8th November 2008. The trench was dug for the new standpipe on 6th November by Graeme and David from the Parish Council with help from a couple of plot holders. Thanks once again to Joseph Arioli for his assistance with the digging. The pipe was laid the following day and the trench filled in. Thanks to Janet King for helping with the filling in, and also to Fred Parfitt who helped to finish it off.

4th November 2008. Final tidying up was done after the holly pruning work - thanks to Joseph Arioli for his assistance. The deer netting was then put back up by Graeme and Alana from the the Parish Council. Not a moment too soon as three deer had been seen on the site on each of the last three days.

31st October 2008. The holly pruning is now complete. Meanwhile, plot holder Ron Ufton is in the process of cutting down the stumps in the car park - many thanks for this Ron.

22nd October 2008. The second autumn project, the pruning of the hollies and other foliage along the southern border, has taken place over the last two days. The work has yet to be completed. Unfortunately one of the vehicles from the company undertaking the work has clipped (and damaged) the shelter over the seat.

9th October 2008. The first autumn project, the replacement of the car park fence, was completed today. There is still some tidying up to be done, including the removal of the leylandii stumps, plus some replanting.

13th September 2008. Fred Parfitt has spruced up the allotment seat: replacing the roof and applying coats of preservative to the posts and the seat. Thanks Fred.

30th August 2008. Blight started to occur on the outdoor tomatoes of some plot holders from around mid-August.

30th July 2008. The William Pack cup awards for 2008 have been announced by the Parish Council:

1st prize - Mr. Arioli
2nd prize - Mr. and Mrs. King
3rd prize - Mr. and Mrs Daborn

Best newcomer - Mr. and Mrs. Ringshaw

Special prize - Eve Chilton

23rd July 2008. Plot holder Eileen Ufton had a very successful time at the Ascot Horticultural Society Show last weekend, winning 7 classes, coming second in 7 classes, coupled with a third and a fourth place. Through her efforts she collected the Sandeman cup (for the most points in the vegetable section) and the Wyevale cup. Well done Eileen.

11th July 2008. Two rat sightings in recent weeks. Plot holders are encouraged to check their compost heaps for signs of entry, as they are a favourite home for rats. Look for smooth areas around the base of plastic compost bins. Please report any sightings or evidence.

23rd June 2008. Information - problems relating to pesticide residues in manure.

Plot holders at some allotment sites around the country, including a number in the South East, have been complaining about stunted growth on potatoes, peas, beans, tomatoes, lettuce and other crops.

There is a growing consensus that it is caused by the presence of hormone weedkiller (specifically aminopyralid-based products) in manure. Animal stock eat hay that contains the herbicide and pass the chemical out without breaking it down. Presumably, the chemical may also be present in bedding straw that is subsequently used in manure. The offending products which are used to kill broad leaf weeds such as thistles in grassland come under the following names: Banish, Forefront, Halcyon, Pharaoh, Pro-Banish, and Runway. They all come from a company called Dow Agrosciences Ltd. The instructions for the use of these products do say that manure should not subsequently be made as certain crops are "sensitive". You can email Dow Agrosciences' UK hotline to request further information.

It appears that most damage occurs in the first year, being particularly noticeable when the manure is not fully rotted. The advice seems to be to err on the cautious side and not consume crops from infected plants. Anecdotal evidence indicates that damage is much reduced in the second year although there are no guarantees on precisely how long it takes to fully break down in the soil. Obviously, it is recommended that growers check, wherever possible, that any manure which they use is not contaminated.

Fyi - There is no evidence of any problems at Sunningdale so far. I have checked with the farmer at Broomhall Farm, where a number of plot holders get their manure, and he says that he does not use products containing aminopyralid. Fred Parfitt and Pat Bond both got deliveries from the farm last winter and their crops look fine.

For further information see this regulatory update from the PSD (Pesticide Safety Directorate) and this news article from the RHS. Here is a thread on the subject on the Allotments4all forum plus a link to details of some of the people that have been affected.

The PSD issued a subsequent update (11th July 2008) which slightly plays down the initial fears, in particular saying that there is no danger to human health from eating any crops that are grown on this manure. A further update (23rd July 2008) stated that the approval for the sale and use of aminopyralid-based products had been suspended at the request of Dow Agrosciences. This does not mean that the problem has gone away: (a) there are fields that have been sprayed and the residue has yet to work its way through the system, which may take 2-3 years; and (b) aminopyralid products have not been banned, merely suspended. Another update (11th September 2008).

28th May 2008. Rabbit(s) seen on the eastern side of the site.

3rd May 2008. Visit from the Parish Council. Christine Gadd (Chairman) and Anne Martin arrive with food and drinks.

29th April 2008. Plot appraisals were held today.

21st April 2008. First deer sighting although it is unclear how it got in - it eventually wandered out the front door!

5th April 2008. The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead currently have 5,000 free 220-litre plastic compost bins available. One per household - first come first served.

7th March 2008. Replacement water tank and new standpipe installed. Fred Parfitt has kindly built and installed a new notice board to replace the old rotten one.

28th February 2008. Fred Parfitt has located a source of horse manure and arranged for it to be delivered. The initial loads arrived today and it is hoped that there may be further spasmodic deliveries over the next couple of weeks. Plot holders should help themselves. Fred, thanks for finding this muck and doing the legwork.

22nd February 2008. Following a request from a plot holder for a closer water supply the Parish Council agreed to provide a standpipe in the SE corner of the site. The preparatory work - digging of a trench and laying of the pipe - was finished today. Thanks go to Joseph Arioli and Fred Parfitt for their assistance. This work is due to be completed by mid-March 2008.

17th February 2008. Pat Bond has provided details of a talk on growing vegetables at Hilliers on March 12th 2008 at 10:00am. It will last for about one hour. Phone 01344 623166 to reserve a place as seating is limited and seats are allocated on a first come basis on the day.

24th January 2008. The proposed deer fence has been installed across the entire south end of the site this week. Thanks go to Joseph Arioli for assisting with this work.

20th January 2008. Reading an article on possible natural deterrents against rats which we have had some trouble with lately, catmint is claimed to keep them away. Another person claims that rhubarb leaves will keep them away.

14th December 2007. There are rumours of a possible vegetable seed shortage. Of course it could just be a cynical marketing ploy by Suttons and others but the very poor summer does make you wonder.

10th December 2007. There are observations nationwide that autumn planted garlic and onions have been very slow to start growing. At Sunningdale one plot holder who planted garlic in late September was only seeing initial signs of growth at the beginning of December.

An additional problem at Sunningdale has been garlic and onion sets being removed. Squirrel is the main suspect. Several plot holders have used netting or chicken wire in attempts to stop it.

26th November 2007. For plot holders who are thinking about buying seeds for 2008 there is a summary of a study that was carried out by Gardening Which on seed companies and the viability of their seeds.

A reasonable number of dahlia tubers have been left on the bench if anybody is interested.

20th October 2007. The first ground frost occurred on the night of the 17th. Slightly harder frosts on the following two nights have just about put paid to half-hardy crops such as runner beans, french beans, courgettes, pumpkins and squashes.

15th October 2007. Plot holder Eileen Ufton won 2nd prize for her potatoes and 3rd prize for her climbing beans at this year's Ascot Horticultural Society Show.

3rd August 2007. It has been agreed with the Parish Council that the role of site representative would help to ensure more effective communication between the plot holders and the Council. Fred Parfitt and Brian King have volunteered to act as the initial site representatives to get the system off the ground. If any other plot holders wish to be considered for these two roles please contact Brian King (tel. 07770 898873 or email the address on this page) so that a vote can be organised over the winter period.

Most people seem to be fighting a losing battle with their outdoor tomatoes; blight appears to be winning. On the positive side the general opinion is that this year has been good for soft fruit, beans and beetroot.

25th July 2007. William Pack Cup. The results of this year's competition were announced today. As usual in recent years the plot holders voted for each award:

• 1st prize - Fred Parfitt

• 2nd prize - Janet King

• 3rd prize - Joseph Arioli

• best newcomer - Alan Knuckey

• special prize - Eve Chilton.

22nd July 2007. Friday's Storms. Although we did not suffer nearly as badly as those poor people in Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire and Worcestershire, the site still looked quite similar to how it did in late February and early March, very wet and a bit quagmire(ish) in places. The soil is almost unworkable.

10th July 2007. Hail Damage. They say that things come in threes (well at least I do); deer problems, then blight, and now hail damage! The thunderstorm late yesterday afternoon was accompanied by sizeable hailstones. Young foliage, particularly on those crops with papery leaves, have been significantly damaged; they look shredded. Squashes look to have sustained the most damage, followed by cucumbers that are being trailed along the ground - those that are growing up canes have fared slightly better, presumably the upper foliage protected the lower leaves to some degree. Other crops have also been damaged, albeit less severely.

9th July 2007. Potato blight now appears to have affected everybody with maincrop potatoes. One suggestion to protect the crop that has already formed (the overdose of rainfall has at least ensured a reasonable volume despite the fact that we are only just into July) is to cut down the foliage to ground level and leave the plants at least 15 days to allow skins to form on the potatoes before harvesting them.

Outdoor tomatoes are also being affected; one plot holder has just lost all his Tamina plants. Fantasio, which has some resistance to blight and is being grown by at least three plot holders, seems to be holding its own so far. Spraying with copper fungicide (bordeaux mixture) will probably be necessary to keep the blight at bay. Monitor your plants every couple of days and remove any diseased foliage as soon as possible.

It goes without saying that all diseased foliage should be destroyed.

8th July 2007. The deer is still around despite various obvious points of entry to the site being plugged.

29th June 2007. Deer spotted down the far (east) end of the site yesterday. It has been causing a lot of damage over the past few days, taking a particular liking to runner bean plants. One plot holder has had her plants stripped bare. It ran off across the ditch in the south eastern corner where the site borders the adjacent property and the farm field. Netting has been put up here on the far side of the ditch in an attempt to block this particular means of entry. It would help if any future sightings are reported, particularly details of where it leaves the site.

28th June 2007. Warning. First signs of what may be late potato blight observed on some main crop varieties. It is suggested that plot holders monitor the situation closely over the next couple of weeks to validate this claim. Useful fact sheets on potato diseases can be found here (RHS) and here (HDRA).

19th June 2007. Rodney Stubblefield, a new parish councillor, has recently been given responsibility for looking after the allotments.

8th June 2007. There have been a number of visits from deer recently. Damage has included: neatly taking the hearts out of lettuces; and grazing on new shoots of soft fruit, peas and runner beans (the last is a new departure). Joseph Arioli and Fred Parfitt have blocked the most obvious source of entry, the ditch adjacent to the school field, with chicken wire. We shall have to see if that solves the problem.

8th June 2007. Gooseberries and strawberries are just about in season. With this in mind a recipe for gooseberry fool has been added to the recipes page. More recipes please!