Progress Report

Jonathan & Sal, January 2021

Despite Covid, we’ve managed to get a lot done since we launched in early December 2020.

Thanks to a shout-out in the local Parish mag, we have recruited some VERY keen allotmenteers from the village and are now a small committee of seven. It turns out seven people can really get stuff done; we’ve been weeding, clearing, shovelling soil, chitting spuds and amassing a fairly wide range of seeds. First of all, working in bubbles, we cleared the weeds and other detritus from the first glasshouse.

Then we used the tractor to carry loads of topsoil into the glasshouse, which the team then raked into raised beds on top of the shingle, ready for planting. We are experimenting with pilling up the soil in narrow enough rows so that we can reach the veg from either side without having to stand on the beds, but the beds also have to be wide and sturdy enough that they don’t just collapse (our current budget doesn’t stretch to railway sleepers or boards to hold up the beds). 

The next job was to tidy up the large centre glasshouse (nicknamed the Cathedral) and sort through all the stuff inside. So, now we have a great space, ready to use for storage, propagating plants, and ultimately as a field kitchen/café when the time comes.

Wendy, Michael and their kids have been hard at work drafting up a planting list, chitting potatoes and getting some seeds in the soil too. VERY exciting.

The next challenge is to get the ground outside prepared and fenced off so that we can start planting when the weather allows. We’re hoping a ploughman will soon arrive to do his stuff. We’ve had some massive loads of organic soil/compost mix donated by local company KPS Composting Services (www.kps.uk.com), ready to spread on top of the ploughed soil.

So, we press on hoping that, when the current Lockdown is ended and we’re all able to get out, more and more enthusiasts will want to join in and share the work and the companionship and the delicious veg and fruit and flowers we grow together. Please do get in touch if you are keen to get involved.