Somthing about YOU

[Rooster]

Hi all,

I've been reading this forum with great pleasure and I am trying to get a picture of each of you. I thought I'd start this thread to see if you could all tell me about yourselves and your gardens.

This is my first year growing fruit and veg and cant wait to sample the first crop, I have 4 ex battery chickens that we keep as pets with the added benefit of free eggs and great compost. I am here to expand my knowledge, for friendly chatter and possibly get ideas on how to expand my self sufficiency.

So over to you all........

[oldherbaceous]

Morning Rooster, just a quick reply.

I have three allotments, two greenhouses, three cold frames, not a bad sized garden.

And as for me, i'm what you see on the forum.

[Chantal]

Hi Rooster

I have three allotments, a biggish garden, two greenhouses, a cat (Rosie), a cock and a hen (Rocky & Selsey) and a husband (Tim).

There's not much about me that hasn't already been discussed endlessly on here so I'm loathe to say anything else.

[seedling]

Hi Rooster

I have one allotment, a tiny garden and one greenhouse. i work as a holistic therapist and am training to be a yoga teacher. I have a husband(Mark), son (Jamie) and dog (Harry). Live in Rugby like Chantal.

[Beryl]

Hi Rooster,

Not sure how big everyone classes an allotment but I have 25 rods. (2 and a half plots) Full of fruit veg and flowers. Widowed 18 months ago but still carrying on and enjoying the challenge with lots of helpful advice from the TKG members. The growing part I have always done but the maintenance of sheds etc. is the challenging bit. I can be found on my web site if you are interested at www.saundersallotment.co.uk

Best Wishes
Beryl.

[Monika]

Hello Rooster, here we go:

We (that is, my husband and I) have a small vegetable garden at home, mainly for salad stuff and herbs, and a large allotment at the other end of the village where we grow all the other vegetables. Our two apple trees are more for decoration than fruit because our climate and position doesn't really lend itself to top fruit. We used to have blackcurrants which fruited well but suffered badly from 'big bud' so we are giving it another go now with variety 'Ben Hope'. We have had the present allotment for over 20 years and had another one before that. My love for vegetable gardening came from my father who always grew his own vegetables.

As for the family: we have three sons and three daughters between us (from two marriages), now all in their forties, and nine grandchildren (six boys and three girls) from two years to 21 years, spread over Yorkshire, France and Germany.

[oldherbaceous]

Dear Beryl, may i just say that your blog site is quite superb and a real credit to you, as is your allotment. I do visit it now and again just to make sure you are doing it right.
I should think it has given a lot of people so much encouragement and pleasure, and i really don't know how you set such high standards now you are doing it by yourself.

It just goes to show what can be achieved, a true inspiration.

[mazmezroz]

I used to have 1 and a half allotments in Leamington Spa, but have just moved to N Cotswolds (beautiful!) and spent most of last summer (at least June July and August - difficult to tell whether it was summer or not ...) making raised beds and digging up a lawn to make even more raised beds! Looking forward to something more summery this year in order to see how productive I can be! Would still like an allotment to grow 'long term' veg like cabbages, potatoes and onions ....

I am a primary school teacher but have taken 2007 off to establish my new garden - shame the weather was so pants! Now I've got to get a job and get earning again, I expect the weather will be brilliant!!!

My husband thinks I'm mad because I'm so crazy about my veggies, but he enjoys cooking so likes the fresh produce. I wish he would take more interest, but it's just not his 'thing'!

[Clive.]

Hello Rooster,

I may refer to 2 gardens...At home it is technically my parents garden..which they have gardened since they had the house here built in the mid 1950s....originally a classic split of Mum looking after front flower garden and Dad the vegetable plot which includes a greenhouse, 2 cold frames, a line of cordon apple trees, and a soft fruit area.

I am employed by a company which specialises in customer relationship management, consulting and sales support, bespoke software, implementation and integration. This also incorporates Managed IT Services & a Consultancy which specialises in Air Traffic Management.


I add that my job within all that is...Gardener. ..

So the second garden I may refer to is my day job as has been for 15+ years. I am part of the small team that maintains a large country house garden..owned by a national organisation and at times open to the public..but operated day to day as a house and home with multi facetted garden including a walled garden vegetable area.

And as a gardener...today I have been bricklaying, path edging bricks in front of the greenhouse....and also this week..woodworking, greenhouse staging rebuild...with plenty of actual gardening for good measure..

All the best,
Clive.

[peter]

Hi Rooster

I have two allotments of 10 rods each, a small garden with a 12'x8'greenhouse, a German Shorthaired Pointer (dog), a wife and two teenagers.

The dog is quite helpful with gardening, being an expert at supervising, the rest of the family are less helpful, with the son playing rugby for our local club and the wife insisting that the extension on our house takes priority on my spare time.

Check my blog for some pictures of the allotments, dog and greenhouse.

One of my plots has a large "herb" patch with perenniell herbs such as elecampene, the rest of this plot has a weed and compaction problem.

The other has espalier apples across one end, a small raised bed, a 6'x4'x2'high coldframe like a shrunken greenhouse and up at the top a fruit terrace which is mostly raspberries.

Due to two bereavements and a gallbladder removal I got rather behind with things last year and am hoping to catch up a bit this year.

I am an active committee member on our Allotment association, installing thirteen noticeboards at the moment. In addition I am site agent for the Town Council on my allotment site, where I have been replacing the fence by sections.

In my spare time I work in IT for a large city council.

[mandylew]

I have an allotment, have had this one for 5 years now, and got it very nice with 6 raised beds down one side and a box hedged in long border down the other, shed, big decking area at the top, kids sandpit (currently inhabited by plastic dinosaurs) and slide. My husband always tells people the allotment is tidier than our house and he is right.

At home a small greenhouse (currently inhabited by 2 guinea pigs and a rabbit) fair size garden, although trashed by kids and rabbit.

3 children, the oldest boy now 10, in my profile pic about 4 yrs ago (can't remember how i put the picture on there so don't know how to change it) and 2 girls 3 and 5.

Would love to keep a couple of chickens too, working on my husband and waiting for an eglu to come up on e-bay locally, which is North Shields, Tyne and Wear.

I'm big on recycling, with 6 dalek bins on the go. a wormery and bokashi all in full scale production, I don't buy anything for the plot, the decking/ raised beds were a very fortunate skip discovery and the box hedging raised for one original by cuttings.

Favourite plants to grow, squashes and beans. Favourite to eat, brussels sprouts.

Thats me

[lizzie]

Ok, here's me.

Had plot for about 5 years which i'm in the middle of re-designing to make half into a flower garden with lawn. I don't have a back garden but have roses out the front of the house which are my pride and joy. I've got my partner of 16 years (Andrew), a daughter of 18 and son of 12, dog and cat.

That's it really....

[The Grock in the Frock]

Hi Rooster.I have had my plot the same time as Liz and we are next door to each other,although it is my second plot,my first one was just a half plot.Liz and i have been friends since junior school and we went away on hols together as kids.
My plot is half garden and half veg,although i enjoy the flower side better.I am thinking about chickens as our commitiy have only just agreed to them,and i am really thinking about them after watching Mr O last night
I have 4 children,youngest 6,oldest 22,a grand child and a mad husband.I work part time for the N.H.S and i do bank work for the homeless and children in Alder Hey hospital,also run a Scout group,as you can tell,i like children,but couldnt eat a whole one
Love reading,poetry,rambling around the countryside,and getting pi**ed,oh and i am only 27 and 8st and if anyone on here tells you otherwise,they are BIG FAT FIBBERS

[oldherbaceous]

Grock has to be one of the kindest of people,
Shame shes not so good with numbers.

[Rooster]

Thank you everyone, it's been really nice hearing a bit about you all, I feel like I've caught up a bit now.

I'M SOOOOO NOSY