Archive for December, 2004

Happy Christmas

December 25th, 2004

Happy Christmas and healthy and prosperous New Year to everyone!

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Re-conditioned gardening tools for sale.

December 14th, 2004

(Scotty on plot 7)
A wide selection of stock available including spades, shovels,forks, rakes, hoes, billhooks, slashers etc.
Many have classic makers marks including Elwell, Brades, Spear & Jackson.
Contact Scotty’s Tool Shed on 01483 237 488  (evening and weekends)
mailto:scottyandrowan@aol.com

Posted in Swaps, Sales & Surplus | Comments (0)

Welcome and congratulations

December 4th, 2004

Welcome to Dan and Lisa and parents Brian and Gwen on plot 41.

Welcome to St Joseph’s school on plot 29.

Congratulations to Scotty who takes over his own plot 7 after sharing with Mark.

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Jobs for the months (December 2004 / January, February 2005)

December 1st, 2004

Bad weather can keep you off the plot during winter but everyone is planning for the spring and ordering seeds.  If you join the NSALG you get the King’s catalogue for members with half price seeds.
Here’s a summary of information and advice from our site plotholders.
Best Brussell Sprout variety for our soil  ‘Icarus’.
The Marshall’s free sample packet of Broccoli ‘Sakura’ did well.
The D.T.Brown seeds recommended for successional cropping of cauliflower works well.  There are three varieties, all F1, ‘Regata’,'Optimist’and ‘Aviso’, which are planted together in May, then transplanted together and the cropping is staggered over three months.  Lovely caulies and no gluts!
Purple Sprouting ‘Rudolf’ is ready early.
Good results from potato ‘Charlotte’ were reported.
‘Spey’ is a good main crop spud.  ‘Sharpes Express’ is a reliable all rounder and can be early used as an early.  You can buy seed potatoes now and chit them (put them in box to sprout).
Nicola is a good yellow potato.  Best for salad but versatile.
Magda grew baby sweet corn.  She reports that it was difficult to tell the size under all the wrapping and it was not easy to pick.  Even though she often picked it oversized it still tasted delicious.  She doesn’t plan to grow it again and has real sympathy for those who have to pick it commercially.  Maybe machines do it?
Christine had good results with cucumber ‘burpee’ grown along wires and twigs.
Brian always has good results using a wigwam.
If you are considering which pumpkin to grow, remember the ones that are tropical in origin such as ‘Crown Prince’,and ‘Queensland Blue’ won’t ripen many fruit, (often only one) in our climate.  ‘Butternut’ will have a prolific crop.
Davinia’s favourite is ‘Hubbard golden squash’ which she says tastes creamiest.
‘Sweet Dumpling’ is a small striped pumpkin which really is sweet.  It stays rock hard so has to be cooked whole and the flesh scraped out when soft.  Delicious!
Our soil grows good leeks whatever the variety.  ‘King Richard’ is easiest to pull up. It has very little root system so doesn’t need levering out with a spade.  It grows very tall and looks as if it is barely coping, but it’s tasty.
Get plenty of sweet corn seed.  Remember you lose a lot to birds.
If you are very fond of birds, you could plant something special just for them.  Last year Plot 45 had rows of sunflowers which were alive with green finches.
Bull finches love thistle seeds but it’s an unfriendly plant which is hard to get rid of.
Now is the time to plant garlic bulbs.  It’s also a good time to plant soft fruit such as raspberries.  One of the first vegetables to be ready to eat are broad beans and allotment growers can have the luxury of eating them small and tender.  Plant them in a box of compost at home away from the mice, squirrels and birds.  They soon germinate and transplant well. You could also start some early cabbage off in
a seed tray now.
Many plotholders are well advanced with their winter digging and will be off to a flying start in the Spring.
Any contributions to this section will be welcome.

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