Long Mizzle Garden

 Hello m' chucky chives,     With allotment duties in full swing, you may be wondering if the garden is receiving the same wanton neglect as my eyebrows?... The answer, in short...is yes... but it doesn't seem to mind.   When we moved in over eleven years ago, the garden was wildly overgrown, 'lost' and magical. A lot had to be cleared for practicality - mainly the monstrous leylandi hedging, but also the wild brambles, nettles and creeping buttercup.  Self seeded Foxgloves and Sweet Williams Now the new hedging has grown up and matured, the once veggie beds and cut flower beds are again partially shaded. This had led to a garden re-think. For now, nature can do what it does best. Please ignore the non-colour coordinated towels, drying from this morning's sea swim with the kiddies. My new battery powered strimmer (intended for the grass paths at the allotment) saves the day in the garden, by clearing a safe path through the wilderness of ferns, thistles and...

 Hello m' soggy bottoms,   Long time no gossip! I have some rather exciting news to reveal ... After two years on the waiting list, I am now proud custodian of a beautiful allotment plot. I received a very exciting email in the last week of March asking if I was still interested in one. Of course the answer was an excited YES and I was offered the opportunity to check out three different plots. After my Sunday morning sea swim, I arrived looking salty & bedraggled to meet with the lady who manages the old farmer's field on behalf of her father-in-law. Turns out it is the same gorgeous lady that runs my favourite local charity shop. Initially I thought I'd go for a half-plot. (In the UK, allotments are classed as either full-plot, half-plot, or sometimes even quarter-plot). That was until I saw the full plot on offer, with beautiful established apple trees, gooseberries, raspberries, currant bushes and rhubarb galore. Plus, the plot had another major selling point - a pa...