Author: oldlanelottswp

Winter Digging / Getting ready for Spring

Some plots on site havent been dug over and weeded ready for this years growing season.  When it comes to sowing & planting in Spring you will not be ready, resulting in playing catch up when the growing season is in full swing.

Winter digging will give you a good start as Spring is just around the corner, enabling  you to make maximum use of your land for growing

Blog created by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)

 

Broad beans are high in protein & fibre ,an excellent source of folate also a good source of other B vitamins. They are rich in Phytosterols which help lower cholesterol levels in the body, they are an excellent source of minerals such as iron, copper, calcium, magnesium, & potassium. It was widely believed that rubbing a wart on the furry inside of the bean pod would cause it to shrivel & disappear.  Beans were also found in the tombs in ancient Eygypt where they were left as food for the departed & their souls in the afterlife. The Greek philosopher & Mathematician Pythagoras forbid his followers to eat or touch the bean as he said they contained souls of the dead.

Broad beans always grow better in fertile well drained soil where plenty of compost or manure has been dug in. A sheltered site is considered for Autumn sowing, spring sowing is fine out in the open. Once the beans begin to form pinch out the top of the plants to deter black fly.

Always remember to read the seed packet for growing instructions.

Blog & research by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)

CONTACT DETAILS

DEAR PLOT MEMBERS

If anyone changes their address, mobile telephone numbers,

     or E mail  details,  please can you let the Secretary (Mark Burton) know as soon as possible. It is imperative that are records are correct for the site working alongside Leeds City Council.

OLD LANE ALLOTMENTS ASSOCIATION

February is often the coldest winter month & what you can do on your allotment in February often depends on the weather. Do not slavishly follow instruction’s to sow or plant outside in February: think of the conditions, cold & wet ground will not germinate seeds it will just kill them off. If the weather allows,  you can direct sow broad beans along with early peas best chance would be to start them in a cold frame and plant outside later. Onion seeds can now be started off indoors or in a heated greenhouse at home, they need to be 15 degrees C to get them going for planting out later. The greenhouse border can be brought into productive use, a row or two of early carrots can come out in eight to ten weeks,  by this time the beds will be needed for tomatoes & so on.

If you didn’t plant your garlic out last November pop them in now, they like a cold spell so frost will not harm them. Conventional advice is to sow parsnips now but you will get much better germination rates in March, they will still be ready by the time the next frost arrives. Hardy lettuce can be started under glass, to provide an early salad crop along with rocket & some radish varieties.

Blog by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)

Please can we all make sure that entrance gates are locked when entering & leaving site.

THE SECURITY OF THE SITE IS EVERYBODY’S RESPONSIBILITY

OLD LANE ALLOTMENTS COMMITTEE

The Allotment Diary

One of the most useful things for any gardener is a diary. Unless you are blessed with a photographic memory it will prove invaluable for the years ahead. In the diary you can keep a record of conditions, your actions, & of course your results. Make a record of what you sow, the date & the variety and also where you have sown on your plot. Make a note of what the weather is like , when the first & lasts frost occur which is useful recorded information. Its also worth recording quantities in your harvest & acceptability. When you come to order your seeds the following year you know what has grown well for you & whats not grown so good. It can be very confusing what you have grown & where recording your information will help you keep track. A diary is also useful to remind yourself of jobs that need completing writing a brief note over the growing season. Organisation & planning is key to a thriving allotment.

Blog by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)

Our supplier for cow manure has not got any for delivery for the foreseeable future. As the prices of fertilisers has practically doubled for farmers, they are using the manure on their own land. We offer Gro Organic which is a soil improver and will put necessary nutrients back into your soil

Grow Organic is a 100% organic fertiliser, it improves soil & breaks clay. I have included some pictures so plot members can read what it can be used for, & what the benefits are. We keep the product in stock, and the price is £7.50, it would cover 1/2 plot if spread out & dug in. People who use it say it is as good as cow manure without all the hassle of delivery & off course the mess. It can be used for different applications.

All monies taken go towards the up keep of the site.

OLD LANE ALLOTMENTS COMMITTEE

 Blog by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)

 

January usually brings bad weather but hopefully you can still complete those winter jobs that are still on your to do list. Check your stored vegetables , empty your potato sacks to see if any have become rotten, a squeeze will establish if a potato has gone bad. It would be a good idea to check the underside of your strung onions where rot usually starts from. January is not a month for outdoor planting or sowing you can try to grow some summer cauliflowers in a frost free place such as a cold-frame or frost free greenhouse, but obviously sowing in the deep winter months is a gamble.

          Blog by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)

Peter Armitage and his sister May’s funeral will be taking place on the 28th December at 12.15.The venue will be at Cottingley crematorium. Then onto South Leeds Conservative club, Wooler Street, Leeds LS11 7JH.

Peter had been involved with Old Lane Allotments for many years and was an honorary member of the Committee.

Blog by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)

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