My Allotment Diary – August 2018

The first weekend

I decided that I would take on an allotment near to where I live, my own space to do with as I wish. I added myself to the waiting list back in May and was told that I would probably get something towards the end of summer. Well after a short wait I picked up the metaphorical keys to my new plot of land at the weekend. I wasn’t sure what to expect as I know people who have plots there already and I was hoping that I would be given a plot that had been looked after and weeded etc. What I got was a patch of wasteland.

Speaking with the chap who has the plot to the left of mine, he told me that the previous owner didn’t spend an awful lot of time there and had pretty much given up on it.

I fought my way through 6ft high nettles to the back, and hidden behind a tree was a shed! Trouble is the brambles have grown over the door so need to clear them before I can get in to have a look at what’s inside.

I have to admit I was a bit disheartened at the amount of work needed to get it to a usable state, but what I decided was to concentrate not on clearing everything in one go, but work on a smaller area and move on to the next and work it like that. Plus I’m going on holiday soon and that means the weeds will have a chance to come back with a vengeance.

Well that was the plan…

On the Saturday I went down armed with a pair of shears and some stout gloves and set to work:

Cleared enough to get in through the gate, and it seems a previous owner had laid down some weed blocking membrane which I’ve left down.

Back up on Sunday and did a bit more

And again on Monday after work for a couple of hours and cleared the nettles and brambles from the left hand side fence

Just got the back half to clear which I’m going to do this weekend coming, but it’s quite a jungle up there, more than the front was. Also going to clear out the shed, but will document that in another post.