Trinley Braes allotments.
A small allotment site in Knightswood Glasgow.
We are a group of allotment holders on a hillside in Glasgow. We are around 30 in number, though we do have a communal plot where our poly- tunnel is situated
to use for the production of produce that requires a little more protection than our other staples.
We have tried over the years to encourage other members to avoid using chemical weed control and promote companion planting and organic pest control.
We have a core of long term plot holders but in recent years the change in members is considerable, it is no longer the bastion of aging husbands getting out from under the wife's feet but more the young family, who are aware of the need to know how and where their food is coming from.
August 24th
Sunday I would have been up much earlier but got caught up with chores and the closing stages of the Olympics it was a wonderful spectacle. Got to the plot mid-afternoon, a muggy day, but no rain. The wildlife plot is buzzing, I realise it is a little wild, the bees are going mad for the nectar rich plants particularly the mint we planted that is now in flower and the nectar rich plants Alistair and others have put in. I love the old barrow, abandoned ,now full of flowers.
It will need clearing up a little eventually, I shall let all know nearer the time.
Still no news about the toilet facilities, I can only apologize for raising hopes that there was this facility to be made available.
I have asked for the skip to be removed, I would like to have another delivered as there is so much stuff still to be disposed off. Take care when dropping stuff off, Martin reckons there is a wasp nest in the vicinity.
We have a potential supply of blue bins and pallets has anyone got access to a van to pick them up from finneston?
August 17th
Saturday Wendy and Michael popped into the shop they were going to take the opportunity to strim while the rain was off. The weeds have grown at such a rate over the last couple of weeks you turn around and they are knee high. I went up on Sunday well it was a choice between ironing or the plot. The morning was not very promising but as the day progressed the sun began to shine and it continued all afternoon and was very warm. I picked fruit, dug more potatoes. spent an hour or so podding beans and started the big tidy up. It was glorious.
Yet again there were only a few people up, I think part of the reason was the schools going back this week so it is off to the shops for the school uniforms or spending a last weekend together .
When I was leaving my attention was caught by a sea of colour down on the braes. The meadow planting that the council has done has come into flower it is quite beautiful a swathe of wild flowers in a sea of golden grasses. I took some photos and walked round to see how the other areas have developed. En route I met a lady over visiting from Australia she too was taking photos and we had a chat about the planting programme and of course the views from the top of the hill, she was well impressed. As usual she could not believe how green the city is.
All in all a lovely day, as usual there are new photos in the gallery please have a browse, bottom of the page .
Meadow planting
August 10th
I am beginning to wonder if the rain will ever stop, it has been a week of torrential showers. I spent the day on Sunday dodging in and out of the shed,to avoid downpours.
There were only a few souls willing to risk a soaking. Collected some more potatoes and beans, I love the little asparagus peas they are lovely steamed and have such a pretty flowering habit, you have to get them early though as they do go a bit woody.
Alistair has finally got rid of his sling so is definitely feeling better though still a bit frustrated with being limited at the amount of work he can undertake.
I have put up some photos, there is an autumnal air about the place with all the late flowers putting on a show .
August 2nd and 3rd
A bit of an unpredictable weekend, we have had torrential rain and then roasting sunshine. I spent a lot of time in and out of the shed, I have picked all the peas I can now and spent the evenings podding them in preparation for freezing. The broad beans are ready too they are a little easier to prepare, its been a bumper year for them. The plot was quite quiet this weekend I suppose it has to do with the weather. We have rented out two of the abandoned plots so hopefully they will be in production by next year. The skip arrived in at the end of last week, Tommy spent the weekend loading it with stuff left by tenants. I would like to make the point that once notified an effort should be made to assist with this job as it is unfair expecting someone else to clear up for you. It is now full and there is still stuff to be disposed off.
I shall try and arrange another skip in the next week or so , also please ensure no vegetation is placed in this facility.
We have now a new supplier of blue bins , there may also be pallets available for new compost bins. We were considering using them for communal composting, so please watch out for information either on the notice board or online.
I hope your crops have been a great success its now time to reap the benefits of all the hard work you put in at the beginning of the year.
There are new photos in the gallery can you spot your plot ? see the bottom of the page I was thinking of doing a cd of photographs of this year, if you would like a copy please send me a note and I shall get them to you.
The strimmer is now available for delivery ,I got my car fixed ,so just give me a call and I can deliver.
July 27th
Its incredibly hot and thundery, the polytunnel is almost full not much room left now. I spent a while watering but it seems to make little difference as the ground is still very dry . I had thought the plot would be busy, given the heat there was no incentive to work , I think I would have preferred to be down the coast if I could. Catastrophe this evening I was last to leave and when I went to start the car - nothing !! Had to phone the rescue service , it eventually got going and I coaxed it home but as soon as I switched the engine off it died again think I am going to need a new battery. So if you are looking for the strimmer in the next few days I am afraid you will have to arrange for pick up.
July 21st
Its The Glasgow fair weekend, The start of the traditional fortnight holiday, not that it is "the fair" any more the city used to close down all factories and industry would cease for the break. Now we have a holiday Monday.
It was not a very good start to the weekend Friday and Saturday were cool,windy and cloudy but Sunday showed signs of improvement. Holiday Monday started off fantastic, got all my chores out of the way and was at the plot for lunchtime.Took a wee picnic as Lizzi had supplied lunch yesterday. It was glorious the wind had died down and the sun was shining, I tied my tomatoes up and gave all in the polytunnel a good soak. Weeded and tidied up the straggly bits left by the flowers, then spent a while down at the wildlife pond watching pond life. Late afternoon the weather changed and it clouded over again,the wind came back,what a lovely afternoon.
I lifted some potatoes and was very pleased with the results, I coaxed Lizzi and Jake to do the same they are great no slugs yet !
I spent the rest of the day picking fruit berries. I like to have them in the morning with greek yogurt and honey, much cheaper at the plot ,normally I have to buy them in sainsburys .
New photos in the gallery.
JULY 12-13th
was a very hot weekend,just spent our time weeding and watering ,strimmer was busy clearing weeds that had a got a wee bit out of control, strange how the weeds grow so high drowning our lovingly protected vegetable plants .
I took a ton of photos on Sunday I have put them in the gallery (bottom of the page ) do please have a look .If you have a few snaps you would like put into our gallery Please just e-mail them to me I would love the world to see how fabulous our wee plot is .
Alistair continues to recover and is determined to continue his usual routine.
July 8th
I am putting the broad bean pate online as I have some requests for the recipe,it looks like its going to be a good bean year.
Thanks to Heather and Nigella (feast) for this.
300g of podded beans
1 clove of garlic
4tablespoons of grated pecorino (or parmesan)
small handful of mint
1 teaspoon of sea salt
zest and juice of lemon
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
loads of tasty bread
put the podded beans in a processor,mince or grate the garlic, add mint and salt ,blitz to a rubble.
add cheese,zest and juice of lemon, grind in some pepper and blitz again.
scrape down,put the lid on and with motor running add olive oil.
toast bread and while still warm smear on the green paste.
I cut down the amount of cheese and added some pine nuts, I hope you enjoy eleanor
Anyone else got some tasty specials they use for plot produce ?
send me them and I shall put them up.
July 2nd
At The plot this weekend delighted to see Alistair out and about ,he is looking so much better than the week before when I saw him in the hospital. He is still not able to manage any heavy work but had managed to plant another section of the wildlife plot ,it took him hours. He asked me to pass on his thanks to all who have helped and thanks to all for the cards and good wishes .Particularly Martin for driving him to the docs and the shops.
It is still chilly and wet though everything is looking well, strawberry crops look like they are going to be fantastic all we need is a wee bit sunshine to sweeten them up. The soft fruit in general looks like we are going to have a bumper year, I think I shall make jam.
June 21st
Summer solstice, its the longest day this week we have had some long awaited rain, no doubt the weeds and slugs have enjoyed the wet weather too. I have had a very busy week and have been unable to get to the plot as much as I would like. I just hope the plants have survived. I shall be popping up later to survey the carnage. You may have noticed a lot of our photos are not back online yet I am hoping that I shall get that fixed over the next few days. please bear with me the upgrade on the site did not go as planned and a lot of our snaps disappeared fortunately I keep a back up , so it just means I have to upload them again. This is a little time consuming, it will all be back to normal soon ! If I can get it organised I was hoping to put an album up online for your perusal . Its decidedly chilly today got my cardigan back out heres hoping its a temporary glitch.
JUNE 15th
Poor Alistair has been involved in a bus crash he has broken his collar bone and punctured a lung. He is going to be out of action for a wee while. I am looking for volunteers to assist in keeping his plot going over the next few weeks. If you can donate a bit of your time it would be fantastic. Its just to make sure his plot is watered and weeded, and the stuff in the poly tunnel and greenhouses is watered. Wendy and Michael went to see him yesterday and he is quite positive but bored out of his mind, hoping to get home sooner rather than later.
We could do with some proper rain,the ground is very dry and we have a westerly wind coming in there is a need for constant watering.
All is going well the tenants who have neglected their plots have left and hopefully we will get them rented out soon, the only problem being that the weeds are so high the plots are a bit daunting to new tenants . The only solution will be to clean them up beforehand it looks like the strimmers will be well used.
JUNE 10th
Things have taken a bit of a change today much cooler and very cloudy.Any one looking for a bit of plant protection I recommend putting tender plants in the poly-tunnel it is filling up rapidly. We were thinking of selling off the excess plants this year so if you have any and are stuck with what to do with them give me a shout and I can either pass them on to others who are in need of produce or we shall put them forward for sale to boost our funds. We are thinking of relocating the poly tunnel frame abandoned on one of the plots to the communal plot so there will be at least one greenhouse frame available to first request so get in touch with either Laura or I and we will try and sort something out. The wrens in Andy's shed have fledged now he is in a quandary should he make good repairs to the shed or the chances are there may be a second brood so should he just wait ?
The wildlife plot is beautiful at the moment please go and have a look the pond is buzzing with activity and the planting is fantastic, gunnera's have flowered and sent up huge spikes. Even the nettles and comfrey look good.
I am at present upgrading the site so don't be alarmed if things go awry over the next few days I am trying to sort all out but not being au fait with all the jargon I sometimes get it a wee bit wrong so bear with me. I should eventually be able to upload loads more snaps and do the chatty, bloggy thing whatever that may be! Along with loads more space and all the technical stuff,its going to be great but meantime its tearing the hair out trying to work it out.
Alistairs flower patch Angelica
JUNE 4th
Well the weather has not been so sunny over the last week, we have had a bit of rain finally. Though it has remained warm ideal growing weather. The plants are all growing well,tomato's are now settling into the poly-tunnel. The wrens in Andy's shed are busy feeding babies we can watch them flitting in and out, there are baby birds all around.Though the magpies seem to be making life difficult for all nesting parents .
Jake has got the frame for his all year round greenhouse constructed and it is looking good, he reckons with his innovations he will be able to keep a steady 10 degrees even in the depths of winter. We are all watching with interest.
Charlotte and Rob managed to get their shed constructed last weekend and seem well settled in now . There was also serious plot digging undertaken so hopefully they will manage to get some planting done soon .
We have been blessed this year with a much better start so hopefully things will continue to thrive . I would like to remind those tenants who use the top gate, if leaving the plot please check and if you are the last to leave please lock the aforementioned gate. We have had two occasions recently that when checked late at night it has been found to have been left open.
I have added plot pictures to the album on the contact us section of the site , it was taking forever to get them on this page so please do have a look. I think I am going to have to upgrade my webspace.
Still no news about the composting toilet installation it seems to have been forgotten about although I have made enquiries as yet I have had no response, it is terribly frustrating . The skip has been ordered for weeks now it too remains elusive.
The meadow planting on the other side off the fence however is well under way and is looking mighty impressive, we are all watching to see how it progresses, unfortunately the lovely sign the workmen installed a few weeks ago seems to have dematerialsed ! The word from the locals is that there are a few neds about who are making things a bit difficult.
http://www.glasgow.gov.uk/en/Residents/Parks_Outdoors/meadowdemonstrationproject
MAY
17th and 18th
Well we managed to get it all done on the Saturday so Sunday was spent tidying up.
There are plants settling in already,I have taken some snaps of how things are looking this week and I think we are competing with Chelsea with our green theme !!
poly-tunnel with new cover
Jake Tommy and Richard on Saturday Michael and Alistair on the Sunday weather improved a bit !
Thanks to you all for your time boys !
The weather finally changed on Thursday, it had gradually got cooler and eventually on Friday night Saturday morning it rained.This was of course was just in time for our replacing the poly-tunnel.Fortunately a number of volunteers arrived,making fast work of all the preparation work. This included removing loads of little frogs who had made their home all around the frame, work was slowed down a bit. We managed to get the trench prepared and were so far ahead by mid-afternoon that we decided just to go ahead and fit the polythene.
Wendy and I also seeded the wildlife plot with meadow mix so hopefully that should give us some more colour and fill out the areas Alistair has prepared .
Thanks to all who turned out on a chilly damp day for what proved to be a very productive afternoon.
Other news Andy has a new tenant in his shed, a wren has built her nest in it, he is now unable to make good repairs, until the family have fledged.
Saturday 10th May
Laura was up today we thought maybe next weekend for volunteer help, so if you can manage up could you give us a bit of your time and we can get the poly-tunnel skin on. Everyone can use this facility for growing crops that need a wee bit of protection.
UPDATE Andy tried the rotavator to-day we came to the conclusion that it will not go though compacted and overgrown areas so some preparation is needed before use! It is also a bit of a beast to handle so care is needed.
Very hot and thundery today we needed a bit of rain. Alistair was working on the wildlife plot again today it is almost ready for seeding.So if you have a bit of seed left or too many plants we are always happy to use them.
It has been the most fantastic week, the sun has shone almost every day. The whole place has been a hive of industry. Seed planting is well under way, peas and beans went in,the cold frames are bursting with plants. I was hoping to get the poly-tunnel back up but unfortunately we need a few bodies to assist, maybe next weekend. Alistair, Andy and I have done quite a bit of weed clearing down on the wildlife plot. The pond is looking great too! We counted 13 frogs sitting round the pond ,sunbathing .
We are hoping to get the second section cleared and seeded over the next couple of weeks so if you have any spare plants please bring them along.
We have been given a rotavator, I took it for a service last week so it is now ready for use. The only thing I would suggest is that if you think you require it please ensure the long grass and high weeds are removed from the surface of the area you are intending on working on. This should assist the new plot holders, please take care when using it.
I also have both the strimmers available any time, If I am not at the plot please call the number on the notice board and I shall deliver.
The council have been in and cleared the paths please try and maintain them as it makes life difficult for other members to access certain areas.
Wildlife plot.
Its the first of may I hope you were all out early this morning ,washing your face in the morning dew! Its a bit on the chilly side for me particularly after the lovely week we had, I have every window ledge in my house full of baby plants. I think I shall wait another week before moving operations to the cold frames, its a bit of a waiting game just now.We are never sure when the frost may return, even Alistair is holding out for a week or so , just to be absolutely sure
April updates.
Spring is certainly here everything is blooming, particularly the weeds.
We had a lovely start to this week the sun has been shining and the plots are being turned over and planted with a few exceptions.
I am taking the new skin for the poly-tunnel up today hoping that there will be a few bodies about to help with the installation. Its getting to that time when folks tomatoes are needing to get settled.
I cleared some of the blanket weed from the wild life pond this week found adult and baby newts I have taken some snaps but they are not terribly good.
Thats me back for a while I feel I have been away for months its very hard leaving my plot unattended at this time of year.On My return all is thriving The wildlife pond and all others are heaving with tadpoles.This is always a good sign as like all gardeners we are bothered with slugs and snails, fortunately frogs seem to find them a tasty snack!
I hope you have had good weather to get your crops started though I have heard it has been a fairly cold couple of weeks. I have had a few e-mails keeping me up to date I shall try and pass on all relevant information.
First piece of info is that the soil testers are coming back to do some more, I have heard from Laura and she in turn has contacted Mr Watson. This is not anything to worry about it is just part of the ongoing sampling programme .
The wildflower project is going ahead on trinley braes I shall post all information on the notice board, those of you with e-mail should receive this shortly. There is a map with the proposed planting, a letter from Robert Booth and a link to the Glasgow parks site with all information.
As you have probably noticed there has been no repairs undertaken on the fence, though I was assured it was a priority. I shall be on the case this coming week. Update! the fence has been repaired unfortunately it is just a temporary measure, the blacksmith has installed metal supports to the area that is weakest. We were under the impression that replacement fencing would be installed.
Laura has told me the manure has arrived so get your barrows filled before it dematerialises!!
This also means that we will be ordering a skip, so gather your rubbish and dispose of it as soon as you can as it fills really fast , remember not to put green materials in.
Any other news I shall pass on as soon as I can. Please keep checking for updated information
March updates.
Well for those who like to know, Alistair has his potato trenches dug. He has been busy clearing up the rest of his plot.
We are waiting for the manure delivery once that has been delivered we shall be able to get a skip for those who require it.
I shall be away for a couple of weeks at the end of the month, I was hoping the repair to the fence had been undertaken before I left. unfortunately the blacksmith has not appeared.I shall speak to Robert Watson allotment officer again, hopefully he will have good news sometime soon. same goes for enquiries about the toilet.
We have a new skin for the polytunnel, if we can we will replace the old one during April depending on the weather and available bodies.
Alistair also has a plan for the greenhouses we have been donated. Watch this space for information on planned construction work. I will also place information on the notice board.
The allotment draft strategy was launched on wednesday Laura and I attended the launch. All tenants should receive a copy of the leaflet promoting the strategy and the full document is available online. There are also pages available for comments through the 'living in glasgow' pages.
We have a couple of copies of the document if you would like to read it please give Laura or myself a buzz and we will get it to you. There are also copies available at your local library. The Glasgow Allotment Forum have suggested that all members and associations should involve and are looking for your input and ideas.
This is Annes plot the periwinkle is beautiful.
The plots are beginning to spring to life the birds are going mad nest building and the early spring flowers are showing off their finery.
Are you looking for an allotment in Glasgow? I have put details at the bottom of this page that may assist.
Here is an introduction to some of the plot holders .Alistair is one of our stalwarts, we all watch for his potato trenches being dug, and follow suit. Each year he tries something out of the ordinary, one of the most successful trials was the tomantillo a south american fruit. He grew them in the polytunnel, no-one had any idea how large they would grow, here are the resulting plants.
.
They were enormous. Eventually they turn purple and make the most delightful salsa .
I have for years taken photographs, unfortunately I lost a lot of early photos,borrowed and never returned. Here are some my more recent efforts.
I shall put some up for you to view, we would love to hear from other members I will add as many as I can .
Michael, preparing for the potato crop!
You can't say we don't know our onions! These sunflowers will keep the birds fed all winter.
A lovely shot of the wildlife plot,thanks Wendy.
Early March 2008
contact details-
Trinley Braes allotments are situated on Knightswood road,Knightswood, Glasgow we have 28 plots and at present have a large waiting list 40+.
if you wish to have your details added to our list please contact myself by telephone or by email
eleanor mackay on 0141 576 9072
eleanor.mackay@dovetails-glasgow.co.uk
if you are interested in an allotment in Glasgow please contact
The allotments and recycling officer
Land and Enviromental services.
37 High St.
Glasgow
G1 1LX
Phone 0141 287 5729
Fax 0141 287 4142
there is a large section on the Glasgow District council website giving contact information and plot availability .
This information and more can be found at the Scottish Allotment Gardens Society (S.A.G.S.)site
http://www.glasgowwestend.co.uk/outdoors/kirkleeallotment.php