Hi

[bean]

Hello

Great forum, you all seem right friendly like I'm in Bristol (UK) and have had a lotty for a few months, slowly transforming it into a half-managed weed plot (which is a big improvement, trust me).

I'd describe myself as a pragmatic anarchist and try to reach a workable balance between all the inherent contradictions that implies (hence the lotty). I smile a lot, bark a bit, and bite only when needed

Thanks for having me

bean

[shiney]

Welcome Bean,

I'd like a lotty but have managed to snaffle a bit of my friends garden to grow extra stuff on. Just got to get the weeds out of the way.

What are you growing on your patch?

[Andy Hamilton]

Hi Bean, might be a neighbour soon. We are looking into moving to Bristol Is there much of a waiting list on the allotments? I heard that a £3 million investment is happening soon on the Bristol lotties.

Welcome to the forum, pretty friendly bunch we have here so try not to bark too loudly

[bean]

Blimey, that was quick! Thanks for the welcome.

At the mo I've got:

broad beans, sugar snap peas, red & white onions and shallots, garlic, spuds, savoy cabbage, leeks, strawberries and comfrey (as well as bindweed, creeping buttercup, dandelions and loads of annuals!). Hoping to have sweetcorn and runners in by late June, one growing up the other. I bet your friend is very happy that someone has taken on the gardening work, I know I would be!

As for Bristol, I think there's quite a waiting list on some sites now, although there are still quite a few plots around if you're willing to tackle them! It depends where in Bristol you'll be living, there are sites all over the city. Try calling the lotty office on (0117) 922 3737 to get the latest info.

[greenbean]

Hello bean, are you broad, dwarf or runner? Your allotment sounds great, I like your idea of runners growing up your corn, have you tried that before? Welcome, I have found the people here v nice.

[bean]

Runner with a hint of broad The runners and corn thing is an idea that I read about some time back and is known as the 'Three Sisters' - you should also really underplant with squash, but I'm a bit late this year for that. For more on the idea, see this -

Three Sisters

This is my first time trying the idea with 'twins', but hopefully next year I'll get the timing a bit better and do all three!

Thanks for the hi

[greenbean]

Interesting article, thank you for that. Well you should be impressed to know that my corn is already underplanted with courgettes! Although corn is not growing very fast, the courgs are going to over take them unless they get a move on. I read about it in an American gardening book, it keeps racoons off, no racoons in my garden yet! Next year I'll do the runners too, as my diy bamboo wigwam is looking pretty crappy. Would harvesting the runner beans be a little tricky this way? Pricky courgettes stems and not much room to get into the middle?

[Lyds]

This sounds really interesting. Too late for this year of course but will try next year. The only problem is my sweetcorn has taken ages to get going and would prob be crowded out by the squash. Perhaps English soil takes a long time to warm up?

[greenbean]

Well not as long as this Scottish soil, my impatience has got the better of me, again. I am as usual overly optimistic that it'll all come good in the end. 'Good', get it? boom boom!

[cheap&cheerful]

Hi bean,

Interesting article. I'm going to be growing giant amaranthus with runner beans but I shall be under planting with clover and rye grass to graze my geese, chickens and muscovie ducks on (my little mobile dung spreaders) I'm growing corn and sunflowers in the same area so will NOW be growing some kind of bean around the corn. I don't know that the sunflower stems will take the weight.
I think the secret in this kind of planting is lots of lovely fertile compost. Hence why we are going to have have a compost loo. Flushing is such a waste of good drinking water and excellent compost. Not every bodies cup of tea


Jill..

[Wombat]

G'Day Bean,

Nice to meet you!

I had a go at growing the 3 sisters (called a "guild" in permaculture speak) and it worked pretty well, one hint is to grow the beans that are purple otherwise it's like play "where's Wally" to find the beans in amongst the green corn plants!

Nev

[Millymollymandy]

Hi Bean, welcome to the site.

What a coincidence that I'm growing the same weeds as you in my veg patch!

There must be a use for bindweed, surely?

[couscous]

Hi bean

Welcome to the site. That was a very interesting article. I havn't grown sweet corn for a few years as I always lost the crop, either to insufficient sun to ripen it - or if it did - the mice got it. Will courgettes repel mice I wonder. I do now have three killer cats who are doing their best to keep the population down. One of them has completely cleared the rabbits out.
Shame he can't quite handle the deer problem. Mice like peas too.

I grow the same weeds as you too but also have the added bonus of mares tails, ground elder and giant hog weed so if you need any of those, let me know

MMM - The use for bindweed - just admire the flowers - they are pretty!

[Muddypause]

The use for bindweed - just admire the flowers - they are pretty!

At last someone else who thinks that too. Bindweed is the devils own job to get rid of completely, but it dies back every year, and is, as you say, quite pretty.