Category: Advice and Tips

Here is an article by Tony Lewis which was published in The Wychwood Magazine in June 2017. It contains some simple words of advice which are perennially relevant, and so worth another look.

Zen and the Art of Being an Allotmenteer

Being a person of little imagination, I thought I would plagiarise one of those iconic titles Zen And The Art Of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Persig who died this year (2017). It all came to mind when I was at the Milton allotments a few weeks ago and looked at the people around me –there was just this busy but calm ambience.

People have allotments for all sorts of reasons: saving money (although it may be marginal); growing food and knowing what has been used in its production; using it as a green gym; stress busting or just simply getting outside.

Of course, looking after an allotment is a combination of pleasure and hard work. We need the ability to accept that nature in its many forms will try to eat your food before you can get to it, and that the weather will not always oblige in letting your sowings grow and prosper.

Some people do give up, perhaps due to ill health or simply changing priorities. If so, it is a shame, but if you want to give it a go there are ways of making it more manageable:

Take on a half or quarter of a plot

Do not try to cultivate it all in the first year – clear a manageable bit of space and grow your favourite crops there. Simply cut the weeds and grass on the rest to keep it neat. You can always clear a bit more next year.

Ask your neighbouring plot holders for help – they are normally very approachable and happy to give a hand.

As an existing plot holder at the Milton allotments I, and I assume all the plot holders on any site, want to see our neighbouring plots in use and productive rather than hosting a load of rough grasses and weeds. There are plots free at Milton and Shipton, so if it sounds interesting to you why not give it a go? You will find a lot of helpful people pleased to see you there.

Contact the parish council ( miltonparishclerk@gmail.com ) or MUWAGA ( here ) for more information

Happy gardening

Tony Lewis

Here are extracts from articles by Tony Lewis which were published in The Wychwood Magazine  . They contain some timely advice and personal observations for gardeners at the start of a new year of planting and planning.

Sort the Seeds: February & March

Those MUWAGA members who order their seeds through the Association know they are on to a good thing as all seeds are half price. Currently we do this through Kings, and I have to say that they provide a very good service. This is very good value as you can easily save more than the annual MUWAGA membership cost in one go.

Whether you got your seeds through the Association or not, now is the time to get them sorted. Get shot of all those old time-expired packets, because while they may germinate, often they don’t do as well, and are weaker; parsnips and parsley are good examples of this.

The other advantage of sorting your seeds is that you can put them in the order you want to sow them so you are less likely to forget to do it. Lastly, if you do have seeds that are in date but you don’t need them, why not bring them along to the MUWAGA talks where we operate a swap table.

Easy Does It

Keeping with the seed theme, I think it is best not to be in too much of a rush to sow. The soil can still be cold so that the seeds sit and sulk and may just rot rather than get going. I tell myself this every year but still feel a very strong urge to get things going as soon as possible, often with mediocre results. A bad case of not listening to my own advice!

However, if you have a greenhouse or heated propagator then it is worth sowing seeds such as those for tomatoes and peppers early so they get a long growing season and then harden them off slowly before putting them in their growing positions once the risk of frost has passed.

Sow, Sow and Sow Again: April – May

I just love this time of year. Even if the weather can still be far from perfect you can say goodbye to winter and hello to the glorious rush of spring growth and it is going to get even better as the month passes. However, there is always a catch. If you have a garden and like us you want to grow vegetables, the weeds are even more pleased with the warmth and grow with enthusiasm.

My reader will know that Linda and I are trying a no-dig approach on the allotments (or at least reduced dig) so I am pondering my approach to keep the weeds under control. Not being the tidiest of allotment holders I always have plenty of weeds (very good for the compost heap) but instead of digging them out I shall have to hoe them and pick them up to compost afterwards – it may work if I can be a bit more organised.

I find sowing seeds a very positive experience with the promise of crops to come. Many seed packets say you can sow in March (even February sometimes) but I have learnt from many previous failures to forget the dates and just watch the weather.

I have often sown in April and the plants usually catch up. You need soil that is not too damp and which has warmed up to about 7 degrees or the seeds may just rot and you have to sow again. The general advice is to sow in batches over a few weeks which gives you a good chance of beating the vagaries of the British spring.

If you are able to start your plants under cover that gives you more options and many tender plants such a tomatoes, peppers and even runner beans, squashes and sweetcorn need to be raised with a bit of protection and then put out once the risk of frost has passed. Tomatoes probably needed to have been sown in March (but you can always buy plants to save the bother) and runner beans and squashes in April to be ready to go outside in late May.

Happy gardening
Tony Lewis

Hare today – Hare tomorrow

The Hare raises a complete range of opinions amongst allotmenteers, ranging from ‘get rid of it’ to ‘how lovely’. It seems to have taken up daytime residence on my plot and I am in the ‘live and let live’ camp – it’s safe with me.

Some blame it (there may be several as I can’t tell one hare from another) for a lot of damage to crops but I have suffered very little so I am inclined to think it is unfairly blamed – it will nibble some stuff but not much as far as I can tell.

So, I like to see it and if we choose to provide the hare equivalent of a supermarket shelf it seems a bit churlish to complain about the odd item being taken. We can always protect stuff we don’t want to share.

I end my address for the defence of the hare Your Honour. In truth we need the wildlife, the whole spectrum from microbes to badgers, is part of nature’s balance and we need to do what we can to maintain it (and our crops – with a bit missing sometimes).

As Winter Approaches- What to do Outdoors

So, what jobs you need to think of doing as autumn comes in your garden or allotment in the vein of Monty Don. I have to say his ‘jobs to do’ bit always incenses me. Nonetheless, if you can’t beat them!!! Here goes.

First, sit back and do nothing. Think about what went well, what was unsatisfactory and what, if anything, you want to do about it. If you haven’t ordered any seeds or plants this is probably a good time to do it, especially as Brexit and Covid could cause some shortages, so get in early.

If you have areas of bare ground it is a good idea to mulch them with whatever mulch suits you, manure, compost or a decorative mulch such as bark.

Alternatively, you could sow a cover crop such as winter tares to protect the soil and put fibre and nitrogen into it for next year’s plants, October is not too late.

Finally, think about those plants, both ornamental and fruit, that will require a winter prune. As they become dormant just do a gentle tidy while it’s not too cold, taking out crossing or unwanted branches. I always think it is worth leaving the final prune until early spring when you can see if the winter has caused any dieback and then cut back to good wood.

Now sit back and warm up. You can now complain bitterly about me.

Happy gardening.
Tony Lewis

Even as the Covid situation improves, life can still seem uncertain. Of course, life and our individual futures have never been guaranteed but previously we did have some degree of certainty that our plans would come to fruition. Covid has put a dent in that confidence, whether it was originally justified or not.

That is where I find the garden and allotment provides an anchor. Spring comes, summer will follow, the trees will flower and crops sown with hope will produce the goods. It’s called gardening and it roots you in nature and its rhythms. The world still turns and despite our egos the great universe beyond carries on in majestic indifference. Indeed, if gardening is not your thing then can I suggest a bit of quiet star gazing, another of my passions, to provide some solace and to listen to the gentle sounds of nature at night. It certainly brings peace to my soul.

The Rewards are worth it!

Well, I may look up occasionally but this is a ground-based article. Now we have arrived at June we can look forward to some of the earliest summer crops. I always find these the most delicious, particularly as they announce summer with their fresh taste.

The Broad Beans are one of our staples, they freeze really well so we always aim for a surplus. However, Linda’s over-wintering ones disappeared, perhaps it was the weather or maybe the mice did for them. We certainly do have mice in the garden at home, our cats have confirmed this, much to our chagrin when presented with the evidence in the morning. All I can say is that it is not always advisable to pad about the house in the morning, bleary eyed, with bare feet!

I hope that some rain has fallen between the end of April, as my trembling fingers rattle the laptop keys to produce this article, and it tumbling through your letterbox. If not, the potatoes are going to struggle and watering is going to be a big issue. Still it usually works out in the end and plants do want to grow. It is just that some of our crops are really the Olympians of the vegetable world and do need good conditions to deliver their best.

So, gardeners, stick with it. I sense a bumper year and currently the allotments look really good. Also, the outlook across the fields from the plot is superb, so I forgive the blue skies and lack of rain (for now).

Happy gardening
Tony Lewis

…in 2021

In April I wondered if we would get some rain to help the spuds along; in May I wondered if it would stop raining and warm up a bit – well a lot warmer was what I wanted. Early June was flaming alright and it was back to watering but at least the first summer crops were appearing, now it’s back to the cool and rain.

Eventually our crops got going, in fits and starts in mid-May, probably 3 weeks later than normal, and eventually the mangetout and my early lettuce plants gave up sulking and produced usable crops at last. But do you know what? – my expectation is that it will all pan out in the end. Most crops will catch up and the year in both the garden and allotment will be the usual blend of success and failure, just different candidates from last year.

I will still moan, of course, but that is expected of every gardener, we have our standards to maintain! Other than that, I just fall back on blind optimism – it normally works. I am still sticking to my ‘minimum dig’ approach, which may be a little more time consuming but, having mulched most of the plot with manure or compost last autumn, I do seem to see far more worms and the weeds are much reduced. I shall stick with it.

August and September are the traditional harvest months, a time to put your excess away for winter. Of course, now we have the freedom to visit the supermarket and have fruit and vegetables from around the world but, if you have the space, there is much to be said for storing your own crops for winter, accepting some seasonality and cutting food miles at the same time. We could try to become a little more self-reliant and less wasteful. That’s the sermon finished for this month.

Happy gardening
Tony Lewis

It is a truism that no matter what the situation, life goes on. Nature and our wildlife carry on oblivious of our problems. As I go out to top up the bird feeders in the early morning and look up at blue skies (still a novelty after winter rain and cloud) there are no vapour trails and the birds say thank you by putting their efforts into the dawn chorus unchallenged by traffic noise. I know things will return to some sort of new normal but there is something nice about the absence of the din of industry for now. As we are forced to slow down I sense nature breathing a sigh of relief.

The garden and allotment form a large part of our therapy and after the chaotic shopping situation at the start of the lockdown we aim to get as much produce as we can from our plots. I don’t think we are alone, I have never seen the allotments so busy and seed sales have gone through the roof with many suppliers being overwhelmed by demand. So, if members have spare plants or seeds, let us know and we will endeavour to pass them on to those who may need them.

On an uplifting note, for me at least, Father Christmas has delivered – his little helper dumped 2 loads of manure (the social distancing wasn’t difficult) on Linda’s allotment and she has, grudgingly, granted me permission to wheelbarrow some to mine. My no-dig philosophy has not progressed well after so much winter rain which compacted the soil surface into a hard pan. I have had to content myself with surface cultivation to get the weeds out. It’s taken ages but, hey, I’ve got the time!

The soil is really warming up and the first indication is that the weeds are growing – after all weeds are just successful plants we haven’t found a use for yet. As usual we sowed some seeds to early, fooled by the warm daytime temperature, but the cold nights caused some to rot; a second sowing solved this (it’s always a good idea to stagger sowings). Tomatoes, peppers, aubergines and cucumbers are growing strongly and by mid-May will be in the greenhouse with the promise of crops to come. Hooray, come on summer!

Happy gardening
Tony Lewis