And she's a beauty. 10 k from home, in the rolling hills. On the way there I had to stop to let two deer cross the road. Reminded me of home. The allotment ( they call it a garden here ) is a strip of land 10' by 40', so 1/3 of the size that I had back in the UK, but that is the plan...start small.
I feel like I need to relearn how to grow some things. I started gardening proper 28 years ago. Whilst most people come to gardening late in life, I started there when I left school. Back then I mostly grew flowers from seeds and cuttings, endless clematis plants and annuals, then my passion moved to perennials and alpines. I like conifers but there has never been any romance there for me. Dabbled with heathers for a bit, they are beautiful. I didn't start growing veg until I got my UK allotments 4 years ago. I remember my first afternoon on the plot, faced with soil like concrete, hacking away with my pick, looks of derision from some plot holders. One guy who decided to lecture me on what to do, what not to do. Gave me loads of advice, all of it wrong, but I think he meant well.
It takes time to find your groove on an allotment...for many it is a solitary activity on purpose, so the concept of joining a community is slow to realize. For every chatty person there are 5 people who just want you to shut up and move along. Over time I worked out who to chat to and who to stay away from. No one was mean, but folks just wanted peace. I learnt not to talk about the fact that I was qualified in horticulture because despite the study and the years of experience with plant propagation I had minimal experience of growing food. After 4 years I gained a grasp of what I could grow and a huge knowledge of what happens if you cut corners - "I'll cover the cabbages tomorrow" result was bird ate them overnight. "I'll pick those red current at the weekend" result No redcurrents. "Just snap off the bind weed for now" result even more bindweed. I wouldn't say that I am great at growing veg, because like all things in my life there is limit to the effort I am prepared to put in. I get bored with rules and protocol - hence the knowledge of cutting corners.
So here I am, facing my first season growing food in Canada, actually further south than I was in the UK, so I expect a drier warmer summer climate. Once again I am faced with having lots of knowledge but limited practical experience. I am very fortunate to have been given a plot that was well managed by the previous tenant. The soil looks rich and clean, apart from couch grass. Couch grass and I are are old adversaries but we have learnt to live in harmony over the years. At the open day earlier the site manager advised us that our three greatest pests are deer, wild turkeys and black fly. Small person questioned her at length about the turkey's - in fact he spent 20 minutes asking her questions on many topics. He has a thirst for knowledge and I suspect he is also sponsored by Duracell to keep going - he gets paid by the word!
The hierarchy at the open day today is already evident. The wise old women are already offering to give guidance and advice ( wether you need it or not ). There is a large group of retired Indian folk who have taken a plot 10 times the size of mine - I hope they grow awesome veg from Asia as that will be cool to see. I tried to chat to them but they are a closed shop at this point. There are folks from Italy, UK, Jamaica, Pakistan, Canada and US. If we do get to talk it will be cool to learn from each other. But if folks want to be alone that is cool too. I'm aching a little from spending a warm hour cleaning 60 sq foot of soil. Only 340 sq foot more to go. Small person made friends with Lily, the resident dog, so all in all it is shaping up to be a fun season.
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