|
December 2008
5th December - we have been informed by the town council that there will be significant quantities of mulch and wood cuttings/logs deposited on the allotment site during the next week, as a number of trees are being felled in the area of the cemetery. Please help yourself - these materials are being provided free to any tenants who can use them. If anyone has any spare time, then feel free to spread some more mulch along the top half of the communal hedge.
The padlock number on the gate has changed - please remember to lock the gate after you have driven through it - we do not want to tempt any unwanted visitors. Remember that if you leave it open and the padlock unlocked, then anyone with an interest can quickly learn the new code. Keep the code to yourself. Remember: careless talk costs allotments tools and greenhouses !
November 2008
Allotments social evening confirmed - 22nd November in the Parish Church hall (opposite the Aviator pub) from 7.30pm. There will be a small charge of £1.00 per person to cover the cost of hiring the hall.
The highlight of the evening will be a talk by a locally-based plant disease expert, Dr Peter Gladders, who has also offered to diagnose any diseased plants or produce you wish to bring along. We will also have some copies of the booklet Peter co-authored on 'Diseases of organic vegetables' which will be offered to members at the special discounted rate of £1.00
The other aim of the evening will be to see what other things people want to do in the future, for instance we could organise a vegetable show/competition in the summer. Finally, if you haven't formally signed up to membership of the allotment association don't worry - if you are an allotment tenant or even an aspiring tenant, we will still be happy to see you there. If you can come it would be helpful to let us know in advance - please email Richard to confirm, or with any questions at: webmaster@hraa.org.uk.
October 2008
Not much new to say really this month - days are getting shorter and we need a last push to weed plots and get them ready for winter. Also, you will all have received a new tenancy agreement from the council, and with it, our first newsletter. The history of the allotments in St Ives has been added to the 'Info' page (on this web site) for anyone who wants to refer to it again and has lost the newsletter.
September 2008
The nights are drawing in, and it looks as though the Indian summer we were promised came and went overnight. Happily though it won't be long till we can start harvesting winter veg; parsnips, leeks and brassicas.
Some of you will have noticed the tracks getting quite boggy. Yes, the council should be doing something about it, but in the meantime you can help by not driving your car around the site unless it's absolutely necessary (sorry if you think we have got the needle stuck on this subject, but with about 100 tenants currently, that's a lot of traffic concentrated on few muddy tracks !).
We are currently preparing newsletter which will go out at the end of the month and should be mailed to everyone, including those who haven't heard about HRAA yet, or don't have access to the internet.
One of the successes this summer - despite the rain - has been tomatoes. The photo above will be very familiar to most of you ! Why we escaped blight this year but not last, is one of nature's mysteries....
August 2008
Hopefully most have you will have seen progress being made with the new water butts being installed around the site. This is great news. We know that not everyone will have easy access, but it is a great improvement on what we had before. Thanks to the Town Council grounds maintenance staff for getting these in before the end of the season.
The HRAA committee met with the new town council amenities committee on 15th August to discuss a revised tenancy agreement which the town council have drafted. The meeting was very constructive and provides a basis for making further improvements to the allotments site. If you wish to raise any issues regarding management of the allotments, it would be very helpful if you could contact Allan Lewis and join HRAA - we have more chance of making progress through speaking as a group with one voice, rather than individuals ringing the council. See the 'Contact' page on the web site for Allan's details.
On a seperate matter, sweetcorn is ripening, and the rats are out and about. Take a look at the Info page, and especially read the section on pests. Make sure you do not leave piles of rubbish or pallets where rats can shelter, nest and breed. Consider blocking up all holes under your sheds as well. If using bait, take a look at this useful web site: thinkingwildlife.
July 2008
It's been a quiet month and little to update with holidays getting in the way. However, one important point to note is that the new town council amenities committee agreed to double up the number of water butts as a temporary measure until the location and capacity of the main water supply through the cemetery extension can be be sorted. While we know that this won't solve everyones problems (some areas still have no water butts at all) it will at least stop water butts being emptied on hot days when there are queues of people needing to water. At least it is progress, as we spent 2 years with the previous town council trying to improve water supplies.
June 2008
IMPORTANT ! A number of loads of fresh farm yard manure have just been delivered around the allotment site. While this is clearly a valuable resource, there is word of caution required - Since this is fresh and apparently untreated muck, it must not be applied at the present time to current crops, but needs to be stored first.
Current guidelines to the fresh produce (veg and salad) industry are as follows:
"You should NOT apply fresh solid manure or slurry (i.e. manure that has not been batch
stored or treated) within 12 months of harvesting a ready to eat crop, including a minimum
period of 6 months between the manure application and drilling/planting of the crop."
[Source: MANAGING FARM MANURES FOR
FOOD SAFETY Guidelines for Growers to Reduce the Risks of
Microbiological Contamination of Ready to Eat Crops, Food Standards Agency, 2005]. Further information can be found on the FSA web site here:
http://www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2007/sep/manureguid
Please tell any other allotment holders you meet, who may not have seen this information.
May 2008
2nd May - History was made in St Ives - 11 independents were elected to the town council. Hill Rise Allotment Association would like to wish them all the best, and look forward to working closely with them over the coming months to try and sort out the issues surrounding the management of the allotments. Although undoubtedly some issues will not be resolved overnight because of budgetary constraints, we hope that there will be someone to listen to the concerns over water, roadways, security etc, that we have raised over the past year.
During the election it was clearly stated by the former chairman of the amenities committee (at an open meeting of the town council) that the provision of more water to the allotments was not a big problem and really could be sorted quite quickly - and within the current financial year. We intend to hold him and the town council to that promise.
On this matter, we would like to hear from anyone who has plumbing expertise: The quickest way to achieve a result will be to offer our services to help the town council staff get the job done as fast as possible. It is now only a matter of weeks before the heavy period of water use begins, and we must get more water points established around the site.
April 2008
On Sunday 13th April, we had a visit from four of the independent candidates in the forthcoming local elections, who were interested to hear more about the allotments and our efforts to improve the amenities. This great photo of the candidates and some allotment holders was taken when they visited.
The canes in the foreground mark out the position of the new hedge (see earlier news items).
On a change of subject, here is a photo of snow on the allotments taken from the last week in March (Easter day):
 In the last week of March, two piles of mulch were delivered to the site for putting down around the new hedge. Please can everyone help out by taking a couple of barrow loads of mulch up and spreading it out. It is quite light, so easy to do, and we probably have about 100m covered already.
Did you know you can enter your allotment in the Anglia in Bloom competition ?- see here for further details.
Finally, take a look at John's blog here, it also has lots of interesting photos and summarises year in the life of a plot holder.
March 2008
All the hedging along the western edge of the allotments was planted by the end of February, extending down to the bottom entrance by Hill Rise (see photo). Thanks again to everyone who helped. We are now waiting for mulch/bark which should be coming shortly from Hinchingbrooke Park.
Now spring is well on its way, some of you may have seen birds beginning to nest. We recently received the following message from the police Rural Community Action Team (RCAT):
RCAT - Nesting Birds.
"Please be aware that wild birds will start nest building in March. Once
construction of nests has commenced it is an offence to damage or destroy
the nest eg by hedge cutting/tree felling ( Wildlife and Countryside act 1981). For further information / assistance regarding wild birds and the law please contact PC 1387 Paul Carter (RCAT)."
Finally, the tracks have dried up, so it's now easier to drive up to your plot. Please be considerate and return your car to the bottom of the track once you have dropped things off, so that others can get their cars up as well or get past with wheelbarrows.
February 2008
The bulk of the hedging (about 200 metres) was planted during the last week of January. Thanks to everyone who helped. Now lets keep our fingers crossed that it survives the weather and the rabbits.
WARNING: There has been some vandalism on the allotment site, with broken glass in sheds and greenhouses on a couple of plots. If you suffer any damage, it is very important that you tell the police (try the community liaison officer at St Ives police station in the first instance) so incidents are logged. We won't get an increase in police patrolling unless it is registered that there is a problem. Contact details for the police are here: http://www.cambs.police.uk/myneighbourhood/nhtpage.asp?teamcode=431. Finally let a member of the allotment association know if you experience any vandalism, and then we can keep everyone informed.
January 2008
Work has finally begun on laying a boundary hedge on the western side of the allotments (as of 17th January). Plants will be delivered this week and heeled in on plot 90. Once these have been delivered, any volunteers can go up and plant a batch whenever they have time. Ideally they need to be planted by mid February (avoiding any days when the ground is frozen).
There will be 1200 plants, of which 2/3 will be hawthorn and 1/3 mixed native hedging species including blackthorn, dog rose, guelder rose, field maple and hazel nut. This will be enough for two rows of 300m in length, plants spaced 50 cm apart. Refer to our chairman (Allan) for further instructions (email him and check the forum; there may be some comments on line). In time, this should become a good windbreak, as well as a place for birds to nest. Thanks to Hunts DC for supplying the plants and to the St Ives TC groundsmen for preparing the land in December.
Other points of note this month: You will be aware that with the heavy rain there is much ponding around the site. Please, more than ever, try to avoid driving your cars up the tracks. Any unmetalled tracks really will not take vehicles at this time of year, and if you do try and drive on them you will make them worse for everyone else.
Finally, days are getting longer, spring is on the way and the cockerels are starting make themselves heard. While we were starting the hedging work, some of us watched a fox tracking across the field to the north of the allotments. Let's hope he keeps away from those plots with chickens!
(Click to enlarge)
|
