Page 25 - ALG Issue 1 2017

Q&MAike Thurlow...
I have tried to select questions that may be topical and cover most aspects of the vegetable garden/ allotment. Allotment gardening covers a wide range of interests; if you want to include any other areas of gardening please send your questions in.
QDear Mike. I have been asked by our chairman to source a course for weedkilling on the allotments which will give him a certi cate to be able to use and purchase
certain weedkillers, as by law now you have to hold one of these certi cates. I am not sure if it is best to do a PA1 and a PA6 course with City and Guilds. We are looking for courses held in Kent I wonder if you have any courses that you could recommend.
Many thanks, Mary Hunt
AHello Mary. Thank you for your enquiry regarding a NPTC spraying certi cate. I congratulate your association on its responsible approach to the safe use of chemicals. You will need to obtain PA1 quali cation (theory) that then allows you to proceed towards gaining the PA6 (Practical) use of a handheld applicator certi cation.
Just for your information; the grandfather rights expired on 26th November 2015. From this date it is illegal to use/apply professional pesticides without having the required NPTC quali cation. It is also now an offence for anyone to purchase pesticides authorised for professional use unless they have ensured that the intended user has the appropriate certi cate.
All of the information that you require can be found on the NPTC website www.nptc.org.uk.
QHello Mike. On our allotments we have a couple of plants which are causing us some dif culty and I wondered
if you could tell me if there is a list of plants which are
considered unsuitable for allotments.
Our problem is that in both cases the plants are on a
plot which, how can I put this, is owned by one of our more intransigent gardeners and before we tackle the problem we are trying to put together a sound reasoned argument for asking for their removal.
The plants concerned are a rather tall Silver Birch and some bamboo. Neighbouring gardeners are worried that the bamboo will spread and think that the Silver Birch will affect the light getting to their crops.
Thanks in advance for any information you may be able to give us.
A
Thank you for your email. Allotments were created to grow food crops (mainly soft fruit, vegetables, rabbits and chickens)
and this is still the case. Plots are to be kept in cultivation and their management should not cause a nuisance to neighbouring plot holders or to the detriment of the site.
Both the cases you describe are a agrant abuse of the spirit of the 1950 Allotment Act. A birch tree by any stretch of the imagination is not a food crop; it is a pioneer tree that grows quickly, providing shelter for other slower growing trees. They are also shallow rooted and rob the soil of moisture and nutrients. The birch is notorious for attracting and supporting vast quantities of aphids.
Bamboos have rhizotomus root systems that are invasive and extremely tough to dig out. Once again, they rob the soil of moisture and nutrients and represent more of a shade problem than the birch.
There is no reason that the situation should be tolerated any longer than is necessary. There is also the possibility that if the current plot holder/s vacate the allotment, it will be unusable for the following tenant until the tree and bamboo have been removed and the soil restored.
I hope that this response is of some use to you.
Q
Dear Mike. One of our members is looking to purchase wild ower turf – do you have any recommendations for this?
Kind Regards, Christian Kirkpatrick
the cutters to (2”) and stand back. It is important to use a box to collect the grass cuttings or rake them up. If the clippings are left
to break down they help to raise the fertility of the soil. I have done this and it has resulted in clover, bugle, dandelions and buttercups growing spontaneously. Wild owers should re ect the local ora and not include ‘pretty’ owers. I can supply a list of British natives to over sow the existing lawn.
A
I have the following addresses that may be worth exploring: www.tur and.co.uk, www.wigglywigglers.co.uk and www.
spooners-turf.co.uk.
The cheapest and easiest way is to stop feeding the lawn, raise
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