Thursday, 1 February 2024

Planning and Reviewing February in Previous Years

Reviewing the diary over the last ELEVEN years for February


2013 - Infrastructure works, drying weeds for burning, burning weeds, Rain start of the month, dry towards the end, delivery of woodchip to plot, built a coldframe  
 
2014 - Infrastructure works, transplanting bluebells and daffs in comfrey bed, bought and planted fruit trees, Constructed Greenhouse Sub Frame, Seeds from Lidl I could not resist at 29p a pack or 5 for a £1   

2015 -  Allotment Winter Tidy Up, Spent tomato compost & coir dressing added to beds, Sprouts, Cabbage, Chitting Potatoes, Timber base for the greenhouse created, Onions from Seeds   

2016 - Infrastructure works, kerb stones off freecycle, Base for the shed on Spencer Road. Erecting the Shed, Trimming shaggy weed membrane, gathering compost paper & Coffee Grounds.

2017 Infrastructure works, Laying concrete slabs at Spencer Road in the Greenhouse area , Portable Grow Station created and Sprouts sown, Grow Station 2 created, Chitting potatoes in Grow Station 2,  

2018 Infrastructure works, Laying concrete slabs on Plot 1A, Installing the bed edging that had been brought from Spencer Road Allotment, Warming Up Beds with solar tunnels and obtaining Timber Roof Joists from the building site next door.


2019 Infrastructure works, Frost and a couple or raining Allotment days this year. Andy brought leaves from home for my leaf pile. Burning rotted timber and dry vegetation. Painting timber joists on the plot. Attacking the Hawthorne along the wall. Purchased potatoes from Wilko and set up chitting potatoes in Space saver Greenhouse. Attended the Garden Press Event and came home with lots of  packs of seeds and other goodies.

2020 Infrastructure works, picked up a stack of free slabs off Freecycle, Showed vacant plots and they took plot 4. Cleaned the Space Saver Greenhouse ready for the season and for chitting spuds in. The contractor converting the industrial unit to residential behind Plot 1 & 1A decided in the infinite wisdom to remove the trees that were holding the unstable wall in place and destabilise the wall directly behind my shed on plot 1A. They cut and dropped the branches directly on my shed! Not happy and informed them and the council.       

Showing Chris the vacant plots available, he decided to take on plot 14. Storm Ciara blows many polytunnels off the plots and destroys them and light weight greenhouses on plots. Mentioned In Despatches by Waltons, National Nestbox Week 

Lots of Rain during the early part of the month Storm Dennis with many photographs of flooded allotment plots, especially in Wales and then suddenly at the end of the month, dry weather bluebells and daffs showing and Fools Spring has arrived. Won Mr Fothergills Facebook competition of Swing F1 Cucumber seeds

Picked up another free Dalek to add to Dalek Army II. Attended the Garden Press Event and came home with not so many packs of seeds but lots of other goodies, and promises of equipment to trial. The Covid -19 Virus starts sweeping around the globe, and people start to think twice about shaking hands at the Event. Still cataloguing what's in my Seed Box, need to get this done a lot earlier next year, if not by the end of 2020 

2021 Making Warm Mushroon Trays. Chitting Potatoes, covered in the Norfolk Space Saver Greenhouse . The beast from the East II and snow. The Paved path was installed and so were the scaffold tubes to the first 3 Raspberry beds. The first SFG bed frame was installed in February 2021.

2022 Sowing Grow With Me tomatoes, Sowing Brassicas and planting seedless grape vines against the wall. Storm Dudley came and went and then Storm Eunice removed greenhouse panels and took items on a journey around the allotment site. Laying slabs around the Plot 1 greenhouse. Grow With Me 2022 with Joe Mills Basil. Spuds in the Space Saver Greenhouse chitting. Making a new store on plot 1A at the location of the old potting table and adding the bench with roof to the new potting table behind the greenhouse on plot 1. 

2023 .Loft extension for the plot 1 greenhouse completed and erected. Lots of time spent on the plot as I didn't want to be in the house without my wife her funeral was on the 20th February. New Spear & Jackson spade and fork set and broke the handle to my fork. Mulching the asparagus bed. Cleaning out the space saver Greenhouse in readiness for the potting shed arrival on the plot. Installing the potting sheds base. Garden Press Event attended. Review of Sophie McKays book. The boundary beds with the main path was started in February and completed at the end of the month. Well rotted woodchip was placed in the bottom of the new beds and the rotary sieve was use on my allotment made compost to complete filling the beds. 

As a result of my ongoing leg problems I only visited the plot once in January, I'm hoping I will be able to get down to the plot a little more often with the assistance of family and friends but some of the February sowings may have to happen in the Space Saver greenhouse at home.

My objective is to get healed enough that I can drive and get myself to the allotment in March

To Do List   

Mill Green - Plot 1A
    Re Add additional supporting timbers to the roof of the shed - TBD
    • Greenhouse 1A - Modify the dormer window and replace.
    • Greenhouse 1A - Modify the frame and door

    Mill Green - Plot 1 
    • Greenhouse 1 - Modify the dormer window and replace.
    • Greenhouse 1 - Modify the frame and door
    •    
    Home 
    • Planning - Ongoing
    • Space Saver Greenhouse - Clear and Clean then Sow some winter crops.
    February
    February           Apple - plant trees
    February           Apple - prune trees
    February           Pear - plant trees
    February           Pear - prune trees
                              Infrastructure Work
    Week 1              Parsnip – Germinate in Take-a-way containers 
    Week 1              Welsh Onions (D.T.Brown) - sow under glass / indoors (14 – 28 days)
    Week 1              Shallot Simiane (Dobies) - sow under glass / indoors (14 – 28 days)
    Week 1              Cauliflower (early summer) - sow seed indoors
    Week 2              Brussels Sprouts - sow seed of early varieties
    Week 2              Broccoli (sprouting) early varieties - begin harvest
    Week 2              Aubergine  – sow in modules
    Week 3              Parsnip – Transplant into loo rolls once signs of germination 
    Week 3              Radish – Sow fortnightly
    Week 3              Lettuce (Winter) – Sow fortnightly
    Week 3              Potatoes- chit / sprout seed potatoes
    Week 3              Cauliflower (summer) - prepare ground
    Week 3              Cauliflower (autumn) - prepare ground
    Week 4              Broccoli (sprouting) late varieties - begin harvest
    Week 4              Celery - sow seeds indoors
    Week 4              Sweet pepper - sow seeds
    Week 4              Carrot Water Butt – Core out sand & Compost ready for sowing seeds

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