Tonight, I have purchased 45 metres of weed suppressant polypropelene, which I will be covering a large part of my plot with. The sheeting will be covered in containers of one kind or another. Builders bags might be a good way forward. I estimate that around 132* of them should suffice. Folded down, and filled with soil, these bags will make 85cm square raised beds, which should then be very productive.
A couple of months ago, while I was on the allotment, I was given an old tyre. This was a big wide slick tyre off some kind of track car. I've been growing carrots and beetroot in it, and they've flourished, unlike many of the plants in the rest of the plot. I will be keeping a small bit uncovered, where the fruit trees and rhubarb are, but as the current bits get harvested, they will be covered over and I will begin the roll-out of a new, modular system of crop production.
*I paced out the plot. It measures 20 x 7 metres. I'm going to allow 5 metres for the fruit trees and rhubarb. So 15 x 7 metres minus a bit for paths divided by 0.85 gives about 132. I may have a few left over, or have to do something different with a few square metres.
driving lessons in North Wirral? learn to drive in Hoylake? driving instructor in Birkenhead?
Showing posts with label allotment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label allotment. Show all posts
Monday, 22 July 2013
Monday, 8 July 2013
Poppies
One side effect of my workload increasing is that I haven't had time to go to the allotment. It's rapidly becoming waist high in grasses and weeds.
When ground is cleared, it tends to become recolonised firstly by colonising species, such as fireweed, thistles, dandelions, poppies, nettles, grasses, etc.
It's happening on my allotment, and it must have happened too, on the battlefields of France almost 100 years ago. The poppy, of course, has become a symbol of the sacrifice made by those that never returned. That a plant with strong analgesic and narcotic properties got the nod, rather than, say, the dandelion, is hardly surprising I suppose, on a battlefield.
But anyway, poppies can be prepared by drying, and made into tea, or smoked. People have died from doing so from time to time.
From what I can gather, the kind of poppies I have on the allotment are "Papaver somniferum", purple peony.
The "somniferum" bit indicates the presence of opiates. Funny old world isn't it? If I grew cannabis plants there, I'd be kicked off my plot, and probably prosecuted, yet I can grow opium with impunity.
Poppy tea is supposed to be helpful in suppressing restless leg syndrome. Presumably, it would help with migraines too. And presumably it can get you off your head. Not something I'd want to do regularly, as it would quickly lead to tolerance and withdrawal and all that, but I might just brew some up one day soon.
driving lessons in North Wirral? learn to drive in Hoylake? driving instructor in Birkenhead?
When ground is cleared, it tends to become recolonised firstly by colonising species, such as fireweed, thistles, dandelions, poppies, nettles, grasses, etc.
It's happening on my allotment, and it must have happened too, on the battlefields of France almost 100 years ago. The poppy, of course, has become a symbol of the sacrifice made by those that never returned. That a plant with strong analgesic and narcotic properties got the nod, rather than, say, the dandelion, is hardly surprising I suppose, on a battlefield.
But anyway, poppies can be prepared by drying, and made into tea, or smoked. People have died from doing so from time to time.
From what I can gather, the kind of poppies I have on the allotment are "Papaver somniferum", purple peony.
Poppy tea is supposed to be helpful in suppressing restless leg syndrome. Presumably, it would help with migraines too. And presumably it can get you off your head. Not something I'd want to do regularly, as it would quickly lead to tolerance and withdrawal and all that, but I might just brew some up one day soon.
driving lessons in North Wirral? learn to drive in Hoylake? driving instructor in Birkenhead?
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