Allotment update after 2 week break

Things are looking grassy. Its not pretty.

I can't believe how much its grown in 2 weeks. Maybe if I was working on it full time, maybe I'd be able to keep ahead of the weeds, but I doubt I would have been able to anyway.

The wild flowers are loving it, as are the bees. So I'm feeling bad about having to dig them up. But I do not want them to go to seed for next year. 

At the least the carpet patch is doing its job!

Cleverly went to the allotment with my new boots. 

I had a quick check up on the tree cuttings I stuck in the ground.

 

Deed.

Again, things are looking bleak. I'd say most of the bits I put in the ground are dead. Fairly dead. I'd maybe need to plant them again at this time of year when the plants are dormant. However, nothing lost. It was worth a go.

There has been some success though! The American honeysuckle and the willow cuttings seem indestructible.

Hopefully by next year they'll start pushing up new shoots. Next spring, once the place has been rabbit proofed (the sooner the better really, I noticed a lot of the cuttings had been nibbled to death).

Speaking of rabbits, they have finished off all my onions that I put in the ground.
This is the patch the onions used to live in.

No onions. Replaced with poop. Probably infused with onions.

 

My brussel sprouts are looking good though! The lower leaves near the edges of their protective buckets are looking rather nibbled. However, they're looking so much better than they were a few weeks ago. Starting to really fill out. I hope they buckets protect them from the wind.

With any luck these nubbly bits will produce some sprouts! But we'll see. Ever pessimistic.

Back from holiday to a broccoli explosion

My partner and I have been away for 2 weeks to Tenerife. It was great, but towards the end I was looking forward to getting back to my plants.

It turned out that I'd totally forgotten where I'd planted broccoli and where I'd planted brussel sprouts.
The sprouting broccoli wasn't finished and there's now 2nd huge crop with much slower growing plants. Great! But many of them had gone to flower. If I'm extremely lucky I may get a few more heads before they die off for the winter.

Not only that, but I have 4 peas! Yay! I steamed them, shells and all, because to be honest I wasn't sure what I was supposed to do with them, which variety I'd sown. After doing so, I can only assume they weren't designed to be eaten pods and all, haha. 

Broccoli bouquet

I thought I wasn't going to get any peas this year as I sowed them so late! But this is extremely cool. I know what not to do this year and so next year's will be better attempted.

Chicken pals and endless weeding

"You left your hand coverings on the ground. I don't like them."

Meet Jemima, the mud-diggin' chicken. ;)

This isn't her official name, only my name for her, as I'm fairly sure she isn't named. Nearly every time I've been out at the allotment recently, she's joined me to help 'dig'.

The routine is, I arrive with my car and collect my tools from the shed adjoining the chicken coop. The cockerels kick up a fuss at the sight of me, to which the entire flock joins in, squawking. I head off to start digging. As they calm down, Jemima sneaks away and quietly appears beside me often making me jump.

The rule is, its my job to turn over a patch of earth, then its her turn to dive in, pecking away the worms and other undesirables. Teamwork. Not so fun for the worms, but I'm sure there will be plenty survivors from her massacre.

She has only eaten one worm from my hand so far, so quite a ways to train her before we're best buddies. In the past I've had chickens so tame they'd hop on my lap and fall asleep. Thats the goal.

However, I'm quite worried that she'll never get used to my voice. Every time so far that I've been out to the allotment so far, I've been listening to an audio book read by Ian McKellen. She knows his voice! Whenever I talk to her, she gets startled and looks at me funny.

To her, I'm a magical digging machine that unearths bugs with the voice of Ian McKellen. There could be worse things than being a Gandalf, the Worm Wizard to a chicken, I suppose.

"No worms?! Work faster human!"

Having a dirt bath with one of the jealous cockerels trying to take her back to the coop

The compost pile is growing. I'm not sure how many barrowloads of weeds are still left in the field, but would easily be upwards of 20.

The worst offenders are chickweed, deaf nettles and creeping buttercup. Creeping buttercup is by far the worst thing to deal with. Their roots hold onto the earth so fiercely. Other weeds taking hold include a few rogue dockens, daisies and thistles. No nettles yet, thankfully. 

Deaf Nettles by the millions

Chickweed

A few weeks ago I went on a mission to acquire some old carpet to lay as a temporary weed killer. Anything to help reduce the workload of the whole area will help.

The plot as a whole is still a long ways from being finished, but its getting there. I'll keep chipping away at it.

Weeding the allotment

After my second day volunteering at Turriefield I made it my mission over the weekend to clear as much as I could.

I visited the allotment several times to weed it before but then I'd mostly been pulling things up by hand. The plot's weeds had a growth spurt after some rain. Deaf nettles, and creeping buttercup infest it.

After 5 hours or so I cleared this patch. It didn't look too bad.

But in the larger context its like a spit in the ocean. 

After a second session things were looking better. But there is still so much to do.

Its my goal to try and get at least HALF of the ground cleared before winter really sets in. Its a slow process though. By far the worst culprit is creeping buttercup.



At the moment this is my most hated weed. Each plant put down an deep tap root. Then it shoots off runners like a strawberry. Each plant can have up to 10 runners or so. Every runner roots and creates a new plant, that creates more runners. Of course if you leave a single root in the ground, it will create a new plant.
Its a nightmare to dig it all up.

I've been given an allotment!

In July, I decided to put myself out there and post an advertisement on one of the Shetland gardening pages.
Currently Lerwick has no allotments. Its stupid really, as there are so many people, like me, living in minute flats with little or no garden to grow anything.

My post was about wanting to meet other people who like me, had no garden and were interested in trying to make the building of allotments happen.

The upshot of this was that I created a facebook group for Shetland gardeners who will, in the future, create a society for allotments when our numbers increase. But that is another post.

The plot. On a slight slope. This is before the lower fence went in.

However, through this exposure I got a message from a lady saying her husband had an allotment that he was willing to give to me and I should contact him. 

The ground had been ploughed earlier in the year so there weren't too many weeds

Stephen's neighbouring free range chickens come to visit often

I did and met Stephen 2 weeks later. He drove me up to the plot, situated in Tingwall. Perfect as it doesn't take more than 10 minutes to get there.
I was given permission to use a HUGE plot of ground for anything I wanted. Trees, vegetables, fruit, buildings, I can even keep animals as it is a registered croft.

I couldn't believe my luck. When I left I squeaked all the way home in the car, and chanting "YES! YES!". Its everything I'd hoped for. A blank slate to do whatever I want with.

Ready installed taps!

A HUGE expanse. So much potential.

The ground is roughly 30 x 25m. The ground slopes to the west. The soil is very good. Best of all there is enough space that I think it will be a long time before I will fill it.

Stephen's plot is next to mine, where he keeps 2 pigs and hens. The hens explore freely and come to peck at my plot often. I miss keeping hens myself, so now I won't need to have my own as I can befriend his.

I'm so lucky. I've fallen on my feet. Stephen is so generous to let me use it.
I think the moral is, if you don't stick your head up and ask, you don't get! Now I have infinite potential for next year and the following years!

2nd Volunteering Saturday at Turriefield

Since my first visit, I'd told my mam all about Turriefield. I recruited her to come and help for the day. I knew she would be inspired by what they were doing. She is much more into growing flowers and isn't keen on vegetables, where as I'm the opposite.

We arrived on another lovely day. Our job for the morning was to weed the chard and beetroot patch. The only annoyance was that the wind fell away entirely. Penny and Allan provided midge repellents which was a lifesaver.

Hard at work.

This is one of my favourite pictures I've ever taken of my mam.

Hundreds upon hundreds of peas and beans. 

One of my relatives said he wouldn't want to be a weed in my presence haha. 

The sun threatening to shine! 

We were fed another amazing lunch including toasted marshmallows to celebrate one of the volunteer's birthday. Ian and Penny are fab hosts. Their bannocks are some of the best I've ever had anywhere. My mouth just waters thinking about it.

I didn't take any photos of them, but my favourite part of the visit this time was seeing the progress of the Turriefield polytunnel pumpkins. They were HUGE. Pumpkins are something I would never have expected would have been able to grow up here, even inside. But its possible!

Now if only I had a polytunnel of my own so I could grow all these wonderful things. Some day!

Some people have fitness goals, I have veg growing goals

Wednesday 12th August was the Cunningsburgh show. I took a half day off work and my mam, brother and I drove down. As the Voe show had been cancelled this year, this was our only agricultural show 'fix' for this year.

Previously I'd never cared about the vegetable and produce displays. In fact, I'd always thought they were the dullest part of the show. I'd drag my poor mam away from it as quickly as possible. Why would you go to look at them when you could spend time with the animals instead. 

How times have changed, haha.

I was so impressed with the variety selection that won. 

My rhubarb at home is more like the one on the right.
Look at the COLOUR of the left selection. Beautiful.

I loved the raspberry display. I could definitely do this.

My leeks are still the size of pencils. I can't believe how badly mine compare, haha

Herb display. This was the only one at the show!

Blue salad potatoes. Another thing I want to try to grow.

The most interesting thing was the presentation of the vegetables. Using sphagnum moss and heather to decorate the containers was a common theme. Wicker baskets and old ceramics was another.

Just LOOK at the olive eggs in the center. To die for.

Someday I'd love my own hens to compete in this too.

I'm going to try my best to compete in the Voe or Cunningsburgh show next year. I can definitely do this.