BALGA are delighted to announce we’ve managed to secure grant funding to replace the allotment signs at both sites.
You can read more here. [Link removed at NHDC January 2021]
The grant money will be used to purchase new noticeboards which are used for BALGA members and members of the public alike, as well as updating the old NHDC noticeboards to reflect the fact that the sites are self-managed.
BALGA would like to thank both the Baldock and District Committee of NHDC and Cllr Michael Muir for their continued support.
Well March has certainly been a difficult month for allotment folk with snow and freezing temperatures on two weekends with the Beasts from the East blowing in. Milder weather may have followed but this has resulted in a lot of rain, especially towards the end of the month.
The Clothall Road site in the recent snow
With Mother Nature against us, it’s been hard to make progress on our allotments with even the quick draining soil at our Clothall Road site being too heavy and wet to do much digging.
Traditionally here in the south we’d be able to plant out first early potatoes that have been chitting nicely at home but many members have been loathe to plant them out with the ground so wet.
The colder temperatures have also meant the ground has been too cold to sow anything outdoors so many of the veg you can often risk sowing a row of in March, like carrots and parsnips, are still snug and warm in their seed packets.
It looks like there is warmer weather on the horizon so hopefully we can all get the growing season started soon.
We were finally able to hold the spring working party at Clothall Road on Good Friday, having previously had to postpone the work from St Patrick’s Day, when it snowed all day!
It was good to see such a good turnout of BALGA members and the saying ‘Many hands make light work’ ran true as we had cleared rubbish off the various plots that we were working on within an hour.
Clearing rubbish from vacant plots
We recently had a delivery of wood chip delivered to both sites and this was also used to repair some of the paths
Repairing worn paths
We can now arrange for these vacant plots to be let to people on the waiting list and the site will be fully let again.
A big thank you to all the members who came alone and helped.
The second working party this autumn was held at the Clare Crescent site in Baldock where we had planted seed potatoes on the last cultivated plot at this site in the spring. This site is still managed by North Herts District Council.
A very loose experiment was run to see which half of it would produce the more tubers with half the plot being ridged up in the traditional way and the second half just dropping the seed potatoes in holes.
The ridged half after harvestingTreasure hunting in the non-ridged half
Although hardly scientific, the ridged half of the plot produced the best yield by a long way with very little being harvested from the non-ridged part. In fact it was more like trying to find where the rows of potatoes were on this half! Underground tree roots may have had something to do with it too though…
Surplus potatoes from the plot are being donated to Baldock’s Community Centre to help feed those in need this Christmas.
All done!
We’d love to have more volunteers help on working parties. They are a great way of building camaraderie and giving something back to the allotment association. The more we can do by members volunteering, the more money we can save from having to call experts in to do work which we could have done ourselves. ‘Banked’ volunteer hours are also used when applying for grants for future improvement work to our sites.
So keep an eye out for the next working parties and come and join in!
Autumn is always a good time for BALGA to organise working parties to help clear vacant plots. Tenant members have less to do on their plots and as the plots themselves wind down for the winter, it is easier to work on any that are overgrown.
The first working party this autumn was at our North Road site where a dedicated band of volunteers worked on three vacant plots that needed rubbish removing from them as well as a lot of elder, bramble and other tree branches which needing cutting down and removing. It was a bitterly cold day but it didn’t take long to warm up.
The first plot in particular had a couple of large elder trees growing in one corner.
Removing elder
The second plot had branches from an ash tree blocking one end. Unfortunately there is only so much that can be done with loppers and saws without needing to get professional tree surgeons in here.
Removing overhanging branches
The final plot that was worked on had a massive bramble covering the back of the plot. This was cut back gradually to leave a clear space.
Mick in front the cleared bramble area
All in all a good lot of work done by a dedicated few in a matter of hours and hopefully three more plots looking more appealing to prospective tenants.
Sadly, we have to report that allium leaf miner has reached deepest darkest Hertfordshire and has been spotted on both our sites here in Baldock. This pest first arrived in the UK back in 2002. It has come from mainland Europe and was confined for quite a time to southern and eastern counties but it has been gradually spreading since then.
And to make matters worse, allium leaf miner has two lifecycles each growing season and will attack all members of the allium family, particularly leeks and spring planted onions, shallots and garlic. There is no chemical protection available to allotment gardeners so the only thing that can be done is to cover crops with Enviromesh, and hope!
The adult flies appear in March or April, having overwintered in the soil. The females will feed on the leaves of your alliums before laying her eggs, usually near the base of the leaves of the plant. This can be spotted if you see lines of white dots on the leaves of your alliums.
Leaf Miner leaf damage
The eggs hatch and the resulting larvae, which are tiny white, head and legless maggots, feed on the leaves before tunnelling (hence the name leaf miner) into the leaves. At this point, fully fed, the maggots pupate within the stem of the plant.
Leaf Miner pupae
This second generation will hatch in September/October and again lay eggs at the base of the plant. It is this generation that will do the most damage to the now mature onion and leek plants. It will also overwinter in the soil ready to hatch the following spring.
It should be noted that most plants affected will tend to rot from a secondary infection from fungi or bacteria that develop in the damaged stems in the plant. The damage this fly can do is such that there can be no sign of your alliums being affected until the rotting is noticed.
So what can we do to protect our crops?
First off, employ a strict crop rotation policy. Do not grow alliums in the same area of your plot the following year.
Secondly, if your alliums do become infected, it is best to dig up the infected plants and burn them. As the pupae can survive over the winter, do not leave any infected plant debris on the soil.
Cover alliums with horticultural fleece, particularly when the flies are active in the spring and again in the autumn.
Plant out young plants after the danger of the first wave has passed and lift before the second generation is active. Whilst this may help with onions, leeks are in the ground for a long time so will not be ready for lifting in early autumn so covering them may be our only defence.
Members of our North Road site will be well aware of the work that has gone on recently to replace the dilapidated gate and fence that formed the boundary of the site with the parking area. The nature of the access road, sloping down towards the allotments, also meant that the first plot next to the parking area was susceptible to flooding, making part of it unworkable.
The main contractors for the work were M&J Oakley Ltd who were used previously to install the new boundary fence at the Clothall Road site and the bulk of the work was carried out over about a week at the beginning of September. Half of the cost of the work was funded by grants from local authorities and councillors as well as BALGA fundraising. The remainder has been paid from the plot rental income we have received after 18 months of self management.
The steel gate, which is approx. 2m high, allows separate vehicle and pedestrian access, while the fence, which is 2m high, also includes rabbit proofing along its base.
Once the fencing and gate were finished, a kerb was installed which increased the width of the parking area by a metre. This will also help prevent the flooding to plot no.2 adjacent to the parking area. Drains against the kerb edge were added and these lead to a newly excavated soakaway.
North Road Allotments
It was decided and agreed unanimously by the General Committee that rather than leave the corner of ground near the gate as it was, it would be better to continue the kerbing into this corner and then to extend the tarmac along the kerb and up to the gate, and to get this additional work done at the same time. This extra area of tarmac has meant we have been able to add an additional two parking spaces to the parking area as well.
A speed hump was also installed a short way up the access road to slow traffic as it approaches the corner by the parking area. The speed hump and tarmac work were carried out by FT Gearing Landscape Services Ltd.
The now thin strip of ground along the front of the parking area will be grassed and planted up with bulbs by a working party. A couple of paving slabs will also be added so people can actually get to the notice board at the site! And the extra bonus of having a high boundary fence is we can now display banners for open days or plot availability, something which wasn’t possible before.
I think you will all agree the entrance to the site looks so much better now and is a example of how self management enables us to improve our sites by reinvesting money raised through plot rents, rather than see it absorbed into Council funds.
The short-listed plots were judged by an independent judge a couple of weeks ago. The judge commented how high the standard was this year, so well done to all those short-listed.
The plot gaining the most points at the North Road is tenanted by Gordon Petitt. Gordon has had his full plot for 14 years and I loved the structure and order of his plot.
Gordon Petitt at North RoadGordon’s plot
The plot gaining the most points on the Clothall Road site was Chris Vincent who has only had his half plot for four years. I was amazed at how much he had managed to cram in on his plot with numerous varieties of various crops, including onions grown from seed.
Chris Vincent at Clothall RoadChris’ packed plotWonderful beanpoles coppiced from nearby woods
Both Gordon and Chris will receive a voucher for £25 to be spent in the members’ shop.
Of these two plots, Chris’s plot scored the most points and he will be awarded the Basil Bryant Cup at the AGM in January 2018.
Each year a separate competition is run to judge the Best Newcomer, with tenants taking on their plots after 1 May 2016 being eligible for the award this year. Paula Lancaster scored the most points for her half plot which she took on in February earlier this year. I was amazed to see not only was her plot fully cultivated, but it was full of crops too.
Paula Lancaster at Clothall RoadPaula’s plot
An excellent job Paula! Paula will be awarded the Frank Conway Cup at the AGM next year.
One of the worst faults of a gardener is sowing too many seeds and then not being able to throw any surplus seedlings away. We just can’t bring ourselves to do it, can we?
Well worry not! If members have an excess seedlings they’ve grown, they can now bring them down to the Members’ Shop before it opens on a Sunday where they can be sold to raise funds for the association.
Or maybe some of your seedlings have failed this year and you are looking to plug the gap at a good price?
Don’t forget the shop is open every Sunday from 10am to 12 noon until the end of November.
On a similar note, if it’s plants you are after, the Baldock Horti Soc have a stall at the Baldock Street Fair this coming Saturday where they are selling plants to raise funds; there may be even some veg plants available!
The winners of last year’s Best Kept Allotment Competition were presented with their awards at the AGM last month.
First up and congratulations to Ken Robbins, who won the Best Kept Allotment on the North Road Site. Ken also won the Frank Conway Cup for Best Overall Newcomer.
And secondly, John Johnson, who won the Best Kept Allotment on the Clothall Road site. John was also awarded the Basil Bryant Cup for the Best Allotment Overall.
The awards were kindly awarded by local councillor, Michael Muir. Both winners also won a £25 voucher to spend at the allotment shop.
Clearing rubbish from vacant plots
