In the midst of me starting this business earlier this year, I decided to take on an allotment. It is not called an allot-ment for no reason. You certainly have to be consistent and dedicate fair old chunks of time to make good progress, otherwise, leave it for a week in the rain, and all of those weeds you broke your back removing, will come springing back. And they’ll be bigger. And they’ll bring their friends.
The most perilous weeds with small spikey leaves that has seeded absolutely everywhere remained a mystery to me. It is there in its millions. I decided to let one run wild to see what it was and how to best deal, and to my horror, it was one of my favourite herbs – borage. Strangely, I labour away growing this from seed each year in my own garden and it tends to please itself whether it comes up or not. Now I won’t be so lavish with all of the attention I give it as it can truely take over. Shame. I’ll keep a few plants on the allotment and then pick all the flowers before it seeds. Although the seeds are quite large – I’m so surprised it has scattered absolutely everywhere.
But it is wonderful to start harvesting other things – beetroots are so easy to grow and these are lovely in salads or made into hummus with garlic. The red cabbages are taking over, and other things like garlic, onions and beans are doing well. But that is only about half of the space – the rest is weeds and a bit overwhelming still. And I’ll need to find something for all year round otherwise it will weed over again.
My top tips?
Raised beds – although a bit frowned upon in no-dig circles, has proven the most successful option.
Take no-dig advice though – some of this has cardboard and lots of wood chip to keep the weeds at bay which works.
Peek at other allotments – see what grows well.
Hang around up there to chat to people to learn from them. (And they might bring you a cuppa).
Grow easy flowers like calendula and sweet pea to use up the space.
Get a compost bin in there.
Cover any untackled areas with cardboard for a later date.
Do look at Charles Dowding no-dig stuff for inspiration and such practical advice.
