I think this weekend was the first reasonable block of time that I’ve been able to spend on my allotment this year. We’ve had weeks of consistent rain, which has left the soil too damp to work without the fear of compacting it, so there has been a limit to the jobs that I’ve been able to get done. The mild temperatures however have meant that the weeds have continued to grow, and on some of the areas that I had already dug, they have been starting to show through. Spending some time weeding ahead of the forthcoming sowing of seeds was therefore important. If the weather holds mild, and dries up a bit more, I should be able to start sowing a few crops under cover in the near future – I hope!
Category: Self-sufficient
My Review of 2015
As 2015 winds its way into 2016, I thought I would sit and review a few bits of my year.
Work
On the work front it’s been a significant year for me. About 12 months ago, I was working out numbers and calculating where I might end up if I accepted a voluntary redundancy offer. By the end of July I had gone from being an employee to being self-employed and my own boss. I wasn’t quite planning things that way, but so far my new business has been going well enough to keep me working and provide an income, as well as allow me to do some other development work, but there is still much more for me to do, and whilst I need to sit and do some planning for 2016 and how this is going to work for me, I don’t really know what next year will bring on the work front.
This change in my work, although probably one of the biggest steps I’ve taken in my life, and potentially very stressful, has given me a much better work / life balance than I had before and maybe have ever had. I don’t know how it’s going to work out in the longer term, but I feel like I’m generally moving in the right direction.
Allotment
This year has been one of my best years on the allotment. We’ve pretty much been self-sufficient for vegetables from late spring, all through the summer and into autumn, only have to buy things like mushrooms and peppers, which I didn’t grow. Next year, I’m planning on growing peppers, so that should change as well. I’ve also enjoyed my plot more than I ever have. I know that sounds a little odd, but I’ve really gotten engaged in what I’ve been doing and been keeping much better records than ever before in a pocket notebook, so that I can look back and see how things have been. As the winter has approached I’ve kept a few things going and we’ve had a supply of winter vegetables as well. I’m now looking forward to next year, with even bigger plans.
Books
Last year was a poor year for me, finding time to read, and at the start of this year, I set my sights relatively low, not anticipating reading many books. In the end I’ve ended up reading nearly 50 books (I might actually achieve 50 before the year is out), which has quite surprised me. You can see what I’ve been reading on GoodReads, here.
My book of the year has to be Common Ground by Rob Cowen it’s an incredible book, which I’ve now read twice, and still dip into again and again. It’s made me reconnect much more with urban wildlife, as Rob tells the story of his “edgelands” and the wildlife near Bilton in Harrogate. It’s full of vivid descriptions, and stories putting the reader in the place of the wildlife as well as being a really personal account. I look forward to reading more by this author in the future.
My other highlights are also all natural history books, including H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald, The Peregrine by J A Baker, Claxton by Mark Cocker, and Notes From Walnut Tree Farm & Wildwood by the late Roger Deakin. I could name more, and probably I’ve enjoyed nearly everything I’ve read this year. I just hope that 2016 brings more of the same. We’ll see.
Films & TV
I can’t say that I there was anything really memorable to write about here. I enjoyed the final Hobbit movie, but otherwise I don’t really remember what else I’ve watched this year. On the TV side there have been a few things, but the one that I really want to mention is Bosch which has been available on Amazon Video. This has bought Michael Connelly’s character from over 20 books to the small screen – Harry Bosch. It’s been a great series and I’m pleased that there is going to be a second season, probably early next year.
2016?
As for next year, I don’t know what I want from the year yet. I need to sit and do some planning, both professionally and personally. Set myself some targets and goals. I might come back and share this in due course.
First Frost
We had our first frost of the season last weekend. Both Saturday night and Sunday night the temperature dropped below zero, only by a few degrees but enough to make the plot look quite pretty under its white frosting.
Everything seems to be okay, I haven’t anything on the plot now that isn’t frost hardy, at least to a point, so what’s there should take us through the winter in terms of vegetables.
The rest of the week has been pretty wet, with rain most days at some point, so this hasn’t been conducive to getting much done on the plot, but then that’s fairly normal for this time of the year. I’m hoping to keep on top of the plot as much as possible, this last year has been a great one for me on the allotment, and I really want to build on that for going forward, trying to be much more self-sufficient and live a simpler life.
Electronic Scrapbook 