Over the past two years me & my boyfriend have been renovating a heap of land into a personal haven. We have both always been interested in gardening and design, so we decided to try and find ourselves an allotment patch. Luckily, we found one within the family, it was free of charge and a big enough space but there was one catch… it looked like this.
And so, the renovation began.
Back in May 2018 we cut our way into the patch and started attacking weeds, Hawthorne and brambles with spades. Armed with a cutters and weed killer galore, it took us the majority of summer 2018 before we saw soil. We up cycled the gate and dismantled the shed - both easier said than done but by 2019 we were well on our way.
Once the ground was weed free and softer after winter, we began our next challenge… Rotavation station. After lots of sweat, some blood and nearly tears we managed to have the soil rotated and levelled. This was the first time we actually could see how much space we had to work with and so the garden design began.
We bought ourselves a second hand shed and assembled it at the bottom end of our plot. We made compost bins out of used pallets at the opposite end and paved the entrance with stone slabs, so you no longer fell into the allotment. By August 2019 we had planted our first plants, Rhubarb & Raspberries & red currants.
Next we had to put in a rainwater system attached to the shed and all hand made by Brad so we could water our plot easily. After this we got our raised beds put in place ready for planting next summer. In September we had our first Rhubarb harvest and it’s safe to say we both had a real sense of accomplishment. We made 2 bottles of rhubarb gin and a boozy crumble to celebrate all the hard work so far.
As the seasons change it gets harder to put in graft at the plot because it can get so cold and windy, so our final job of the year was putting up DIY poly tunnel with a built-in irrigation system. After this we put our spades down for the 2019 and eagerly waited for spring 2020.
After what seemed like years, march came around and we were back in the plot ticking off more jobs from our ever expanding to do list. We painted our lovely shed blue, started propagating veg in the poly tunnel and even put up a new fence between us and our neighbour plot. Over the past 2 years we had been collecting number plates from all of our travels, by the end of March we had decorated the shed with license plates from the USA, Canada, Europe and villages in England.
Now we have been in lock down we have had ample time to get some of our bigger tasks done. We had raked and sewn seeds in our wildflower patch, we have cut & planted a 4m garden border which is now filled with lovely garden plants, trees, bushes and seedlings. Our latest job was getting started on our pond. As of this weekend we have dug our pond, filled it with water and started building mounds for our rock garden.
The patch has come a very long way in the past 2 years, but it has been hard work for everyone involved. However, this is one of the most rewarding ventures I have been involved in. It has been good for my mind, body & soul and soon enough we will have a beautiful little garden/allotment to relax in and enjoy fruit & veg out of. At this rate by summer 2021 we will be the new hosts of gardener’s world… watch this space!
Love,
JB :)