Definition of disaffected in English:adjective

Dissatisfied, especially with people in authority or a system of control:

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From Latin: "voluntarius," which means "of one's free will" (but does that include enticement, request or involvement with another.)

It has been a long standing term 'volunteer' with potatoes, as often small ones are left in the soil and sprout of their own accord. Well this has happened with a few peas as clearly I didn't harvest the pods early enough. Some dried and a dozen or two seeds have sprouted.

What is quite surprising is that most of the peas had at least a four inch deep root and I mean not the small horizontal bits but the main shoot. So as long as the soil is friable and not too packed it would imply that when I sow I could sow deeper and maybe not worry so much about birds scouring the obviously turned soil.

Now I am thinking of the term volunteer and realise how my thinking is estranged from the common. I wrote my ideas on the word charity was back in the 1990's and here I find the same philosophy works with volunteer.

First I must state I would not ask for help if I can avoid such and if I do I will pay over the odds. Volunteers as in how people want free labour is a form of abuse in my world. No matter that the 'worker' considers they benefit from the experience, the company of others or the 'greater good' such arguments fall on deaf ears, and as my mother has said "there's none so deaf as those that don't want to hear". Co-operation between a few people is sensible but not labour within and towards some larger conspiracy.

Yes people conspire to do work, but these peas and potatoes are not conspiring they are true volunteers growing as they will purely for their own goals, not those of the gardener, farmer or ultimate consumer or benefactor.

Now saying the above, I have gathered the volunteers, peas in this instance, and located them in a small area so they will be easier to exploit. Poor peas, either way, volunteers or not, they will be used and consumed.

2025

• Fruit:
• Apples: Overloaded
  

  



• Blackcurrant: Maybe about 90%
• Figs: 60%
• Pears: The two trees have dozens
• Plums: Hundreds or more
• Strawberries: a few
• Raspberries: a few

2024

• Fruit:
• Apples: The two main desert trees had none ~ The rough tree has maybe 10% and small ~ The rootstock tree has maybe 6% and small.
• Blackcurrant: Maybe about 19%
• Figs: 90% Seems OK but many eaten by birds and mice
• Pears: The two trees had none, apart from 1 & 2 deformed blobs
• Plums: One
• Strawberries: next to none