Important feature of our family friendly allotment site

We are lucky in that this allotment site is very popular with younger, family members who between them have 39 children and grandchildren. The emphasis is on teaching and learning BUT it is important to mix education of the journey in the way vegetables and fruit arrive at our dinner tables....... with play.
With this in mind, a dedicated children's area has been set aside which is well used, especially school holiday time and weekends. All toys are plastic and inspected weekly for damage, splits or dangerous edges when the large area's grass, (seed sown by the children,) is cut.

A wendy house is the base and 'lookout'. Old tyres with scores for kicking the ball through them are liked even if the balls do manage to go over the 8ft deer fence next to them. A sizeable piece of astro turf gives the children a chance to picnic on dry land and a very special picnic table made by workers at 'Resorce' recycling group means mum and dad can sit for a while next to the area and have lunch with Junior happily playing.

  We try to keep adding to the toys but is not always easy as money does not run to buying new all the time so it was a real bonus when Cathy came back from her brother with a whole car boot full of scooters, ride on toys, toy lawnmowers and a kitchen, mini wheelbarrow, etc, too much to list, if you read this David, a big thanks from our younger members.
Future plans this summer include a tent and a sandpit and we may organise a time capsule burying which should intrigue.
The 3 pictures show the area before the children sowed the grass seed in the first year, another at distance showing the whole area and another taken today displaying the new additions.

This area is regarded as an important feature of our site and I don't know of any other allotment site with this extra, email me if I'm wrong please, address on contact page.
 
I have been told several times that the children beg mum and dad to go to the allotments to see what's new which is a change from refusing because 'it's boring up there'.   

Time for the visiting of Flower shows!

Notice the hand prints on the fence?

Interesting working area

Well hot foot from the Malvern Spring Flower show and bursting with new ideas and plans for the plot!  The weather could have been better but the sun did shine in the afternoon.  But nothing could dampen the enthusiasm of the school children that had designed and produced their show gardens.   It was amazing what they did and they were so keen to tell us all about it too. I really liked 'George's Marvellous Garden' by Burlish Park Primary from Stourport-0n-Severn, naturally based on the Roald Dahl book of George's Marevellous Medicine.

Loved the funky orange chicken!

There was a very interesting talk about allotment tips from Terry Walton, of Gardening News fame, he has an allotment in Wales and good to hear that even the professionals have the same problems as I do.  

It was illuminating to hear his comments about the productiveness of courgettes!   As no doubt all of us that grow the said veg have been swamped with the little green/yellow darlings and not known what to do with them - well all recipies are gratefully recieved and will be put on our cookery page.  A prize for the one that uses most courgettes in one go!   I have managed this year to stop the under-gardener from growing more than 3 plants but only by letting him grow tomatoes this year.  

Last years's crop got blight but this year he's trying a blight resistant variety 'Fantasio', bought last year on our trip to the Suttons Nursery and an old variety called 'Auntie Madge' from the Heritage Seed Library.   http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/hsl/variety.

Good to see Hilda planted up on the plot and looking fantastic in her bunting.  Hope to be up the plot at the weekend, weather depending of course, still have lots to do.   Replace the carrot seeds that never made an appearance and check to see if the parsnip seeds have decided to show, mind you it has not been the best weather to sow seeds in-situ so think I will sow in modules this time.  Oh and may even go and watch the 'Olympic Torch ' as it passes through Bodmin, invited them to go via our allotments but they didn't think it was a good idea!

Looking out the window at the moment the sun is shining and the birds singing!   Who would have thought only yesterday the weather could be so foul!   In desperation I planted my sweet peas and Hurst Greenshaft peas, I remember them being a good doer last year, as they were bursting out of their pots.   If I get chance I’ll go up and check tomorrow how many survived the onslaught of wind and rain.   I know we now have a dingy (Hilda) on our site but if it floods up then we are in deep trouble!  Besides I feel ‘Hilda’ is past her sailing days and is best suited to housing the multitude of flowers that Ruth has planned for her. 

 My greenhouse can take no more plants/seeds, you can only just get through the door and definitely no space to swing a cat – mind you Reggie, my cat, would not take kindly to it either.   I’m sure he was a gardener in a past life as he spends lots of his time guarding the plants but my ungenerous under gardener would say  finding himself the warmest spot for sunbathing!   I’ve decided to grow several varieties of French beans this year, Purple Queen, Blue Lake, Magpie, Hutterite Soup and Black Canterbury and they are all growing on well but ........like a lot of people I've spoken to the runner beans are a dismal failure so far. 

Painted Lady has always been a dependable crop but this year only 10% germination in the first sowing.   Probably down to the cold, wet weather and the ground just hasn’t had time to warm up. Still like all optimistic allotmenteers I have done a second batch and eagerly await their germination and if they fail then we’ll just have to hope the 10% that did germinate give me a bumper crop.   Not expecting my Celeriac to germinate well I sowed loads and sod’s law all of them have come through!   Problem is I have an inability to throw plants away and am always stuck as to where to put them, my freezer is still housing several pounds of broad beans from last year.  So if you see some demented old lady on the side of the road at Lanhydrock trying to give away celeriac plants it's likely to be me!

 Got a good crop of lettuces as well  and a surfeit here is no problem as Jack & Paddy, my guinea pigs,  would walk over hot coals to get a tasty lettuce!  The only thing they like better is cucumber, the outdoor variety Marketmore did very well last year.  I tried a heritage variety but it was far too bitter for my liking so sticking to Marketmore again this year.

  

Good weather this evening so all being well hitting the plot tomorrow so will let you know how it goes.