Anyone with an allotment?

Depends what you are planting, but too early for most things especially outdoors. You might get away with propagation in a heated greenhouse or indoors. Again depending on what your sowing, you'll probably need to wait a while. March is the earliest at a guess.

More marginal gains. Another 8x8ft area dug over yesterday. Got enough space to put the tunnel up now.
Onions weeded and spring bulbs starting to pop up.

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There’s a vent at the top and bottom. I’ve also seen a video with a drilled out pipe that goes through the bin so this should improve the ventilation.

Lettuce and peas, plus wanted to get some flowers going for transplant. All on windowsills indoors or in a dark, unheated lean-to. It's the lack of light that's the problem, for sure.

It looks like the end of Feb is supposed to be mild, but then who knows what's going to happen in march?

I’ve planted stuff early before thinking that I’ll get ahead of the game and then it chucks it down with rain or snows and it’s all gone

Wait until March for sure. Search online for veg sowing calendar... mostly things click off in March.

I’ve planted stuff early before thinking that I’ll get ahead of the game and then it chucks it down with rain or snows and it’s all gone

I've not been at the allotment for a while. Is this going to have ruined my winter onion/garlic sets? They're covered with mesh, but nothing to keep the temperature higher.

^ winter onion & garlic are pretty hardy so should be ok. There may be some freeze damage to leaves if snow on mesh was resting on them but they should recover even so.

Cheers. Bit worried about the broad beans, they were also covered with mesh but still -7c will give the leaves a fair old scorching.

I share this concern haha, we'll pop over in the morning for the first time in a couple of weeks. Bean plants were looking pretty strong, hopefully the icy winds haven't fucked them up too badly

I feel like the seasons are really changing now. Winter seems to drag on for longer and colder whilst summer again feels longer and hotter.

My uncovered beans looked fine last I was there last week. The ones at home were mesh covered and had ice damage to leaves but again they're usually resilient so hopefully will be ok.

Got thoroughly fucked off after struggling to get 3 panes back in to my cold frame today, just about gave up on the fourth, and then the second one fell out and smashed. Is there something else I could just wrap the whole thing in that would make it less perilous to move around? Or should I be looking at polycarbonate or similar?

Or should I be looking at polycarbonate or similar?

I’d thought about doing similar and polycarbonate or those corrugated plastic roof panels where what I was considering using. Couldn’t find any for free/cheap locally though.

Yeah I've been on the lookout for panels for ages to construct something over my compost heap, but nothing ever comes up, something on freecycle the other day but no reply to my message. Might grab a sheet of this stuff. Not transparent, but should do for the side. I'll retain the glass in the top as it's less troublesome.

https://www.selcobw.com/floor-protection-translucent-2440-x-1220-x-4mm

That's what's in the lid of my Aldi cold frame, seems to do the job just fine (apart from when foxes smash it in, but at least it's flexy enough to pop back into place)

Removed these tables today. They seemed like a good idea for strawberries a couple of years ago but they are too long so have come up with a shelving system.

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All cleared and ready for corn to be planted.

If anyone is is any doubt how bad bind weed is to get rid of. Those tables were on top of layers of black membrane for over 2 years and I’ve still found bind weed roots.

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A pallet structure has been dismantled at our allotments meaning... Free pallets! Claimed a load for compost heaps/bays.

Where are people ordering their seeds from? I need to get germinating soon.

Combination of Thompson and Morgan (£1 sale last year), Dobies (sale) and the Real Seed Company - lots of interesting varieties. Bought all mine the end of last year though.

Went up the plot for the first time in a few weeks. Everything mostly fine, but the pigeons have utterly destroyed my taunton deane kale. Should have netted them.

Suttons have a seed sale on at the mo too

Edit soz this finished at midnight

I've got some seeds going free for collection from SE15

Runner bean Blauhide
Kale starbor
Cucumber jogger

https://youtu.be/nKklY3myGrE

Ignore "bird feeder" this is live at my allotment, (looking out from an unused nesting box)

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🤔

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