For those of you who’ve experienced a tour of St Ann’s Allotments, you may recall that the principles of Victorian gardens, such as our allotments, were ‘Privacy, Pleasure and Peace’. The three P’s. The plots were used for growing flowers, relaxing, entertaining, and enjoying afternoon tea on the lawn. Those Victorian principles are still enjoyed…
Some years ago, when visiting family in Australia, my grandson bought me a plaque to hang on the door of my shed. It says, “GRANDAD’S SHED – BIKES, TOYS AND TREASURES MENDED WHILE YOU WAIT – PAYMENT IN CUDDLES AND SMILES”. The pleasure that gives me is comparable with the pleasure that I get from…
I’ve come across a link between the Hungerhill Gardens and halibut. More precisely, Ford’s Avenue and halibut. When I was at school, my science teacher told me not to sit looking like “a cod faced haddock”, but my first experience of halibut, as opposed to cod and chips from Elsie’s at the bottom of Carlton…
In mid-July, we experienced two days of record high temperatures. Although cooler weather soon followed it was too late to save many plants that had been scorched by the sun. The science shows that an increase in the frequency of severe weather is occurring, over and above the occasional freezing winter or dry summer when…
During the past two years, time was something that we had plenty of. A visit to the allotment, being outdoors and socially distanced, meant that we had time to catch up on those long outstanding jobs. Now Summer is upon us, we busy planting and sowing for the year ahead. The borehole water supply…
For those of you, both gardeners and visitors, who have gallantly trekked up and down the steep avenues and pathways of St Ann’s Allotments, being out of breath is a natural hazard. Today, gardeners may be able to drive their cars to within a reasonable distance of their plot, but inevitably there will be those…