Katrina’s Allotment Diary
The mornings are turning crispy. Not only in the air but underfoot too as the trees prepare for their sunset-coloured finale. Meanwhile at the bottom of the allotment garden, the apple tree whispers “pick me, pick me”. Autumn is a fleeting but special season for many and one that I love to celebrate by cooking comforting treats with the last homegrown fruits of the year. Continue reading “Mini Apple Turnovers”
It’s the end of Great British Pea Week, and what better time to celebrate my love for the humble garden pea! Starting life as a shrivelled up wrinkly seed, the first luscious green leaves that emerge are a welcome sight in early spring. Once they start growing, they don’t need much encouragement as they soon start to romp away, climbing my natural hazel trellis support with their adorable curly tendrils.
Continue reading “Minted Pea & Ham Soup”
Around this time last month I was a volunteer at RHS Chatsworth Flower Show and it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life! I had never been to a garden show before, let alone an RHS Flower Show! I live in the Midlands, which you would think would be central to everything, but I’ve always felt the RHS gardens are just a little bit out of reach for a day visit. When I saw that the RHS were advertising for volunteers for the second year of the Chatsworth Flower Show, I instantly applied.
Continue reading “Volunteering at RHS Chatsworth Flower Show”
Looking back, April has been one hell of strange month! We had a blanket of snow then just a week ago, around the time when I filmed this video, we had soaring temperatures of 27 degrees! None the less I have achieved so much on the plot and some big changes have taken place.
The seed sowing season is in full swing and I’m lucky to be trialling some new varieties from Sutton’s. I spent many hours flicking through their brightly coloured catalogue and narrowed my selection to a top ten list of favourites to try for the first time.
I’m back on your screens in my second allotment garden video! If you remember from my New Year Resolutions post, I’m making an effort to shoot more video content this year. Not only have I set up a dedicated Homegrown.Garden YouTube channel, but I’m also having fun shooting more stories on Instagram too!
In this episode, I’ll give you a tour around my plot at St. Ann’s Allotments so you can get a better idea of what my patch of dirt really looks like, as well as my (now) tidy and organised shed! I’ll share my ambitious plans for the year ahead, and show you some exciting activity that has taken place in my wildlife pond, in between the heavy snowfall.
At 29 minutes, this video is a bit of a lengthy one. They won’t all be this long I promise! So make yourself a cuppa and get comfy. I apologise in advance for my nervousness, the interrupting chainsaw and rambling! This is only my second video, so if you like what I’m doing let me know and I might even invest in a little fuzzy microphone in the future!
Trug handmade by Loldeantimber.
It’s been a funny old winter and one that has really hit the UK hard in the last few weeks. The thick blanket of snow is almost a distant memory now as the ground thaws and the early spring flowers begin to appear. Have you noticed how deafeningly loud the birds are? At 6pm there’s still just enough light in the sky to make a quick visit to the plot after work to top up the bird feeders or sow some seeds in the polytunnel. It won’t be long now until the epic seed sowing marathon commences, but before this busy time ensues, I want to look back at the progress and changes that took place over the winter months. Continue reading “End of Winter Update”
Late winter going into early spring is one of the best times of the year to choose your allotment plot. Annual plants have died back and deciduous trees bare their naked form, giving you an overall blank canvas view of the plot’s potential future as a productive edible garden. You might even glance a few signs of existing spring, like the striking green flash of bulbs poking up through the soil, the swelling buds of an apple tree or some primula in bloom.
I was lucky to only wait six months for my plot, but you could have your name on the waiting list for many months, or maybe even years! One day though, you’ll reach the top of that list and receive an invitation to go on an allotment tour, to choose yourself a garden. I remember the day so vividly! I was bursting with eagerness to think that I could return home with a set of keys to my very own piece of land. Continue reading “Tips for Choosing your Allotment Garden”
Is anyone else in a strange state of excitement and panic at the same time? Whilst it may be cold and miserable outside, Spring really is just around the corner now and thats great, but I still have so much to do first! Continue reading “Allotment Jobs for Winter”
Monday 15th January is thought to be the most depressing day of the year and you can understand why. It’s the middle of winter here in the UK, it’s cold, it’s dark, you don’t have much chance to get out to do any gardening because the weather is so rubbish and you probably have no money left either. Never fear! I’m taking part in Hugh’s mission to brighten this gloomy month with photos of my colourful blooms from summer. Find out more in Hugh’s blog post and make sure you take part on Twitter with the hashtag #SummerGarden.
Continue reading “Bloom Monday”
Homegrown Garden 