There's a hole in my wellie...

...and I found it by stepping into a quagmire.

So we've had more rain. Downpours that blocked roads and caused a bit of unrest this morning has once again turned the plot into a bit of a muddy puddle. Right outside the greenhouse is a low part of the plot and once i had my wellies on I thought I'd be safe to step into the greenhouse. Nope. My wellie has a hole in it and I got a soggy foot.

Hey ho, well I've had these almost a decade and they've done me proud, so I guess it's time to get a new pair. Looks like The Wife's has also got a bit of a hole in it as well as she complained of a soggy foot as well. Anyway, wet feet or not there is still work to be done.

Well we can't get to the far bed to dig out the weeds, but our aubergines have been growing in the greenhouse and need a little more space. So we potted them on into bigger troughs, as well as put out the last of the tomatoes.

So now the only remaining plants we have in the greenhouse is a single pot of mint, and the chillies.

This year has been somewhat of a mixed pot. The early heat wave and then cold snap threw all the germination into a spin and then we've alternated extreme heat and intense rain. Not sure what's going to happen to the rest of the year, but at the moment we have to go swimming to get the latest courgettes.

The 2021 Courgette Tally:

15

Localised flooding

Well after the sunny spell it's only right that it should end in a bang. Or rather a rumble. Yes, we've been hit with torrential downpours and rumblings that would make even the hungriest stomach wish it was fed.

After doing the usual drop-off of The Wife at the supermarket, I had to negotiate my way to the plot. I say negotiate because a lot of the roads were flooded resulting in traffic lights quitting and trying to divert my way around the blockages. I eventually manage to get there.

Of course the main throughway on the site (the one right next to us) was flooded. But also the Car Park.

I expected the greenhouse to be flooded as well, but thankfully it wasn't. Because I left the shed keys behind and couldn't put on my wellies.

Mind you, all this rain has brought out a whole load of snails and slugs. They make such a satisfying crunch underfoot.

The plot is looking quite well with another couple of courgettes to add to the tally. Which reminds me... time to start up the Tally again.

The 2021 Courgette Tally:

4

Hopefully that number will increase somewhat over the next few weeks.

Snow and Ice

 It's not often that I go to the plot in Winter these days. But today I had to do our bi-weekly trip to dump the compost bags which were building up in the kitchen and were getting a little, shall we say, fragrant. But today also was when London got that rare commodity known as snow.

The plot is of course flooded. It usually is during the winter, but the ice has put down a covering across it that makes it look as if solid... it's not. Nothing like putting your foot down into a pile of snow and realising that it's not snow after all and now you have ice cold water in your shoes.

Remind me to come back in February.

Squelching time again

So the storms have passed, but we're still getting a lot of rain. So much so that once again the plot is underwater. Which kind of puts our plans on hold. We can't dig any of the beds. Movement on the plot is restricted. And we certainly can't get the greenhouses clean because the tap water is still switched off.

So in the meantime, there is very little to do. I did slaughter the other two George's that were at the allotment and I left the seeds drying on a high shelf in the greenhouse, out of the reach of any pesky rodents.

So the only thing I can do is leave you with a picture of the daffs which appear to be enjoying themselves in the weak spring sunshine.

Walking in a Water Wonderland

It's been raining a bit.

OK, amend that. It's been raining a lot and as you may well remember from earlier times, our plot is on top of London clay, so that means it collects water every time that there is a small flood. So I was fully expecting it to be a little wet when we visited today.

Of course the greenhouse, being on the lowest part of the plot gets the brunt of it of often gets flooded. Here it looks like there are dry parts, but that is because the weed membrane has risen up in the flood. Step on it and it squelches down about 6 inches.

But the rest of the lower part is also fully under water.

As is the new addition where last year we had the courgettes growing.

As I said last time, maybe I should take up rice growing. They're perfect paddy fields.

Flooded!

As the ravers attending the mud-fest known as Glastonbury will attest to, we've had a little bit of rain recently. So it's with a little bit of trepidation that I parked the car in the car park and headed to the plot...

And yes, like last time, most of it is under water.

The onions are totally drowned. They'll have to come out otherwise they'll rot in the ground.

The Beetroot are also flooded, but they will probably survive.

Even the greenhouse is underwater (again).

Actually, I tried moving that bag of compost... boy was it heavy. It had obviously slurped up the rain water.

But did it stop there? No, whilst we were dashing around trying to tidy everything up, it started throwing it down again. Into the greenhouse to keep us (relatively) dry.

Not much we can do in conditions like this except head for home and try to dry out.

The 2016 Courgette Tally:

3

New Faces

A lovely sunny day. Just right for working down the allotment?

Did I say working? I mean squelching. There is still a flood. The greenhouse is still awash.

But that doesn't mean to say there aren't things to be done. The weed proof membrane that covered the courgette mound has blown loose and needs tidying away. It will get used later in the year, but for now it has a new home stuffed under the shed. The shed also needs a spot of care. The winds have blown the window in again.

Again it is fixed by the simple expedient of shoving something up against it from the inside. It is still too cold for proper sealant to work properly so temporary fixes will have to do for the time being. On another note, the shed has taken on a definite lean. The sodden ground has meant that the supports are sinking down a little on one side. This is no great problem, just makes it look a little odd. But by being up on stilts the shed is nice and dry... unlike some of the other sheds around the site.

But today's big news is the influx of new faces. We have 11 plots to allocate to new people today so we have to show them their swamp.... err. I mean plot.

(Ignore the reprobate looking at the camera. He's one of our helpers.)

I took two of the new recruits to have a look at their new spots. One of which was the plot next to Pauline's that she was so concerned about. I also spoke with a few other new residents taking on their plots for the first time. I'm also pleased that some of them actually read this blog! So to you new people I say welcome. Don't be put off by the bad weather and the state of things. Take you time to plan out what you are going to on your plots and where you want things to go. Look carefully at the sun and where any trees will cast shadows and figure out accordingly what grows well.

There are numerous resources around the web for advice on what you want to grow. They're all at the end of a google search. And failing that, there are numerous other plot holders who will all quite happily talk up a storm to anybody who will listen.

So welcome to you new people. I hope to see you down the allotments. Ever thought about doing your own blog?

The Plot's Flooded

Yesterday we had a spot of rain. OK, I lie, we had a major storm. Loads of rain, wind and all sorts of unhealthy stuff going on. So today I thought I'd go take a look to see if everything survived. Last time this sort of thing happened, one of the windows in the shed blew in. Well guess what... one of the windows of the shed blew in. Not the one supported by the rake. It was the other one. So now I have the spade and fork doing double duty as window supports as well. Guess one of my jobs for the new year is to get those windows sorted.

But that wasn't the major shock. No, the biggest shock is the fact that the plot is under water. Anything from about an inch to three or four. The greenhouse is blocked off (and only wearing trainers it's a bit hard to get to) and the rest of the plot looks like high tide.

And people wonder why I built my shed on stilts.