what counts as "cultivated"?

[Tee Gee]

Lets look at the practicalities of this ( based on my own experience from starting from scratch)

I pegged my site out as I wanted it to ultimately be and that was 7 beds approx 5 foot wide and the full width of the plot (roughly 30ft)

Then like you I didnt want to overface my self with digging so I planned it as follows;

Work in two-three hour stints daily, aim for a quarter of a bed per stint!

So roughly this meant 7 x 4 ( 28days) x 3hours = roughly 85-90 hours

But lets look at the days (28) if you were to do one stint per week this would take 28 weeks which is a little over 6 months so I don't think their target is unachievable.

As it happens I managed to my plot in under a month (I'm retired) without overdoing it!

So thats my view for what it is worth and I agree with the statement;

remember having an allotment is meant to be a pleasure (as well as the hard work) enjoy

In fact my motto is; the output from a plot is relative to the input put into it!

So nout in nout out!!

[Tee Gee]

[Kea]

It does depend on your soil type. My site was pretty much undigable for a good part of the year this year. Early spring the soil was like wet concrete for several months followed by a brief window of opportunity before it turned to dry solid concrete which due to a lack of rainfall except for a couple of weeks in July it has stayed in the concrete state. I tried to dig last week and failed completely. This afternoon I was talking to a neighbouring plot holder as he valiantly tried to dig a section of his plot he managed to get his spade in about 2" he tried for about 10 mins but failed miserably and gave up and this guy had cultivated this part of his plot. Faced with those conditions you need a bit longer to get your plot cultivated particularly from scratch.

[pookienoodle]

well I just spoke to the council guy and I was given the wrong contract(they have a different one for plots in bad condition)
it should read.

• start cultivation within 6 weeks
• "some significant" cultivation within 6 months

• at least 50% of plot cultivated by the end of the first year

that sounds a bit better to me,he said as long as it is obvious that progress is being made its fine.
they have had problems in the past with people getting plots and putting sheds up as places to come and smoke and drink and never growing anything.
thanks for all the advice and the "lively" conversation.

[macmac]

Hurray at last you've had your mind put at ease.Like your council guy says some people see their plot as an extension of their garden ,which is fine if you grow stuff in your garden but if you only ever read the paper in a deckchair.....Happy growing :)

[Trevor_D]

That sounds reasonable to me.

Yes, "as long as it is obvious that progress is being made, its fine." That's what we all want. If you keep putting in the effort, they are not going to get surveyor's tools out and throw you out because you've only cultivated 48%!

We aimed to get half done in our first year and managed two-thirds (plus about a fifth of a second - larger - plot we'd added in the meantime). But I think if we'd aimed at 100% and only got two-thirds done we'd have been rather down-hearted.

So go for it, pookie and show 'em....

[landimad]

Pookie,

As far as I am aware the meaning behind cultivated for the councils point of view, is to have the whole patch cleared of weeds and half the pacth dug ready for the coming seasons ahead.

If this is done then the authority have seen that you are showing willing and allow you to stay.

Failing this you can appeal to the local reps for a stay of time to allow you to get this section up to what they deem as satisfactory.
It should have been explained to you and given to you in writing before terms were agreed.

[Eristic]

If you can get a plot which hasn't been worked in a long time it clear in a few weekends, I am very impressed.

Here you go Mrs. Soup. Plot taken on mid March and harvesting commences mid July. OK it is only a 5 pole plot but the photos do not show the fact that there is virtually no topsoil and is on the heavy side of heavy clay underlying wet.









The reason I advocate getting stuck in and getting it all dug over is that that is the most energy efficient way of taking control. Remember, nature will not stand still while anyone plods along one metre at a time. Focus on a small bit for a short time then turn around and the bit you did earlier has returned to the wild.

Get it all dug over. Sure, weeds will grow, that's why they invented the hoe and scuffle.

[pookienoodle]

wow thats impressive,do you have a full time job and a family as well?
I know I won't be able to make such good progress,I have a job(pt) a 3 year old and a disabled husband.
I am hopeing to make a couple of raised beds so my husband can get involved to (when the council sort out the paths)
I will be able to do an hour or so a day and more at the weekends so I will be able to cultivate plenty when it is up and running,it may just take me a while to get to that point.
kudos to those that can do it so quickly.

[Flighty]

Pookienoodle hello and a warm welcome to A4A!
Above all don't get discouraged if you don't made the progress that you feel you should have. Do as much as often as you can, which allowing for your family, job and the weather may at times be less than you hoped.
Come next spring I'm sure that you'll be all ready to join the mad rush to plant, sow, water and weed!

[Digeroo]

I am glad you have a better time scale which you feel more comfortable with.  But I am sure if you are keen you will get it sorted in no time at all.  I love having my allotment so I hope you enjoy yours.

Mine seemed daunting to start with but I caught the bug and soon it was just over flowing in produce.  I ended up realizing I had forgotten to leave space for the PSB.  Then every time something came out there was a queue of things waiting to go in.

I use a lot of mulching to suppress weeds.

[macmac]

I've got to say it Pookie though it's my well used saying "you can't eat an elephant in one sitting"    small bites ;)

[herring8]

I will be able to do an hour or so a day and more at the weekends so I will be able to cultivate plenty when it is up and running,it may just take me a while to get to that point.
kudos to those that can do it so quickly.

I got a really rough plot in June - similar to you my job/wife/kids take up a lot of my time but I found spending an hour a day weekdays 8-9 pm (when kids on way to bed) and an hour or two Sat/Sun was all I needed to get my plot sorted in 3 months.  I was lucky that I could get a lot of stuff planted in July - it is an amazing encouragement to keep going - don't know how I'm going to cope once the evenings draw in - lanterns?

   

[chriscross1966]

I'm surprised no-one has mentioned this yet (I'm surprised that I didn't even)....

One way you can reduce the amount of weeding is mulch plastic, especially if underlaid with cardboard or newspaper...., however using it pretty much precludes direct planting of anything other than spuds and similar (Jerusalem Artichokes, Oca, Yacon etc....) An easy way round this is to start seeds off in modules, not just the tender stuff like tomatos, but just about everything. Start in modules, then plant out through small holes cut through the plastic/cardboard. Especially in the first year or so you can get away with using a single 40-module tray per session, make up a sheet of A4 marked up to replicate it soi that you can tell whats what and number you module sets, then sow enough modules for the number of plants you want (if you only want half a small row of beetroot only sow up 8 modules of beets) with say 3 seeds per module, if you get more than one seedling up weed out the smallest ones and leave the big one.... once the roots are to the bottom of the module plant them out at final spacing or stick it in a bigger pot or module if the space isn't ready...the 15-space ones are useful here.... you use a lot less seed, making the "40 varieties for a fiver" kits on ebay a good starting point but equally you cut down on the weeding a lot as everything is mulched and also a big part of the "doing the allotment" can now be done at home, with a cup of tea etc..... I found it made for a great day when I was getting 30-40 minutes in the morning sowing seeds, get to and from work early to allow myself a couple of hours on the plot of an April evening.... Things I'd recommend:

Boltardy beetroot, absolutely bombproof, taste great.
Brussel sprout Evesham
Brussel sprout Red Bull
cabbage red Drumhead
Broad beans (most any but I had success with Aquadulce Claudia and didn't grow anything else)
Cucmber Marketmore (outdoor ridge variety)
Courgette Green Bush
Climbing French Bean Cobra (so good I'll not bother with anything else)
Lettuce Little Gem
Long Red Florence onions grown in clustrers of 4-5
Onion Aislas Craig
Onion Rjinnsburger
Onion Kelsae ( a massive onion that makes brilliant soup)
Onion Borretana di Sotoaceti (italian pickling onion, sow 5-7 per module and plant clumps out at 3" or so....)


chrisc