news - Ashford Allotments

Free woodchip

15/2/2015

There is still plenty of free woodchip for plotholders and Trading Store members at Westrees site. Bring your own bags - shovels are available to borrow at the Trading Store when it is open, or bring your own with you.

This woodchip is the product of tree surgeon's work and is mixed hardwood and conifer. It is ideal for paths but unsuitable for composting.

Woodchip can be collected whenever the Trading Store is open or when plotholders are present to allow you access.

Seeds are in at the Trading Store

5/12/2014

Those of you who have ordered Kings Seeds through the bulk buying scheme at the Trading Store can collect your orders on December 13th during the usual opening hours.

This will be the last opening for 2014, so take this chance to pop along and pick up your gardening essentials. You can also collect some chipped bark for your paths; the Trading Store has shovels but bring your own bags.

Times for opening in 2015 have yet to be finalised, but the usual is for the Trading Store to be closed during January, and open every weekend in February, so it is likely to be the same next year. Full opening time will go on the Trading Store page as soon as Geoff has given me them.

Click on either image to go direct to the Kings Seeds website, where you v=can order a catalogue or buy direct.

Ashford Allotment Society Pumpkin Show report

2/11/2014

The pumpkin show was a modest affair, and there are definitely allotmenteers out there who would have won bottles of wine, vouchers for seeds and other goodies if they had brought their pumpkins and squash along!

The pumpkin show was judged by Kirsty Cato with help from Vivienne Lawson as one class was very close. Tony Fagg as Show Secretary wished to compete so stood aside as judge.

Heaviest pumpkin (on the right) was brought by Brian Harvey, and weighed in at 85lb2oz. Alan Burbage came second with 61lb4oz, and Tony Fagg won 3rd place.

Alan Burbage won 'best shaped pumpkin' with this 59lb beauty, which would have won 3rd in the 'heaviest pumpkin' class.

Michael Hoban won best carved pumpkin (top right), Anna Rooker won 2nd (bottom), and Fiona Holman won third.

Gilda Puckett won 'two squash' with this matched pair of 'Crown Prince', a nip and tuck decision against Tony Fagg's entry

Gilda also won '3 different squash, one of each' (yes, that's me, it was embarassing) and donated her prize of £10 worth of Thompson and Morgan vouchers to Tony for the sake of fairness.

There were no entries in the classes 'Heaviest Marrow' or 'Ugliest Squash', so you all missed out there, folks - the prizes were there for the taking if you had come along.

Prizes included bottles of wine and vouchers for Thompson and Morgan Seeds, vouchers for Tuckers Seeds, and bulbs and garlic kindly donated by friendly local nursery Harringe Plants on the A20 at Sellinge.

Autumn Onions now arrived at the Trading Store for 6th September

27/8/2014

Autumn Onion sets will be available at the Trading Store from the next opening on the 6th September. They will be sold by the 500g or multiples thereof, and when the stock is gone, it's gone. The planting time is fairly restricted for these autumn onion sets and Geoff is keen not to have left-over unsold stock.

Varieties are 'Shakespeare' (A British bred, brown skinned variety that produces good yields of medium - large onions) at £1.40 for 500gand 'Winter Red' (with red flesh, maturing early summer) at £1.70 per 500g, both superb varieties.

Click here to go to the Trading Store page

Nearly-new, old, secondhand and vintage gardening books wanted for the 23rd August

2/8/2014

At this year's summer show on 23rd August, there will be a secondhand gardening book stall to raise money. So we urgently want your unwanted garden and gardening books! they do not need to be specifically fruit and veg - all gardening books are welcome, also books on related subjects such as country crafts, cooking with vegetables, jams and preserves and so on. We are advertising it as vintage, secondhand and antiquarian, so do not worry if your books are past the first flush of youth or are even older than you are!

Books can be brought to the Trading Store on the 9th of August, or can be brought along to the show on the day. If you have books and can't deliver them on either of those two dates, get in touch and we'll arrange something.

Bring and buy day a success

21/6/2014

Today's 'Grand Allotment Bring and Buy' (that "Grand" was meant to be ironic, by the way) has been judged a success, with lots of tools and kit - both vintage and new - finding new homes where it was needed. Plants of tomatoes, kohl rabi, celeriac, cayenne pepper, kale, courgettes, summer and butternut squash and four huge, beautiful 'Marketmore' cucumbers were brought in and have now found good homes.

Donations of gardening books were outstanding, with some really super brand new books alongside more vintage titles. While a lot have sold, there is still a wide choice of titles which will be available the next time the Trading Store is open.

There will also be a book stall at the Summer Show, so please turn out all your surplus gardening books and bring them to the Trading Store so we can keep the ball rolling.

The money raised will go towards show expenses - it will be very good to start organising the Show with a petty cash kitty to call on, rather than asking individual helpers to lend the Society money!

A big thank you to all those who donated stuff, all those who turned up and bought, and the volunteers who helped keep everything running smoothly when we were so busy!

Gardening Bring & Buy

29/5/2014

Ashford Allotment Society will be running a GARDENING BRING AND BUY at the Trading Store on 21st June, during the normal opening hours of 10am to 2pm. It’s like a jumble sale, but for all allotment-related stuff!!!

This is a splendid chance to find good homes for surplus tools, seed trays, cloches, mini-greenhouses, small square propagating pots, really large pots, heaters, propagators, nice plants, gardening books, and so on. Spare plants will also be welcome. Come along, bring your surplus stuff and pick up a bargain!

Please bring your donations to the Trading Store either on May 31st or June 7th during normal opening hours, or on the day itself, as early as possible. ALL THE MONEY RAISED WILL GO TO EXPENSES FOR OUR SUPER SUMMER SHOW.

Please bring things people can use, which they will be prepared to pay small sums for. We know you've got more sense than to bring stuff which is only fit for the dump!

More Spare Plants Swap on May 17th!!!

7/5/2014

The Spare Plants Swap on May 3rd was such a success that the Trading Store is doing it again on May 17th - so if you missed it, you get another chance. Lucky allotmenteers who turned up on the 3rd picked up tomatoes, sweet peppers, paprika peppers, butternut squash, sweet peas and Kent cobnuts, all at bargain prices. Who knows what there'll be next time?

melon and courgette plants

Bring your spare plants - vegetables, allotment flowers or fruit bushes and plants - to the Trading Store at the Westrees site on Quantock Drive (click here for location info) on May 17th. Or turn up to buy things you hadn't thought of growing, new varieties or something exciting.
Left: young squash plants growing on ready for 17th

Bring all your spare plants to help raise money for the Summer Show. Plants should be in clean compost and clearly labelled - just the way you'd want to buy them yourself.

SPARE PLANTS SWAP

29/4/2014

SPARE PLANTS: BRING AND BUY

Bring your spare plants up to the Trading Store this Saturday May 3rd, to find them good homes and raise some money for the Summer Show. If you haven't got spare plants, come to the Trading Store and buy some! Who knows what you'll find, it'll all depend what turns up on the day. Some may be rarer ones you've never tried!

If you are bringing plants, please bring them before 11am if possible (the earlier the better in fact). All plants should be in clean compost and should be labelled - just the way you'd like to buy them. If you'd like any unsold plants back please call back just before the Trading Store closes.
You don't need to be a member of the bulk buying scheme to take part.

All the money raised will go towards Summer Show expenses. The Trading Store is, as I'm sure you all know, at Westrees allotments on Quantock Drive.

New slug product at the Trading Store

19/4/2014

"Slug Gone" from Vitax

This new product is made of pelleted sheep's wool and traces of sheep manure. It prevents slugs from reaching your treasured plants, and at the same time slowly releases nutrients into the soil.

After application it swells to produce a mat that slugs just can't cross. It's particularly good for hostas!
FULLY ORGANIC AND SOIL ASSOCIATION APPROVED!

The Trading Store has stocked this after determined popular demand from gardeners who've already tried it and found it highly effective. Click here for more details

RRP from Vitax is £5.99. Trading store price is £4.30. You may find it cheaper online but when you add on the cost of postage this is a jolly good deal.

STILL NOT GOT ALL YOUR SPUDS IN? There are a few bags of seed potatoes - nice varieties - left at the Trading Store - but hurry!