We have been so busy lately, the wooden cabin above (to be my husband's office) is the latest in a string of projects. We built this ourselves, from a kit, and we are very proud of ourselves. It is now finished - except for the second coat of paint - I will post a picture of the finished article once that second coat is on. All this has left precious little time for the allotment, but today I managed to spend a whole afternoon on it. I have got so behind with it, the hedge was all overgrown and the weeds down that side were making it almost impassable, so today I have cut back the overhanging branches of the hedge, and cleared the worst of the weeds, nettles and dead borage and marigolds so that I can walk along it unimpeded.
Earlier this week I spent an afternoon weeding the leeks - behind them you can see how lush the green manure (clover and tares) has grown. I don't think I will cut it down, it is not showing any signs of flowering, so I'll probably leave it over the winter and cut it down in spring, and then dig in a few days later.
To the left of the leeks is my strawberry patch. It's a very sorry sight. It is totally overrun with weeds, most worryingly, some kind of perrenial weed which is steadily spreading its way down the plot. I haven't been able to identify this weed but it doesn't really matter what it is, what I need to know is how to get rid of it. It can't be dug out, because you can't pull or dig it up without leaving most of the root behind. Also I would have to dig up everything in the area in order to get it all, that includes not only the strawberry patch, but most of my fruit bushes as well. Secondly, even if I got it all out from my plot, it has also spread a long way down the plot next door, which nobody is cultivating at the moment. And if they were, they would have to dig up all their raspberries to get rid of it. I suspect the only way to get rid of it is to glyphosate the whole patch. And lastly, not knowing exactly how much longer I will have this plot for, (as I am waiting for a plot on a different site) it's hard to know how much time and effort it is worth putting into it. Hmm. It's a conundrum.
That particular problem aside, I have done lots of other tidying/clearing jobs today, resulting in one full dalek compost bin, and a bulging compost bag. There is still an enormous amount to do... there always is isn't there?
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