Polytunnel

Here are a few pics taken in the polytunnel on Sunday.  It was a quiet day at the allotment for a change but still lots of jobs were done.  The plants are looking really good in there at the moment, and its the first time we've grown aubergines with this degree of success.  The fruits actually look like aubergines!

Aubergine

Cucumbers

Courgettes

Tomatoes ...

... just starting to ripen ...

.. hurry up, or its green tomato chutney!

Polytunnel in the rain

A shower of rain neatly coincided with lunch, so into the polytunnel and looking around as I munched I thought how good everything is looking at the moment. Here's a few photos to show you. All that potential!

Gardening Under Cover

Today we had the first outdoors tea-break of the year, at least so far as I can remember! But though it was sunny and warm, it's still not warm enough for most plants to go outside. And although the cabbage family are a hardy tribe, they need protection against some of the wildlife inhabitants of the allotment which want to eat them before us. So a range of structures are appearing around Dig In...

One of our regular volunteers has been inventing the perfect cabbage 'cage'. Rather than pop down the garden centre, he's been to the plumber's merchants and scaffolding suppliers. We're not so worried about the butterflies and pigeons yet so it's OK that there's no mesh over whilst the frames get finished off.

Plastic cloches - useful while it's still cold. On the other side is an enviromesh tunnel - it'll keep out the cabbage butterflies too. In the middle - bit of an old gazebo!

 

 Our polytunnel is under cover too, of course, and we're very pleased with the overwintering salad crops. And of course it's great for when it's not sunny enough to sit outside to compare the merits of custard creams and jammy dodgers!

Cosy Polytunnel Work on a Chilly Day

Winter work at Dig In doesn't have to involve getting wet and cold!

Garlic is planted in autumn or spring, but these bulbs decided to sprout, so Debbie and Claire potted them up into modules. The garlic will live in the polytunnel till spring, then we'll plant them out under a cloche.

Alan from RCAN and David are replacing the raised beds in the polytunnel, working round our overwintering rocket!

Pre-Christmas Fuddle 2013

Well, another year nearly over and to celebrate, last Wednesday we held a pre-Christmas fuddle in the polytunnel. There were about a dozen of us volunteers in total. Thanks to all those who brought delicious food and drink for us all to enjoy. A thank you also goes to Helen for capturing the event on camera and for her brilliant 'Christmas tree' wigwam design.

Overall, we have had a good year at Dig In. The weather was certainly an improvement on 2012 and our programme of structural improvements on the allotment continues with the replacement of edging timbers around the beds, a new storage shed and a porch canopy for the eco-loo entrance. A special thanks to Alan Withington (RCAN) and the hard working volunteers from DISO.

Sadly, Lauren, our session worker left this year to do more work with schools, but Dig In is now pleased to announce the appointment of Karen Fry as Lauren's replacement. Through secured funding, Karen will be continuing Lauren's good work in leading most of the Wednesday volunteer sessions next year as well as numerous Saturday sessions. Local outreach will schools and other groups will also continue, again under Karen's leadership.

With a background in art and design, Dig In are also pleased to announce that Joyce Killowe will also be joining us to lead several Saturday workshops in 2014 and also to act as stand in for Karen. On behalf of the management committee, we are looking forward to making 2014 our best year yet and wish everyone a very Merry Christmas & Happy New Year.

If you fancy losing a few pounds in the new year after the Christmas excesses, why not come along to help out on the allotment? We're open every Weds & Sat 10-12, just press the doorbell at the site gate to be let in, or drop us an email to let us know you're coming if you prefer. Newcomers always welcome, no experience necessary. First session of the new year is Sat 4th Jan.

Pruning Workshop - a great success

Despite snow on the ground and cold feet, this year's pruning workshop event proved to be a great success. Event leader and freelance fruit tree specialist, Marc Richmond taught volunteers the ins and outs of pruning techniques, when to prune and how to maximise our fruit crops and maintain healthy trees by a regime of selective pruning and mulching. Attention was also given to the Dig In grape vine and the many varieties of fruit bushes in the Pulp Friction fruit cage.

Thanks also go to Jill Carter from Pulp Friction for providing the wonderful homemade soups and pancakes which were eagerly enjoyed by everyone. Alan Withington from RCAN was also on site to present an official plaque to commemorate the construction of the Pulp Friction growing area and was in turn presented with a cheque for RCAN by the mayor. 

Alan Withington (RCAN) will also be running a construction course on the Dig In site in the near future, as well as helping us with other ongoing maintenance and construction projects. Recovering and repairs to the Dig In polytunnel are also planned for this year, so with the construction of the eco-loo, this is going to be a very big year for us in terms of site improvements for the benefit of existing volunteers and the community at large. With site facilities upgraded, we then intend to encourage and invite more elderly and disabled members of the local community to become involved with the Dig In project.

Last of the Summer vine (before and after the pruning workshop);

Site activity

lettuce and onions

Roy planting pumpkins and french bean

Here are some photos showing work at DIG IN in June 2011 showing some of the hard work that volunteers have put in and the great plants growing.

Tracey's 'taters

Here are the early signs of success for Tracey's potato experiment.

Last Autumn, Tracey planted some seed potatoes in the polytunnel to see if they'd be happy through the Winter and find out if they'd emerge in the Spring. Well, they certainly look well enough. We gave them a good watering today, just to help the underground tubers to swell into something big and delicious. We also earthed them up: that is, we piled more soil over the greenery. This encouraged the plant to produce more potatoes and keeps the sun from getting through to the tubers which would turn them green and unuasable.

Actually, I could have told Tracey they'd grow. Every year, when I dig up my potato crop, I somehow always manage to miss a few. The following year, the forgotten tubers grow and emerge into the sunlight, usually in the most inconvenient place such as a recently-sown seedbed of the following crop.


Unlike me, Tracey had the good sense to put her potatoes exactly where she wanted them to grow.