allotmenting ::

I have to admit, I have not been a very good allotmenter of late. Before we headed off on holiday, I went down with my mum, who helped with a little weeding and planting some potatoes. Then I didn't make it back down there again until this week, nearly 4 weeks had passed!

Fortunately everything (surprisingly) was still growing, along with a whole lot of weeds, of course.

So this week I have been mostly weeding and dreaming of how wonderful it can all be if I just manage to make it down every other day at least. I want it to work I really really do, I just need to find the motivation to get myself there and digging and planning.

So far growing I have ::

• peas
• borlotti beans
• runner beans
• french beans
• chard
• beetroot
• radishes
• purple sprouting broccoli (really this is just the bedraggled stems left by the pigeons)
• potatoes
• nasturtiums

I have dug and planted less than a quarter of the plot, so there is so much more to do and more to grow.

Mostly now I'm just going to concentrate on getting beds ready for next year, but I do plan to fit in a few more autumn/winter crops. I have a few seeds sown at home for transplanting including ::

• cauliflower (3 varieties)
• leeks (2 varieties)
• cabbages
• kale
• sweet william

and I hope to sow a few root crops in the next couple of weeks.

I'm finding the toughest hurdle the distance from my house, it's a 30 minute walk to the allotment, although now I have a lovely bike to take me there which should help a lot, I don't yet have a helmet for Milo so until then I'll need to walk whenever I have Milo with me. Also not being able to drive means that getting important things down there, such as compost and bits to build beds with is virtually impossible.

Fingers crossed that from now on though I shall be better and more committed and this time next year will have a fabulous vegetable plot bursting with goodies!