No gardening last week.
We decided on a couple of days out so we and Ruby could have some exercise to compensate for a lazy time on Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
1 year ago
Tuesday, December 30
Christmas week
Sunday, December 21
Merry Christmas
In an earlier post, I displayed some of the outdoor scenes featuring Ruby in a Christmassy outdoor settings. If you missed them, they are posted here.
I also created some indoor settings by playing around for hours. Below are just some of the results.
Can you spot the tweaks that were made in some images?
Wednesday, December 17
November in pictures
Monday, December 15
Six stamps Ruby
Last week we managed to get out and about a bit more,
We went to the allotment on three afternoons. The first time was to move another pile of manure. If we leave it, it tends to spill onto the roadway that runs around the site, and also means that when another load arrives, there is nowhere to offload it. Another did arrive on Sunday, so that also needed moving. At the moment, we are having loads delivered whenever they are available, and no one else wants any.
Monday, December 8
So what do we do when it's raining?
We have had another wet week. We now have the exact opposite of the weather that we experienced last summer. This is typical of our weather, when we need rain, it stays dry and when we could do with a bit of a break in the rain it just won't stop.
It's far too wet now to do any gardening, so we have had to look towards alternative occupations.
Whenever there has been a break in the rain, we have taken the opportunity to go walking with Ruby, although our walks have been local.
Monday, December 1
It never rains ,,,
Was it really just a month or two ago that we were bemoaning the fact that we needed rain? It's certainly made up for it this month. This November with 106.2mm or 4.18" of rainfall has become the ninth wettest month since Martyn started recording our weather in 2010. It has also been our second wettest autumn, with only 2019 being wetter
Meteorological winter starts on the first of December. As I've commented before, it's all or nothing as far as our weather is concerned.
We only went to the allotment once last week, as we have used any dry spells for walks with Ruby.
The allotment can look after itself at the moment and no doubt all the rain will be making a good job of rehydrating the parched earth and softening the hard lumps left after digging over the beds.
Monday, November 24
It's beginning to feel a lot like winter
The temperature plummeted last week with nighttime temperatures dropping below freezing. Snow was threatened but none fell near to us.
Of course, this caused the inevitable warnings of danger to life for people over a certain age, a category that we both are in. We were warned to stay indoors, as if we ventured outdoors, we may freeze to death. Now I know for some people the cold is health-threatening, but I'm sure these warnings of doom are becoming far more frequent. It seems the powers that be are determined to frighten us to death.
I much prefer the cold, bright days to the warmer, drearier ones.
Sunday, November 16
Wash out
I haven't much to tell you this week. We haven't been to the allotment nor have we had an afternoon out.
This wasn't through choice, it has just rained for most of the week. It's now hard to believe how we were wishing for rain over spring and summer.
Friday, it rained non-stop all day. Martyn's weather station recorded a total of 31.2mm (1.2in). This makes it the 10th wettest day since Martyn started keeping records in 2010.
Monday, November 10
A false start
Thursday, November 6
October in pictures
NB: Sometimes comments made here rather than on my main blog often are overlooked and languish in a moderation list. Sorry if this happens - I'm honestly not ignoring you
Monday, November 3
If at first you don't succeed
There are only a couple of beds that haven't been dug over, and just one left to weed. That's the bed where we are having the manure dropped off.
Hopefully, this will keep on coming until we decide that we have enough.
Monday, October 27
It's official
Last weekend, the clocks were turned back an hour meaning the end of British Summer Time (BST) and so we can no longer deny that we are hurtling towards winter.
For visitors from outside of the UK. At the end of October our time switches to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). At the end of March, we change to British Summer Time (BST) when the clocks are put forward by an hour.
Monday, October 20
A non-gardening week
Last week we only had a very brief visit to the allotment. We took some material for the compost heap and would have stayed longer, but it started to rain so we headed home.
We have made good progress preparing the plot for its winter rest, so there is no urgency, and we can take a bit of a break when the weather is miserable.
NB: Sometimes comments made here, rather than on my main blog, are often overlooked and languish in a moderation list. Sorry if this happens - I'm honestly not ignoring you
Monday, October 13
Tints
Due to all the time spent watering at the allotment this year, we neglected our garden, and it is now very much in need of some TLC. Last week, we shared our gardening time between the garden and allotment. In both locations, it was a matter of general maintenance and tidying up.
Many plants in the garden have become too large, so over winter, whenever the weather is favourable, borders will be cleared ready for new planting in spring.
Wednesday, October 8
September in pictures
NB: Sometimes comments made here rather than on my main blog often are overlooked and languish in a moderation list. Sorry if this happens - I'm honestly not ignoring you
Monday, October 6
A feast of carrots
I think that it is safe to say that the drought has come to an end. Last week, we not only had lots of rain, but it was also extremely windy.
We had wondered whether all the rain would have rendered our clay soil claggy, but as the earth had been parched of moisture, it had absorbed the water and was good to dig.
We also had a second delivery of horse manure. Piles of it have been stacked at the end of beds, where it can rot down and be incorporated in the spring. We just need to avoid any beds in which we will be planting carrots or parsnips.
NB: Sometimes comments made here rather than on my main blog are often overlooked and languish in a moderation list. Sorry if this happens - I'm honestly not ignoring you
Monday, September 29
Where there's muck
Last week was drama-free, thank goodness, but I must admit we are very wary when walking in the park, as is Ruby.
I've managed to find quite a lot of information about the group involved, which has been passed on to the police; however, whether they follow up on it is anyone's guess.
I described the incident on Facebook and had lots of responses. Social media often has a bad press, but it can also be very useful.
Monday, September 22
Not a week I want to repeat
Last week was horrendous but more on that later.
We have had some rain, making the top layer of soil quite moist, but when Martyn tried digging, at a spade's depth, the ground was still hard and dry. Any digging will remain on hold.
The main activities at the moment are bed clearance and some harvesting.
NB: Sometimes comments made here rather than on my main blog often are overlooked and languish in a moderation list. Sorry if this happens - I'm honestly not ignoring you
Monday, September 15
Stag party
It's coming round to the time when we spend less time at the allotment.
Last week we didn't visit the plot until Sunday afternoon. We have now had some rain and the beds have darkened from the pale grey colour. More rain was forecast, so we prioritised harvesting. This was just as well, as soon after we had gathered things together, it started to rain and we loaded the car and headed for home.
NB: Sometimes comments made here rather than on my main blog often are overlooked and languish in a moderation list. Sorry if this happens - I'm honestly not ignoring you
Monday, September 8
Spa day
Meteorological autumn began last Monday, although it seems that autumn started a few weeks ago.
The ground is already littered with fallen leaves.
Astrological autumn is marked by the date of the autumn equinox when both the northern and southern hemispheres have the same number of daylight hours. The date varies, but this year it falls on 22 September.
Wednesday, September 3
August in pictures
overlooked and languish in a moderation list. Sorry if this happens - I'm honestly not ignoring you
Monday, September 1
Dry Fountains
Last week we had some showery rain. It was enough to have us sheltering under trees for a few minutes, but not enough to penetrate the soil, so the watering can hasn't yet been retired.
My sister, who lives a short distance away, had heavy rain, but once again it didn't reach us.
There is less and less to water, so this task is becoming less dominant.
The water pressure issue has yet to be addressed; at this rate, the problem will leak into next year. Excuse the pun
I'm sure that if the problem had been sorted out, watering would have been far less time-consuming, and we would have been able to keep up with other tasks.
NB: Sometimes comments made here, rather than on my main blog, are often overlooked and languish in a moderation list. Sorry if this happens - I'm honestly not ignoring you
Monday, August 25
Early autumn?
t already has the feel of autumn. Everything looks tired, and leaves are beginning to litter the ground.
The allotment certainly looks autumnal, and our thoughts are turning to next year. It seems to me that the seasons are shifting.
Another week has passed with no rainfall, and another week has passed with no improvement to our water supply. At least now, with many beds having been cleared, there is less watering to be done.
Monday, August 18
The aftermath
The drought continues with no rain forecast in the near future. The improvement to our water supply seems to have been only temporary, as the pressure has reverted to being low. Maybe not quite as bad as before, but still not as it should be. This means watering is back to being our main occupation; however, we are starting to wonder whether all the effort has been worth it. After last week's gales, we had a couple of hot afternoons. Some plants seem to have given up. Leaves on some squash and climbing beans are battered and shrivelled.
Monday, August 11
Now a battering from Floris (and a milestone)
What a year!
It started off with beds too wet to dig. There was a very short window when the soil was workable. Then the window slammed shut, and it became too dry to dig or even do any planting.
We had not one but two late frosts that killed off the newly emerging potato growth.
The dry spell morphed into a full-blown drought, which meant much of our time was spent lugging a watering can around the plot rather than doing more interesting things. The task was made harder by the fact that our water supply was at times a mere trickle.
A few hot days and windy weather did a good job of thwarting our efforts to keep plants well watered.
Then last week, storm Floris gave everything a battering,
Wednesday, August 6
July in pictures
Monday, August 4
Back to watering
The reprieve was short-lived. Just a week's break from the tedium of watering. There has been no progress concerning our abysmal water supply. We spend at least four times as long standing watching the watering can fill as we do emptying it.
There's lots of weeding to tackle, but this has to be neglected. If we stop watering now all the previous work will have been pointless.
It's not the driest year that we have experienced - 2011 takes that accolade. July's short spell of heavy rain means this July has ended up being the fourth wettest July since Martyn started recording weather fifteen years ago. The problem is that the rain that fell this July fell on parched ground and made little impact.
Monday, July 28
A watering free week
After the previous week's rain, we had a treat - a whole week of no watering, except for the greenhouses.
The grass is already looking greener, but no doubt we will soon be toting watering cans again.
Its seems Yorkshire Water did indeed send out engineers to further investigate our poor water supply. People wearing hi-vis jackets were seen in the vicinity of the stop tap on Monday morning. When we arrived at 10:30, they had left. There is no improvement so I guess we are still at the investigation stage.
Monday, July 21
At last
On Saturday, we actually enjoyed - yes, I mean enjoyed - some 'proper' rain. Prolonged showers fell for most of the day some of which were heavy. The hosepipe ban seems to have worked its magic.
After a break on Saturday night when we managed to fit in a walk with Ruby, we had more steady rain on Sunday.
Monday, July 14
The drought continues
I wrote at the end of my last post that on Sunday night, we had some rain, making it our wettest day since the middle of March. In total, we had 12mm of rainfall, so not exactly a great deal.
Friday, the inevitable happened and Yorkshire Water imposed a hosepipe ban. Watering food crops and filling fish ponds is allowed, but we use a watering can to water anyway. We like to know how much water the plants are being given. I always think that when using a hosepipe, plants are given much less water than you think. Our council advice is only to use a hosepipe when using a can is impractical, but that is very subjective.
Martyn and I spent three hours each watering on Friday, but that time could probably be halved if our water supply was fit for purpose. We had to water during the afternoon, when for most of the time we had the site to ourselves. Later, when more people arrive, watering is more or less impossible, especially if someone chooses to use a hosepipe..
We are still awaiting a visit from the council to investigate the problem.
Wednesday, July 9
June in pictures
Monday, July 7
I need a new rain dance
My rain dance either wasn't strong enough or my execution wasn't good enough.
We had a couple of false starts, but nothing that amounted to much, just light showers that temporarily wet the surface.
From above, the grass paths at the allotment look more like sandy tracks.
There is still no sign of the council investigating our water problem!
Monday, June 30
Green and pleasant land?
I'm going to change my name to Aquarius.
It's been yet another week during which most of my time at the allotment has been spent attached to the watering can. About a third of that time has been actually watering and two-thirds waiting for the can to fill.
Still no sign of the council investigating the problem, let alone fixing it. With no rain, high temperatures and drying winds, the last thing we need is a poor water supply.
Monday, June 23
The heat is turned up
We still haven't had any significant rain. We have had some very light drizzle that dried before it hit the ground and some that dampened the ground for a few minutes before drying up without leaving a trace.
NB: Sometimes comments made here rather than on my main blog often are overlooked and languish in a moderation list. Sorry if this happens - I'm honestly not ignoring you
Monday, June 16
If it wasn't bad enough
Still no rain. It's as though someone has switched off our water supply. Widespread thunderstorms were forecast, but none made it our way. Empty beds that were waiting to be planted up and so weren't watered are either like dustbowls or rocky outcrops. Now that we need to plant in them, we doubt the plants will thrive.
Mid-week, Martyn and I each spent two hours watering. When we water, we try to give plants a good dousing rather than just water the surface. Due to our pathetic watering system, we spend as much time waiting for cans to fill as actually watering. We just have to hope no one else is using the taps when we need to.
Tap water isn't the favoured drink for plants, they much prefer natural, unadulterated rainwater. Sadly, this is not on the menu so they have to make do.
Monday, June 9
Then there were five
It's been a showery week, but again there hasn't been sufficient water deposited to penetrate the ground. The few millimetres of wetness dried up quickly when the sun came out or the wind blew. What we really need is a few hours of constant, steady rain.
Wednesday, June 4
May in pictures
Monday, June 2
We need water
We had some wetness last week, but I wouldn't say it actually rained. We had very short-lived showers that wet the pavements, but unlike where my sister lives - 10 miles away - there were no puddles.
At times, it looked as though rain was on its way, but it never really made it. One day at the allotment, for a very short time, we had very fine drizzle which felt more akin to standing in a cloud. We also had a couple of short, sharp showers when we were at the plot on Sunday, but they were over very quickly and the ground soon dried up. There was nothing that had any effect on our parched soil. To make matters worse, we have had drying wind. The watering can is still being kept busy.
NB: Sometimes comments made here rather than on my main blog often are overlooked and languish in a moderation list. Sorry if this happens - I'm honestly not ignoring you
Monday, May 26
The odds are stacked against us
Another week has passed without significant rainfall for us. Rain keeps appearing in forecasts, but as the allotted day draws nearer, rain disappears from the radar. We had some dampening of the roads at the weekend. It only measured 0.5mm on the rain gauge in our garden.
We are giving everything as much water as we can, but this is made more difficult by the abysmal water pressure on our site. If two people are trying to access water at the same time, the flow on both taps is reduced to a dribble, or one tap has no water at all. This is causing a huge problem, and we can only wait for the council to send a plumber to investigate.
Monday, May 19
They've made a comeback
We haven't had any measurable rain for almost two months now, and some areas look like deserts. Below is one of the places where we regularly walk with Ruby. The grass alongside the path is parched and brown. Only where the grass has been kept longer does it remain green.
Monday, May 12
Unwelcome visitor
In my previous post, I wrote that our early potatoes had pushed through and that we were hoping that there wouldn't be a frost. We were unlucky, as Jack Frost paid us a visit before we could earth up the young potato shoots. It no doubt came as a shock to the plants after enjoying summery daytime temperatures.
Our newly emerged potatoes were subjected to a severe battering. Some disappeared completely. We have had potatoes cut back by frost before and they have regrown, but they have never before looked as badly damaged. Things didn't look good. To add insult to injury, potatoes elsewhere on the site didn't look as though they had been touched. It would seem that we have our own private frost pocket.
NB: Sometimes comments made here rather than on my main blog often are overlooked and languish in a moderation list. Sorry if this happens - I'm honestly not ignoring you
Wednesday, May 7
April in pictures
Monday, May 5
Bluebell Wood
At times last week, you could be forgiven if you thought summer had arrived early.
At the beginning of the week we had summery temperatures. The media as usual, were dramatising this with reports of the hottest ever April temperature, but, according to the weather station in our garden, our hottest April day, it recorded, was back in 2018. I can also remember years ago, in the 1970s or 1980s, that April was so summery that we went out and bought sun loungers in the Easter holiday. Of course, the summery weather didn't last and by the weekend, the temperature plummeted. It came as a shock to us, and the plants, after being spoiled early in the week.
NB: Sometimes comments made here rather than on my main blog often are overlooked and languish in a moderation list. Sorry if this happens - I'm honestly not ignoring you
Monday, April 28
Promise of apples
This year has been a very good year for blossom. Our plums and greengages didn't have lots of flowers, but considering last year they had virtually no blossom at all, we were happy with that.
Next came the pear trees that were covered with flowers. Now the apple trees are loaded. The Tickled Pink tree - below on the left - has never had as much blossom.
Monday, April 14
More planting
Last week, during daylight hours, you could almost believe that it was summer. The clear blue skies came with a downside: as the sun set, the temperature plummeted. Sudden extreme temperature fluctuations are not what is needed when trying to raise seedlings.
Ruby's coat was very thick, so we arranged for the groomer to bring forward her visit. This was three weeks early. We determined that if the weather changed, it would be easier to keep Ruby warm than to keep her cool in higher temperatures.
Friday, April 4
March in pictures
Monday, March 31
The weather is teasing us
The weather is still playing with us. We've had some lovely spring weather interspersed with cold winds that have us adding extra layers of clothing. It has been a game of Russian roulette as to whether or not the showers fall on us. They had heavy rain just a few miles away from us whereas we had a pleasant dry day. Most of our rain has conveniently waited until after dark which has meant that we have been able to do lots more tidying on the plot and in the garden.
Martyn prepared the bed that will house our new strawberries while I fertilised the existing strawberries and did more weeding. It doesn't make for interesting photographs, but one little friend found our activity of great interest.
Monday, March 24
Comparing Notes
Last week was mostly dry until the weekend when the heavens opened and the heavy rain was accompanied by thunder. The temperature last week, however, was variable. We continued tidying on the allotment.
Martyn wanted to burn the huge pile of debris he had acquired by cutting back various bushes and I trimmed one of our apple trees and thinned out the raspberries which added to the bonfire pile. We have to wait until an hour before dusk before lighting bonfires. This was particularly ironic as a nearby industrial unit was burning something very smelly all afternoon while we dutifully waited for the acceptable time slot. This meant that we stayed on the plot later than usual and by the time we left, I was frozen. The chicken casserole that had been cooking in the slow cooker was just what we needed.
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