‘Why are we going out so early?’ Lottie asks.
‘Got to water the allotments, it’s going to be very hot
today’ I reply as I unlock the gate to the upper plots.
‘Why are so many people here when they should be in bed?’ my
faithful whippet Lottie asks as she starts to count the people already there,
watering their plots.
‘It may be only 7am but some have already been and gone’ I
say looking around and counting the plot holders dotted all around busy,
watering in the cool morning air.
We stop and chat to my Vice Chair who is off later on to
attend to the Canary Wharf allotment at the Crossrail station. Yesterday I got
my diary all mixed up went to Canary Wharf to help out and rang her to ask
where she was to be told, ’It’s tomorrow not today.’
I can’t make today so I’ll leave it to her and the volunteers.
As I leave the plots, more folk are turning up and I speak
with Alan who is one of our oldest plot holders and well into his 80s. ‘Shouldn’t
you be home and in bed?’ I ask.
‘I will be when I’ve watered my plot’ he replies.
Lottie and I walk down to the lower plots passing the farm
which is just wakening up. In the field with the goats are three foxes lying
smack in the middle of the field sunbathing whilst the goats occupy the edges watching
them. It may look dangerous for the goats but I am sure they can deal with
Freddie and his pack, and anyway they are only there to catch the early sun and
will soon be off.
When we get to the lower allotments, we find we have it to
ourselves.
‘Are we staying long?’ asks Lottie.
‘Just long enough to water and get tonight’s salad and some
flowers’ I reply tying her to her bench and fetching her pillows from the shed.
I turn to see another of Freddie’s scrawny thin furred foxes
quickly wake from his slumbers at the back of the plot and scurry off away from
us.
Watering this time of day is different to watering last
thing at night or during the day. You can hear the plants suck in the water,
slash it all over and ready themselves for another baking day. They say a good
breakfast sets one up for the day, and perhaps the same applies to plants too.
As soon as the salad is watered the snails climb to the top to
see what is going on. It’s strange they only live in the one lettuce row
although these are surrounded by rocket, basil, salad bowl and lorra rosso
lettuce. It’s great, as they surface with their little houses on their backs I
can pick them out and send them on a sky diving expedition over to the rough
patch behind number nine. It’s only fair to move them on as they probably have
a large mortgage on that house. The removal follows the 20 metre safe distance
rules for snails and slugs and I doubt that they will be able traverse the
terrain back here.
The patti pans and yellow courgettes and some tomatoes are picked,
and lettuce cut and all put into there respective yogurt tubs for taking home
and surprise my wife Annie.
I cut some sweet peas and tie them into a small bouquet.
Sweet peas just love to be cut and every day the same number are ready waiting
to be taken home. Finally, I cut some sunflowers.
‘We off now?’ asks Lottie jumping down off her pillows and
looking impatiently at me.
A few minutes later we are leaving just as some other plot
holders are starting to arrive to do their watering.
‘I wondered where you were?’ greets us as we arrive home to
Annie my wife, who has obviously just got up and was trying hard to focus on us
and the daylight surrounding us. Lottie gives her a warm lick and looks towards
her bowl to try and kid her that she hasn’t had any breakfast. I present a huge
bag of goodies and a large bouquet of sunflowers.
‘They for me?’ asks Annie smiling and giving me a kiss on
the cheek and a hug.
‘I knew there was a good reason for watering early in the
morning,’ I say to Lottie quietly over Annie’s shoulder. She turns, realising
there is no second breakfast, and goes to find somewhere among her many beds to
have a morning nap.
