I keep reminding myself that it really is just the beginning of January, the temperature is spring-like. I had to start the new year the right way, with some work on the allotment.

It was dry enough to pull out the old chard plants – they were very good and provided me with multiple harvests. I don’t grow spinach, chard is much better, has stronger taste and doesn’t bolt. I had all the plants in my large net cage –  had to do it like this because the pigeons were waiting to peck the little seedlings to death. They did it to  me last year so I was prepared.

As I was doing that I finally decided what to do with the oldest of my greenhouses. This is the only one that has a bench. I had two growbags on that bench but it created too much shade underneath and that growing space was wasted. I don’t really need a bench in the greenhouse, I have got enough bench space in my large greenhouse in the back garden. The growbags had to go and then the bench could be dismantled. Not sooner said than done. It was surprisingly easy and now I have got more growing space in the greenhouse, the extra soil was distributed in the beds inside and some of it I put on my flowerbed in front of this greenhouse. When I go back tomorrow I will try to detach the bench frame – it should be possible using some little spanners – I’m sure I’ve got a set somewhere.