I'm in a very similar situation, having just taken on a plot and planning to be organic. I'm planning on being careful what I sow, because I don't want to sow anything that self-seeds lots and then tries to take over neighbouring plots.. And similarly, I'm not planning on attracting too many birds because neighbours might hate me if their fruit gets eaten!

Generally, plants with daisy-like flowers are good for beneficial insects (white Cosmos is great!), as are ones with umbels like Queen-Anne's-Lace. Erm.. and frogs like lots of ground-cover plants rather than bare earth, so maybe sow some green manure like alfafa on any unused bits.

Yeah, I'd probably put the bath in the ground and make a pond, but make sure there's shallow sides so that any beasties that fall in can get out. And frogs don't like steep sides, either. Depends how big it is whether you put plants in it.. could always plant around the edge outside it instead.

Good luck! (And post some photos of your new plot!)
Melanie

Ahh! Thank Melanie :) I'll remember those plants when I next go to the garden centre!

That's a good idea about sinking the bath in the ground for a pond, and plants around it rather than in it sounds good for ground cover too.

One thing I forgot to ask, where on earth would I first find some frogspawn?! I don't want to just go find it somewhere that I shouldn't...

While removing all the debris that was on the allotment, I found at least a patio's worth of coping stones, which I was planning on using as line borders, but a few broken ones would be good as stepping stones for wildlife to be able to get out of the bath!

I'll need to get my camera working, I wish I'd managed to get a couple of 'before' photo's, even if just to remind me of all the work I've done so far :-D

The council is also thinking of placing some beehives up the allotments too, which will be good, and we'll get fresh honey... yum!

Congratulations on your new venture o.w.

Before you decide where to put your wildlife strip check the orientation of your plot. Which way does the sun come from? Is there a slope? And if so which way is it? My plot slopes down to the east but there's a row of very tall houses along the bottom of the slope. This has a big effect on what I plant where. Native plants can generally cope with the darker cooler end of the plot and I keep the sunny uplands for tomatoes, strawberries etc. Spend some time just observing how the microclimate on your plot works before putting in anything permanent. Good luck. ps re frogs they may just appear if there are other ponds on the site.

With regard to your pond, you really want something like a ramp, made with a weighed down bit of wood perhaps, otherwise you will be fishing out dead hedgehogs all the time. I would also recommend that you put something green in the pond, otherwise you will have a very sterile environment for any animal life. Try to get some oxygenating plants in at the very least. If you have friends with a pond they may be able to supply you with spawn, but if the pond is right you will find local frogs will use it anyway. As for attracting bugs, phacelia is a good one. Not only is it a green manure, but bees love the flowers, also try poached egg plant (limnanthes) for attracting hoverflies. Ooh, just thought of something else, put a log pile alongside your pond and make sure it has gaps in it. All sorts of creatures will use this as a shelter.

Thanks flora uk and pond, I am taking notes of all this. :)

We have no hills or slopes where I am, so that is not something I have to think about. At the southern end there is a 6 foot brick wall, so giving me a shady bottom end of my plot, with the plot on the west side of me having fruit trees at the bottom which will give me dappled shade in the afternoons. I'm thinking of having my shed on the bottom east side by the wall, with the pond next to it to hopefully give it maximum shade. I have been told it is better to keep a pond shady to stop it going green?

There are no closing borders to each plot, just a path between each, and where I want my wild flowers is the east long side going down to the shed, which I think will get maximum sun all day, maybe just at the bottom end where the shed is being slightly shady in the afternoons.

I can't be doing with drowning hedgehogs, so will now deffinately be having some sort of slope, and yes, some nice big logs would go great too, the council are still clearing some plots, so I'm sure they will let me have some. I've already saved countless slowworms by placing them in a makeshift compost heap, and won't be touching that for a while. My son is fascinated with them now. :-D

I can get some oxygenating plants no problem, but don't know anyone who has frogs, hopefully then they will just appear. Is it right that a pond will regulate itself so I wont need to change the water at all?

Thanks again :-D

Ooo, sounds like you're going to have a great allotment! Especially with the shelter that the brick wall provides..

Just a note about frogspawn - chances are there are already frogs on your site, so if you create a pond you'll probably get frogspawn the following spring anyway, without having to worry about importing it. :)

Melanie

Thanks Melanie! I hope so, but I bet not all my plans go well, there are bound to be problems along the way... well, if I think like that, I can only be pleased with what I do achieve. lol.

Just need to get some batteries sorted for my camera, then I can show off my mud patch!

h hows it going i took on a disused allotment 2 years ago. they do seem like a lot of work but when everything gets going it all seems worth it. i had lots of established elder trees, couch grass, bind weed, docks, nettles,creeping thistles and just about every other weed you really dont want but with sheet mulching and lots of digging i am now well on top of them with no use of chemicals what so ever! i have a little pond which i get frogs, toads and dragonflies all of which are wonderful predators. i do think it is important you plant in the pond otherwise it will be a very sterile area and you will have a problem with blanket weed and green water but if planted well all you will have to do is top up the water in hot weather and remove excess plants once a year dont get parrots feather or mares tails(equiseatum sp)they are both evil plants

Organic witchhazel, which Portsmouth site are you on? I am on the Eastney Lake site, which is part of the Milton allotment site.