reasonable length of times. Hence, garlic, onion, leek, sweetcorn and squashes will be in the Landshare veggie plot.

I'm in the process of putting together a planting rota. I may post a copy here to sound out your opinions.

First meeting of the new Allotment Holders Association last night. Lots of good ideas about a communal hut, discounted seeds, shared equipment, etc etc. A couple of people were more concerned about whether they would be allowed to paint their sheds a different colour! Admittedly it looks a bit regimented at the moment but a raggedy mixture of pastel painted huts would look worse IMO.

 

It's difficult to believe that it's nearly 6 months since we took on our allotment. We managed to lay out a few paths with wood chippings and get in a few cauliflowers before the wind and the rain set in. It seems to have been almost continuous until the last week or so. One impact was that ten of those nice new sheds were blown over during the peak of the winter storms, including ours.

However, spring is in the air and we were down there today helping to erect the first 5 replacement sheds. Lots of willing helpers were on site and it was a pleasant day to be out working in the sun.

Now we need to get on with digging over the plot and start to get a few things growing.

 

They'm in Hanham innit

 

Oops, my bad. They looked a bit like ones that were available to a new development as part of the 'package'...

 

@Freddy, close but not quite We'm in Frampun Cotral (pardon my Bristle, we're incomers to the area.)

We had one of those. Barratt's wanted to build 300 houses on the edge of the village and offered a few allotments on a bit of the land they couldn't build on because a pipeline goes through it. Fortunately they didn't get planning permission.

Our site is on a bit of former agricultural land that has been uncultivated for 30 years or more. Acquired by the Parish Council to address the long waiting list for allotments.

 

Ahh, you'm just down the road from me, I'm in Shortwood, for now at least. We used to have a mod here (Antony) that had a plot in Coalpit Heath, along the same lines.

 

We've only managed to get on with digging the plot since mid-March when the wind and rain finally ceased and the ground dried up a bit. We thought we could have the digging done within 2 weeks. How wrong could we be!!! Yet the end is in sight, we should be able to finish digging in the next 3 days .





The soil is heavy clay so all the digging we have done is to break the giant slab into grapefruit or fist sized lumps. The allotment holders association has bought a tiller but it is a model that you push along. In this kind of sticky soil I don't see the point of breaking up the soil with a tiller only to be pressed back together by us stepping on it. Does anyone have experience on using a forward tiller on clay soil?

Due to the lumpy soil condition, I didn't think it was a good idea to transplant seedlings straight from the inch sized sowing cells into the ground unless I surrounded them with plenty of fine compost (which I would have to bring along with me), I decided to borrow @Kristen 's idea of paper pots, I made over hundred of them in different sizes (now I'm an expert in making paper pots), and the seedlings have been living in them for the past 2 weeks and have settled nicely while waiting for us to finish digging and for the night temperature to get a bit higher.

I've never worked with clay soil, I guess that most things are probably ok but not sure about carrots. Could anyone offer me some info about what vegetables would not work with clay soil?

Yes, you are just down the road. I'll look out for someone resembling your avatar image at Emerson's Green Sainsburys then.

 

You need some "walk boards", I use some old ex-scaffolding boards for this. When tilling with my push along a board is placed on the now tilled side of the soil and I till upto that board.

Using the board spreads your weight and when it's removed a quick rake over will sort out where the board once was.

Steve...