Support

June 18
Jane, it is warm sunny and windy Folke building support to the high beans Folke building support to the high beans Folke building support to the high beans

The high beans need support specailly beacause our plot is rather windy. och så lite om pinnar från energiskog...The 'indian tents' addes a room feeling to our dinner place...

 

Flowers and Stones

June 06
The last plot to manage The brussel sprouts in C1 grow tremendously The A1 plot, flowers of the broadbeans

Something new here and about brodbeans. Take a look att the larger view to see how beautiful a 'common' flower could be.

 

Flush

May 29
Also the asparus peas almost cover their land, at least when the sun is shining The brussel sprouts in C1 grow tremendously The A1 plot, with broad beans and peas

After a week of some warmer wheather, there is a considerable difference in development. We can remove the cover over some of the plots (not those suspectible to doves and other hideous animals!), and we are stalking the peas with the beautifully yellow Salix branches that someone throw away earlier in the spring. Our friendly neighbours gave us lots of newly cut grass for our compost and to cover the land under the bushes.

 

Fruit tree flowering

May 22
Katja apple blossom Alice apple blossom

Now, all the fruit trees are flowering, although in different pace, order depending on their time of fruiting. The 25 redcurrant bushes are flowering profoundly, as are the gooseberries and the plum tree.
Our grandchildren Johanna was visiting to give us some hand.

 
Jane and Johanna at the B1 plot Closeup of the redcurrant flowers
 

The relaxation bench

May 21
The relaxation bench, made by Lennart Svärd

Last year, we visited Lennart Svärd in Ljugarn, Gotland. He is an artist, working with casting concrete in soft forms. One of his creations was a soft formed sitting bench, which we immediately fell in love with. He promised to bring it to Lund, when he was visiting relatives here. Today, this happened.
Since our relaxation corner is't ready yet, we placed the bench in the entrance for the time being.

 

Growing!

May 16
The C1 plot, with brussel sprouts and red sunflowers Asparagus pea

In the middle of May, our plants are starting to establish. Some reserve plants from the hotbed had to be inserted, but most of the plants were establishing well. Although small, they are promising.
Some slugs were eating the swedes-seedlings, but vanished when we gave them iron phosphate.

 
The B1 plot, with onions, carrots and other root vegetables The B2 plot, with potatoes, onion and carrots
 

Finale

May 5 - May 6
Jane draws the lines for bean sowing

Jane marks out the exact sowing places for the beans, since the will have sticks to climb on. The sticks can not be set out yet. The birds will eat the bean sprouts if we don't cover them with the non-woven fabric.
Now, all plants that are large enough are planted out, as different types of cabbage, leek, corn and sunflowers. Flowers are sown and planted with the vegetables. In the end of the day, only runner beans and peas are left to be sown, and the celery are waiting in the hotbed. Now, we are waiting for the results and fighting the snails.

 
Watering the C and D plots Jane waters the cabbage in C1 The C1 plot with newly planted cauliflower and savoy cabbage, and a furrow for the leek
 

Planting

April 29 - May 1
Melica digs the manure down in C2

The last days of April, the side-stones towards the path were set. Melica manured the C-plots that Jane had made a hard job digging. Finally, they were limed with ground limestone.

We planted the potatoes that we had grown in the hotbed at home, together with the early potatoes that were pre-grown on trays.

The asparagus peas and the brussel sprout plants were set out.
It was not easy to make Vindla understand that she was not allowed to run on the non-wowen cloth protecting the young plants.

Watering the brussel sprouts in C1 Jane plants the asparagus peas in A1 Folke plants the potatoes grown in the hotbed
 

Sowing

April 24
Filling up with horse manure for the asparagus Jane sows the carrot seeds Melica digs a plot for the asparagus A relief: The compost bin

In April 24, the allotment was finally ready for the first sowing. We had got some pallet collars in half size to make a small compost bin. That was a releif, since biodegradable waste material abunds in a garden, and you can not always just dig it into the soil. Melica dug a deep hole in the clay in order to make an asparagus plot. Then, she filled it up with the composted horse manure we had been storing under a tarpaulin. Plot A1 and B1 was sown and watered. The watering was really necessary, the clay was so dry and hard.

 

Equipment

April 9, 10, 16, 17 and 18
Appleblossom bud Melica with 13 feet sticks The chairs that saved our backs

In the intermediate time, when we were not loading garden-stones, we equipped the allotment with some chairs and a table. Sitting on the ground when eating can be awkward. We also got some long Salix-sticks from a nearby energy forest grower, to have for bean-poles.The major job, however, was to lay out the stones in the main paths (See; Design), and digging the plots. In the evening the 18:th, we were ready with the main digging and stonelaying. At that time, the apple-blossom buds were swollen.

 

Stones, stones and stones

April 5, 13 and 14
Jane digging the plots, Folke lays stones in between Folke laying stones, melica cleaning the boards Studying the plan for stonelaying
 

It proved that the movement of the garden-stones was a complicated manoeuvre. Three more times was the services from Tommy and Lennart necessary. Together with Jane and Melica, and using late nights we managed to move them to the allotment. In the meantime, we started to lay them out. Jane dug and manured the land, which not was an easy task in the drying clay..

 

Stones

April 2
Piles ans piles of stones

We bought a pile of cement-stones to use at the allotment. They had only three drawbacks; the were heavy, many and situated in Fjelie, about 35 kilometers away. However, we persuaded a friend of us, Tommy, to use his car and cart to move them. This day, with the help of Tommy and Melica, we managed to take about a third of them to the allotment. After the moving, we started to lay them out and Jane started to dig the first plots. The difference between the soil that was green-manured the pevious autumn and that which was not, was tremendous. Ask Jane.

 

Soil moving

Mars 27
Soil going up Erik and Melica unloading Erik loading the cart

We had some surplus soil and manure at home. Erik and Melica helped us to move it to Holma 35. It was a hard work. After lunch, we moved all the twigs from the pruning to the common storage.

Vindla surveilling the job Lunch
 

Finishing pruning

Mars 5
The last three trees after pruning The last three trees before pruning

When Jane was at a another cat-show, Folke and Vindla went on pruning the last fruit trees. The pictures show the process, before and after the pruning of the last three trees.

 

Pruning

February 27
Six trees are pruned The fruit trees with names on them

When Jane was at a cat-show, Folke and Vindla went on pruning the fruit trees. On the large picture, all the trees are named. The other picture is after pruning six of the trees.

Pruning

January 15
The fruit trees before pruning The fruit trees before pruning

In January 15, we finished the pruning of the red currant bushes and started with the first three apple-trees. We got a wheel-barrow from a neighbour that was about to move. It was an excellent help to reach he tips of the trees. Jane learned the first lessons in tree-pruning.The pictures are of the trees before pruning.

Pruning

January 1
The red currant bushes before pruning The bush to the left was pruned in November 2004

We started the new year by pruning the last ten red-currant bushes. We had begun this work in November, but we were interrupted by Folkes illness. Some by-passers asked if we had started the potato-planting yet. I think they were ironic.