Gardening; English Allotments

Allotment Moments

Warm days and bird song, flower scents and digging

Turn the earth, remove the weeds, have a cup of tea.

Friends stop by and say hello and peace permeates my bones

The hot Summer is approaching and the bees can feel it

buzzing among poppy heads such a wonderful sound.

Beds to dig and plant, soil to rake and soon it's time to go

One last peaceful look around and then it's off home

in time for tea.

My husband and his friend have an allotment not too far from our house, and before I am even out of bed on a Saturday and Sunday that is where he is, occasionally I drive over later on or we go there to pick vegetables if I need something special for dinner. It's a little quiet peace of heaven, I have never heard a mobile phone ringing and everyone there always seems contented even if something isn't quite going according to plan. Everyone waves as you pass by on arrival and everyone waves you goodbye, it's a place where the modern world with it's occasional lack of manners has no place, the chickens are scratching at the earth in their coop, the bees are in the bee hives, people are digging and sharing advice, it's peaceful and long may it continue.

As a photographer I am mesmerised by the sheer beauty that is displayed in these green hideaways and so here is my humble tribute to English allotments and the flowers, food and happiness that they provide for many of us.

Well I know that we're not supposed to get excited by snails around our allotments and gardens but when I spotted this acrobatic little snail trying to reach from a leaf to the ground 2 feet below, I didn't say he was intelligent, I had to stop and take some photos and truth be told I did actually rescue him and pop him on a wall. My good deed for the day.

We recently installed a security camera at the allotment after a spate of thefts, the only thing we managed to capture on film being a couple of pigeons who love eating peas, who knew? A crow that marches around like it owns the place and a beautiful cloud of butterflies, which you can see on the video below.

And here are some of the beautiful and delicious things that we're growing.