A quiet week on the allotment, I guess because of half term. Great news on watering though! The hose has been bought and we have connected it up twice and watered with no problems. If I'm not around, the tap is next to the cafe toilets. If the top is not on the tap, Sam the cafe manager will put it on for you if you ask. When you have finished, remember to tell Sam and put the hose back in the shed together with all the tap fittings, so there is nothing left behind on the tap. The route to the beds is convoluted but it works. It's much easier if two or three people work together to get it unwound and in place.

Even more exciting - provided we get some rain of course - is the water butt, now installed near the triangle bed to collect water off part of the cafe roof. I've just uploaded a photo to the site but don't know where it's gone. Can anyone help with that?

Hope to see some of you Wednesday. Next Saturday, I'm away again. Are you around to organise things, Miko?            Maggie

Fantastic to now have two sources of water!  

Yes, I will be around on Saturday at 1230 :)

By the way Maggie, I have recorded that DVD about permaculture forest gardens for you (and anyone else who's interested) to borrow, maybe can give it to you next time you and I are both there on a Saturday.

1.55 and the rain's pouring down outside my window, so looks like no QP allotment meeting today. I'm away on Saturday but Miko is looking after things. Hope to see you all next Wednesday ...

Was great Saturday, looked miserable at first but then turned out nice... my friend Rachel and her daughter Josie came just as Ian kindly dropped off  6 stunning lavender plants.  We put these in along the front of triangular bed with the help of the luxury of a fully-filled water butt to help!

Pulled some delicious onions, and planted some new ones

Also planted some green manure along the right hand side (looking from cafe to golf course) of the triangular bed in a row beneath the hedge.  Hopefully this will come up (rye, vetch, grass and others) and we can use in a few weeks as green manure/mulch/fertilizer or just add to the compost.

Be great to have more growing space... :)

Would love to get something like this (a food forest) started in a corner of queens park...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forest_gardening

Nice work at QP, Miko and all. Lavender looks lovely. Archie and I pulled up the spent mizuna and rocket today. We need to week the triangle bed on Saturday, especially around the bean wigwams where the old weeds we dug up are making a return. Also to label the things you've planted ... I'll bring a marker pen.

See you there!  Maggie

can't come today as salusbury school summer fair and am doing tea and scones in greenspace behind school, come along after allotment if you like?

also am greenspace is getting 6 extra large bags compost delivered next sat and i wil see if we can buy some for q park

There is some compost at the Abbey Road Hive (84 nabbey rd nw8, next to rowley way / ainsworth estate) which I think we can get some of.  they also have some top soil i think and are growing lots of veg there.  the gates seem to be open all the time (to get compost) but i think someone is there tuesdays 2-5.  not sure if this is for residents of the estate or camden or just anyone.

Lots of fun and yummy potatoes came out of the beds this wonderful weekend!

Thanks for putting the photos up, Miko. Lovely! If anyone is in Q P in this dry spell, can he or she water the leeks? People in the tennis hut will open up the shed if you need to get the watering can from in there. There's plenty of water in the butt.

Maggie

Great to see photos of the potato harvest! Sorry I haven't been able to get along for a while, but hope to manage an hour or so on Saturday. 

Maggie, I can probably water the leeks if it can be done in an evening? Or is access to the shed only during the day? 

Ali

Sorry everyone, not able to come to gardening club at 2.00 today as usual, as have come down with a bug (not the gardening kind ...)

If anyone goes, some weeding in the triangle bed would be helpful. Probably no need to hose as rain is forecast for tomorrow.

The good news on the triangle bed is that Richard, the Park Manager, is going to get park-keepers to dig the horse radish out for us ... a plant we inherited but can't manage as it has become very invasive.

Best wishes, Maggie

Best wishes, Maggie

I was there late yesterday (Saturday). Was anyone else there? I mulched the leeks with grass mowings and added some cardboard to the compost. Richard is organising horse radish removal and I think it's a good idea to mulch the rest of the triangle bed with cardboard (as grass mowings not allowed ...) in order to keep the weeds under control.

More potatoes ready to harvest. Beans ready to pick. Come along Wed at 2.00 or Sat at 12.30. Bring bags for produce. Bring some sheets of cardboard or cardboard boxes if you can.                        Maggie

couldn't make it, may be able to make weds

regards,

Miko

Good news! Park-keepers have dug the horseradish out of the triangle bed. Anyone wanting some roots, please come this Saturday at 12.30. What isn't wanted will be composted.

Now we have a chance to keep that bed weed-free, with a bit of weeding and some mulching with cardboard.

There are beans to pick and potatoes to harvest. Hope to see you on Saturday.    Maggie

Hi everybody. Good day on Saturday. We did a lot of weeding in the triangle bed and finished harvesting the potatoes, which we shared out. Also, everybody took home some runner beans and broccolli.

With all the horseradish that was dug up, we have an excess of material to compost. Richard, is it possible for you to procure a second compost bin for us? I thing these are still available from the l.a. for £5. Transition is happy to pay, but it's much easier for us if you order and have it delivered to your yard. Otherwise it's tough for us to get it to the right place.

For better or worse, I'm going to be away a lot between now and the end of September. The Wednesday meetings, which have in any case been virtually unattended, will cease for the time being.

The Saturday meetings at 12.30 will continue under Miko's stewardship, so do come along and join in. I will be there as well whenever I'm in town but not properly back until the end of September.

In the meantime, enjoy gardening and enjoy eating the produce!

Best wishes, Maggie

Hi All,

Got some work done before the skies opened! Tomatoes staked up, looking happy.  Planted another bed spinach to replace the one that's nearly done.  Bit of an experiment as the seed comes from my garden this summer, we will see what comes up.  Met a couple who stayed and chatted for a while and may move into the area.

Took one pumpkin home as looked very ripe and yummy :)

good news... weather was nice and picked more yummy beans (and handed some out to interested bystanders)

bad news... tomatoes had to be pulled and thrown out as all were infected (blossom end rot?) and pumpkin rotted (slug damage?).  may be couple more pumpkins for harvest festival

more good news... killed lots of snails!

also planted some mixed salad and did some watering and weeding pulled (more!) horseradish

week before covered cardboard with wood chips

Can't make it to the plot today (Wednesday). Nice to welcome Jessica there last Wednesday, who used to work for Project Dirt and is keen to be involved. If you're there today, pick beans and broccolli and do some weeding. Otherwise, see you Saturday ...

Maggie

Will be sorry to see you step back Maggie!

Your enthusiasm and knowledge will be missed...

Good luck with grandchild and MSc, sounds like you'll be very busy :)

Went Saturday to do some clearing up, took down one of the bean wigwams and did some general tidying and weeding.  Horseradish coming up again! Brought some cardboard Sunday (in shed now with bamboo poles from wigwam) that needs to be put on horseradish.

Picked some broccoli and sunflowers. 

Am busy this Sat learning about soil life (http://www.capitalgrowth.org/training/the_regents_park/) so not going but should be there following Sat. 

please let me know when you will meet again in the allotment  ....i was away so could not come last time

also I would love to meet someone with gardening experience  to help me get started with a  garden in KR .please send a message or  email me  direct to mcnutrition@aol.om.  If you see Nadia please can you ask her to get in touch with Candida  ......good week everyone! lovely snow today 

Hi Candida,

We could meet this Saturday at 2pm for some work in the allotment?

As to gardener, there is a shop on Chamberlayne Road near the special needs school that you could try. (I have not dealt with them myself)

Let me know if Saturday at 2pm suits you (and anyone else who'd like to come! )?

Bye,

Miko.

Hi Miko! I'd also like to come along to help out this weekend if there's room for more hands? What is the actual address/access route seeing as I havent been before?

Chessie

Hi Chessie!

Yes always room for more hands! The beds are directly behind the Cafe in  Queens Park - facing the Cafe, walk to the left (next to tennis courts) and the beds are on the right behind the Cafe. 

Be great to meet you!

Miko.

Great, thanks so much! Looking forward to it. Now all I need to do is figure out where I've put all my gardening clothes...

See you Saturday!

Chessie

Glorious day on Saturday in the park, lovely low winter light on the snow was magical!

No digging as ground was frozen but many thanks to Pearl and new volunteer Chessie for coming along and helping out. We cleared away some old plants for composting and also used some shredded paper and wood-chip to mulch around apple trees.

Lovely day Saturday - was glorious in the park with low light on snow!  

Welcome to new member Chessie and thanks to Chessie and Pearl for braving the cold and helping out :)

We did some general tidying and mulched the apple trees with some shredded paper and wood-chip - just waiting for ground to thaw and we can get stuck in preparing for new plantings.

I think we can make some raised beds tomorrow, Miko, can't we? Should I bring any tools or will you bring everything? I have an electric jigsaw I could bring and an extension lead. (I expect the cafe would let us use their power and maybe we could get more done than if we're sawing by hand.)

If we're making fruit bush circles out of half-log edging, it's good to have a hammer and some pliers. Let me know ... See you there.

Hey guys, had a great time on Sunday at the big dig.

Heres the timelapse video. Shame my battery ran out otherwise I could have got the whole thing. We're busy this Saturday but will endeavour see you soon.

Steve, Fay and Elijah

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1lzT2ZsrbHI&feature=youtu.be&...

What a brilliant video - I think its brilliant... 

Steven - do you mind if I circulate it more widely?

I went and looked at the QP allotment site today and was bowled over - it looks wonderful - really inspirational... well done, and I hope you get loads of wonderful fruit and veg out of it!

George x

Miko - yeah no problem, shouldnt take long. I'll message you my mobile and address, gimme a ring and we'll have a chat about it

I'm going to the park this morning before the rain starts... should be there around 9 or 10, call (07956 131 552) if i'm not at allotment, I may be in playground.

We managed to get quite a lot done last weekend before the rain started. Same story looks like this weekend... stay in touch and keep an eye on the weather?

If anyone is interested in veg/flower seedlings, there's a Plant Sale today from 11.00 am at Elders Voice, 181 Mortimer.  Many veg seedlings at good prices.