Flighty’s plot

on BBC2 tomorrow evening at 8.00pm is a special programme to mark Gardeners’ World’s 40th anniversary.

Alan Titchmarsh and Monty Don introduce the show which over the past four decades has become a national gardening institution.

Happy gardening, and have a good weekend !

I keep losing track of weeks so I’m stopping doing specific entries titled Week …

As well as week-to-week entries I shall do a round-up one at, or soon after, the end of each month for anything I’ve not mentioned, along with a photo or two showing how it’s coming along.

All the rubbish has now gone, partly cleared by the council and the rest taken by other plot holders for their own use. The pile of weeds has also gone, either burnt or moved to the communal compost heap.

Just about the entire plot has now been forked over once, and perhaps about a third has been worked over a second time.

Following my thoughts mentioned previously I’ve moved the pallet patio to it’s new position. Hopefully tomorrow I shall stand it on bricks and ensure that it’s level. Later on I intend giving it a coat of green wood preserver, which I think will make it blend in with its future surroundings better.

A temporary cardboard walled compost bin will also be erected which will suffice until I can do a timber one.

The forecast is looking ideal for the next few days at least which is good news as it means I can hopefully make further good process.

This Friday sees a Gardeners’ World Special 4/6 Cut Flowers on BBC2 at 8.00pm.

Sale of cut flowers in the UK is at an all time high, yet it’s a market dominated by cheap foreign imports.

Sarah Raven embarks on a mission to promote our seasonal flowers.

Needless to say I shall be watching this programme with interest both as an aspiring flower grower and for the environmental implications.

Happy gardening, and have a good Bank Holiday weekend !

Much as I liked the previous one I did find it slightly tiring on the eyes so I’ve switched to this one which I find easier to read.

were a bit lax with little digging and weeding being done. My excuses include it being too hot, too wet or doing other things!

Having looked through the pile of assorted items that are sitting in the north-west corner of the plot I’ve decided that I can’t use, or don’t need, any of it so the council are going to remove it all. Hopefully that will be on Monday.

Where I’ve started digging over ground that I’ve already forked I’m finding it fairly easy going. Roots, weeds and sundry items, like rusty nails, are being picked up as I go. As yet I’ve found nothing of interest such as any coins.

I’ve had second thoughts about where I’m going to put my pallet patio and sentry box shed. Instead of being in the north-east corner I’m thinking of putting them about a third of the way down the eastern edge.

I’ve been browsing through several of the gardening books on the bookshop shelf and have made a list of annual flowers that can be sown direct onto the ground in the autumn. I shall check these in the seed catalogue* that I received earlier in the week.

I’ve also been looking at floribunda roses, in books and on websites. I particularly like the look of Valentine Heart among the handful that, for me, stand out.

[* I shall be doing a separate entry, hopefully sometime soon, on the joy of looking through a seed catalogue. ]

National Allotments Week

in the UK are under threat !

Two TV programmes are being shown tomorrow evening about this problem.

The Insider 7/10 Gardens under Threat is on Channel 4 at 7.30pm and is followed by a Gardener’s World Special 2/6 The Great Garden Grab on BBC2 at 8.00pm.

More details on both can be found on this Radio Times preview.

Last Friday afternoon I went to Plot 124 but really didn’t feel like doing very much.

As the wind was in the right direction, that is away from the the nearby flats, and there was no-one else working on the site I burnt the large pile of weeds that had accumulated since I started. Being dry it burnt well and what was left I can dispose of in one rubbish bag.

When the temperature goes over the low 20sC, especially when it’s humid, then I wilt! Yesterday it was around 30C here in London so I stayed home and continued reading James Fenton’s A Garden from a Hundred Packets of Seed.

This is a small, slim book and to quote the cover is A simple, refreshing way to start a garden from scratch.

The majority of the seeds mentioned are listed in the Chiltern Seeds catalogue. I have ordered a copy and will enjoy looking through it and making up my own list.

The forecast this week is for dry, sunny weather with the temperature in the low 20sC. That means I should be able to get on forking and weeding for a couple of hours on two, or even three, days.