Water,water everywhere...

This sort of scene greeted many of the plotholders at my site this month.Not beause of the seasonal rainfall but because of the state of the drainage rhyne and the conditions of the roadway connecting the plots. What can we possibly do to stop this happening again year after year?

The modernisation of the old pathways to cope with more and more cars and vans has meant the road is now so much higher than the plots and rain water runs straight onto them. The continuing abuse of the rhyne by various parties and the building works around the area must surely contribute to its inability to drain the water away correctly.

It is a nightmare for all the gardeners who struggle to improve their soil to see this greet them just as winter digging should be in full flow.

It's not just the rain, but the wind that drove it along too.

I had to force my shed back upright and saw the effects of the wind on severl other plots, some actaully tying the sheds to stakes and blocks to keep them stable. Sites need vital conditions to survive, such as a wind shelter of tall trees, evergreen to work in the worst times. It needs good drainage and it needs access.

To balance that, it also has to have security, hard standing for cars and good clear light during the year, including at the dark end of the year.

How do we balance all this?

That's down to the working committee of volunteers who run the site. Those hardworking people who get little recognition and all the complaints. If you think you can help, if you have ideas and the time to help implement them, ask at the hut.

In the meantime, I hope the poor folk who had to wade knee deep to get to their sheds get better luck before the next winter comes.