Do you have a spare corner?

Two association members recently approached the committee members working in the shop to ask if any current Scarcroft plot holders might have a spare corner or bed that they are not using on their plot which they wouldn't mind this young couple gardening. This couple already have access to a bed on a friend's allotment, equivalent in size to a quarter plot.  They are gardening this bed conscientiously and productively.  They would now like access to a little more space.

This is a controversial request.  If a plot holder is having difficulty maintaining thier full plot, City of York Council wants them to give up their plot or at least half of it to the next person on the waiting list, which is currently around 50 people long on Scarcroft.  The Association would also prefer this to be the first course of action.  However, we are also aware that this does not always happen in practice and the issue is not clear cut.  Some plotholders are nervous that if they give up half their plot, the people who take it on will not look after it properly and then their plot will suffer from encroaching weeds from the adjacent neglected plot.  Also they can prefer to just share it with or loan it to a friend, thereby retaining some control over the area and who gardens with or near them.  In some cases the official tennant hasn't actually gardened the plot for some years but has unofficially passed it on to a friend (this is outside the council rules).  In other cases friends share a plot and both of them share the tenancy and then after a period of time the tenancy transfers from one individual to another without the plot ever being offered to the waiting list (this is legitimate and well within the council rules).  Sometimes keen plotholders like to help out their neighbours who are struggling and therefore incrementally (and without particular intent) end up gardening more than thier own original plot on a permanent basis.

Of course, when any of these things happen it is not very fair on all those people waiting patiently on the list and allotment access just becomes an issue of who you know.

So.......let's put it this way.  If you have a small corner you would like to give over to this couple to look after, either temporarily or for the longer term, please contact us at scarcroftallotments@live.co.uk and we will put you in touch with them.  However, if you are struggling with your plot more significantly or have half a plot which you are not cultivating please consider contacting the council on allotments@york.gov.uk and giving it up to all those patient souls hoping to get the chance to give allotment gardening a go.

I would be really interested to know your opinions on this issue, which might engender strong opinions, so please feel free to comment, using the comment tool below.  You can do so using your name or anonymously.  It is not my intention to offend or point the finger at anyone.

Caroline Bush

Woodchips delivery - 50p a barrow

There has been a delivery of woodchips to the Scarcroft Site, in the shop carpark.  It is 50p a barrow load, which is great value, especially considering the convenience of having it delivered to the site.  Please pay in the shop.  If the shop is closed please put the money through the letter box on the front, ideally with a little note saying who it is from and what it's for, even better if you can put your plot number on it.  If you don't have a pen and paper to hand don't worry, just getting payment is the important thing.  The association does not get these deliveries for free so if you take it without paying then the shop loses money, and as you all know it is a not for profit organisation run by volunteers.

Next weekend we will be using some of the lower quality chippings, which is mostly conifer clippings, on the paths around the site as part of the Scarcroft Site Care Day.

Hospital Field Site Care Day

The folk at Hospital Field are such tidy souls that their site care day has been cancelled.  In preparation for the planned event, both Chris and Mike had a look round the site so see if anything needed to be done or if there were any particular problems with litter.  They thought there wasn't enough to warrant an organised event.  So you can put away your extra thick rubber gloves and your black plastic bags and sit back in the comfortable knowledge that Hospital Field is a paragon of cleanliness.  If you still have a burning desire to put your telescopic litter pickers or loppers to the test please feel free to join in on the Scarcroft Site Care day, between 1 and 4 on Saturday the 27th.  I think we can be fairly sure that Scarcroft won't be winning any awards for lack of litter, or for that matter dog mess, any day soon.

Seed Potato Delivery

We are expecting the seed potatoes to be delivered by this week so they will be available from the shop on Saturday.
The varieties we have on sale will be:
Extra Early Rocket, Lady Christl £1-10 per kg
First Early Arran Pilot, Pentland Javelin, Red Duke of York £1-10, Epicure £1-30 per kg
Second Early Maris Peer, Wilja, Kestrel, Charlotte £1-10 per kg
Maincrop Maris Piper, Desiree, Cara, Sante £1-10, Pink Fir Apple £1-25 per kg
If you have already ordered your potatoes we will keep them to one side for you until you can pick them up.

UPDATE FRI 12TH JAN - WE CAN NOW CONFIRM THE SEED POTATOES, ONION SETS, PEAS AND BEANS HAVE BEEN DELIVERED.

Bulk buying timber and chicken wire

An association member from the Hob Moor site recently suggested that it would be useful if the association shop could bulk buy timber and wire netting for plotholders.  She recently created raised beds on her plot and had to buy a lot of timber to do so.  She also had to rabbit proof her plot using wire netting as rabbits are a particular problem for Hob Moor allotmenteers.  Bulk buying these kind of items sounds like a good idea to us, so if you are thinking of carrying out any similar projects and would be interested in using the purchasing power of the association to get a better deal please will you let us know either by commenting on this post by clicking on the 'comment' button below or by emailing us at scarcroftallotments@live.co.uk.  If there is sufficient interest we will look into brokering a deal with local suppliers to get the best deal possible.  We'll keep you posted.

Dig This! Winter / Spring 2010

Have you received your Winter/Spring edition of our association newsletter Dig This! yet?  It will either be in your in-box (singing and dancing colour version) or you will have recieved it through the post (old school black and white).

It includes information about our upcoming events and a great peice by Sara Robin on green manure.  Dig This! is principally written and prepared by our chairman Graham Sanderson.   It goes out 2 or 3 times a year and is the only info that non email members get.  If you haven't got your copy yet drop us an email scarcroftallotments@live.co.uk and we will send you a copy or if you want a hard copy there are some spares available in the shop.

Another good edition, thank you Graham.

Council Allotment Newsletter

City of York Council recently sent out a newsletter to their allotment tenants.  It is a really good edition and has information on the letters that get sent out to under cultivated plots, allotment jobs that can be done over the winter, the policy of offering half plots,  facilities for those who have difficulty gardening, plotholders responsibilites for their hedges and fences, advice on bonfires, information on what seeds can be kept and which should be thrown out, where you can get seeds from and rules regarding sheds and structures.  So as you can see it covers a lot.  Now we know that some of our members garden plots which they are not the official tennant for, either because they share it with friends or have inherited it or are helping someone out.  Anyway this means that some people who are actually gardening the allotments may not have recieved a copy of the newsletter even though it contains a lot of information that will be relevant to them.  So if that applies to you and you would like a copy please e-mail us at scarcroftallotments@live.co.uk and we will email you the electronic version.

2010 member benefits

Annual membership of Scarcroft and District Allotment Association is £2.50. This year we have added a whole range of new benefits to being a member but have not put the price up.  Benefits of being a member include:

• being able to use the allotment shop which sells seed potatoes, onion and shallot sets, peas and beans, packeted seeds, vegetable plants, composts, netting, ground cover, fleece, fertilisers, soil improvers, manure, chippings, bird seed and much more
• discounts on a very wide selection of pre-ordered packeted Mr Fothergills seeds (up to 35% on their specific list, with all other veg seeds from their catalogue at 10% discount)
• a copy of the association newsletter Dig This
• access to allotment advice, help or support through the shop
• free fruit and veg glut share
• invitation to association social events
• invitation to the AGM and associated talk
• invitation to community events like Dawn Chorus Walk and Site Care Days
• invitation to fruit and veg growing skills demonstrations
• access to the tool library in the allotment shop
• ability to put your photos, comments, news, drawings, articles, recipes or general musings on this blog
• a strong voice to the council and local police representing your allotment needs and opinions
• 10% discount at Pextons and Deans Garden Centre on production of your membership card (see 15th Jan post for more detailsabout Pexton's discount and 10th Jan post for Dean's discount)
• affiliated membership of the Royal Horticultural Society (see 9th Jan post for more details)

Laura’s pruning demo – ‘Blimmin’ great!’

Around 15 people braved the low temperatures and the threat of frozen toes to attend Laura Potts’ pruning demonstration last Sunday. The folks who attended described the talk as ‘excellent’ and Laura as ‘very knowledgeable’. Laura, fresh from 6 hours pruning at Beningbrough Hall, gave a highly informative and interesting demonstration on pruning. She started on her own plot showing the bushes she had cut back last November and describing the shapes and goals a pruner should be trying to achieve. She then moved on to David’s plot where the majority of the demo took place and the pruning students were let loose.

Here Laura demonstrated her pearls of wisdom – pruning gooseberries into a goblet shape to try to prevent downy mildew by letting light and air in. She explained the principles of removing dead, diseased, damaged or crossing branches.  She showed the crowd how blackcurrants fruit mainly on the previous year's growth and the aim when pruning them is to remove about a quarter of the old branches right down to the ground, each year, to maintain vigour and productivity.   She also explained how redcurrants need different treatment as they, like gooseberries, fruit on the current season's growth, so each lateral can be cut back between a third and a quarter and weaker stems can be cut back even harder.

All those who had come armed with secateurs (well, at least those brave enough not to hide theirs in their pockets and pretend they had left them at home) were encouraged to give it a go and chopping began with abandon. (Sorry David, but if you will go away for the weekend.....).

Laura also covered the importance of a decent pair of long handled loppers and how to keep your tools sharp using a whetstone. The assembled throng then bombarbed her with lots of additional questions about all manner of other soft fruit and their needs, which she answered with ease.

One attendee, Iris Wells, afterwards commented 'I very much appreciated Laura's clear instructions. Looking at my gardening books, on returning home, it all made sense at last! It was so beneficial to have practical instruction.'

Overall, a thoroughly rewarding and educational event. Thank you Laura Potts.
(photos by Heather Dawe and Caroline Bush)

The Silkies are dead, long live the Silkies

The Original Silkies.  (Photo by Sally Ann Hayes)

Sad to say that over the last couple of weeks a fox has taken, on two separate occasions, all the hens from Hospital Field allotments.  Undetered, but with heavy hearts, the plucky plotholders have decided to try again and have replaced them with new hens, including a few Sikies.  Let's hope these new ones have more luck.

It's the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch Weekend

Each year the RSPB ask people of the UK to pick one hour over the weekend of 30-31st of January and record the highest number of each type of birds they see at any one time in their garden (or in their allotment of course).  It doesn't includes birds flying over.  By doing this every year the RSPB get a great snapshot of the state of the UK's bird population, what's doing well and what is struggling.  If you need any help identifying the birds the RSPB site has a useful tool to help.

At the end of the hour just go online and submit your answers

http://www.rspb.org.uk/birdwatch/

Committee Meeting Wed 20th January 2010

A meeting of the Scarcroft and District Allotment Association was held last Wednesday, in the Golden Ball Pub as usual.  A rough outline of what happens is set out below.  If you want full copies of the minutes please contact us on the usual e-mail address scarcroftallotments@live.co.uk.

• Reviewing the minutes from 14th Oct and matters arising
• News from Scarcroft and Hob Moor site secretaries - re waiting lists and plots coming free.  The overall waiting list for the 3 sites is about 100.
• Arranging more volunteers to help Tom and Mike in the hut - all very keen to help out
• An update on the blog and the results of the mini polls
• An update on the membership list - 205 members in 2009, gradually more and more from sites outside our 3 main sites, ratio of 2:1 men to women members of the association, 125 have given us email which saves on printing costs.
• Planning the AGM - discussing potential speakers, whether to invite Pextons and Deans to do a bit of PR and how to publicise AGM
• Planning the content of the next Dig This - AGM details, site care days for each of the three sites, next social evening etc
• AOB - having a speaker for a general event, producing postcards using allotment photos, Rowntree Society's request for suport for celebratory events in 2011, raffle at next social, joining Garden Organic as a group member (rejected as too few benefits and too expensive), doing another calendar for 2011, reminder of pruning event on Sun 31st 11-1pm
• Date of next meeting 14th April 2010 at 7pm in the Golden Ball

Phew! And all that done and dusted only a few minutes after 9pm.

RHS cold weather advice

Well, its a bit late but the RHS sent us this advice about cold weather this week, because the association is an affiliate member.  We thought we would reproduce it here again for you.  It is slightly edited to make it more relevant to allotment growers.

Photo by Sally Ann Hayes

Coping with ice and heavy snow in your garden

The RHS Advisory Service has received a marked increase in calls from gardeners concerned about the affect the heavy snow and ice is having on their plants.  Jenny Bowden, RHS Advisor says, “By taking sensible precautions gardeners can protect their plants and produce from the worst of the winter weather. With a bit of care and attention during this inclement weather people can avoid having to replace valuable plants, trees and shrubs.”

• Fruit trees and other woody plants can be pruned in weather down to -5°C
• Where fruit cage netting was left on, tap the snow off from beneath to reduce damage to the fruit cage. Repair cages that have already collapsed. Also remove snow from other structures including cloches and cold frames
• Winter vegetables such as Brussels sprouts and parsnips should be fine but beware some might rot after prolonged freezes
• Take care that stored produce including fruit doesn’t freeze
• Research suggests it is no longer necessary to break the ice on many ponds. However, ponds in which fish are kept or that have a large build-up of sediment or leaves do need oxygen. For these, continue to run water features to keep a section ice free and the water circulating
• To avoid bird baths freezing, insulate the bottom with bubblewrap or similar and replace water regularly.
• Mulching wet or frozen soil is best avoided
• Check the temperature in your greenhouse to maintain frost free conditions for plants such as citrus
• It’s best to avoid watering or feeding plants in pots and containers, even if it’s windy, until the weather thaws.
• Knock off snow from evergreens and conifer branches as there is a danger bent branches won’t rebound
• If boughs split, prune off the affected area ensuring the cut is tidy and snag-free
• It’s too late to put bubble wrap around containers to help insulate plant roots, but you could move them next to a house wall or porch.
• For indoor plants avoid overwatering and sudden drops in temperature
• And finally – beware as voles, mice and rabbits can become very hungry and use snow to scale fences and reach higher up stems to do damage

Well, now we know in case it snows again.

Check out Hemplands Website

In support of our fellow allotmenteers across York we would like to draw your attention to Hemplands Lane Allotments Website.  It's really interesting and has got loads of great content.  It's obviously a thriving site with a really active bunch of gardeners.  The site has loads of pictures of their recent events, recipes and gardening hints and tips.  When you get a spare moment take a look. 

http://www.hempland-lane-allotments.co.uk/

Pextons Discount

Johnny and Frankie at Pexton's have kindly offered a 10% discount to Scarcroft and District Allotment Association Members on production of a current membership card.

Please note that the discount is restricted to garden equipment and seeds.  If in doubt feel free to ask if the garden related item you want to buy is is included in the discount.

13 Bishopthorpe Road

York
YO23 1NA

01904 623 217