Oakland Gardens - Electric Windowsill Propagator

 

Who’s started their seeds yet this year?

If you want stronger, faster germination, a heated propagator makes a huge difference — especially with chillies, tomatoes and peppers.

Our Garland Super 7 Electric Windowsill Propagator is on offer right now.

Heated base for consistent germination temperatures

7 individual seed trays with ventilated lids

Perfect for windowsills, greenhouses and early sowing

Was £47.45

This week only £40

Just use code HEAT40 at checkout.

Free UK postage included

A brilliant bit of kit if you're getting serious about starting seeds early this season.

Get yours here:

https://www.oaklandgardens.co.uk/garland-super-7-electric...

Raised Bed H1 & Fixing The Loft Conversion II

9c Sunny day down on the allotment today, I started by fixing the solar panel to the arris rail that the original two smaller solar panels were fixed too.

Ex-Fireman Andy came and did the honours of fitting it in the hole as I had removed the sheet that had been keeping the rain out since it became unstuck and fell to pieces. The fans were spinning really fast as it was a very sunny day, one could tell as I have a long sleeved T-Shirt on and my Paddington like hat.

Then cutting roofing batten to screw the first frame of H1 to the original Bed Edging.

Cutting up branches and old bed edging to go into the first frame of the raised bed H1.

Fixing the Flower Pot Man that Little Man (Digby) bought me for my Birthday in my potting shed.

Digby bought me this for my Birthday and his name is Bill as that was my Grandads name (which is fitting as he is a Flower Pot Man). Every time I see Bill, I will think of Digby and smile a Grandad like smile.

Raised Bed H1 & Fixing The Loft Conversion

70mph winds last night and the store in the back garden was laying flat on its doors. That's never happened before. Bleeding Freezing this morning, so I left the allotment to this afternoon said 8.5C Overcast but felt a good 3 - 4 degrees lower and a cold wind.

Frame assembled yesterday lifted with the aid of Ex Fireman Andy onto bed H1, he is around tomorrow and has said I can call on him to lift the Plot 1 Greenhouse Loft conversion back in place, as he knows I can't climb ladders anymore, and could not get the loft conversion into the hole in the roof on my own, these days.

That meant I had to get the loft conversion assembled today, which gave me motivation as it was cold and I could have happily come home, but working in the potting shed it was sheltered after I had cut the roofing batten up to join the parts of the loft conversion together.

Timbers cut ready for screwing the polycarbonate panels together that have been tack welded in place on the outside face

The two legs will hang down in behind of the aluminium frame to what was the opening vent and stop the loft conversion sliding off the roof, yes it did happen on the Plot 1A greenhouse when the glue gun tack welds failed.

I have the timber for an additional frame which will make the H1 raised bed significantly higher on the plot 1 side and little higher on the plot 1A side, due to the slope between the levels of the two plots across bed H1.

The cubic metre bag of soil has gone from the car park, so I have arranged for a load of woodchip to be dropped off Monday.

Just A Little Thought For The Day.....

 

And that people is when you decide to install raised beds !

Raised Bed H1 Frame Build

Sunny afternoon turning Cloudy 11C and an afternoon of cutting scaffold boards and making the next raised bed frame for Bed H1.

Cut two end timbers and assembled the first layer of the raised bed for H1. I will get a fellow plot holder to help me move it in place.

Main Path looking towards the plot 1 entrance from the tap and water tank

Closer view of the Boundary Beds

Closer view of the Boundary Beds

Closer view of the Boundary Beds

Main path looking at the boundary bed from the entrance towards the back of the allotment

Raspberries coming up

Blossom on the plum tree

Comfrey Bed with Daffs and Bluebells which come before the comfrey and give the bees some early pollen

Oakland Gardens - Biggest Ever Competition

WIN £3,000 IN GARDENING VOUCHERS!

We’re running our BIGGEST EVER competition at Oakland Gardens!

One lucky winner will receive:

£250 gardening vouchers every month for 12 months

That’s £3,000 to spend on your garden or allotment!

Perfect for anyone who loves growing vegetables, flowers, or improving their garden.

Competition closes 30th May

Open to UK residents

Enter here

https://tally.so/r/lbAqVB

Tell us in the comments:

If you won, what would you grow first?

If you know anyone who loves gardening, please share this with friends, family, allotment groups, or gardening communities so they don’t miss out.

Good luck everyone!

Bed H1 Finally Decanted

Partly Cloudy with occasional sunshine this afternoon 9.5C. I wired the new solar panel to the fans in the loft conversion and they worked so I will not have to change the fans on the loft conversion only the solar panel.

Someone else is hitting the last of the woodchips. It was nice to see a further reduction in the height of the soil in the delivery sack on the pallet.

I filled two buckets of soil from bed H1

I then had a rest and water break before continuing

Raked the woodchip into the excavated end of the Bed

Levelled out and tamped it down with the flat of the rake, another rest and water break.

Added the cardboard I removed the tape from yesterday

The level of the cardboard is approximately the path level to the front of the bed.

Then added another barrowload of woodchips to hold the cardboard down

It was not possible to water everything in as the water will not be turned on until the end of March beginning of April, so again tamped down with the flat of the rake. Another rest and water break, I'm getting batter at taking 10 minutes and keeping hydrated.

Then a search around the allotment to find the Christmas tree trunk from 2024 and other twigs and branches from when they cut the dead branches of the Ash tree and didn't pick up all the mess they made.

Also rotting timber added. The rotting timbers that formed the edges of the framed beds that now have raised beds will be added which is why I have left room for them on the long sides. Two levels of framed made from scaffold boards are to be added to make H1 a raised bed. This bed will be used for Tomatoes this year. It was getting more overcast and a drop in temperature and was time to make my way home.