We went to the allotment today, the last day of the year. It was good to get down there to do some work. We haven't been to do jobs since the middle of November, just to pick vegetables. It was a bit dull and dreary at first, but we did get a trickle of sunshine later and some blue patches in the sky. We took some lunch and as we sat at the table eating our lunch we thought about the past year and what had changed.
This time last year we were busy clearing our daughter Helen's allotment ready for the new tenants to take it on and I remembered the shock of finding a dead chicken in the manure bin! That had come from the plot behind--poor chicken, we don't know how it got there. Now we just have the one plot to look after it has been so much easier. Read about plot 10b here
We acquired two greenhouses early in the year and I have so much enjoyed growing things in there and we are now enjoying eating the chutney made from the tomatoes and chillies.
The wildlife have enjoyed our allotment this year. We had frog spawn and tadpoles in our new pond and I rebuilt the bug hotel which was falling down. The flowers have been great especially the sweet peas.
Anyone who gardens or has an allotment will know that you have good years and bad years for crops. So some things have done well and others not. After several years trying to grow celeriac without success I have decided not to bother growing it again. But one new veg I would like to try growing is flower sprouts.
Most of the fruit has done well, we are still eating the apples which are stored in the shed, the freezer is groaning under the weight of the rhubarb and I have had blueberries for breakfast. Strawberries and gooseberries keep us going in jams through the year, they go on my breakfast porridge.
One sadness of the year has been that we lost Ziggy the allotment cat, who came with Helen's plot and then moved to our plot. We miss her, she was always there to meet us very noisily when we arrived and miaowed constantly as we worked, wanting nothing more but food and the occasional cuddle. It's very quiet on the plot now she's gone.
So, after a year of, weeding, mulching, composting, sowing, planting, growing and harvesting, I now look forward to another year. I wish you all a happy and blessed new year, a year of good crops and very few bugs, a year to enjoy sunshine and showers, a year to enjoy your plot or your garden.
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