Top of the waiting list. What can i do in the meantime?

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andimac

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Top of the waiting list. What can i do in the meantime?
« on: November 24, 2015, 07:10 »
Hello everyone,

Apparently I am now top of the local allotment waiting list (woohoo!) and should get my own plot in the next few months.
What can I do while waiting? At the moment, my veg growing takes place in my garden at home where I'm lucky to have a few raised beds, a few fruit trees and some soft fruit bushes.
I also have a small aluminium greenhouse which is earmarked for the new plot and some spare tools for it too.
I'm keen to get off to a good early start and so any suggestions on what I could do in the meantime would be much appreciated.
As for the site, I think that as the newbie, I will be given a pretty rough plot which will need a fair bit of digging and improvement so I have been trying to see if I can source extra (cheap or free) compost and manure. But other than that, nothing yet.
All ideas gratefully received!

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m1ckz

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Re: Top of the waiting list. What can i do in the meantime?
« Reply #1 on: November 24, 2015, 07:43 »
till u get your plot you must just sit on your hands i guess....u can get some kelsea onion seed going on the window sill an souce some overwintering cabbage etc  funny time of tear now...make a few trips to local stables an pile some muck ready  gl with the plot wen u get it    mick from essex

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cadalot

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Re: Top of the waiting list. What can i do in the meantime?
« Reply #2 on: November 24, 2015, 08:05 »
Think about what you like to eat and what you are going to grow, looking at seed catalogues and read diaries on this forum and YouTube and think about what you are going to need by way of blue water pipe for hoop cages, debris netting for cabbages etc. Bamboo for beans and if you don't purchase at least look for cheap sources for these things. I'm currently making slug traps ready for next year. Winter is a time for planning and waiting.

Have a look at growing onions from seed, there is a thread on here and you can start after Christmas

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andimac

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Re: Top of the waiting list. What can i do in the meantime?
« Reply #3 on: November 24, 2015, 09:43 »
Thanks everyone for the tips so far. As mentioned, because I already grow some veg at home, I have been accumulating spare tools and books- both of which are filling up far too much space already. I like the idea of getting extra blue hoops and netting.
I'll also look at starting off some onions from seed and will have fun looking at seed catalogues and thinking how easy it will all be (if only..)!
Slug traps...I like!
I will also take the advice about sitting on my hands to heart and try not to use my garden as a storage space for allotment stuff over the next few months or more.

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grendel

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Re: Top of the waiting list. What can i do in the meantime?
« Reply #4 on: November 24, 2015, 12:47 »
keep your eyes open for cheap end of season deals in the shops and on the sales after the festive celebration.
we do the impossible daily, miracles take a little longer.

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jaydig

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Re: Top of the waiting list. What can i do in the meantime?
« Reply #5 on: November 24, 2015, 17:25 »
It doesn't hurt to keep in touch with your council's allotment officer while you are waiting.  Our allotment officer is brilliant, but she has a thousand and one things to take care of as well as the allotments, so sometimes things get pushed to one side.  Just a gentle reminder now and then that you are ready and eager to take on a plot might save you some waiting time.  It also gives you a chance to start building a relationship with him or her prior to getting started.

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mjg000

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Re: Top of the waiting list. What can i do in the meantime?
« Reply #6 on: November 24, 2015, 17:46 »
It may also be a good idea to enquire if there is a rep on site who handles letting and if make yourself known to him so he too knows you are ready and waiting.  There might be a mobile number at the site to contact him on

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BigPaddy

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Re: Top of the waiting list. What can i do in the meantime?
« Reply #7 on: November 25, 2015, 22:35 »
If you are after a council plot and know the site you want I would advise becoming 'known' to the locals. You might find that someone is giving up and would transfer their plot (and in a dream, their shed, their greenhouse...) to you.

Whatever, the investment in getting to know folks should pay dividends anyway.

BP
Patrick
Hull, East yorkshire

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Yorkie

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Re: Top of the waiting list. What can i do in the meantime?
« Reply #8 on: November 26, 2015, 08:21 »
It sounds as though whoever manages the list already knows your details and that you are keen; the only thing you are waiting for is for a plot to come free.

As a plot secretary, I'd say that you don't need to do more to remind them. In the absence of a plot you risk getting into 'hassling' territory.
I try to take one day at a time, but sometimes several days all attack me at once...

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jaydig

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Re: Top of the waiting list. What can i do in the meantime?
« Reply #9 on: November 26, 2015, 10:27 »
I agree, Yorkie, that there is nothing more annoying than being 'hassled' by someone, but I wouldn't have had the plot I've got now if I hadn't kept in touch with our allotment officer now and then.  I think it is possible to do this without becoming a nuisance if the approach is made in the right manner.

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andimac

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Re: Top of the waiting list. What can i do in the meantime?
« Reply #10 on: November 27, 2015, 12:15 »
Thanks again for the comments and advice. As it happens, it is a private allotment setup, organised by the local estate- all very feudal. I've emailed once or twice and also popped into the estate offices just so they could put a face to the name. I've been told that any re-allocations will take place in the early New Year so I am holding off with further contact till then.

It hasn't stopped me wandering over to see the state of the area and I can see that as ever, some people are very diligent and have well maintained plots whilst others look an eyesore and full of weeds, rusting "stuff" and goodness knows what else.

I will probably end up with one of those.

As I mentioned, I've got a lot of garden tools already (they are just so irresistibly shiny in the shops...) and a "spare" greenhouse  but I'm probably going to have to invest in some heavier duty kit like a rotavator.

I guess I'm just keen to get started on it. Reality will soon bite!

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New shoot

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Re: Top of the waiting list. What can i do in the meantime?
« Reply #11 on: November 27, 2015, 12:30 »
The New Year will still give you a few months to get your plot into shape. 

If you decide where you want to put your early crops, you can clear that bit first and then work through the rest.  Some stuff can't go out until May/June - maybe later where you are  :unsure:  That gives you a good 5/6 months to get through the soil prep  :)

Have you got a list of what you want to grow yet?  Seed sorting and plot planning can be great winter pastimes.  A list of what to sow month by month helps you not to forget anything. 

You could start construction of some compost bins as well.  I've got a couple of slot together ones that I made from cheap treated timber.  They are easy to transport to the plot and also simple to dismantle to get to the compost.  Mine are sort of this design, but I make the notches deeper, so the planks sit together without air gaps :)

http://www.greatlittlegarden.co.uk/grow-your-own/composters/composter

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andimac

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Re: Top of the waiting list. What can i do in the meantime?
« Reply #12 on: November 27, 2015, 13:23 »
Great idea New shoot, I love building things and those bins look great. I have a few pallets still sitting around after building my woodshed so can see a use for them after all.
You're right about the planting out later as well, some years the best thing about summer up here is when the daffs come out!  :(

I've a list of some things I'd like to grow but it may consist mostly of what is left over just to get something in the ground as I work to improve the rest of it.

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BumbleJo

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Re: Top of the waiting list. What can i do in the meantime?
« Reply #13 on: November 28, 2015, 08:38 »
I'd get a four year rotation plan drafted,  I didn't do that until the second year and it made things more difficult.  Do it whilst putting your feet up and conserving your energies for what's to come!  Good luck.😊



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