Frosts and crumble

Our expedition to collect apples was a great success this weekend. We collected windfalls in two carrier bags and later my wife made the most delicious apple crumble for tea. She has also frozen a further five portions, which judging by yesterday's first taste will not be around for very long. A great way to spend Sunday afternoon.

We also found time to plant a sack full of daffodil bulbs along the front of the plot. I always wanted the allotment to be like a garden, not just a working plot, so I hope we haven't put them in too late. These came half-price from Wyevale Garden Centre in Woburn Sands. They often have offers on if you go in regularly, especially toward the end of the traditional season, when they're making room for their Christmas junk. I'm not sure when garden centres became specialists in Christmas decorations but you have to admit it's a pretty good way of getting over the winter which would otherwise be a quiet time for them.

Speaking of winter, It's finally starting to feel like that season has arrived, so I'm glad I got a few jobs done before it got really cold. We have now had a couple of hard frosts, one last week and a proper chill last night (28 November) so I hope my parsnips will be ready to try the next time I go to the plot.  Hopefully the garlic will be kick-started into life now we've had some really low temperatures, as there is no sign yet. Two rows of garlic are sharing a bed with a row of Radar overwintering onions which came as a kind donation from work colleague and fellow allotmenteer Derek. The broccoli is doing well although I do need to raise the netting a bit higher before the pigeons find it.

Broccoli seems to be growing well, hopefully it will be ready in around March to give us some produce at an otherwise lean time of year on the allotment

A good day's work

I booked a day off work last week and spent most of it at the plot. What a great way to spend my day. I managed to get rid of a lot weeds and rubbish, starting in the morning by setting a good fire which smouldered all day. I also dumped a few wheelbarrow loads of rubbish and weeds and dug up two more massive blocks of concrete (as well as a bucket full of big stones). I dug over some ground and laid several new paths ready for next year. 

Thanks to being out all day I also got chatting to a fellow plot holder who has a huge apple tree on her plot. She had run out of things to do with cooking apples, and with a pleading look in her eyes invited me to gather as many windfalls as I wanted. When I had a look there really were hundreds, so an expedition with the tiny human has been planned for the weekend to collect some.

New tidy paths. the dug strip in the foreground was just weeds  when I started.

More neat and tidiness. Path on the left was overgrown with weeds before I started.

A very satisfying bonfire of weeds

Two nicely prepared beds with a mulch of compost applied by my wife and the tiny human last weekend

A close call

Disaster was narrowly avoided last week when, after forgetting to pay my annual rent on time, the council threatened to evict me from my plot!

After calculating a suitable opportunity during the wafer-thin window that the council offices are actually open, my good wife popped in clutching the cash. There, she was told in no uncertain terms by Clerk No.1 (excessively rude and unhelpful) that we were too late and we had to collect our stuff and be gone by Monday! On hearing this, I went down there myself and had a polite, yet heated debate with Clerk No.2 (excessively jolly but still unhelpful). She, despite not really appearing to know what their own rules were, waved a copy of the allotment agreement in my face and kept repeating the words 'it's a legal document' until I finally convinced her to check to see if I'd been sent an official Notice To Quit (I knew damn well that I hadn't). After a few minutes of panicked searching through folders with Miserable Clerk No.1, Jolly Clerk No.2 came back and promised me that Clerk No.3 (demeanour to be confirmed) would phone me back in the afternoon when she rolled into the office after lunch. This she duly did (turned out to be very helpful and polite, if somewhat abrupt) and I was allowed to pay my rent at last, as long as I could get there between 2.30 and 3.00 and pay cash or cheque only before they closed for the week.

So there we are. Disaster averted, no friends made, I fear.

Surprise crop

It's one thing going to the plot to harvest a long-awaited crop but quite another when you come home with a pocket full of something you didn't even plant. Today I found a truss of ripe tomatoes, nestling in amongst the skeletal remains of my Aster daisies. I hadn't seen the plant or fruits develop but they must have been there for some time.

Digging in

I wonder if there is anything under my allotment? Apart from my parsnips, I mean, which are patiently awaiting the first frosts.

Moog used to do a bit of enthusiastic digging on the plot in his younger days, but he never found anything much, just soil. However, I came across an interesting local history website which mentions that the area was used for a large military exercise in the months before World War One, beginning on 29 August 1913:


http://www.mkheritage.co.uk/la/DaysofPride/docs/partone.html

Apparently a large division of British soldiers camped in the area very close to my plot and even held a party at Stacey Hill Farm when they left. they were only there for a short time but built quite a bustling camp. The army relied heavily on horse power at that time, and the Royal Engineers built a 200ft platform for unloading horses from trains, as well building a temporary veterinary hospital. No doubt the rural nature of the area (for the military exercises) and the railway (for moving troops) were a factor in choosing the site. Some local residents have reported unearthing things like brass buttons and other fragments of military kit in their gardens, so there may well be something of interest lurking under plot 29.

Sleep well, old friend.

We took Moog to be put to sleep on Tuesday 25th October 2011 at 3.15pm. His last days were filled with cuddles, fuss and treats as we ignored his symptoms as best we could.

With his spotty coat still slightly damp from the torrential rain outside, he died quietly in our arms. He looked at peace for the first time in months, and we knew we had done the right thing.

He is very sorely missed.