I whipped out my camera whilst visiting an allotment that made me just green with envy at the plots and their sheds. Especially the ones with shelves of old pots, string, and vintage, well kept tools hanging up.
Plot holder 31 is romantic as well as practical, growing their blooms besides their brassica.
I loved this ingenious way of keeping the birds off of (what looks like) red shallot bulbs, how eco is this?
What a lovely old bike, the springs in the saddle look like they'd give you a nice comfy ride, and the basket is ideal for bringing home your fresh produce directly to your kitchen.
Somebody is good with their hands. In the foreground a frame for artichokes - four wooden posts with 2 woven wooden rings to contain the brutes as they grow strong, and in the background a rhubarb frame to keep the stems straight and away from the mud.
All gardeners live in beautiful places, because they make them so.
~ Joseph Joubert.
~ Joseph Joubert.
What is it about allotments??! I love them too, is it that they seem the opposite of the hurry, celebrity obsession, materialistic mania that is all around?? Redolent of a slower, calmer past? Not sure, but there is something so soothing about them. And I LOVE that quote!
ReplyDeleteWe have lots of allotment sites around the village where I live, and there are waiting lists for all of them! I always use twiggy bits to protect young plants in the ground, mainly to keep off pesky cats and pigeons. We have plenty of large shrubs and trees from which to get material for supports, for wigwams, frames and keeping off pests, they are all stored in a large wooden container, made from old electronic equipment packing boxes... oh yes, recycling is definitely the name of the game here!
ReplyDeleteBelinda, I think you said what I was trying to. I love the old men, in their flat caps and thermos flasks of tea, making do and mending. The quote is so true, gardeners have to try and improve on nature don't they. To this end I have designed my raised beds with veg interspersed with flowers this year, salads for my tummy, flowers for the soul.
ReplyDeleteMaggie, of course, the pea sticks keep the cats off of that newly dug over soil. We have muntjac deer coming into our urban plot via the holes in the hedge, so I have created a cunning protection for my raised veg beds from netting and bamboo. I bought these special widgets to stick the bamboo ends in to make a frame - then I saw someone on this allotment had used old flower pots! I also loved the cold frames made of old windows and bits of 4 x 2. Recycling rocks!
ReplyDeleteI will look at allotments with new eyes now! Never even noticed them before. (Needless to say,I'm not a gardener!)
ReplyDeleteIt's a microcosm of life down there!
ReplyDelete