Last night Rachel, Rob and Jackie went along to prepare the allotment ready for lockdown 2.0.

Upon arrival we were thinking about what we could achieve as it was a lot darker than we thought it would be. Thankfully Rachel had brought along two camping lights and Rob had a head torch – so enough light to guide the way to our patch.

It became clear quite quickly that there wasn't a lot we could achieve without more natural light and a lack of new membrane to put down!

We did notice that some of the membrane had come un-stuck so Rob was set the task to go and find more bricks to help keep it in place – luckily there were one or two around. Jackie and Rachel placed the bricks strategically to try and keep the membrane down – and hope that it stays secure until we can return with more pegs.

As we are now in lockdown 2.0, we’re not entirely sure when that will be, but keep an eye out for the latest info and hope to see you when we’re back up and running. It will be interesting to see how the allotment holds up in our absence!

Stay safe,

Our battle with the weeds at Swanswell Medical Centre's allotment continued this week. We need to get the allotment under control, so that the doctors' surgery can use it for their vulnerable patients. It will be a place for them to exercise, socialise and grow their own food.

Last time we visited, Fiona and Jackie put a lot of work into weeding and securing the membranes to stop the plants coming back. This has really helped and this time Rachel, Fiona and Rob had a much easier job. Getting stuck in straight away, Rachel grabbed one of the gardening forks and dug out the remaining weeds, while Fiona had a go with the rake. We also had a visitor from Birmingham Goodgym! John helped Rob clear away the plantlife and secure the membranes again. Rob used his initiative and used some scissors he found buried in the ground to cut the membranes into useful sizes. Hopefully we have now blocked every possible point of entry and the weeds will stop fighting back.

This has been a long project for us and there is still a way to go. We first visited just before the lockdown in March and when we were finally allowed back, it had gone a little wild! We are going back on Tuesday to make sure everything is prepped in case we aren't allowed back for another month. Clearing away the weeds and making sure the membranes are firmly secured should mean no nasties surprises when we return.

Jackie and Fiona arrived at the allotment to meet Sheldon who was already tooled up and ready to go, thankfully the membrane was still down from previous weeks!

We got to work on another section which had over overgrown since we cleared it all a few weeks ago. Sheldon and Fiona got to work digging and turning over the soil whilst Jackie got to work on the edges making a lovely pile to throw on the compost heap.

We then got to work putting more membrane down and securing with bricks from one of the other allotment users Ron. The last job of the day was to sprayed weed killer on the rest of the patch in the hope it would work miracles.

We will see what it looks like in a few weeks when we are back again to carry on the great work.

It has been a while since we have visited the allotment at Swanswell Medical Centre. We are trying to get it ready for patients to use it as a socialising space, while getting a bit of exercise. Last time we were away for more than a week, the allotment exploded with weeds, so we were a little nervous when we arrived. Luckily the membranes we put down last time had kept a lot of the plantlife away, but some had been battered about in the recent windy weather.

Rachel got stuck in straightaway, finding pins, bricks and slabs of concrete to weigh the membrane down, while Rob dug up the weeds that had managed to fight back. Jacqueline and Fiona created a human assembly line, throwing the weeds to each other until they reached the compost heap. It might not have been the most efficient method, but they had a lot of fun!

While moving the membranes around, we found a frog that was happily hopping around the allotment. After the obligatory pictures, we gently encouraged it to go somewhere a little safer.

With the membranes firmly down and the stinging neetles removed, we decided to call it a day. Each time we have come back, so have the weeds. Because of this, we have decided to visit more often. Hopefully with increased visits, we can get it into shape in no time!

Mother Knows Best

Swanswell Medical Centre's allotment is an ongoing project for GoodGym Solihull; the surgery is going to use it to help their isolated patients exercise and socialise. We have being putting a lot of effort in and we were starting to see the benefits. However, we had to call off last week's mission because of the weather and just one extra week away made a massive difference!

Last time we were at the allotment, we managed to clear a lot of the weeds. When we arrived today, we saw that the sunshine and rain of the last few weeks had brought all of those plants back with a vengeance. Luckily, Rachel's mother, Margaret, was visiting for the weekend and she has her own allotment. Very quickly, she snapped into action, handing out instructions to Rachel, Fiona, Chris and Jackie. Under her watchful eye, we cleared a significant proportion of the plants and got down some of the membranes to stop them coming back.

As always we saw a dramatic difference from when we started. It is going to be a long time before this project is finished, but each time we visit, we get a step closer. A massive thank you to Margaret for coming along! We definitely wouldn't have been so efficient without her advice.

Today was our second proper visit to our Solihull allotment. Swanswell Medical Centre is creating an allotment that their patients can use when socialising and exercising; it is our job to make sure it is cleared and ready for them to plant and create.

Last time we managed to get rid of a lot of grass and made a massive transformation in one session. This time didn't look as impressive, but we still did a lot of work! The soil had been turned over with a rotavator, so it was ready for raking and a few finishing touches.

Chris, Rachel, Meera and Jackie got stuck in straight away, grabbing rakes, gloves and forks. It was hard work, but Meera still found time for a little meditation! After two hours, the ground was in a much better condition than when we started and the allotment is ready for the next phase: membranes and raised beds.

We should be back in two weeks time to get on with the next stage of the project. Very soon this allotment will be helping lots of people in the community.