December
on the Allotment
At last, after an apparently endless wet and flooded
summer and autumn, we are having some frosty, sunny weather. There are only a
few hours each day when it is possible to do any work on the plot. By the time it
has warmed up enough [and the warmth is relative!] to do something – about 11.00am,
the sun seems to switch off about 2.30pm and the freezing cold sets in again
for the evening. That said, I don’t think the ice melted in many places at all
today.
Still, it is cheerful and many plot holders are out
there doing what they can to clear up for spring. I am lucky in that I am close
to the top of the hill so my ground is not as wet as those plots at the bottom
of the hill and being surrounded by trees and hedges [on the western side, so
they don’t block the sun], I am also fairly sheltered. In spite of the
wonderfully fresh, dry air and the pleasure of being out there doing something
after so long, the ground is still sodden. It is possible to walk on it only
because it is frozen. I still have a patch – quite a large patch really - which
should have been dug. Perhaps it will now have to wait until I’m planting
potatoes.
A neighbour was telling me this morning, with some
pride, that he has dug over his whole plot since September. And it does look
good! He said he just carried on digging through the mud. To my shame, I still
have a small patch of potatoes which must still be dug, and yes, I know that if
I leave them any longer, they will start growing. I have had little incentive
to dig them as the ground has been so muddy and the potatoes themselves have
not been so good that each time I have gone to my plot, digging potatoes has
been pushed to the bottom of my list of priorities.
Yesterday, I had my much needed bonfire – pieces of
rotten wood which have been used as walkways but are now just harbouring
woodlice and slugs, prunings from blackcurrant bushes, redcurrant bushes and
fruit trees, also the tops of raspberry canes. I have also burnt the cut back
asparagus fronds, as well as any litter on the ground around the crowns - hoping
to reduce the numbers of asparagus beetle next year.
There is a huge heap of wood chip from cut back
hedgerows and trees around the field which I am now using to replenish and tidy
the surfaces of paths and free areas around my plot. This year it is beside me
so, I am taking the opportunity to make as much use of it as possible. Saying
that, there is a lot of it so, if you have a plot near mine, do use it while it
is there. And, it looks like the potato digging has been pushed back yet again!
Talking of asparagus, don’t forget to cut back the
old fronds and clear all litter from the ground around the crowns to remove as
many as possible of the hibernating asparagus beetles. A good dressing of well
rotted manure on top of them will help next year’s harvest.
As the winter weather starts to bite, our birds are
struggling for survival. It has been a dismal year for them in any case and now
that the ground is frozen, it is particularly difficult for them to find food.
If you are birdie minded it would be useful to give them something extra to ‘tide
them over’. Pete, our vice chair of committee and a bird lover was telling me
that he has been putting out the remains of his 2010 Christmas cake. I’m sure
the birds just loved it. He says that blackbirds have also invaded his poly
tunnel and have been eating his grapes. Of course, many birds, in bitterly cold
weather, don’t die from lack of food as much as from lack of water. It is
important to ensure, if possible, that there is a source of unfrozen water for
them to drink. Last winter, which was so very cold, I would take water each day
to my plot and put it in suitable containers for the birds but, I found it
would be frozen again in a very short time. Proper bird food is obviously best
and I do provide it as often as I can afford it, especially during brood
raising season but, I guess our stale household bread is better than nothing
during the winter when the birds are starving. Obviously, I don’t put it out
every day – well I don’t have a loaf of stale bread every day but, I hope that
once a week will keep them ticking over during the winter.
At the moment, each Sunday on our fields, we have a
dedicated group of members re-laying part of our boundary hedge along Donkey
Lane [ also known as Dead Man’s Lane or Gastons Lane]. It is believed that the
lane and the hedges that border it are, at least, 500 years old. How awesome is
that! If you are interested in taking part, do check on the details on the
linked website.
In case I don’t write again before Christmas, do
have a fantastic Christmas and a wonderful New Year.
Feliz Navidad y Feliz Año Nuevo
Frohe
Weihnachten und
Happy New Year
Glædelig
jul og
Godt Nytår
Prettige
Kerstdagen en Gelukkig Nieuwjaar
Joyeux
Noël et Bonne
Année
Feliz
Natal e Feliz
Ano Novo
圣诞之际，祝你心中有首快乐的圣诞和新年快乐
मेरी क्रिसमस और नया साल मुबारक हो
Buon
Natale e Felice
Anno Nuovo
Nollaig
Shona agus Athbhliain faoi mhaise
daoibh
Wesołych
Świąt i
Szczęśliwego Nowego Roku
Nadolig
Llawen a
Blwyddyn Newydd
Dda
મેરી ક્રિસમસ અને નવા વર્ષની શુભેચ્છાઓ
Selamat
Natal dan Tahun Baru
Linksmų Kalėdų ir Naujųjų Metų
Счастливого
Рождества и Нового
Года
God
Jul och Gott
Nytt År
