Joe Swift's Design Tips for Small Gardens:

Make a master plan before you begin.
















Break the garden up into three distinct areas to make it more inviting to explore.  For example have stepping stones through plants in the central space, and sunny and shady sitting areas at either end.








Create a sense of space by taking paving the full width of the garden






Incorporate diagonals, angles and asymmetry in the design to disguise the rectangular shape of the garden and make a more interesting route through it. 






Introduce variety by having changes in level - old railway sleepers are an easy construction material and don't usually need foundations.















A good lawn is high-maintenance: think hard about whether you want one, and if you do, ensure there is a way of walking down the garden without having to step on the lawn when wet or frosty. 

Non-allotment page
Now we're moving away and have passed on our allotment - hopefully to people who are as keen as we were - I realise just how much fruit and vegetables we harvested.  
We're now having to to out and BUY stuff!
There may be fewer snails and other creepy crawlies in our veg (and less mud), but doesn't taste nearly as good.  Gone is the pleasure of harvesting something we've sown and tended.
There's nowhere to escape when I fancy a break and a chat with like-minded vegetable-growers.

So, having an allotment isn't just about hard work, eating fresh fruit and vegetables in season.  It's also about friendship and camaraderie  and that I'm going to miss greatly.

 A sad farewell to our allotment.  We've worked hard for over two years to tame the beast and had largely succeeded.  We also erecting a super summerhouse-type shed, complete with water butts and paved seating area.  

Now it's time to hand over to new people and, although it's a relief as we have so much to do packing up to move away, it's still with great regret that we handed the keys back yesterday.
We did one last picking: broad beans, strawberries, lettuce and onions. Also lifted some comfrey (see above), strawberry plants, raspberry  and blackberry canes and two blueberry plants to take to the next place.
The new people seem very keen so I feel that they will continue the good work.

Now we're looking forward to making some raised beds and finding a nice sunny wall to start growing more fruit and vegetables for us, although perhaps not on such a grand scale.
The end of an era ....

Skin Savers

• Avocados - for vitamin E
• Porridge - de-stressing foods (less stress=fewer wrinkles) which also contain silicon important for maintaining collagen that fills out the shape of your face.
• Cherries and strawberries for vit C and bioflavinoids, to protect tiniest blood vessels and prevent unsightly thread veins.
• Selenium-ACE for extra skin nutritient.

See: http://www.savingaddiction.com/?p=24150 and http://www.choosecherries.com/health/main.aspx


Anti ageing

• Oily fish - protect joins, ligaments and muscles.
• Soya milk, tofu, soya beans - plant hormones which counteract problems of menopause and protect against osteoporosis.
• Tropical fruits - pineapple, mango, kiwi, paw paw and passion fruit
• Green leafy vegetables - spinach, kale and pak choi.
• Cod liver oil
• Swiss Bio-Strath Elixir

Disease Defiers

• Prunes and blueberries
• Cabbage, tomatoes and watercress
• Brazil nuts and pumpkin seeds
• Shellfish
• Wholegrain cereals