Have finally managed to identify the long tailed creatures living in the comfrey/urine fertilizer. Rat-tailed maggots apparently, the offspring of hoverflies. Quite pleased about that, hoverflies are good things.
Read all about it
Allotment 76 - Rachael and Gavin's Growing Diary
The highs and lows of allotment vegetable growing in the UK.
Showing posts with label rat tailed maggots. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rat tailed maggots. Show all posts
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
About this blog
Allotments are small parcels of land rented to anyone who wants one (though there is a waiting list) for the purpose of growing fruit and vegetables, or in some cases flowers. Depending on your allotment association or local council animals may be kept there. You may or may not be allowed to build fences, sheds, greenhouses and other structures. A peppercorn rent is charged.
They were born of necessity caused by blockades during wars dating back to Napoleon through WW1 and WW2 where they have been held up as examples of English self-sufficiency and resourcefulness. But there is a darker purpose and they were used as a measure to prevent revolution following the theft of land from the working and agricultural classes by the ruling class during the enclosure acts and other nefarious pieces of class warfare from the 16th Century onwards.
They are normally 10 square rods, which is an old measure equating to approximately 100 feet by 30 feet, an area supposedly sufficient to feed a family of four.
Local councils have an obligation to provide allotments on demand, and they do this very poorly, having in most cases done nothing to meet the increased demand following public concerns about supermarket food and modern agricultural and food processing techniques.
Join us
Labels
- allotment (4)
- allotment fencing (1)
- allotment fencing pallet leeks planting (1)
- allotment progress report (10)
- allottment progress report (1)
- aubergine (1)
- august tomatoes blackberries (2)
- autumn (1)
- background allotment lifestyle (1)
- beavis and butthead (1)
- broad beans (1)
- cabbage white (1)
- caterpillar damage (1)
- change of seasons (1)
- chillis (1)
- climate (1)
- collecting wild plums (1)
- digging (2)
- drone fly (1)
- east anglia (1)
- emotional response to not working (1)
- end of season (2)
- fire (1)
- first post (1)
- first strawberry (1)
- food (1)
- food for free (1)
- fruit (1)
- greenhouse (1)
- grow your own (1)
- growing tomatoes (1)
- harlequin (1)
- harvest (2)
- hover fly (1)
- how to plant leeks (1)
- jam making (1)
- killing mice (1)
- lady bird (1)
- ladybird (1)
- ladybug (1)
- large white (1)
- layout (1)
- leeks (1)
- life in urine (1)
- lowestoft (1)
- microclimate (1)
- mint (1)
- nasturtium (1)
- new compost bins (1)
- norwich (1)
- Nuctenea umbratica (1)
- pallet (1)
- photos (1)
- pikey (1)
- planting (2)
- potatoes (1)
- radish (1)
- rat tailed maggots (1)
- scrumping (1)
- slug pellets (1)
- spiders (1)
- suffolk (1)
- tidying allotment (1)
- tomato (1)
- tomato chutney recipe (1)
- tomatoes (1)
- walnut orb weaver bite (1)
- weather (1)
- weeding (2)
- white sprouting (1)
Copyright 2009 -
Allotment 76 - Rachael and Gavin's Growing Diary
Intrepid Allotmenteers: Ray Creations. Sponsored by Gavin and Rachael.
Intrepid Allotmenteers: Ray Creations. Sponsored by Gavin and Rachael.