Allotment geekery

Less than a week to go before I start my San Diego adventure!  I am so excited but stressed as well, there is so much to do before I go and both MozzyMr and I have caught a cold.  It's like we're competing for most disgusting nose blow, or loudest cough the whole time.  On top of that I've bruised a bone in my foot, I'm not even sure how I've managed it but it has kept me from the gym and I was counting on these last few classes before I fly out to calm me down!

Last weekend we were in London attending Secret Cinema (which was awesome!) so all the allotment work that has been piling up is being condensed into this weekend.

The allotment is just bursting with all sorts of gorgeousness at the moment, these little flowers are everywhere at the moment, as are buttercups is that a thing this year?  I see them in abundance everywhere I turn.

This year I am trying my hand at companion planting, in this raised bed we have shallots and carrots.  Monty says the smell of the shallots should deter carrot root fly, as most of my crop of carrots were attacked last year I'm hoping this works... At any rate the shallots are popping up and doing well so that's good :)

The apples have started to make an appearance, we might give cider vinegar a try this year.  

That's a whole lotta egg shells right there.  We've been saving them up since the autumn (giving each shell a thorough wash before crushing and storing) so we can protect our runner beans from slug attack.  Since owning an allotment you start reusing things more and more, seemingly everything that is thrown away can be used in one way or another on the plot!