Matt says hello...

[Shirley]

Hi again Matt

Just had a read of the lottie blog... and read it all with a geordie accent in mind... really entertaining stuff... I'm looking forward to the next update like!!

[Matt]

Hi again Matt

Just had a read of the lottie blog... and read it all with a geordie accent in mind

LOL I do too but I have the benefit (or is that a curse? ) of knowing Andys voice to boot. (j/k Andy).

I'm glad you are liking it, wait until we get the chooks on there - Coronation St eat yer heart out!

Matt.

[Millymollymandy]

Good progress! The silver birch is a beautiful specimen - but be warned - their tiny seeds get everywhere and germinate really well!

I have an 18" tall silver birch in a pot, which was just a self-seeded one that came uninvited in a pot plant from my last house. I decided to pull it out (literally!) and shoved it in a little pot to see what would happen. I'm looking forward to planting it out one day.

[Christine]

Matt
Well done on your allotment - you've made amazing progress. Bit worried about your onions as they are usually just dipped into the earth with the tops showing.
Fear that the headstone may mark the grave of your onion crop!

[Christine]

As it happens, I have the excess of some onion sets here at work and just looked on the label - yep, that says to leave the tip of the onion above the ground.

[Matt]

As it happens, I have the excess of some onion sets here at work and just looked on the label - yep, that says to leave the tip of the onion above the ground.

You live and learn hey. Thanks for that Christine. I'll get me wellies on and go dig em up and replant tonight then (or wait 5 years for them to come up themselves j/k)

EDIT: Is it the same deal for the garlic as they are also a bulb? Can anyone advise please?

Matt.

[Sue]

your progress puts me to shame but lots of guys and a dog is one up on little old me
Really thinking of sharing an allotment but I hear of nightmares where folk don't agree over organic etc, or one person does the graft etc - anyone done it and got any ideas how to ensure it goes well?
What is best time of year (if any) to get one?

[Matt]

As it happens, I have the excess of some onion sets here at work and just looked on the label - yep, that says to leave the tip of the onion above the ground.

You live and learn hey. Thanks for that Christine. I'll get me wellies on and go dig em up and replant tonight then (or wait 5 years for them to come up themselves j/k)

EDIT: Is it the same deal for the garlic as they are also a bulb? Can anyone advise please?

Matt.

I started to try to dig them out with a trowel but they were proving to very illusive so as the sets went about 4 inch down I ended up just taking a couple of inches of soil off the one of the beds and the other we decided to leave to chance - experimental. As Andy often says 'They'll either come up or they won't!'.

We'll see.

Matt.

[Matt]

your progress puts me to shame but lots of guys and a dog is one up on little old me
Really thinking of sharing an allotment but I hear of nightmares where folk don't agree over organic etc, or one person does the graft etc - anyone done it and got any ideas how to ensure it goes well?
What is best time of year (if any) to get one?

Hi Sue,

The first thing is to find the ideal plot buddy. Agree from the start about key things like totally organic (we are btw) poultry keeping ideas, what crops etc & costs and budgets.

We always keep on top of where we are up to as regards who has spent what and always keep square with each other ( that reminds me, Andy - I owe you for the wood preserve ).

You must find someone with the same basic ideals and be totally honest with each other from the start. When it comes to making day to day decisions we tend to make an initial suggestion but are always prepared and open to new ideas and different and better ways and will discuss if there is a better option.

I have the mindset that two heads are better than one and I think as long as you and your plot buddy are open minded and maleable towards all aspects both long and short term then it should work fine.

The best time of year to get your hands on an allotment is asap

Matt.

[Christine]

Matt
Garlic bulbs are buried - I think about 2 inches but there's a section on growing garlic (and, if I remember rightly, onions) on this site somewhere. I find the home page difficult to navigate, though.

Sue
I got 'into' the idea of an allotment as I had offered on the spur of the moment to help out (but not to share an allotment with) a woman in the pub who said she 'didn't dare' to re-visit hers, because she hadn't been down for over a year and didn't want to go on her own.
I basically did pretty much all the clearing and digging, only to have her introduce me to all passers-by as her 'assistant' and 'gofer'. The final straw was when she left a message on my ansafone to say that I owed her for seed potatoes and carrots!
As she is one of those people you bump into a lot (and I'd rather enjoyed the allotment life), I decided the best way out was to get one myself. The rest is history (well, recent history).

I wouldn't want to risk sharing an allotment. Although I do know people who happily do so, I know a lot of people who are now ex-friends because of the problems you list. don't try to do it all at once - one person doesn't need as much cultivated space as two, after all! Enjoy being able to leave proper paths between rows or dug plots because there's no shortage of space and use surplus cleared space as a mini seating area or for green manure.