Good news. The chap who owns the plot next door has finally turned up. His excuse for having done nothing whatsoever this year to his allotment is that he is busy with all the arrangements for getting married next September. A reasonable excuse I suppose.

He has the rolling accent of someone from Liverpool.  In other words, he is a ‘scouser’ as we affectionately like to call folk who come from that part of the world. The plot belongs to his wife-to-be. Perhaps her terms and conditions for entering into marriage is that he proves himself to be handy with a spade. He has certainly attacked the plot with gusto and made up for lost time.

His saving grace is that he cleverly covered his plot last winter with a landscapers fabric weighed down with hefty boulders. When he lifted the fabric for the first time this week it revealed a weed-free soil that only required a quick dig through before seeds could be sown and potato tubers planted.

On our plot everything is slowly growing up. The tomatoes and courgettes have been planted out and look happy enough. The runner beans go in next week!

This isan excerpt from my journal found on www.englishrosegarden.co.uk where you are most welcome to visit...