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Allotment Slot - A polite request
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Message 1.Â
Posted by rainonroses (U10426712) on Thursday, 23rd October 2008
May I, very politely (don't want to share Ken's fate) ask the producers of GW to totally re-think the allotment slot for next season? I have just spent two hours digging up couch grass, which I have been doing since I took on my plot in January, and confidently expect to be doing for several years to come, and have been thinking about who this section is supposed to be aimed at with increasing irritation as I dug and heaved and barrowed.
As a first-timer, I'm not getting any useful advice and finding Joe's triumphant boasting about his successes a bit annoying. I was actually relieved when his tomatoes got the ubiquitous blight as I had begun to suspect it would mysteriously side-step Enfield. The whole slot has implied all year that taking on an allotment is easy-peasy (if a bit pricey) - slap on your compost, stick down your paths, bang up your new shed, rotavate your weeds and everything from then on is a doddle. This is hideously misleading and very discouraging to newcomers - either that or I am an above-averagely rubbish gardener and my weeds are of a different order of toughness from Joe's.
For heaven's sake, next year either give us a beginner,warts and all, struggling along like the rest of us, or find someone with a good working plot who knows what they're doing and who offers proper instruction, help and advice. Then I can stop shouting at the TV when Joe and his Pal are on, a thing I am not usually given to doing during gardening programmes and which is proving very wearing to my husband's nerves.
I know all this has probably been said before but hours of couch-wrangling made me want very badly to say it all again, with some force. Although politely, I hope. -
Message 2
Posted by Sparky (U6716422) on Thursday, 23rd October 2008
As I'm sure we have all said before, Joe's allotment is a joke. I have been constantly amazed at the apparent progress we see, there must be allotment fairies who have been weeding, planting, staking etc. If Joe can keep it going in just an hour a week, even ignoring advice from his sage neighbours - then I'm not a struggling gardener!
Good for you rainonroses, good to have a vent sometimes! -
Message 3
Posted by kath74 (U8999103) on Friday, 24th October 2008
Although in general I agree that this subject's been "done to death" already on these boards, I think rainonroses has put it very well. It's good to hear it from a first-timer, exactly the person who this segment is supposed to be aimed at, and I hope the Ö÷²¥´óÐã take notice.
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Message 4
Posted by poshHebeJeebie (U9319867) on Friday, 24th October 2008
And I read today that Joe is to "pen a warts 'n' all" book of his allotment experiences.
Published by Ö÷²¥´óÐã Books (No surprise there). -
Message 5
Posted by greeneddy (U6603838) on Friday, 24th October 2008
Well said, rainonroses. I've just caught up with last week's GW, and saw Joe trying to wheel his very full wheelbarrow whilst carrying his fork, very sharp bits pointed backwards, in his hand. It's a wonder the cameraman/woman didn't suffer a nasty. I garden with school and community groups, and the first thing we talk about is safety on the plot, especially with sharp gardening tools, and to see Joe acting like that on national TV was very disappointing. Then, to add insult to injury, he started trying to dig a planting hole for his comfrey with the fork. No, Joe, you can dig some plants up with a fork, but you need a spade to dig a hole. Was it just that they didn't have time for one of the production team to go and get him a spade? Whatever it was, it was shoddy.
Please, please, please give us someone who actually knows how to do things on this slot, and send Joe back to his area of expertise, ie design. -
Message 6
Posted by farmerfewy (U13172836) on Friday, 24th October 2008
Hear, hear rainonroses!!!
I'm a newbie allotment holder, too and wish I could follow a week-by-week, step-by-step account of allotmenteering from the very start, couch grass included! What the Ö÷²¥´óÐã have to remember is that not all of us were born with a trowel in our hand! Some of us if not most of us find gardening/allotmenteering damn hard work and have to earn our 'green fingers' through sheer hard graft, countless failures and lots of luck!! -
Message 7
Posted by vegslovingmonique (U12003276) on Saturday, 25th October 2008
Dear All,
I do agree with you, being a first timer myself. I am disappointed with what I see, but I do keep in mind
JOE IS NOT DOING THE WORK, BUT FOUR ROBUST MEN, HIRED BY THE Ö÷²¥´óÐã, ARE DOING IT ALL.
Joe just comes in, harvesting. And even that he does with so much desdain, it makes me sad.
Mo. -
Message 8
Posted by greeneddy (U6603838) on Saturday, 25th October 2008
I think even Joe sees it as a bit of a joke now. On this Friday's programme, he got the name of the sweet potato wrong, the cameraman corrected him, he said something like "er, what?" and made a joke out of it. Don't they have time to edit the programme, so it's not like a child's school play??
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Message 9
Posted by Ken-71 (U13228396) on Sunday, 26th October 2008
Reminds me of a neighbouring allotment.
Four owners.
One does all the work.
One does all the talking.
Another makes the tea and sandwiches.
And the other you only see at harvest time. -
Message 10
Posted by bookhimdano (U10771514) on Sunday, 26th October 2008
yes you need experts in their field. allotment isn't the same as mowing and hedge cutting which is the usual extent of an average persons contact with the garden.
there are lots of videos on the net. try youtube and search for
Tidying, digging and mowing - Claire's Allotment Part 1
you'll find lots of other allotment and gardening videos with new ones posted most weeks so you can keep up. -
Message 11
Posted by Eastyman (U6799887) on Sunday, 26th October 2008
Joe's allotment slot is rubbish - the re-runs of the Big Dig were much more useful.
I got my first allotment this year and cant say Joe has taught me anything to do with allotmenteering. I've learned more from the guy on the next plot! -
Message 12
Posted by Ian-veg-plot (U8368702) on Tuesday, 28th October 2008
Why don't you put weedkiller on the couch grass? That will fix the problem pronto!
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Message 13
Posted by marypoppins1 (U2341113) on Tuesday, 28th October 2008
Well said raininroses. I am in my 2nd year of allotmenteering and it has been a disaster. As somebody else has said I have learnt loads form the guy on the plot next door and as for GW I thought the old fella that showed Joe how to plant onion sets was great. I haven't had much success with onion sets and so will use what he said and see if it makes a difference. I am also thinking of following the moon planting schedule to see if that helps. I am willing to try anything!
I too have loads of couch grass as well as bindweed. After trying to chop it down and dig it up for 2 years I'm thinking of resorting to using weedkiller. As Toby Buckland says 'if you're new to gardening you're better off succeeding than being an organic failure'. Why not show us his plot ( I believe he has one doesn't he?)and what he does on it? At least he has lots of experience.
Thats enough of a moan now.
MP1 -
Message 14
Posted by londonplantmad (U2392946) on Tuesday, 28th October 2008
Having watched plotholders on our plot copy Joe and rotovate their weeds into a million new plants. Then watch those same weeds grow into huge specimens that sent their seed everywhere for all to share. I am not surprised to find those same plotholders have now abandoned their plot leaving a fantastic mess for new people to take on. Maybe Joe would like to come and view his advice in its maturity and see how many hours a week is now needed to rectify the mess. We do not all have a back up team standing in for us once our weekly hour is up. Own up Joe and admit you are telling a few porkies. As for writing a book about it where did he get the time with so much going on and who helped him?. Please save us from garden designers playing gardeners before i do myself damage.
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Message 15
Posted by Eastyman (U6799887) on Tuesday, 28th October 2008
We deliberately turned down the councils offer to rotorvate out plot to avoid spreading the already copious amounts of bindweed, thistle and couch grass prevalent on a neglected plot. Meant loads of digging and weeding in the first year but as long as you dont get to precious, after all I think allotments look better a bit dishevelled, you'll more or loss keep on top and harvest loads. We've thoroughly enjoyed our first year and are already planning for next year.
Shame we learned nothing at all from the GW allotment slot
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Message 16
Posted by bloodfishandmoan (U7103706) on Tuesday, 28th October 2008
I've seen 'Claire's Allotment' on YouTube mentioned a few times here recently- I have to say it's far better then Joe's slot!
BFM
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Message 17
Posted by marcia (U2338697) on Wednesday, 29th October 2008
Well said Rainonroses.
I don't have an allotment but could tell there was such rapid progress on the one Joe took on that he must have had a good deal of help with the labour. I lost interest in the feature. It was all too fantastical, staged and non-informative for me.
I much admire you for all your hard work, digging and digging and having to remove crouch grass. Any gardener will tell you there's no quick fix and I think you are doing so well with your approach. Your allotment is going to reward you million-folds in years to come and I wish you lots of success.
Keep on keeping on
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Message 18
Posted by rainonroses (U10426712) on Wednesday, 29th October 2008
Thanks for the kind encouragement, Marcia -despite all the back-breaking work i've enjoyed my first year and intend to keep going. In reply to Ian-veg-plot, the reason I haven't tried weedkiller is a gritted teeth determination to be organic, although I admit to a wobbly period earlier in the year when the sheer amount of couch and bindweed, not to mention a patch of reeds, was beginning to get me down. However, I rallied.
Just as a further mini-moan, I haven't been helped by abandoned plots on either side of mine, which means I have been solely responsible for maintaining both side paths and have often thought what a dis-service Joe and all the rest of the Easy-Peasy brigade on TV and in books have done by encouraging people to take on plots lightly, only to find out after 3 or 4 sessions what hard work it is, with the result they abaondon them by mid-spring, and then they deteriorate further and the poor old allotment secretary has to re-allocate all over again in December. Of the 6 people who took on plots on my site for the first time this year, only 2 of us remain; it's an awful waste.
I know the "Joes" will say they want to encourage people to grow their own and have a go, but it's misguided to make out it's a lot easier than it is;lots of people must be very disheartened, if not put off gardening for life, by the miserable experiences they have. Course, some lunatics like me just get totally hooked but I was well aware before I started what an uphill struggle I'd have. And I wasn't wrong! -
Message 19
Posted by greeneddy (U6603838) on Wednesday, 29th October 2008
Chin up, rainonroses, it'll all be worth it in the end. And good on you for battling on in the organic way.
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