Changes in the fruit bed

I've been making changes to the allotment fruit bed recently.   The strawberries which had been in there a couple of years now had completely taken over the ground around and under the fruit bushes. I found it quite difficult scrambling about on my hands and knees to pick the strawberries last summer, and more recently while trying to dig up the runners. It didn't do my back  much good and the bed looked really messy.

As we already have strawberries planted up in an old bath on another part of the plot I decided that I would grow all the strawberries in containers instead of in the ground, where they take up such a lot of space. I have a variety of big containers not being used--old dustbins, dolly tubs, big plastic crates.  You know the sort of thing, that when you have an allotment you save things which might come in useful one day, things which other people are throwing away and you know they could be used on the allotment. That's how we got the old bath.  I decided that now is the time to put some of this 'junk' to good use.

Weeks ago I dug up all the strawberries in the fruit bed and selected good ones from the runners to pot up. I kept them in the cold frame for a while to protect against frost until a couple of weeks ago when Helen planted them up in two of the big containers. There are a few left and being a bit greedy for strawberries, I think I will plant up another container.

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Also in the fruit bed are an apple tree, three blackcurrants, a redcurrant, four blueberries, three rhubarb plants and another tree which has never fruited in the three years it has been there and we don't know what it is. The unknown tree has one last chance this year, if it doesn't produce anything it will be dug up. The redcurrant has been in for two years and also hasn't produced any fruit, so that too is on it's final warning, but I have noticed some flower buds appearing in the last few days, so there's hope yet.

Two of the blueberry plants are new this year and these have been planted near the other ones where some of the strawberries were. Blueberries like an acidic soil, so I put some ericaceous compost in the pIanting hole and a good mulch of shredded pine needles around them all. We love blueberries and have found them easy to grow. Finally I have some gooseberries to plant. These were brought over from Helen's old plot when she gave it up last year and were potted up into big pots until I made some room in the fruit bed. They will be planted in the next week or two, but I'm not looking forward to that as they are so prickly, I might have to use Richard's big heavy duty gloves for that job.

Here's looking forward to a fruitful summer.