There’s a tendency at this time of year to feel that we are nearly done with gardening. The summer plants are coming to the end of production, the nights are drawing in and it feels like we can start to slow down and start to hibernate for the winter.

I have never found that to be the case. We have always done the grunt work of shaping the allotment during the winter months and this year is probably the first year that we aren’t going to do lots of building work on the plot over winter. However, we are starting to think about the things we need to do that will shape next season, September is not the time to stop, it’s the time to set up the plot for next year!

This weekend, after harvesting and watering the polytunnel, I changed plans. There is a massive pile of woodchip by the gates and we need to get it all gone before the allotment Halloween event. In order for me to use the woodchip we needed to weed the paths. So Ma and I weeded at the front of the plot and wood chipped it. I also cleared the middle path of the worse of the verbena and borage, in the hope that I’ll be able to walk down it without being bitten!

It doesn’t look like much but it’ll really help condition the soil and improve the health of plot over all. We really need to do the other half of the plot over the next couple of weeks.

Over the next couple of weeks, we need to woodchip everywhere else, repot the blueberries (B&Q are delivering the ericaceous compost tomorrow!) and pot up all the things that need it. I need to paint the shed. We still haven’t sown some of winter crops and so that has to be done next week.

I’m going to take a day off next week to give it a bit more time and really get it into shape. Then we should be in really good shape for winter.