It is Bank Holiday Monday and the day I actually start working on my first ever allotment and I am really excited.

Although the village where I live has been asking for an allotment site for 30 years ago it wasn't until 5 years ago that our village formed a society. Although there is a requirement to provide allotments once so many people show interest it is a completely different issue finding suitable land. You may look out and see lots of rural land and think no problem. However that land may already be earmarked for development or other activities.

Enough! We have the land and with effect from the 2nd April 2010 we have been allowed on to it. Great excitment at being a brand new Allotmenteer, but also quite daunting to see this 10M by 15M patch of bare land.

What shall we grow and more importantly where shall we put it? What conditions do the seed's, tubers etc need? This really is quite confusing.

I have always grown some vegetables in the garden but on a small scale. I now have the room to grow lots of lovely crops but we need to eat those crops too so no point in growing something we can't eat! Oh decisions, decisions.

After much deliberation we, my husband and I headed off to the garden centre yesterday with a view to buying both seed potatoes and asparagus crowns. This we did but also came back with blackberry, loganberry and raspberry canes.

So what to do today. The first job is to mark out the plot with string and create path/walkways and areas of land which once turned over can be used to plant crops.

I have decided there is no point in trying to dig over the entire plot to begin with. Rather than to create areas and then decide what to plant and then dig that area over and plant the designated crop. Making sure that all the nutrients and conditions are in place for that particular crop.

My priority today is an asparagus bed. A vegetable which the whole family enjoys but it takes a minimum of 2 years before it can be harvested and more importantly it is recommended that the last planting takes place in April and we are already in April!

Yes I am in this for the long haul and feel very privileged to have been given this opportunity in life.

I will let you know how I get on tomorrow....