Gareth's Blog

Tuesday 26th May.

I have done my Treasurer's Report for the committee meeting on Thursday. I am also editing the web page and have uploaded June's Magazines for members to download or read. I have a trip to the Library today to set up for another Window Display. Last time out some of the sticky pads did come loose in the heat and will have to ensure a more thorough prep this time round.

On the Allotment I have just picked my crop of garlic and they are now drying in the shed. I have also this week pick a load of gooseberries, without to much damage to my hands. I made a sauce out of them as I added to  much water to make jam. I put it on my ice cream, naughty but nice, a nice treat on a hot day !

I have just  finished the rhubarb for the year. I only have 2 crowns but they have produced enough for 4 cuttings and is  a very nice treat, I  must say, on Tiramsu.

I have got my Broad beans well and truly in bud. They are  about a metre tall, so have pinched out the tips so the plant can feed the beans growth. Luckily there are no black-fly present and I do check daily if I am there. This last week I planted my Runner Beans and I was a little premature but seeing the weather forecast was good, took a chance and bedded them in my raised bed. They have an anticlockwise bind on the poles and are starting to climb.

I decided to plant my main crop potatoes in a bucket this year and have reached the growing stage over  the top of the bucket. I am using some Growmoor Compost for  a  change (100% Irish Peat Moss) as this is a better water retainer than most of the peat free compost that I normally use. It is a bit more expensive but a real improvement as far as I am concerned.

In my Greenhouse I am growing some  peas. I did not have many pods but I will endeavour to plant many more next year. During this weeks spell of good weather I am hoping for some of the strawberries to turn red. Mum is looking forward to this event and although not a huge crop, there will be just enough to make an ice cream treat.

Finally my fruit bushes and fruit trees are all producing. Last year all my bushes were bare root and are just now starting to produce. I am hoping for some of these fruits to last until show time as I would like to show this year. I have 6 fruit trees and my Plum, Pear and  Apple are in good shape. I had to  re-plant a new  apple  tree as my crab apple died during the winter last year. The plums are profuse and my pears and apples are growing and forming nicely.

The only other jobs  at present are weeding and watering of the raised beds.

It is now 11 am and I have been back from the Library for 30 minutes. I must admit the photos I have taken are full of reflection and glare so will endeavour to return this evening to take them again.

At the moment it is too hot for the Allotment and I will spend the evening there after it cools down a bit. A decent watering needed around the plot and some more weeding. The forecast says it will remain quite hot.

I have taken some photos to show the current state of play and hopefully you will enjoy.

The sun is starting to set and I made a return trip to the Library tonight. The resulting pictures are much better as you can see.

Wednesday 27th May.

Another hot day. I have not been to the Allotment yet.  I  will go  this evening after tea. The weather is most suitable for strawberries, so  hoping some are ripe enough to pick. There are some running repairs needed to the Poly tunnel. It seems waterproof tape and weed membrane to come unstuck after a couple of weeks.

I have one more solution to try. I will try an outdoor rubber mat to see if it will work to  cover the gap  at the base, something suitable and some outdoor velcro. There is enough weight in the mat to add weight and stop the wind picking up underneath. Hopefully the velcro will be sticky enough to adhere to the cover. I will take some pictures this evening to show you. Talk to you later tonight.

Just got back and have  a few strawberries for mum to try. Nice and juicy they were. Did  some  watering and just waiting on the next couple of weeks. The potatoes are doing fine.

Thursday 28th May

It is meeting night tonight at Johnson Park, starts at 8pm. It will  take about an hour. Things under discussion are that they will probably mention the new locks and keys being fitted to many of the sites. My site, Eliz Flats lock change is the 24th June. I have  received a letter from The Town Council saying to go and sign for a new key and hand back the old one.

I have ordered two mats and velcro  so I can fix along  one side at the base of the cover to hopefully make a decent repair. They will arrive Saturday and should be attached  by Sunday evening. I will have to dismantle a gate opening on the near side when I erected it for access to the old plastic Poly tunnel. I am aware there will be repairs needed to the back end as well, so the process will involve deep pockets which might take weeks to fix. If my promises hold true there could be a fresh stack of greenbacks in the pipeline which should put an end to trainers influences. This will, if promise kept, lead to early repayments of outreach costs which I have promised to repay and a dead end payment schedule, being replaced with opulence. If my AI's are right there will be no need to offend often used protocols from  past times. I will know much more around next month's meeting.

Some more strawberries are starting to ripen and hopefully by the weekend some more will be ready for picking.

Some of you fellow Allotmenteers have been asked to contribute to the blog.  Hopefully it will build some momentum across various sites and shed some light on how fellow members are getting on on their own sites. It hopefully deters  from more questionaires being printed and I ask only a few lines or a paragraph a week or month detailing some of your ways  of coping with you allotment growing and general insight to your thoughts and techniques on how you grow.

As the Annual Show approaches it would be nice to know how you are all getting on. Lastly there has been agreed a new Trophy called, The Allotment Cup.  Besides the normal silverware based on next year's show 2027. The Committee have  agreed to present a cup and a keep me forever trophy to the best kept members Allotment starting in 2027.

The rules and guidelines will be issued. The judges will be Manfred Roper and Dave Potten and the judging will take place  in July when the Allotments are in full bloom. First Judging will not start till July 2027 and a result given at the 2027 Show awards along with the normal run of events.

Friday 29th May.

I intend to visit my plot quite early this morning. Mum  usually goes shopping Friday mornings, so will have to  be back by 9 am. I am hoping some of the  strawberries have ripened. The weather forecast for the day is cloudy but dry, with a drop of rain about 10 am. A cloudy afternoon and a very sunny evening.

I have had some thoughts passed on at tonight's meeting about my rubber mats and velcro arriving Saturday. There are 2 mats, 3m x 1.5m and I am wondering whether if I make them 3m x 0.75m, if I cut them in half, they will cover two sides. I won't have enough velcro but  it will be a lot cheaper this way. I will have to wait and see on Saturday. I will order some more velcro today.

Saturday 30th May.

I have some good news. One of  our Trophy winners last year as joined our blog. Janet Gordon is going to contribute to the web page with some news about her own plot at Turners Barn Lane. Her first notes are online and they are very good. I much appreciate the help and wisdom she has to offer. If anyone else is interested in contributing then just send me a few lines weekly or monthly about the state of play on your allotment. Enjoy Janet's Blog.

Sunday 31st May.

Went to the plot this morning.  The broad beans are full of black fly, but having pinched out the tips a week or two ago should be ok. I picked a  couple of bean pods today and will have them for dinner tonight.

The figs  are coming on  nicely and will probably ripen before  the  show. I will return after tea to look at  the strawberries and do some watering. At home the trusses are forming on the tomatoes and It is now I start feeding them.

The greenhouse has some growing going on. Mum likes flowers and I made the mistake of planting seed in normal compost and not seed compost and has killed most of the seeds  as the mix is far to reach a feed for seeds. I have cleaned up the greenhouse and cleaned the shelving and picked out the grass and weeds from the stone floor. I also lowered the top shelf and put at the bottom. The plant watering is much easier now.

Monday 1st June.

My rubber mats have arrived but it has been too wet to do the job.

Tuesday 2nd June.

Another wet day. Saves on watering. I have no transport on Tuesdays unless I start early and finish by 12 noon.

Wednesday 3rd June.

I have some news. A local school has shown an interest in Allotment Life and food and how it is grown. The class teacher is making arrangements to bring his class to one of our Allotment sites in July for a chat, hopefully by Manfred our Chairman on growing on an allotment.

The forecast is not good today.Rain and some high winds most of the day. I will try between 5am - 7am on the allotment today before the rain and winds pick up to see if I can part fix my Poly Tunnel. Hopefully show some pics later today.

Sunday 7th June.

It has been a few days. The velcro did not stick at all well to anything even though it was for outdoor use. Eventually had to  tie wrap  the rubber mat to  the frame on the inside of the poly tunnel. I have taken some advice and may be using some wood as a brace to the frame on the outside and wrapping the weed membrane around the wood ,might be another way. In hind  sight buying cheaper than going professional frame does incur cost but since a professional frame would cost £1200 instead of under £200 for the sunny then having a slightly ill fitting cover which broke in a few places during the storms needs a bit of Heath Robinson approach to secure will take a bit longer.

That besides, I have been picking some broad beans and some strawberries these last couple of days. I have been doing some face book time and there are quite a few tips to growing food quite quickly. I am quite impressed everything from strawberries to grapes and chilies to herbs.  My plum tree is full of fruit and my apple tree has got plenty of apples on it. The pear is doing alright and the fig tree is bursting full of figs. The cherry tree has grown a lot of new branches but as yet is not full of fruit.

I have had plenty of gooseberries so far and the redcurrants and blackcurrants are growing, still green as are the blackberries. The raspberries will take a bit more time to form. The runner beans are climbing up the poles quite well. The rhubarb is done for the year it needs to be left until September the the leaves need cutting back to the base of the crown. The crowns are then covered in manure compost and left to swell under the soil The main crop potatoes have another 14 or 15 weeks before they are ready to be picked.

In the greenhouse at home the 3 tomato plants have trusses on and my chrysanthemums arrived which I have potted. I made a good buy and bought a long probe soil moisture meter and it let's me know when the soil is dry. There are no batteries. just stick the probe in the soil and needle will rest in the dry, moist  or wet part  of the scale. I have got a picture I can show  you.

The Library window display comes down tomorrow. It was do to come down on Saturday but the Library was  shut due to unforeseen staff shortages. We will be back there again on the 30th of June until the 1st of August, a decent run. Only one poster fell off this time, so will probably check weekly during July's visit.

Monday 8th June.

It was quite  a rainy start to today. I went to the Library about 11.15 am and took down the display. We are due back on the 30th of June and will have all of July for the 4th visit.

Friday 12th June.

I have got round to the remedial  repairs on my Poly Tunnel. The duck  tape was not up to  it so while the velcro did stick  still, I covered it with black gaffer tape. It is a very good strong outdoor waterproof tape and hopefully withe inner velcro and gaffer outer the weed membrane will hopefully stick better. I have a little bit more  to do tomorrow with a bit more gaffer tape and then hopefully remedially it should  hold. My rubber mats I tie wrapped inside to the frame to give  a bit more protection from the wind. It is not perfect but hopefully Heath Robinson enough to survive this year.

I have pick some more broad beans and some more strawberries. The gooseberry harvest was good this year and had a pound or two of fruit from the plant. The weeds continue to grow and on the empty plots the rye grass is almost 6 feet tall. A reminder to you all  the locks are being changed on the 24th June some make sure you return your old key to The Town Council in South Street and sign for the new key.

Saturday 13th  June.

The damage to the Poly Tunnel was fairly bad at one end. I have taped it up and it looks  a mess to  be honest. I should really buy a new cover, but with the cost being about £80.00 compared to £5.00 for gaffer tape, I went cheap. I will probably fit a new cover eventually and find a better solution to keeping the wind out. I might just plump for a professional model and pay the £1200.00 for it.  But that's a few years off yet, but a much better job at the  end of  the day.

The photos of my plum tree show a lot of fruit and my runner beans are coming on. I  intend to let the rhubarb go  till September then cut back the leaves and manure over the crowns for the winter and let them grow under the soil.

As a foot note my soil moisture meter is  proving to be a good buy and it does a brilliant job when dealing with the tomatoes in the  greenhouse at home. I check daily during the hotter days.

Sunday 14th June.

I have been pretty busy with the outreach this last week. There are some downloadable files suitable for children and parents alike. It is intended to follow up the Fairmead Special School visit if it is approved by the Town Council with an interest to Promote Allotment Life in Yeovil to the Schools. It is very early days yet but it may lead to a bigger foothold with our Association. Please feel free to comment on the material, if you would like to, on the comments page.

Two weeks tomorrow is the next Library presentation and it will  be on display until August 1st 2026. I will have to do some watering tonight as although we have had rain the beds do dry out after a few days.

Saturday  26th June.

As  mentioned  elsewhere on this site we  are  gearing up  for  a School visit at Milford Dip on the 8th July. Secondly I am asking the committee to approve support to a Somerset  Charity that advocates mental health recovery through therapeutic horticulture.

Otherwise on the allotment I am watering and weeding. My fruit bushes and trees are producing and I am watching my potatoes and beetroot as well.

My water butt water temperature was very warm to the touch during the current record breaking heat wave that is happening write now.

I would also like to thank Janet Gordon for  her third blog report this month.

Monday 29th June.

I have a trip to the Library today. I am putting up  our  window display. I will upload some pictures later this evening  It will be there for the month of July.

Our Annual show is approaching and hopefully I will have some entries this year. It is my first time, not expecting anything but taking part is my philosophy on the subject.

We have a social at Brimsmore Garden Centre on Wednesday with a  speaker booked. Meet at 6.30pm in the Apple Tree Restaurant.

Wednesday 1st July.

We had final  confirmation of the School  visit on the 8th of July today. We also had a  social gathering at Brimsmore Garden Centre in the  Apple Tree Restaurant this evening. Michael gave us a  chat on companion planting. It  was  really good.

Wednesday 8th July.

Fairmead Special School, class 10 visit took place today. It was hot but pleasant. Manny gave his talk and a tour around his allotment and then around the other site allotments talking about the history and people on the site. The class  was well behaved and Manfred was asked a few questions by the group and by Chris. Chris talked about more classes being involved and maybe a bigger School involvement as regards growing food. It is only the beginning of the story, so hopefully looking to next year and maybe more visits to the Allotment site and then we can involve our Association in further outreach.

This evening I went to the allotment and trimmed the overgrowing rye grass and nettles at the side of my plot where there is a path. Collected a lot of other, already cut weed, which was drying out and filled a 1 tonne builders bag with all of it. 

Picked a lot of redcurrants and  a few blackberries which I have taken a picture of below. The plums need thinning out slightly and the apples and pears are growing well. Figs should be ready in a  couple of weeks. Potatoes have a bit more to go and the beetroot is not far off. I might pull one or two and see what they look like. The weather will continue to be hot for a week or so as long as you water your plot, you should be okay.

A reminder that the show schedule and entry forms have been sent out by email. You will find them in the download file page if you have not already been emailed by David our Secretary. The library display is on view in the window at the library. It is there all month, so if you get a chance take a selfie at the window. This is just to show  that people have seen it. I have or would like a general comment with a picture or your  comments posted on the comments page, if you would like to as always, it is up to you.

Monday 13th July.

Janet Gordon has written another blog posting and you will find it on her blog page. Thank you Janet for another good effort.

Wednesday 15th July.

Chris has sent me some approved photos of the recent Fairmead Special School visit. They have been posted on the Outreach page. He has accepted an invitation to the Show this year to give him a broader idea of what it is about and a further discussion about future happenings.

Saturday 18th July.

It has been very hot these last couple of weeks and although very little wind, my poly tunnel is stating to fall apart again. The sticky gaffer tape has fallen apart in the heat exposing the base for wind to exploit when blowing on colder days. I have only one solution left and although sticky velcro did not work then i will try doubled sided sticky back plastic. If that does not work , then I will have to buy a new cover for it and maybe double skin it or  just replace it altogether..

Elsewhere the blackberries are coming on a treat. The plums are starting to turn purple and there is some June drop but with the plums and apples,pears and tomatoes and a cactus I have been growing for 3 of 4 years then I feel confident of entering the show. It is  about taking part this year for me.

The weeds are on top at the moment and I need a long day playing tidy up. My runner beans have yet to form and may not do well this year. Many other Allotmenteers are having similar issues this year with flowers dropping off the runner bean plants.

I only have some potatoes left this summer as my beetroot has not done well. I have not watered them enough during the heat and all the leaves  have wilted. So I dug them up but most were not  big enough to use. My mistake and I will learn next year to be wiser during  the  dry spells.

I have had the same strawberry plants for the last 3 years,  so will dig them up and plant a new bed. I still have some raised  beds  to put in at the back fence. I am trying to kill the weed and brambles and rye grass before putting in the bed. Hopefully by Christmas I will have a much neater allotment than at present. At least all the fruit trees and bushes have produced  this year and have had a few pounds out of the gooseberry and redcurrant. The blackcurrant was not so prolific this  year and I will have to prune  back the old wood better, so as  to produce fresh new green stems for next  year.