You leave it for just one minute... just one lousy minute....
Weeds! Everywhere. I cannot believe it. Where do they come from? Well let me tell you this infestation is beyond a joke. Everything and I mean everything is under 2' of weeds. It's enough to make you cry. How come it takes a whole season to grow things to eat and a blink to grow a perfect crop of weeds? We are seriously considering getting rid of the allotment. It has come to this. All our hard work down the bleeding pan. I mean what are we doing it for? Enjoyment? Not much there then. Exercise? Plenty of that! I can go to the farmer's market and buy organic veg and fruit. So why are we putting ourselves under this added pressure? At the moment it feels like a lead weight around our shoulders. The greenhouse on the other hand is coming on leaps and bounds. Not much of a problem with weeds but I suspect given a few weeks it will be an infestation of another kind - whitefly. I could nematode them with wasps (HB you could have made a fortune) but have to have the door closed for them to do their damndest. Toms and peppers have to be watered twice a day then as it gets too warm. Oh I dont know anymore.
It's such a shame - such a damned shame.
posted by Jooles @ 3:46 pm
4 comments
4 Comments:
Nooooooo! Don't leave us Jooles. It's just a blip. Honestly. You've got a lot on right now and somethings have to slide. Take a leaf (no pun intended but I'll claim it anyway) from the Lady of the Soup:
http://allotment.humanlint.com/2005/10/02/put-the-kettle-on/
p.s. If I had to actually use wasps, I'd have to pack the whole thing up and start blowing glass instead. Horrible little bvggers!
Hi Jooles. It's so discouraging to see weeds run riot when everything you're tending yourself requires careful nurture and much more time to make a difference.
I agree with HB that you've got a lot on right now being a Grandma and so a weed-filled plot is perhaps not themost important thing in your life right now.
That said, set backs of this kind are a normal part of allotmenting. It seems to me that periods of despair are part and parcel of having an authentic allotment experience. Trust me, it makes the harvest of your crops that much more special and enjoyable.
Try to tackle the weeds a little at a time. If you can, cover some areas with a black plastic or weed supressant fabric and leave it until next year and just pull the worst of the weeds out of the beds you are cultivating. Do what feels manageable, even if that means that the weeds appear to be winning, and remember that you have more important things to do with the rest of your time.
I do hope you are able to stick with it. Besides, it will be only a couple of short years before you can have your little grandchild helper pulling up the weeds for you...!
Don't give up! One day soon they'll be something to eat, no matter how tiny, and you wll have grown it and it will all be worth it :o)
We have almost nothing but weeds and feel much the same way as you do, but remember why you took the allotment on!
I know I know! It just makes me feel like its just a big waste of time. Baldrick is leading the 'lets get rid of it ' campaign. I dont know. I have tried saying 'well if you get rid of the allotment then the greenhouse gets it' but we really are despondent. I think the problem is that you see the whole thing and not just a bit which you can tackle and you think 'my god I cant do all this'. Maybe its time for a cup of tea and a rethink! Thank you all for your kind words of support. It does help knowing that we arent the only ones!
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