It’s nice to see the over wintering garlic coming through. The onions have yet to start coming through; but the garlic is all on track.
Category Archives: project othello
Broad beans are sleeping in a blankety bed
Finally, after a delay; have managed to sink broadbeans. About four weeks later then normal. Have been desperately trying to shoehorn the time in to do so. Lo and behold, mama H has taken umbrage at broadbeans; and pleaded with me not sink them. I can sink runner beans, that’s fine. But she has a personal disdain for them, and didn’t want them to be grown.
I don’t mind them, and the double podded they don’t taste too bad. That was an Trial and error finding, I tell you. This years I am sowing three digest varieties. Bunyards exhibition, suttons dwarf and some form aquadulce. You may also read of them being term field beans or fava beans. Minus the lecter, I assure you.
A whole bed on project othello has been dedicated to them. One of two beds that had yet to be filled. Each bean has been sunk through cardboard with a dibber. That’s a lot of beans, certainly. And we shall see if anyone of them comes off.
Ring o’roses; pocketful of posies
With the news yesterday that the dementors are coming to work; horticultural therapy is urgently required. Good thing I had a stash of roses waiting to be sunk.
Spent this morning sinking 17 lost label roses. Would have been 18, but mama h has pinched one for the back garden.
I have no idea what they are; other than being hybrid tea roses or floribundas. Something of a surprise will occur in the Summer with them all being a mystery. Got pricked here and there with the rather sharp thorns, which was a bit of a negative. The roses have all been sunk on the project othello part of the plot. The wet heavy clay was a nightmare; no match for the magic spade and and hobbit fork.
There is something quintessentially English about roses. If you have ever been to Blenheim Palace; there is a beautiful rose garden there that is truly inspirational. Project othello will be something an avenue of roses. Just have to imagine it. A bit hard in the desolation of winter. This will hopefully build on the success on the roses that were sunk this time last year.
Pops, the Poly and the plank
“Is the allotment open, go down there a minute.”
Pops had a brain wave. I didn’t ask for one, but he had had one.
The poly tunnel needs a pathway inside. Pops has constructed one. Three planks of wood, and joined together with stakes forming what pops described as ‘horns’.
First he wanted to level the inside.
Then he put the plank down, making sure that the horns were bedded down so that they could be covered with dirt.
And he made sure it was nice and level. All very snug. I’m under instructions to make sure that add dirt to the edges and way it down.
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Project Othello: #7 Raising Poly
The box came, the anticipation rose. The instructions and guidance were printed off.
Today was D-day.The day scheduled for the raising of the poly. It would be done today, that was the mission. Mama and H started fairly early. Half a lie in, and down to the plot with the box. All the bits were taken out. Mama went to great pains-after the arch debacle-to count out each of the components. That we had enough, the right ones. Make sure.
And off we went. Carefully constructing the one side, painstakingly making sure that we had the right strut. There was waggling of nuts and bolts. I didn’t think I needed a spanner, so I didn’t bring one. We brought one back later, to tighten things up. It was very straight forwards screwing things together.
Of course, my trenches were wonky. Those that I had measured out and dug last week oh so diligently. The area inside was a bit big still, so with Ma holding the two sides I had to dig around half the poly area to make it sit properly. I never, make things easy for myself.
Mama and I constructed the frame. Then time came to anchor it. I had an anchoring kit, with some long pegs that had come with it. These were twisted into the ground. I was mid wallop with the mallet when pops turned up as much welcomed help. This was after all, something of a Dad job. Mallet was surrendered to Pops, promptly going around and whacking the pegs in. I have in addition to this, staked the corners and also used tent pegs. Not necessary, by in the manufacturers instructions; more for my own piece of mind.
Next phase was to put the cover on. In the first instance, we got it inside out. So taking off, started again. Slid it over the frame quite nicely and neatly after the sticking on of anti hot spot tape. I don’t want the skin burning! Fits very snugly, very closely. As mentioned before, we had wonky trenches. These now corrected, allowed the poly to sit fairly flush. The frame has a skirt, so the dirt from the trenches was now shovelled back onto this. Allowing the poly to have additional anchoring and support.
The inside, as you will noticed is still grassy. This was on a return visit, dug over by the parents. Pops is threatening to dig it over again, before we put a path down the middle and horse shoe the area.
Yours in anticipation,
Horticultural Hobbit
Room enough for a view
In taking up the other of the plot, we have gone from 89sq metres, to the grand sum of 200 sq metres. I borrowed Dad’s measuring tape so that I could arrive at that figure. Allowing me to further take stock of what was where.
There are a lot of builders bags at the back, I know. All to be used, filled with waste and autumnal leaves. The Wendy house is there, as are the raised beds, daleks and water buts. In addition, there is the top end. Sukh shanti garden at the bottom is separated from project Othello by the arch.
A bit of hard prep today, for project Othello. I hate digging, and generally avoid it.
Yours in anticipation,
Horticultural Hobbit
Project othello:#5 Arch-nemesis
One is not talking about slimers or slugs. But this:
Had seen one in wilkos, and thought it might be nice as a gateway to Project Othello. This really was a two person job. Ma and I had to fight to out it together. The holes were wonky. The instructions unclear. However, Ma and I laboured on, and managed to get it raised.
Asked a lovely plot neighbour-he in the background-to help sink the legs. I concede that it’s probably not very robust. In fact I need to fix some of the rungs that are loose. But it might serve its function. All being well, red and yellow roses will climb up it. And perhaps will line the side if it too.
Project Othello is now levelled entirely. It as neat as it will be, at this time of the year. The area marked out will dug, for the possible, hypothetical poly.
Yours in anticipation,
Horticultural Hobbit
Project Othello:#4 levelled
So very close to a levelled playing field. Now which way to place a hypothetical poly?
So very proud of Mama H!
Project Othello: #3 oh four-tonner
Find your mamas, and give her a hug. I did.
In the week and a half that she has been off, Mama H had managed to generate four builders bags of dried, dying, decimated grass. I have contributed, before you get ask! I have been given the duty of shovelling the grass in to the bags.
The playing field is slowly being levelled. Mama H is a woman on a mission. Thanks to the rain, much of it can be hoiked up to reveal the dirt.
The plastic does actually look quite nice. As nice as plastic can look, it has the look of potential about it. The grass has been chopped down, and then covered with cardboard or newspaper in places. At the moment, half of the plot is cleared, with not a lot left.
Just behind the builders bag are the the devil’s own brambles. As lovely as raspberries are there are some along the side anyway. Trapped behind the bags, the brambles can be kept away.
Till I decide, that is, whether I am cutting them down or cultivating them. Those bags can also be filled with leaf mold over the autumn winter, so nothing here is being wasted. The plan is to clear up to the bags.
The adventure, is only just beginning.
Yours in anticipation,
Horticultural Hobbit
Project Othello: #1 Origins
flattened cardboard. The rest has newspaper
far side left
tiger tiger-these two often come and watch me. This is not my plot!, but neighbouring forlone one
near side right
The first bit
Ma doing the hard graft
I might be getting towards the tail end of my summer holidays, but Mama H is officially starting hers. So that gives her plenty of time and impetus to give me a hand. Project Othello, concerns the top end of the allotment plot. The existing half, the sukh shaanti garden is 88 square metres. So I Imagine, that the rest of the plot is of similar size. I have yet to go down there with Dad’s measuring tape. When I have figured out what I want to do, I shall definitely size things up. I am banned from putting raised beds there-by my mother-so the odds are that this bit, will be more manual labour orientated. Influenced, heavily, I think, by Ma’s own GYO experiences as a child.
This patch has been fallow now for approximately a year. Previous owners had cleared it, and Rotavatored it. But sadly, through no fault of their own, were unable to attend to it. We musn’t begrudge them that, they did genuinely have a go. Unlike the neighbouring plot, where you will see the tiger tigers lurking. That is another issue. It makes very cross. That as someone has paid their rent, they cannot be asked to vacate. Anyway, that is my soapbox. Except when that plot seeds weeds all over mine. Have seen the owner all of four times in my two years there.
Anyway, Project Othello. Why the Shakespearean name? It looks awful on the top, but beneath there is something that has a lot of potential. Case of Othello taking on Iago and winning. We like Othello, for all the nastiness he encounters and overcomes. I now have visions of a nasty Christopher Ecclestone…moving on, though.
There has been a lot of debate, wrestling with what to do. Do I weedkill, pull up, cover? Two years ago, I had to just pull up the grass and weeds. The plot had been dressed with weedkiller. I didn’t have that luxury this time. Weedkiller, also needs dry days to work. Which, despite the current state of Blighty summer, is calling take a chance on things. For the moment, Mama has made short work of pulling up grass and chopping down. The best part of which, is being put into builders bags to compost down. Though, it could also be chopped down and covered with the tarp. Essentially, that is what is happening. That which can be pulled, is being pulled. There are lots and lots of brambles along the border and also by the back where the fence is. Not sure whether these will be chopped, killed, or cultivated. Might even keep the odd invader out. The cardboard and newspaper should help block out the light, and facilitate things being broken down into the soil. We are doing our best, to stop seeds getting everywhere. Not an easy task, I tell you.
Those two cats you see, I don’t know who they belong to; but they often come and skulk around the plot. We startle each other, as they exit the grass. But today, these two just sat there having a chat with each other.
A third sorted, and more to come.
Yours in anticipation,
Horticultural Hobbit
horticultural 'obbit 