Spadey

Spadey came into the shop today when I was there with Eric and Tim. Without stopping to greet us, he said, "Who's doing the allotment now, then?" I looked sheepish and said, "Me", to which he riposted, "I thought it was under consideration!". "Well, someone had to do it!" I said, and before anyone could discuss it further, he stormed out, saying it was "disgusting".

Spadey (sometimes known as "Spade-hands", one can only imagine why) had the Lechlade allotment last year. Before him an old Lechlade man had had it forever, since the days of clay pipes probably. Spadey did a good job on it, but he left the shop under a cloud in August. He used to have a big unit there, but he thought the shop was going bust, so he left in a very unpleasant way. He wouldn't be able to have his unit back, so God knows why he thinks he would be allowed to have the garden back. Trouble is, he probably blames me for the fact that he can't have it back, and probably thinks I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. Whereas in fact, I only asked if I could have it about a month ago, and then because I knew Spadey wouldn't be allowed to have it and I couldn't bear to see it go to rack and ruin.

I made a good start on my Lechlade allotment today...

...though it doesn't look it from the photos. I put in a double row of broad beans in front of the runner bean poles. They are longpods which should go in in November, and were saved either last year or the year before, so it will be a big bonus if they come up and I get a good crop off them.

 

Further down, I put in a row of onions (Sturon, I think). The beans and onions were put in ground which had not been dug, just cleared of surface weeds. Broad beans and onions like hard ground, so do sprouts and purple sprouting, so I will save some hard ground for them too.

 

 

 

Down the bottom, I put in my two remaining Jersey Royals, which are to be treasured like golden eggs. On the same line, I put in two very short rows of cut-and-come-again lettuce and radish. Eventually, I shall put my pumpkins and butternut squash or maybe some nasturtiums down that end so that they can scramble all over the pile of rubbish down the end and hide it. There's time for a catch-crop of lettuce and radish meanwhile.

 

The soil is beautiful and black and light and crumbly, but it is full of stones and of bits of pottery and broken clay pipes and glass. Spadey tried parsnips in there last year, but they came to nothing at all. Parsnips don't like even the tiniest stones: even sharp sand added to the soil makes them grow all forked and gnarly. My soil in Swindon is great for parsnips, so I'll grow them there. It is useful to have two types of soil to choose from: this will be good for onions, I should think.