Page 5 - ALG Issue 2 2021

Chairman’s
Made in the UK
@wmjamesandco
William James & Co, Gore Cross Business Park, Corbin Way, Bridport, Dorset DT6 3UX
comments
The snow and frost may have finally gone. Gardeners all over the country are preparing seed beds, sorting packets and planning their gardens. Serious show growers have already begun to nurture the champion onions and leeks for those autumn shows that they hope will take place. The old growers on my allotment used to say to sow onions on the shortest day, to harvest on the longest day. I wonder if that still holds true?
Hope is the abiding focus of most growers at this time. The first hope is that all their sowings will be fruitful, and nature will again provide her miracle
as that tiny seed grows into a mature plant. The second hope is the hope of the whole country that the coronavirus in its various strains will fade away and everything will return to normal.
Some normalcy, albeit at a two- metre distance, has returned. The potato orders were collected from the
Fruit & Vegetable Cages & Netting
allotment shop, with strict COVID rules being observed. The new plotholders who have never grown potatoes want to know what to do next:
“Can I plant them now?”
“What’s this chitting I’ve heard about?” “What’s an early potato?”
This is probably the same on most allotments; newcomers need advice from old hands – a little more difficult under the regulations, but still important. New allotment holders are the lifeblood of the organisation. I am pleased to say that there has been a steady increase in membership over the lockdown period.
This is mirrored with a parallel growth in the number of sites, parish councils and local groups joining the National Allotment Society, and at only £3 per member per year it has got to be one of the best deals ever and can give you free personal liability insurance for yourself on your plot if you want it.
The old growers on my allotment used to say to sow onions on the shortest day, to harvest on the longest day. I wonder if that still holds true?
The National Society has been approached by a group offering gardening therapy for ex-military personnel, and although we do not have spare allotments and sites where they can operate, there are a few around
the country and the work they do recognises what we have always known: gardening is good for the body, the mind and the soul. We should hear more from Veterans’ plots and the Defence Gardening Scheme in future editions.
Boris has outlined a possible timetable for the easing of restrictions, but I think it would be best if gardeners (especially older gardeners) take it steady, keep your distance, use your common sense and avoid rave-ups in the radish beds.
Take care and keep safe.
John Irwin
Girftdaen
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