Two trips to the allotment today …

… am enjoying the annual leave and the opportunity to get to the allotment as often as possible.

One

Had to go into work this afternoon to proof a newsletter, so in the morning I picked some rhubarb for a colleague. Also weeded around the redcurrant bushes and jerusalem artichoke, and mulched them with some leafmould. Pruned some old raspberry canes that were crowding out the redcurrants. There’s a few clusters of redcurrants on the bushes, but I’m not holding out great hopes for a lot. They might be better next year, but I’ve got my eye on the spot for a semi-shade loving area as it’s behind the rose.

Two

Dug a magic mound 4′ across for a second planting of beans. Was swearing like a trooper when I found a layer of stones and compacted soil a spit’s depth down. Is it called bastard trenching because it gets difficult digging deeper than one spit? Used the weeds from that area for nitrogenous matter and added a whole bag of Bill’s hedge cuttings. Then some shredded paper and the chopped-up rasberry canes for carbon, and covered it over with 3 barrowloads of topsoil. Had to fix the side of the barrow as it’s rusted through. Can’t imagine the barrow is long for this world …

Talked to M who informed me that the leafmould is full of brandling worms ATM.

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