Blog

The Development Of The Allotment

• AD410 in the Saxon times, communities cleared land together, sharing out ‘allotted land’ areas between themselves.
• 1066 Following the Norman conquest , land ownership was confined to lords of the manor & the church.
• 1600 During the reign of Elizabeth the first the first evidence of allotments is made, as land is given to the poor to compensate them for the enclosure of common land.
• 1845 The general enclosure act included a requirement to provide land for allotments where common ground was enclosed.
• 1887 The allotments & cottage gardens for compensation for crops act obliged local authorities to provide allotments, if there was a required demand.
• 1907 the small holdings & allotment act clarified the responsibilities of local authorities to provide allotments.
• 1914 Germanys blockade during the first world war led to an increased demand for allotments , although after the war it fell again.
• 1939 The second world war , and its ‘DIG FOR VICTORY’ campaign brought allotments & gardening to the forefront of British life. The amount of allotments in the British Isles peaked at 1.5 million.
• 1960 Disuse & development led to a decrease in allotments that were available.

                                             Blog & Research by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)

                                        To be Continued   ……

Carpets & Rugs

Dear plot members,

Please can you not bring carpets/rugs on the allotments. It states in the Leeds City Council rules & regulations that they shouldn’t be brought on site for health & safety reasons.

They seem to be appearing & they are being used as weed control on plots,which is not allowed. They are also being used on walkways between plots & these become really slippy & hazardous in the bad weather. Health & safety  is everyone’s responsibility. I know some carpets have been on site a long time & have been left by tennants that are no longer members. Bringing them to site is breaching our site rules

Thank You

Old Lane Allotments Association

We have a builders skip arriving 10th June – morning time for all to utilise.

Blog created by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)

A big thank you to Martin Kennard plot 51 – Committee member who keeps the communal gardens on the site looking great, as they do on this photograph.

Blog & photograph by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)

June is a very busy time on the allotment the nights should now be frost free, and daylight hours are longer which should give you plenty of time to get on with jobs that need doing. Now is the time to protect your strawberries by mulching around them with straw to keep mud splashes off, & keep birds of your precious ripening strawberries by cover your plants with netting.

Keeping on top of the weeds is still very important hoe between rows & let them dry out on top of the soil. Continue sowing beetroot, This is the last chance to sow main crop variety carrots that will be ready to harvest in September/October. Courgettes, Summer squash, & marrows if you don’t already have young plants you have raised in pots, you can sow the seed direct outside now the soil has warmed up. The beginning of June will be the last chance to grow main crop peas, towards the end of the month switch to early fast maturing peas which should be ready to harvest in September. Outdoor cucumbers are usually started off earlier in pots, but if you sow them direct this month they should give you a crop in August/September.

Sow Outdoors now – beetroot, broccoli, Carrots, French beans, kale, pumpkins & Winter squash, runner beans, swede, Swiss chard, turnips, radish, Spring onions, continue succession of salad leaves, cucumbers, herbs.

                                          Blog by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)

We currently have no stock of multi purpose compost, We have got a large quantity on order with our supplier.

Old Lane Allotments Association

Walked past Old Lane post office today and this piece of creative work was sat on top of the post box for the Queens platinum Jubilee. I couldn’t resist taking a photo of it & producing a blog post for you all to see.

Blog created by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)

Dear Members,

Can we please make sure children are supervised whilst on site. Someone contacted me today & told me there was children turning on one of the stand pipe taps, causing the barrel to overflow & running water began streaming down the main road of the site, basically just wasting water. While we appreciate this is no doubt an isolated incident we felt we should publish this blog.

Old Lane Allotments Association

Blog created by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)

 

Weeds & Hoeing

Most of the annual weeds spread thousands of seeds that lie in the ground until the elements & conditions are right then they will appear. Turning over the soil brings those seeds to the surface, hence they will begin to pop up all over your allotment garden. Most of these weeds can be dealt with by hoeing through them, leave them to dry on the surface then transfer them to the compost bin. Catching the weeds early is the best way, better to hoe little & often. Make sure the blade is horizontal to the surface then move the hoe back & forth just under the soil surface. This slices the weed off its root & both root & stem die.

Do not hoe in wet conditions, the soil will cling to the hoe & you will end up pushing the weeds back into the ground & not slicing them. The weeds would probably then survive & re-root. There are other weeds that present a bigger problem, these are perennial & live from year to year. As a general rule hoeing them just cuts the tops off & the weed will rise again from its deep roots. I have listed below the perennial weeds,  you will have to dig out the roots to stop them coming back.

REMEMBER WEEDS ON YOUR PLOT CAN MAKE YOUR NEIGHBOUR CRINGE 

NETTLES, DOCK LEAVES, DANDELIONS, BIND WEED, COUCH GRASS, HORSE TAIL.

 

Blog by Mark Burton (Allotment Secretary)