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
After our recent committee meeting 2nd February 2020 we have decided to let plot members have small controlled fires on there plots. Safety has to be paramount for our site & our members. We must consider thoughts of our local residents & the buildings that surround the site, & of course the environment. Our site is in a built up area with main roads & lots of traffic. So common sense is always key to lighting fires.
Avoid burning when the wind will carry the smoke over roads & into peoples property. Always check the weather forecast . Do Not burn green waste from crops this has to be composted. Only burn dry materials like dry timber, branches from pruning. Never burn household rubbish, rubber, plastic, foam , paint tins, carpets, aerosols that will cause pollution or damage peoples health .Use fire lighters to start the fire , no petrol, mentholated spirits that will encourage the fire. Do not leave the fire unattended. Make Sure the fire is out when you leave your allotment garden.
If your not sure what to burn speak to one of the committee officials. There will be a set of Recommendations to follow on a notice on the main hut building
If someone is not following the above recommendations /rules they will be banned from having fires on there plot
Blog by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary) For & on behalf of Old Lane Allotments Association
In Tudor times peas were a delicacy, often imported from the Netherlands, making them expensive to eat. Eating fresh peas became much more popular in the late 18th century, when British breeders started growing sweeter varieties. Gregor Mendel used pea plants in his experiments with genetics. Peas were first frozen by Clarence Birdseye who invented the ‘plate froster’ in the early 1920s in order to preserve food. The pea is said to be green when its young & immature. Ripe peas are usually yellow.
Peas have a good source of vitamins A,B1, & C. They are also high in protein, carbohydrate & fibre. The less water used when cooking peas , the less vitamin C is lost. Peas do best in an open position, but not one that is too exposed. |They are naturally a cold weather, growing best in Spring & cool Summers. They do not thrive in hot weather, drought, or poorly drained soils. Peas generally don’t germinate in cold soil, & this leaves them venerable to attack from mice & fungal diseases. Do not sow in an early cold Spring.
Always read seed packet for growing instructions
Blog & research by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)
LCC Power To Inspect Allotments
Dear Members,
Leeds City Council authorised officers are entitled to inspect allotment sites whether they are administered by Leeds City Council, or leased to a self administered association like our site. We have received information that over the growing season authorised officers will be inspecting allotment sites to see if members are, cultivating to a satisfactory standard & are utilising the land for growing purposes. As the new growing season is about to start soon we wanted plot holders to be aware of this information, & adhere to the site rules.
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)
BOLTING PLANTS
Bolt – To produce flower & seed Prematurely –
This can be caused by sudden low & high temperatures, , drought, sowing seeds at the wrong time. Plants under stress may respond by bolting so they can produce seeds before they die
Blog & Research Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)
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)
Divide your allotment into equal sections of equal size (depending on how much of each crop you want to grow), plus an extra section for perennial crops such as rhubarb & asparagus. Brassicas : sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage, kale, kohl-rabbi , oriental greens, turnips, swede & radish. Legumes : Peas, broad beans, French & runner beans suffer from fewer soil problems & can be grown wherever. Onions : onions, garlic, shallot, leek. Potato Family : potato, tomato, (pepper & aubergine suffer from fewer problems & can be grown anywhere in the rotation). Roots : beetroot, carrot, celeriac, fennel, parsley, parsnip. (& all other root crops except for turnip & swede which are brassicas). Move each section of the plot a step forward each year so that for example : brassicas follow legumes, onions & roots, legumes, onions & roots follow potatoes & potatoes follow brassicas. Below is a typical three rotation where potatoes & brassicas are important crops.
Year one section one : Potatoes section two : Legumes, onions & roots, section three : brassicas.
Year two section one : Legumes, onions & roots, section two : brassicas, section three : potatoes
Year three section one : brassicas. section two potatoes, section three : Legumes, onions & roots.
Blog & research By Mark Burton ( Allotment Secretary)
Crop rotation is to grow specific groups of vegetable’s on a different part of your allotment garden each year. This helps to reduce a build up of pests & diseases & it organises groups of crops according to their cultivation needs.
Benefits of crop rotation
Soil fertility : different crops have different nutrient requirements. Changing crops annualy reduces the chance of a particular soil deficiencies developing as the balance of nutrients removed from the soil evens itself out over time. Weed control – Some crops like potatoes & squashes with dense foliage or large leaves, suppress weeds, thus reducing maintenance & weed problems in following crops. Pest & disease control : Soil pests & diseases will attack specific plant families over & over again. By rotating crops between sites the pests will decline in the period when their host plants are absent which helps reduce build of spores, eggs, & pests. Common diseases like club root in brassicas & onion white rot can be avoided.
To be continued – crop rotation part 2 to follow
Blog & research By Mark Burton ( Allotment Secretary)
SEASONS GREETINGS
Wishing All our Members a Happy Christmas & a Prosperous new year
Lets all look forward to next years growing season
friendly, locally-managed allotments in Beeston, Leeds
A place to return to education, and meet your personal and professional goals in a supportive learning environment. Choose from short courses to PhDs at https://warwick.ac.uk/study/cll/
Welcome to my world: digging, harvesting and other stuff
