I’ve been longing for a bigger allotment for years. The allotment craze is clearly still in full swing and the waiting list in my area only grows longer. However, last March my dreams came true when the opportunity to work a larger plot came up. I grabbed it with both hands and wasn’t the least bit discouraged when I turned up to work on it and an experienced gardener passed by, looked at my patch of heaven and commented: “There’s a nice bit of work there…”
Before
Five months on and I look with wonder at the transformation of my previously scruffy stretch of land. The makeover hasn’t been easy. Winter was a battle, a bout of endless wet followed by a brutal mid-May frost that killed all my climbing beans. Ironically, most of the summer was then spent fighting crust-dry soil. Still, the rewards have been numerous. Not only has the allotment helped keep me toned and doubled my biceps this summer, it was also short-listed in our annual allotment competition last month.
After
As judging day by a rep from the RHS approached, I found myself with a whole different set of horticultural considerations. Leaving the gone-to-seed lettuces would lose me points for bad forecasting and poor gardening practice, but how could I pull them up when they stood dark and statuesque beside a riot of brightly coloured nasturtiums? However, when I noticed others labelling their vegetables, I quickly followed suit!
Late summer has become one of my favourite times of year, a time when I unashamedly sit back and admire the plot. In small-space gardens, everything has to earn its space, preferably by multi-tasking. I find a flower pot makes a great ice bucket!
Multi-purpose plant pots
Join me on this blog and share your gardening successes and disappointments, surprise discoveries, specific snippets of news and events.
Joanna Cruddas
Tags: allotment, frost, RHS, small-space gardening, winter
