A lovely morning spent with Abbey People at Fox Den Community Allotment nourishing and clearing the beds ready for planting. It was atmospheric with the low mist making it feel wintery, but was almost T-shirt weather! Ideal for a morning spent working outdoors.

After a briefing from Caitlin, our first job was to spread nutritious topsoil on the beds ready for vegetables to be planted in the coming months. We learned that the soil was Fen soil, based on peat, so not only packed with nutrients, but produced locally meaning very few carbon miles. Once we'd decided the most efficient way to open the bag (piercing it a couple of times with a rake) the spreading was relatively quick work with many hands and rakes helping.

Next up was weeding one of the planters that had become overgrown with grasses and nettles. It's not clear why, but I thought starting with the nettles was a good idea, so focused on really getting them out by their roots, learning quickly that my gloves weren't thick enough and ended up very with tingly fingers. The grasses were also well rooted, so it was quite an effort and took more time than expected. Usually liking to finish all tasks I start, it was hard to leave the bed half done, but it will be a good job for someone next time!

It was great to be back at Fox Den and we are looking forward to more sunny evening sessions later in the year 🌻