Digging for victory

This weekend's task at the allotment was to finish digging over and raking the final bed. We spent some very long, frozen and wet days at the end of last year digging out as many weeds and roots as we could from these beds, before covering them with plastic sheeting for the winter and leaving them.

Happily, except for one particular section the beds had remained relatively weed-free. Digging and then raking this very large bed was rather exhausting but I finished it! I also hoed between the beds at the back of the allotment where we have potatoes, onions, carrots, broad beans, strawberries and garlic planted. There's signs of life in the onions, some of the potatoes and the broad beans, but also signs of a rabbit snacking on our spoils! I raised the netting a little higher to try to fend them off but I think this might be a constant battle until we can get proper fencing and netting up...

I'm so pleased to know that our beds are at least mostly flat now. There's some serious work to do at the back and on our path, but when I think of the 6-foot high weeds we were faced with when we started I feel proud of what we've done.

This must be seriously good exercise too because I'm aching and starving after these mornings of digging, and happily demolish the giant chocolate patisserie my husband brings home!

The last bed, as flat as I can get it for now! This is one half of our allotment.

This little guy watched my progress all morning...