Whilst we've done plenty of digging and rotivating, crops are still thin on the ground at the moment. We pulled out the last of our leeks at the start of April. Yes, I know they look like spring onions, but trust me, they are leeks. They actually tasted really delicious.
This April has been particularly cold, so we're behind with planting certain things out. Only the other day I had to do a double take when I saw snow and hail falling outside my kitchen window. Here's hoping May is going to be warmer so that we can catch up with seed planting.
I have planted out some parsnip plug plants, but they look a bit battered in the cold and wet weather we've been having recently. Hopefully they will perk up once some sun hits them. We also have onions and garlic happily growing away. I managed to put in two rows of spuds, but will wait until May to put more in.
We've rotivated most of the open beds on our plot ready for planting. Magoo loves to help with raking the soil, although she often declares that "it's hard work", and she's not wrong. Watering is her favourite activity, but we have to guide her away from the cans. More water is something we certainly don't need at the moment. I'm thinking of putting aside a 'muddy area' where she can pour water and stomp about in her wellies to her hearts content...
One job ticked off the list this month was painting the shed. Magoo and her cousin did a sterling job of painting most of the wood before they got fed up and started to play hide and seek. Magoo's cousin chose the colour of the paint and I think it looks fantastic, it lifts the whole plot.
Over the past year we've struggled to keep the surrounding grass from invading our beds. Mr M and Magoo have worked hard this month putting edging wood around the plot. Hopefully this will help to hold back the invasive grasses that can swamp us if we're not careful.
We've also found a great source of cheap woodchip from our local disused quarry. There is a tree surgeon who runs his business from the quarry and there's always a huge pile of woodchip for sale. You can fill a large garden waste bag for just £2, which is a bargain. We've covered the main path running up the middle of our plot so far. We plan to use the woodchip around the whole plot as a mulch to keep weeds and grass to a minimum. Lets hope it works!
April has been busy month for prepping the plot and we've got lots of jobs done in the lighter evenings. We just need a warm spell in May to get some crop growing underway.
This week I am linking up with these lovely blogs:
Country Kids over on www.coombemill.com
How Does Your Garden Grow? over on gemmagarner.com
Making Home over on www.mrscraftyb.co.uk
17 comments:
Love the colour of the shed. And yes, let's hope that May is warmer. And it seems to be allotment week this week on HDYGG :)
The shed is a fabulous colour! Hopefully May won't be so temperamental as April and you'll have some sunny days to plant.
Oooooh nice shed! We too struggle with the grass around the edge; the plot seems to get slightly smaller over the course of the season. The wood is a great idea. I bet those leeks tasted good :)
looks like you've all been very busy, love the shed colour and good luck with the warmer weather x
Love the colour of the shed and the photo of Magoo helping out. Those leeks look great and sound like they were delicious. Sounds like it's been a busy month on the allotment - hopefully we're done now with the snow and frost and May will be much warmer! :-)
So wonderful to have these longer evenings. Your allotment is looking well set up and the shed adds a lovely colour to it. Nice idea with the mud area. I bet it will be popular. #CountryKids
That last plot looking back at all your work is wonderful. It must be so satisfying to see it all freshly prepared. the shed is a beautiful colour and I love your idea of the muddy Magoo corner. I've finally planted my greenhouse this year, now I just need to tend it and keep the goat out! Thank you for sharing your update with me on #CountryKids
Love seeing other allotments, looking very organised and the shed is great. My leeks are like that too. I'm now holding back on planting anything until the soil gets a bit warmer, so frustrating with this icy blast we are having. I need a woodchip bargain like you've found, perfect for pathways.
I love growing veg, fruit and flowers!!
I need to be more inventive this year, as my rabbits like to nibble things they shouldn't be!!
Great post! those leeks look awesome!
Lx
Http://workingmumy.blogspot.com
#CountryKids
Love the shed and the path looks wonderful too. I would love a allotment where I could grow my own food :-) #countrykids
Oh I'd love to have an allotment. The shed and the leeks look fab! #countrykids
google Mud Kitchens, this will keep your daughter entertained for hours
Oh I love your allotment, lovely colour for a shed! Good on you for sourcing cheap woodchip. All this hard work on prep us going to pay off when the growing gets going!
i hope you have already started getting warmer weather. april was the opposite for us. it was super hot. summer hot. this month is already much cooler. i feel like the weather is crazy everywhere these days... -Claudia
Oh I'm so glad I found your blog, we've just started growing fruit and veg so I will be following you for top tips, we don't have a clue! Love the colour of your shed too. #BloggerClubUK
I love reading about your allotment. Its coming along great. Looking forward to more update. #MakingHome
What a lovely allotment! It's great to get the kids involved in gardening when they are young! Thanks so much for linking up with #bloggerclubuk x
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