What happened in 2019...Our 10th year on the site!
January 2019
A grey start to the year, but the site has started the year looking very organised and with 6 new people on the waiting list.
February 2019
From grey to white as January passed on to February.
Hungerford had snowfall for the whole day and we had about 16cm of snow covering the allotment site.
Some of the structures took a battering, but the birds didn't mind and it was great to see this charm of goldfinches flying around the site.
We even had some sunny days in February and it definitely felt like Spring was on the way!
March 2019
Our Spring Work Day fell on a cold day, but with so much clearing to do there wasn't time to feel the chill and many hands made light work removing the covering on the 'Horsetail plots' beside the composting toilet.
As always, drinks and snacks were provided to make the 'work day' into a 'social' as well.
And the end result was worth the effort - ready for grass-seeding when the weather gets a little warmer...
The weather was very changeable, but the site was looking amazing for March - just a handful of empty plots remaining.
At the end of March HAHA hosted a Skittles evening- HAHA versus The Rest of the World.
There wasn't a huge turnout - there were other events going on in the town - but the people who attended enjoyed themselves and HAHA raised some funds as a result.
Then it was back to work clearing lots of left-over rubbish and broken wheelbarrows and piling it all onto a skip - leaving the site looking ready for the year ahead.
April 2019
The 'horsetail plot' by the toilet was raked and seeded with grass - unfortunately some unexpected cold weather didn't help the germination, but we still think it will look better than the white covering.
A beautiful sunny April day encouraged us to have another impromptu gathering - it seemed like a reasonable excuse!
May 2019
May started rather grey but there was some sunshine - good growing weather for all the plotholders who are desperate to get started. But there were still frosty nights, so plant with care... and fleece on standby!
Another useful addition to the site - a bike rack - was put to good use.
And this was the month that Marsh Lane was full - no plots empty! The first time since the site first opened 10 years ago!
June 2019
June is the month when Hungerford can normally expect to be frost free and it has been though with sunshine and very heavy showers it's seemed a bit more like April.
Great to see the site so busy and so beautiful - it's definitely more flowery than it was in the early days.
And we had our Plant Sale on the Town Hall Steps. So many donations from plotholders and volunteers to help on the day.
The colourful stall drew lots of customers and we raised £280!
July 2019
July brought us some excessive temperatures - high 20s and even 30 degrees. It also brought us our 10 year anniversary fete!
With lots of visitors enjoying the sunshine, the games,
and the snacks...
Plus, the plots were looking stunning - first-time visitors were amazed to see what had been achieved in the last 10 years.
And we had a lovely article in the Newbury Weekly News.
August 2019
Our plots were looking particularly good in July as the Hungerford in Bloom judging took place. Here are the results:
Here are some of the Hungerford in Bloom allotment winners collecting their certificates at the Town Council event.
And Karen Caulfield, new plotholder this year, won the most points. She also won the tallest sunflower competition.
Here she is being awarded her prize, though the sunflowers were horizontal after a rather windy day the previous week!
More prizes were available at the Hungerford Horticultural and Handicrafts Show.
Lots of lovely veg on show, as well as masses of cakes and other home bakes.
And beautiful handicrafts.
And another mention in the Newbury Weekly News - all good publicity to raise awareness of our lovely site and the community.
The weather stayed good for much of August and it gave the plotholders an opportunity to have a gathering, with barbecue, snacks and home-made wine.
September 2019
September definitely felt like Autumn at times, but there were still signs of Summer - at least in spots where the strong winds didn't reach!
But Ivan's vines were changing to their Autumn colours. I wonder if we'll have wine from them next year!
When the rain arrived at the end of the month it really arrived!
October 2019
The 1st Sunday in October means Hungerford Food Festival - and the rain cleared just in time for all the stalls lining the high street.
We had our usual spot upstairs, but this year we had more visitors because we had free samples of food!
The samples were delights made with unexpected ingredients: including chocolate aubergine brownies, parsnip & orange cake and celeriac & lemon flapjack.
We also had free seeds to give away as well as the recipes - everyone loves a freebie :-) And of course, our usual amazing display of allotment-grown vegetables.
Later in the month we enjoyed our annual Skittles competition - HAHA versus HTC (Hungerford Twinning Association).
We don't like to brag, but that's 3 years in a row! Well done plotholders!
November 2019
The beginning of November brought our first frost - and that marked the end of the lovely flower displays we had around the site!
Begonias really don't like -3°!
Our Autumn Workday was a bit later this year and we got lots of clearing done.
Many hands make light work and it may have been cold and wet, but Andy's fire kept us cheerful, followed by snacks provided by Chairman, Ted.
The end of the month was time to start thinking about Christmas! So a few of us went along to the Lantern-Making workshop and made HAHA snails for the Christmas Extravaganza parade.
December 2019
And here are the lanterns in all their glory as part of the Hungerford parade.
December 2019 was mostly wet but we did get the occasional dry part of the day to pick veggies.
3 May 2020