Allotment - well worth the wait

We peer over the dry stone wall and catch a glimpse of 80 square metres of mud. A welcome gift after a six year wait.

Burrows around the edge have filled with rusty puddles, a sad peach tree clings onto life, its last weary leaves refusing to drop. Treading the plot is like walking on sticky waves

First sighting November 2012

As my lazy left foot digs itself into the mud I perform backward flips and my bum hits the ground. I am tattooed with bruises.


Digging is all about balance; my two spade technique is launched. One spade dug into the ground on my left provides the rail for a white knuckled grip as I shift my weight onto my left leg, with spilt second timing my right foot hits the the second spade, if it sinks all is well, if not......   

Progress February 2013

Long term plans, sweat and a muddy bum reaps reward. Raised beds are in, paths wide enough for my sticks and I are levelled. Sowing will start as soon as the soil warms; without an outdoor electric blanket, warm coats, fabric and fleece have to suffice. 

My joy is captured in an article written for Kitchen Garden magazine; The Last Word – A Bit At A Time out now in the April 2013 issue. http://www.kitchengarden.co.uk/

A new adventure begins, with the anticipation of crops and flowers to come my steps are lighter and smiles more frequent.