Last week was a bit manic, we had the house painted (will load pictures soon) and the house looks a million dollars. In addition I had rather a lot of freelance work arrive towards the en of the week so my lunches in the garden became lunches at my desk looking at my garden. The temperature dropped to 1.3*C but so far we have avoided any frost in the greenhouse, which given the slow rate of germination is a good thing.
Satuday I went walking for a hen party along part of the Norfolk Coast using the coasthopper, lovely weather but maybe a smidge warm! We had a picnic at Burnham Ovary Staithe and then walked back towards Holkham, not the longest of walks but a good one.
Tonight I escaped out to the garden to discover I have the following germinated;
1 Runner Bean
2 Marigolds
3 Courgettes (Midnight & Black Forest)
4 Harlequin Tomatos
6 Cos Lettuces,
And a million sunflowers, zinnias, mesembryantheums! ALso sweet peas are coming up and normal peas, although very patchy, given they were all sown at eth same depth at the same time it seems a little odd.
Monday, 26 April 2010
Saturday, 17 April 2010
Hammock up, up , up and away!
Overnight Low: 3.8C Daytime High: 31.9C
Christmas 2008 I bought Hubby a hammock from Natural Collection, Christmas 2009 I bought him the hooks to put the hammock up as the hammock had not moved out of the wardrobe for a year. Today the hammock went up and heres a picture of happiness! I had a go too and its is sublimely comfortable. We had dinner outside tonight - a first for the year!
Greenhouse got really warm today - still no evidence of seedlings but hopefully next week I will see some shoots. Marigolds should have come up by now!
Christmas 2008 I bought Hubby a hammock from Natural Collection, Christmas 2009 I bought him the hooks to put the hammock up as the hammock had not moved out of the wardrobe for a year. Today the hammock went up and heres a picture of happiness! I had a go too and its is sublimely comfortable. We had dinner outside tonight - a first for the year!
Greenhouse got really warm today - still no evidence of seedlings but hopefully next week I will see some shoots. Marigolds should have come up by now!
Friday, 16 April 2010
A day of compost
Overnight Low: 5.3C Daytime High: 23.1C
I ate lunch again in the garden today - every day this week! I have pretty much got everything tidied up now ready for the grand house painting next week I am so excited!
Today I didn't do a huge amount, suffering slightly from yesterdays overexertions. I did lay a path out of old bricks, and one wheelbarrow and a 60litre bag of the new compost which we made onto the veg patch to make a courgette bed (L shaped in photo below) and a carrot/salad bed (square shaped) which will be fabric netted to a height of 70 cm to avoid carrot fly and also stop the ground drying out so the lettuces aren't as likely to bolt. In the foreground my garlic is to the right and my shallots to the left sheltered by the honesty. I have been collecting earthworms to put on my new beds and i will cover them up until they are ready to be planted - it will be several months before the courgettes are big enough to go out.
I am also looking for a new blog template, so watch this space! I want something more ephemeral, subtle and with greater control over the image placment
and i might - just might have had a furtle under the soil of some of the pots to check germination is taking place. patience never having been a virtue of mine!
I ate lunch again in the garden today - every day this week! I have pretty much got everything tidied up now ready for the grand house painting next week I am so excited!
Today I didn't do a huge amount, suffering slightly from yesterdays overexertions. I did lay a path out of old bricks, and one wheelbarrow and a 60litre bag of the new compost which we made onto the veg patch to make a courgette bed (L shaped in photo below) and a carrot/salad bed (square shaped) which will be fabric netted to a height of 70 cm to avoid carrot fly and also stop the ground drying out so the lettuces aren't as likely to bolt. In the foreground my garlic is to the right and my shallots to the left sheltered by the honesty. I have been collecting earthworms to put on my new beds and i will cover them up until they are ready to be planted - it will be several months before the courgettes are big enough to go out.
I am also looking for a new blog template, so watch this space! I want something more ephemeral, subtle and with greater control over the image placment
and i might - just might have had a furtle under the soil of some of the pots to check germination is taking place. patience never having been a virtue of mine!
Thursday, 15 April 2010
Damn Grape Hyacinth (muscari)
Overnight Low: 6.1C Daytime High: 25.8C
Spent all day 'weeding' the front of small tiny irritating weeds and grass which invade the concrete and gravel. The house is being painted next week and I want to try and get the whole outside tidied up and looking pretty ready for the new arrival. I had to wear my ultra excellent straw gardeners hat becuase it got so hot in the sun. I am delighted by the fact that for the first time since planting the Rosemary out the front has flowered - i will post pictures soon.
The afternoon saw me return to the back and sweep the concrete by the veg patch, and the patio outside the shed as well as digging out the grass and weeds from the path. Then I turned my attention to the annoying grape hyacinths which manage to come up through the weed matting we put down under the gravel. They are a real pest, because the leaves bruise so easily they look ragged and untidy against the gravel and are right in the way of the pergola space. Other than dig the bulbs up (which I do) is there any way to get rid of them?
No germination as yet in the greenhouse - there is a frost predicted for Monday evening, I will have to wrap all the plants up carefully although hopefully the green house will protect them a little. I am more concerned about the new herbs I put out and the passion flower which I removed the fleece from yesterday.
Lunch outdoors again today though - 4 days in a row!
Spent all day 'weeding' the front of small tiny irritating weeds and grass which invade the concrete and gravel. The house is being painted next week and I want to try and get the whole outside tidied up and looking pretty ready for the new arrival. I had to wear my ultra excellent straw gardeners hat becuase it got so hot in the sun. I am delighted by the fact that for the first time since planting the Rosemary out the front has flowered - i will post pictures soon.
The afternoon saw me return to the back and sweep the concrete by the veg patch, and the patio outside the shed as well as digging out the grass and weeds from the path. Then I turned my attention to the annoying grape hyacinths which manage to come up through the weed matting we put down under the gravel. They are a real pest, because the leaves bruise so easily they look ragged and untidy against the gravel and are right in the way of the pergola space. Other than dig the bulbs up (which I do) is there any way to get rid of them?
No germination as yet in the greenhouse - there is a frost predicted for Monday evening, I will have to wrap all the plants up carefully although hopefully the green house will protect them a little. I am more concerned about the new herbs I put out and the passion flower which I removed the fleece from yesterday.
Lunch outdoors again today though - 4 days in a row!
Wednesday, 14 April 2010
Will they? Won't they?
Overnight Low: 8.0C Daytime High: 26.2C
This is a picture of the greenhouse after I had been out to play today. I have sown additional seeds, mostly flowers and mostly old seeds from our trip to Heligan in Cornwall in 2008. Hence the title of the post - will they germinate or not?
The Zinnia, Aster, Ox-Eye Daisy and Mesembryanthemum are sown in big pots inside plastic bags to try and up the temperature to enable germination. The Sweet William, Marigolds, Parsley, Harebells and Lemon Balm are in my white plastic pop up seed try which enables me to extract easily the plants which need potting on while leaving the roots of the others untouched.
The only other plants to be given very special treatment are my sweet peas, seen inside the propoagators. This year I have spent very little on seeds and gardening materials. I did buy some new seed labels and Parsely seeds which are notoriously difficult to germinate anyway and wanted to start with the best possible chance.
I am wondering about a little sideline in money earning - maybe pot up 20 or so tomatos (I have the seed left from last year) and extra butternut squash, as well as cucumbers and rom them big and string before selling them for a pound or so each through hubbys work. Having taken a gander at the offerings at a few garden centres its obvious that the only seedlings available are bog standard run of teh mill types where as I have some really interesting varieties.
Tomorrow I'm going to get the soil in the tubs for the potatos to let it start warming and turn my eyes to the weeding as opposed to the fun planting. I have been advised by my yoga teacher to practice my squats so I will do this while weeding. Then I'll have lots to take to the dump on Saturday (we don't compost our weeds) when I have an extra pair of hands!
This is a picture of the greenhouse after I had been out to play today. I have sown additional seeds, mostly flowers and mostly old seeds from our trip to Heligan in Cornwall in 2008. Hence the title of the post - will they germinate or not?
The Zinnia, Aster, Ox-Eye Daisy and Mesembryanthemum are sown in big pots inside plastic bags to try and up the temperature to enable germination. The Sweet William, Marigolds, Parsley, Harebells and Lemon Balm are in my white plastic pop up seed try which enables me to extract easily the plants which need potting on while leaving the roots of the others untouched.
The only other plants to be given very special treatment are my sweet peas, seen inside the propoagators. This year I have spent very little on seeds and gardening materials. I did buy some new seed labels and Parsely seeds which are notoriously difficult to germinate anyway and wanted to start with the best possible chance.
I am wondering about a little sideline in money earning - maybe pot up 20 or so tomatos (I have the seed left from last year) and extra butternut squash, as well as cucumbers and rom them big and string before selling them for a pound or so each through hubbys work. Having taken a gander at the offerings at a few garden centres its obvious that the only seedlings available are bog standard run of teh mill types where as I have some really interesting varieties.
Tomorrow I'm going to get the soil in the tubs for the potatos to let it start warming and turn my eyes to the weeding as opposed to the fun planting. I have been advised by my yoga teacher to practice my squats so I will do this while weeding. Then I'll have lots to take to the dump on Saturday (we don't compost our weeds) when I have an extra pair of hands!
Tuesday, 13 April 2010
Rain and Flapjacks
Overnight Low: 5.0C Daytime High: 26.3C
The greenhouse seems to be really making a difference to the surrounding temperature, obviously keeping the wind off the plants is great but I need to find a way to store the latent heat in there overnight. I have collected a lot of plastic water bottles and tomorrow I am going to fill them up and leave them lying in the sun inside the greenhouse - hopefully it will work as a heat store.
I did some more planting today, having eaten lunch outside (now if I can do that everyday between now and July I'll be impressed) I skipped off to the garden centre in search of some sunflower seeds and more parsley - can't seem to find Rue anywhere anymore. I found some sunflowers named 'Irish Eyes' which are a dwarf variety suitable for shubberies (tee hee) and pots. They are also edible as young buds so I may try some in the vegetable garden.
Getting home I realised I had promised 'him' some flapjacks so I sorted those out with a very quick recipe.
Then I got out into the garden, at which point it decided to rain. So I resorted to my deckchair in the shed and sowed
The greenhouse seems to be really making a difference to the surrounding temperature, obviously keeping the wind off the plants is great but I need to find a way to store the latent heat in there overnight. I have collected a lot of plastic water bottles and tomorrow I am going to fill them up and leave them lying in the sun inside the greenhouse - hopefully it will work as a heat store.
I did some more planting today, having eaten lunch outside (now if I can do that everyday between now and July I'll be impressed) I skipped off to the garden centre in search of some sunflower seeds and more parsley - can't seem to find Rue anywhere anymore. I found some sunflowers named 'Irish Eyes' which are a dwarf variety suitable for shubberies (tee hee) and pots. They are also edible as young buds so I may try some in the vegetable garden.
Getting home I realised I had promised 'him' some flapjacks so I sorted those out with a very quick recipe.
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110g margerine
110g soft brown sugar
225g soft rolled oats
3 tablespoons of syrup
150g sultanas
Warm the oven to 180*C. Heat the margerine, sugar and syrup together in a saucepan, when melted and gooey pour over the oats and sultanas. Put in an 8" square dish and cook for 20-30min. Remove and draw a knife accross to cut into squares, allow to cool
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Then I got out into the garden, at which point it decided to rain. So I resorted to my deckchair in the shed and sowed
- 24 Sunflowers 'Irish Eyes' - dwarf variety
- 24 Lettuces 'Cos' - will also do some of these in the ground under the fleece polytunnel but need to prepare the ground first and allow it to wrm up a little.
- 6 Chilli Pepper 'Hot Tepin' - I wanted to try these as they grow as a shrub and have very pretty bulb shaped chilli fruits. I'll probably keep a couple in the greenhouse and have the others outside in pots - they have to be protected from the cold and frost at all times - can live to 30years old!
- 6 Gourds - Seeds from either last year or the year before, I will see if they germinate and if they do I'm going to grow them over the pergola on strings with the pots in the bathroom roof.
- 6 Sea Hollys, beautiful plants and very attractive to bees appartently. I am going to plant a couple in the back but most in the front as they are more likely to be able to deal with the south facing aspect. These seeds are from Heligan in summer 2008, as are the Globe thistles below, I hope the seeds haven't dried out.
- 6 Globe Thistles - these are specifically for the cats. I am going to place them at the entrance to the lawn so when one of the little sods tried to get past it'll get prickled.
Monday, 12 April 2010
Spring Cleaning
Overnight Low: 5.7C Daytime High: 25.2C I like my new toy.
This morning was bright but cold, after lunch I decided to clear out the shed and the sun came out - glorious! Grabbing my tools and my seed box I started to sow seeds and finished with;
And then there are our wedding flowers as well to plant :)
This morning was bright but cold, after lunch I decided to clear out the shed and the sun came out - glorious! Grabbing my tools and my seed box I started to sow seeds and finished with;
- 10 Runner Beans 'Celebration' - two year old seeds but cropped well and by planting early if they don't germinate I can replace with 'Painted Lady' which were last years poorer cropping variety.
- 4 Greenhouse Tomatos 'Harlequin' - fabulous croppers, by reducing the number of plants I actually gorw in the greenhouse I hope to improve the crop.
- 6 Vine Tomatos 'Matkotska' - a new variety but I'll reuse the hanging baskets from last year and grow them around the edges of the pergola.
- 1 Butternet Squash 'Cobnut' - an old seed but going to try in a lined deep pot and see how I get on, my little sister makes the most jawdroppingly good soup from butternut squash (and cream - reather a lot of cream!).
- 2 Courgettes 'Midnight' - a very dark skinned variety, last years seeds but trying again for a better crop by planting in the veg patch rather than tubs.
- 2 Courgettes 'Black Forest' - these are the climbers from last year and I hope to get some decent crops off them this year, again by planting in the veg patch and not in tubs.
- 36 Peas 'Meteor' - winter peas but inspired by a few coming up of my pre winter sowing I redug one of the long thin tubs we used last year for onions and mixed in panty of home compost before covering with fleece to raise the germination rate and keep mice and pigeons off.
And then there are our wedding flowers as well to plant :)
Sunday, 11 April 2010
Sunday Mending
Today dawned reasonably bright and sunny and therefore had to spend some time in the garden. Its the law. The perspex I bought to mend the greenhouse was very expensive but necessary and its been lying on my living room floor for the last two weeks, it wsa cut up and screwed carefully to the southern end of the greenhouse. If we were here longer I would be very tempted to replace all the polythene with perspex - 'he' pointed out if I'd done this to begin with it would have been cheaper to buy one rather than build one.
Then having dug over the last of the vegetable patch and put up the new extra tall beanpoles in a wigwam shape ready for the runner beans, I turned my attention to the sweetpeas. With poor germination rates I chose to soak the peas overnight in warm water before planting out in deep biodegradeable tubes, I have planted some straight outside into the willow pot which will allow them to grow up along the dead branches and worked quite well last year.
I also placed the sweetpeas inside propagators inside the greenhouse which should guarentee the temperatures needed for good germination. I have planted a mixed heirloom variety this year which should grow between 6 and 10 foot high, perfect for the trellis to break up the appreciation garden from the production garden.
I swept out the greenhouse and arranged the empty pots ready for planting. I have also fixed the electronic thermometer so we can start to get a direct reading each day, watch this space!
Then having dug over the last of the vegetable patch and put up the new extra tall beanpoles in a wigwam shape ready for the runner beans, I turned my attention to the sweetpeas. With poor germination rates I chose to soak the peas overnight in warm water before planting out in deep biodegradeable tubes, I have planted some straight outside into the willow pot which will allow them to grow up along the dead branches and worked quite well last year.
I also placed the sweetpeas inside propagators inside the greenhouse which should guarentee the temperatures needed for good germination. I have planted a mixed heirloom variety this year which should grow between 6 and 10 foot high, perfect for the trellis to break up the appreciation garden from the production garden.
I swept out the greenhouse and arranged the empty pots ready for planting. I have also fixed the electronic thermometer so we can start to get a direct reading each day, watch this space!
Monday, 5 April 2010
Easter Monday
Today was freezing! Really cold but last week I was determined to get help from 'him' in the garden to move a big table and get various bits and bobs done. I dug over the flower bed and deadheaded everything, the fennel has yet again come back in force. I have to confess to weeding from my deckchair now as the baby bump has become too big to ignore and almost impossible to kneel on the ground!
I also dug in about 80% of the green manure and then covered it with weed fabric to keep the cats off, the last 20% beat me and I just couldn;t bend anymore - frustrating as I was determined but decided to be sensible. Having weeded the garlic very carefully by hand I was really pleased to see that there was 100% germination and the glorious straight green shoots are looking string and healthy despite the continued coolness of the soil. The shallots have also germinated well, unlike the broad beans which are stunted and only two show signs of flowering, I will replace the B beans with runner beans well spaced as soon as possible to get an early crop.
The Japanese Crab Apple, Elstar eating apple and Acer are budding well and amazingly I have some herbs which have survived through the harsh winter - Parsley, Marjoram, Mint and Applemint. I have additionally planted up some Lavender, Bay, Thyme (x2), more Spearmint and a big Sage into the old flower bed where this year I will cultivate flowers and herbs. The vine looks healthy but no shoots yet - still too early.
Out the front the tulips are coming along well, the daffs have barely shown their heads and the myrtle is sufferng from frost bite. One of my tasks this week is to weed the front where I will top dress the myrtle to try and give it a bit of a boost. The Japanese Cherry is coming along beautifully, the flowers come first followed by lime green leaves which turn red to last through th eyear. This year a giant sweet pea (self seeding from 3 years ago) is twined through the Cherry which is a little odd but hey - who cares.
Tomorrow sees me mend the greenhouse with perspex (tools allowing) and hopefully get the first of the beg crops started in the greenhouse. I am concerned however that it is still too cold at night for little plants, even in the greenhouse. I have held back on planting out the potatoes for a similar reason.
I also dug in about 80% of the green manure and then covered it with weed fabric to keep the cats off, the last 20% beat me and I just couldn;t bend anymore - frustrating as I was determined but decided to be sensible. Having weeded the garlic very carefully by hand I was really pleased to see that there was 100% germination and the glorious straight green shoots are looking string and healthy despite the continued coolness of the soil. The shallots have also germinated well, unlike the broad beans which are stunted and only two show signs of flowering, I will replace the B beans with runner beans well spaced as soon as possible to get an early crop.
The Japanese Crab Apple, Elstar eating apple and Acer are budding well and amazingly I have some herbs which have survived through the harsh winter - Parsley, Marjoram, Mint and Applemint. I have additionally planted up some Lavender, Bay, Thyme (x2), more Spearmint and a big Sage into the old flower bed where this year I will cultivate flowers and herbs. The vine looks healthy but no shoots yet - still too early.
Out the front the tulips are coming along well, the daffs have barely shown their heads and the myrtle is sufferng from frost bite. One of my tasks this week is to weed the front where I will top dress the myrtle to try and give it a bit of a boost. The Japanese Cherry is coming along beautifully, the flowers come first followed by lime green leaves which turn red to last through th eyear. This year a giant sweet pea (self seeding from 3 years ago) is twined through the Cherry which is a little odd but hey - who cares.
Tomorrow sees me mend the greenhouse with perspex (tools allowing) and hopefully get the first of the beg crops started in the greenhouse. I am concerned however that it is still too cold at night for little plants, even in the greenhouse. I have held back on planting out the potatoes for a similar reason.
Friday, 2 April 2010
Good Friday
Today was the first of our joint tentings of 2010 - I have had a great day out on the river a few weeks ago in the canoe but today we went with a crowd of people and many dogs up to Sheringham Park for a walk along to the viewtower which 'he' didn't climb due to his dislike of heights but I went up and in great tradition saw the North Norfolk Steam train pass by below - choo choo - in clouds of steam. We then headed for the coast and walked along to Sheringham whereupon we walked down the High Street searching for lunch, somewhere to seat 12 people and 9 dogs is hard to come by. Luckily the Lobster had plenty of seats outside and a great lunch was had before trekking back in less than perfect weather. Will most certainly do the walk again soon as it was a really good one.
Tuesday, 30 March 2010
Spring is on its way
Symbolised every year by my Japanese Cherry which is in the front south facing garden coming into flower. The buds have been ready a few days but it has taken it time flowering.
Sunday, 21 March 2010
Hello garden my old friend, I've come to grow in you again
Last week I made a list of all the things which needed doing in the garden before I could get down to the proper growing season. The list was long and to make myself feel better about it I typed it up and made the font small enough so that the list could fit on one page of A4, since then i have had to add to the list but it was a step in the right direction.
We went up to our local garden centre today, the sun was so bright and warm and the entre is enclosed on three sides by trees so its almost like sitting in a forest. We are quite partial to the meals at the little cafe and today with the sun on our backs, birds singing and some very bumbly bumblebees pottering around while we munched on a toasted snrwich it was heaven. I also picked up the only two packets of seeds i have had to buy this year (tidying the shed and cupboards over winter brought forth a vast array of seeds!), my tomatos, Harlequins for the greenhouse and Maskotka for the pots and hanging baskets.
With bright weather and only a couple of wet spells since last weekend I was itching to get out today. A quick assessment showed that the garden has managed remarkably well over the winter, the main casualties being the greenhouse (plastic ripped beyond patching on south facing end) and the acer which is 50% smaller after one half was broken off by a falling birdhouse. The net around the vegetable patch has been torn in several places allowing cats in which they have taken full advantage of - i am continually frustrated by my garden being used as a cats toilet.
While very understanding husband cleared up all the poo I surveyed the 'green manure' and considered how I would get this dug in most effectively, I grew it mainly in the areas where I knew I would be planting courgettes this year so I am hopeful I will get a much better crop. Until the net is fully repaired I decided I would leave it as ground cover. We then dug out the bottom of the compost bin, a fair amount of mess was made in the process! However the rewards for the garden and for the bank balance are clear to see. We have over the last year created an amazing deep rich loamy compost fit for kings (and their plants). Although some things had to go back into the bin we have about 120liters of compost which is ready to go and a wheelbarrow load ready to be put on what was the flower bed but I am making into a herb garden this year.
I now sitting here feet up with a cup of tea watching the weather forecast to see when I will be able to get into the garden this week to carry on digging and mulching, the lighter evenings are ensuring the plants make the plants make the most of the sunlight. There are several clumps of daffodils coming up and I will have to be careful not to smother the later varieties already planted in the soon to be herb bed. I also want to get rid of all the old leaves on the cordyline and last years growth and seeds which have died back. The borage has seeded almost the entire veg patch, I am hoping to move one or two of the seedlings out of the vegetable patch into deep pots and the herb bed as its a bee magnet!
We went up to our local garden centre today, the sun was so bright and warm and the entre is enclosed on three sides by trees so its almost like sitting in a forest. We are quite partial to the meals at the little cafe and today with the sun on our backs, birds singing and some very bumbly bumblebees pottering around while we munched on a toasted snrwich it was heaven. I also picked up the only two packets of seeds i have had to buy this year (tidying the shed and cupboards over winter brought forth a vast array of seeds!), my tomatos, Harlequins for the greenhouse and Maskotka for the pots and hanging baskets.
With bright weather and only a couple of wet spells since last weekend I was itching to get out today. A quick assessment showed that the garden has managed remarkably well over the winter, the main casualties being the greenhouse (plastic ripped beyond patching on south facing end) and the acer which is 50% smaller after one half was broken off by a falling birdhouse. The net around the vegetable patch has been torn in several places allowing cats in which they have taken full advantage of - i am continually frustrated by my garden being used as a cats toilet.
While very understanding husband cleared up all the poo I surveyed the 'green manure' and considered how I would get this dug in most effectively, I grew it mainly in the areas where I knew I would be planting courgettes this year so I am hopeful I will get a much better crop. Until the net is fully repaired I decided I would leave it as ground cover. We then dug out the bottom of the compost bin, a fair amount of mess was made in the process! However the rewards for the garden and for the bank balance are clear to see. We have over the last year created an amazing deep rich loamy compost fit for kings (and their plants). Although some things had to go back into the bin we have about 120liters of compost which is ready to go and a wheelbarrow load ready to be put on what was the flower bed but I am making into a herb garden this year.
I now sitting here feet up with a cup of tea watching the weather forecast to see when I will be able to get into the garden this week to carry on digging and mulching, the lighter evenings are ensuring the plants make the plants make the most of the sunlight. There are several clumps of daffodils coming up and I will have to be careful not to smother the later varieties already planted in the soon to be herb bed. I also want to get rid of all the old leaves on the cordyline and last years growth and seeds which have died back. The borage has seeded almost the entire veg patch, I am hoping to move one or two of the seedlings out of the vegetable patch into deep pots and the herb bed as its a bee magnet!
Tuesday, 2 March 2010
An Independant Crocus
I have a little patch of crocus in my front garden which greet me every year without fail, I have tried to move them out of the various paths into the bed but they prefer the path. This one however has taken it to a whole new level being almost in the steet!
I feel Spring might have Sprung. After days and days of rain and grey skies we have glorious sunshine and I have noticed several bulbs surfacing. I have been pleased to see my compost bin emptying and rich compost at the bottom which I shall hopefully dig out once teh ground has dried a little. A fortnight of sunshine but cold nights would really help my veg patch.
The garlic is coming up strongly now and the very late broad beans i put in December are doing really well. The others will have to come out, there is no way they will be strong enough to bear good crops and I have a space issue this year. I also need to dig in the green manure before it simply turns to lawn. My actual lawn has turned to moss with cat crap thown in for good measure. This year we may lay down some turf or may reseed with hardier grasses. The greenhouse has also ripped badly, now need to get some tough polycarbonate sheeting to screw on the end and make it windtight. It has done better than I expected, only the south end which has been exposed to the most sunlight and weather (wind) has ripped to the point where it cannot be mended.
Now I really need to send off for my seeds but that would involve finalising my list....
Friday, 26 February 2010
Potatoes
Are not bought, nor chitted. I have learnt from my lessons of last year and decided to leave them in the garden centre where they belong before i go and buy them to chit. This year I have chosen to just do charlottes in tubs as an early potato as we had more success with them and money it tighter with less to waste. This year the garden must be productive. I have set aside today to draw up a list of the items to buy, while bearing in mind that the garden needs to look pretty to be able to sell it. I like to draw out y plans as it makes them easier to visualise and i have my notepad and coloured pencils - so stand by for a wonky effort. Gardening I can do, drawing i cannot!
The 2litre water bottles I have been saving are going to be used to heat the greenhouse and also (as they are breeding overnight it seems) to be used to improve the flow of water to the plants roots by cutting off the borrom and burying them upside down next to a thirsty plant. This is mainly for the benefit of my beloved who can then wander the plot filling up the bottles, there are reasons why I shan't be carrying large volumes of water up and down teh garden but I'll save those for another day.
The 2litre water bottles I have been saving are going to be used to heat the greenhouse and also (as they are breeding overnight it seems) to be used to improve the flow of water to the plants roots by cutting off the borrom and burying them upside down next to a thirsty plant. This is mainly for the benefit of my beloved who can then wander the plot filling up the bottles, there are reasons why I shan't be carrying large volumes of water up and down teh garden but I'll save those for another day.
Saturday, 13 February 2010
Stirrings
So more snow. Yup. Its the third (or fourth?) lot of snow since december and although it didn't hang around it has finished off the broad beans, their strange skeletal shapes is a range of brown and yellows add a little backdrop to the veg patch, although i would have preferred to have some damn broad beans early this season!
The shallots have come up but are half hearted and yellow rather than the deep green thick shoots i got with the later planting last season. I will see if they recover and reshoot but it may be that they also need to be resown. However the garlic is just peeking above the ground and so i hope it might end up being successful, having read more about the 'ideal' conditions i should have planted it nearer the fence where it is drier but we shall see.
While poking around the ground to see what else may have died/survived against the climatic odds i discovered a fat healthy almost looking like it was born to grow in the depths of winter - limanthus. Poached Egg Plant. Well I never. HOW???
I have been saving 2 & 5 litre plastic bottles to use as heat storage for my plastic greenhouse. I was going to try it last year but never had the space, this year i am going to just grow 3 tomato plants but train them properly so they produce the same amount 5 did last year. I'm also going to work harder with the tumbling tomatos to grow them in more unusual places - watch this space............
The shallots have come up but are half hearted and yellow rather than the deep green thick shoots i got with the later planting last season. I will see if they recover and reshoot but it may be that they also need to be resown. However the garlic is just peeking above the ground and so i hope it might end up being successful, having read more about the 'ideal' conditions i should have planted it nearer the fence where it is drier but we shall see.
While poking around the ground to see what else may have died/survived against the climatic odds i discovered a fat healthy almost looking like it was born to grow in the depths of winter - limanthus. Poached Egg Plant. Well I never. HOW???
I have been saving 2 & 5 litre plastic bottles to use as heat storage for my plastic greenhouse. I was going to try it last year but never had the space, this year i am going to just grow 3 tomato plants but train them properly so they produce the same amount 5 did last year. I'm also going to work harder with the tumbling tomatos to grow them in more unusual places - watch this space............
Wednesday, 10 February 2010
Sloe Alcohol
Wow - its good. Flavoursome with a hint of tartness and both the gin and vodka have the most wonderful colour to them. They are now stored away safely for the next few months to mature and will certainly be used for presents this year.
Friday, 29 January 2010
Damn weather
More snow is falling as I type, there have been a couple of flurries so far today but it is now giving a good dusting of the sheds and pergolas as I look out of the back window. One of my favourite Christmas presents was my wireless thermometer which we are currently using in the back room to try and figure just how much colder it is in there than the rest of the house. At the moment we're pretty certain its freezing each night and so haven't tried to put it outside!
The broad beans i planted in October have given up but they get an A+ for effort, when the deep snow melted it became obvious their lower leaves were damaged but now most have shrivelled or fallen over. I will plant up a second batch in early February. The shallots are looking spindly but have survived and even though I had to look pretty hard yesterday when I went to check on the compost bin I think that at least one of the 12 garlic cloves I planted has germinated. The green Manure which I sowed has done brilliantly and I am looking forward to digging it in. However the winter peas get a -E for effort with none of them germinating, having sown them under our fleece tunnel i am quite shocked that these have done so badly.
The earthworms have taken refuge in the compost bin now, each time i lift the lid up then its a wriggling hive of activity which is great. I think one of my first spring jobs is going to be to lift up the bin and gradually extract the proper composted material from the bottom and dig the rest in. I am not certain what has encouraged our bin to start working but i suspect the worms and the increasing amount of 'woody' material we've put in has helped.
So the Thompson & Morgan + Marshalls catalogues are open on the table and I have a cup of tea and slice of cake to help me work out what to grow this year. We are now thinking of moving house so my beloved garden will quite obviously not be coming with me, although the chance to have a proper shed/greenhouse/compost stack/vegetable patch is tempting me. I don't want to spend too much money on seeds because I can't take the plants with me if (when) we move, however i do need to plan ahead in case we don't find anything we like. I think the list will go something like this, peas, runner beans, courgettes, tomatos, carrots, onions, early potatos in tubs and spring onions. And lettuce.
I might not be able to take the plants with me but I can take the slug protection copper tape, the fleece polytunnel and maybe even the tomatos in baskets. We'll have to see. Overall the idea of getting dug into a new garden thrills me but the idea of leaving my little garden I made with the help of a few friends does make me a bit sad.
The broad beans i planted in October have given up but they get an A+ for effort, when the deep snow melted it became obvious their lower leaves were damaged but now most have shrivelled or fallen over. I will plant up a second batch in early February. The shallots are looking spindly but have survived and even though I had to look pretty hard yesterday when I went to check on the compost bin I think that at least one of the 12 garlic cloves I planted has germinated. The green Manure which I sowed has done brilliantly and I am looking forward to digging it in. However the winter peas get a -E for effort with none of them germinating, having sown them under our fleece tunnel i am quite shocked that these have done so badly.
The earthworms have taken refuge in the compost bin now, each time i lift the lid up then its a wriggling hive of activity which is great. I think one of my first spring jobs is going to be to lift up the bin and gradually extract the proper composted material from the bottom and dig the rest in. I am not certain what has encouraged our bin to start working but i suspect the worms and the increasing amount of 'woody' material we've put in has helped.
So the Thompson & Morgan + Marshalls catalogues are open on the table and I have a cup of tea and slice of cake to help me work out what to grow this year. We are now thinking of moving house so my beloved garden will quite obviously not be coming with me, although the chance to have a proper shed/greenhouse/compost stack/vegetable patch is tempting me. I don't want to spend too much money on seeds because I can't take the plants with me if (when) we move, however i do need to plan ahead in case we don't find anything we like. I think the list will go something like this, peas, runner beans, courgettes, tomatos, carrots, onions, early potatos in tubs and spring onions. And lettuce.
I might not be able to take the plants with me but I can take the slug protection copper tape, the fleece polytunnel and maybe even the tomatos in baskets. We'll have to see. Overall the idea of getting dug into a new garden thrills me but the idea of leaving my little garden I made with the help of a few friends does make me a bit sad.
Friday, 8 January 2010
Under the weather on my birthday
Last time I wrote we had had some snow but not excessive amounts, I was additionally feeling rather tired and somewhat under the weather but put this down to the early start for my last day working in Suffolk. The beans were doing ok and the garden semed to have got through the frosts, the shallots were coming up and I was choosing from my seed catalogues.
New Year was heralded in with me coming down with severe bronchitis, I made it until midnight but faltered fairly soon after that and the last week has been a haze of honey with lemon, coughing, antibiotics and generaly feeling sorry for myself. It seems that the garden has been suffering in a similar way with some extraordinarily long lasting snow and heavy ice. I got some new boots today and they are so funky I just had to go investigate the garden.
Wrapped up warm I discovered that the fleecing i had wrapped around the acer, hibiscus and apple had frozen solid and (luckily) fallen off the shrubs. I am just keeping my fingers crossed that they will bud in teh Spring. The beans which in our pre-Christmas snowfall were merrily poking out of the top of the snow have given up and become buried, along with the shallots, garlice and honesty. The only things which seemed to be actually enjoying the snow were two green pea shoots which were waving around happily in the breeze.
My polytunnel which was about £15 has become a solid frozen icicle and although I got the worst of the snow off I didn;t want to rip the fabric and so couldn't tell how the peas underneath are doing. We are forecast several days if not another week of sub-zero temperatures so i think it will be a while before i can properly survey the damage to my plot.
New Years Resolutions included a determination to make the plot as productive as possible, and a final nail in the coffin of the supermarket for sourcing our food - especially fish and meat. My halfway house has been to get meat and fish straight from the counters rather than packaged, but I really really want to stop doing this and getting all our food direct from farmers markets or local food shops. Budget also comes into this, obviously, with only one of us working, but i can cycle to various shops now to get food.
New Year was heralded in with me coming down with severe bronchitis, I made it until midnight but faltered fairly soon after that and the last week has been a haze of honey with lemon, coughing, antibiotics and generaly feeling sorry for myself. It seems that the garden has been suffering in a similar way with some extraordinarily long lasting snow and heavy ice. I got some new boots today and they are so funky I just had to go investigate the garden.
Wrapped up warm I discovered that the fleecing i had wrapped around the acer, hibiscus and apple had frozen solid and (luckily) fallen off the shrubs. I am just keeping my fingers crossed that they will bud in teh Spring. The beans which in our pre-Christmas snowfall were merrily poking out of the top of the snow have given up and become buried, along with the shallots, garlice and honesty. The only things which seemed to be actually enjoying the snow were two green pea shoots which were waving around happily in the breeze.
My polytunnel which was about £15 has become a solid frozen icicle and although I got the worst of the snow off I didn;t want to rip the fabric and so couldn't tell how the peas underneath are doing. We are forecast several days if not another week of sub-zero temperatures so i think it will be a while before i can properly survey the damage to my plot.
New Years Resolutions included a determination to make the plot as productive as possible, and a final nail in the coffin of the supermarket for sourcing our food - especially fish and meat. My halfway house has been to get meat and fish straight from the counters rather than packaged, but I really really want to stop doing this and getting all our food direct from farmers markets or local food shops. Budget also comes into this, obviously, with only one of us working, but i can cycle to various shops now to get food.
Tuesday, 29 December 2009
Reflections
Watching the new BBC version of the triffids last night while reading a great garden book which was a Christmas Present led me to thinking about what to grow this year. I thought I would do a recap of the varieties I planted up and how we got on with what must have been one of the dryest summers for a while. 2008 we had far too many courgettes and beans, this year we had one small courgette and enough beans for one meal! We did very well with potatoes, onions, shallots, tomatoes and carrots which had all been inadequate the year before (2008), so here is a recap of what we planted and wether it worked.
Potatoes
- Early Crop - Charlotte's - Blooming marvelous, tasty and had we watered more regularly i suspect we would have had an even better crop. We used potato growbags/trug with hole drilled in and overall very successful. This year we will make a heavier mix of compost/soil which we hope will retain water more effeciently.
- Main Crop - Rooster - rubbish - we got the dreaded scab and the slug problem finished them off. Again this was due to sporadic watering and also down to us just not knowing how to treat the new stams. Massive crop - just inedible sadly.
Peas
- Kelvedon Wonder - they grew & something ate them! One day they were there and the next they were gone. This year i am going to build a plot within my plot for broccoli/carrots/salad and line with fine mesh to keep away caterpillar/mice and the bloody great pigeons we have round here.
Beans
- Runner - Celebration - I went with Painted Lady instead and although the seedlings grew quickly they became very susceptible to slug damage and under watering. This year I will be creating a wigwam and the 7sisters technique to retain moisture.
- Broad - Masterpiece - I went with Aquadulche and they started very promisingly but these were a very early victim to my over enthusiastic planting up of the plat and a salutory lesson that by squashing in more crops they get mould and rot. This year I have planted up at the correct spacing in a different section of the plot!
Sweetcorn
- Sunrise - Great fun to grow - need to be planted in a grid not a line which i did and i prepared the bad but the water issue was a real problem, the cobs did well but overnight went from being edible to dry and i just didn't have the experience to judge when to pick.
Onions
- Red Baron - These did really well and then one day just stopped growing so we started to use them and even though they were little they were fiery! Wow they have heat - will be growing these next year as well.
Shallots
- Jermor - One of the best crops & pretty to have in the bed as well - we companion planted with the Chantenay carrots and both did exceptionally well.
Carrots
- Atlas - These didn't in all honesty get a fair chance as they were used as a sacrificial plant to protect our Red Barons (which they did brilliantly). I will try these again but probably under protection.
- Chantenay - Again - one of our very best crops - planted with the shallots these cropped for months. We will definately grow these again this year.
Leeks
- Edison - Like the atlas these didn't get a fair chance - the wedding was around the time these fellow should have gone in the ground and they held on for a while and then one day i realised they were only going to be good for the compost so on they went.
Courgettes
- Black Forest - a small compact bush! - RUBBISH! We didn't get even one courgette! And all 8 plants germinted but nothing happend which after the glut of last year was just crazy. We did try them in tubs and i suspect that their roots need much more space so don't try these in containers!
- Midnight - Tub based climber - RUBBISH AGAIN! And this one was really purchased as a pot plants and yet although we got fruit they grew to about 3 inches then the ends tunred brown and dropped off. This year I will be trying something more robust.
Butternut Squash - in a pot this year! We didn't in fact grow butternut - somewhere a sensible voice inside my head suggested space might be an issue! We did try a pumpkin but it got attacked by aphids and died over many weeks which was heartbreaking.
Tomatoes
- Growbag & Greenhouse - Gardeners Delight - In fact we grew Harlequin which took a while to get started in the greenhouse and just like my neighbours they took ages to go red this year but my god we were harvesting them for months and months - we had the last lot in a salad for 10 people on Christmas Day so we will 100% grow these next year. The ones outside suffered from a lack of water as i tried an organic growbag which just didn't hold any water at all - but the bees liked the flowers so we did well in that respect.
- Hanging Baskets - Garden Pearl - Again I changed my mind and grew 'tumbling toms' which were a vine like tomato and we grew them with marigolds in hanging baskets around our pergola. It was so successful that we will be doing exactly the same thing again this year.
Cucumber
- MarketMore Not hugely successful, I think that again the lack of water was an issue as both the plants were grown in the organic grow bag which simply refused to hold onto water.
Lettuces
- Cos & Salad Mix - Never got round to these!
Spring Onions
- Guardsman - I can't remember what we grew but I think it was white lisbon, I'll check but they were damn hot little onions!
Peppers
- variety tbc depending on greenhouse - we got some free yellow peppers - only 5 of teh 8 germinated but all gave us a pepper which sadly failed to turn yellow but i think this was feeding incorrectly!
I did plant for bees in a big way this year, the spectacular mistake was BORAGE - it actually took over my entire veg patch and used many of the nutrients that the beans could really have done with - my neighrs borage grows to about 18 inches - mine was topping 6 foot. The bees it did have to be said absolutely loved it. I successfully grew honesty (Lunaria), Limnanthes (Egg Plant) and Marigolds from seed which i was pleased with. I also grew Sweet Williams (though only 3 of the 12 germinated), Aqualigia which was vaguely successful and managed not to kill the geraniums.
The factor which increased productivity was the greenhouse which was totally brilliant although the November gales have left it a bit holey and I will have to upgrade to much stiffer polycarbonate sheeting this year when the weather warms up. The wood needs attention in places and one of the structs needs bracketing. The tomatoes totally took over causing the damage to the wood, this year i will be stricter and nip the sideshooots but i just wanted to see what would happen if i didn't snip them. The aubergine I bought failed to do anything other than becaue haute cuisine for the local slug population who devoured it.
The factor which we hadn't considered was a dry start to the year and I think that most of our plants suffered from a total lack of water. This year we are going to put in another cheaper butt. I also intend to grow hardier crops and mulch. Watch this space for a proper herb garden as herbs might like to be dry but in pots they simply need so much water they become more expensive than shop bought herbs!
Potatoes
- Early Crop - Charlotte's - Blooming marvelous, tasty and had we watered more regularly i suspect we would have had an even better crop. We used potato growbags/trug with hole drilled in and overall very successful. This year we will make a heavier mix of compost/soil which we hope will retain water more effeciently.
- Main Crop - Rooster - rubbish - we got the dreaded scab and the slug problem finished them off. Again this was due to sporadic watering and also down to us just not knowing how to treat the new stams. Massive crop - just inedible sadly.
Peas
- Kelvedon Wonder - they grew & something ate them! One day they were there and the next they were gone. This year i am going to build a plot within my plot for broccoli/carrots/salad and line with fine mesh to keep away caterpillar/mice and the bloody great pigeons we have round here.
Beans
- Runner - Celebration - I went with Painted Lady instead and although the seedlings grew quickly they became very susceptible to slug damage and under watering. This year I will be creating a wigwam and the 7sisters technique to retain moisture.
- Broad - Masterpiece - I went with Aquadulche and they started very promisingly but these were a very early victim to my over enthusiastic planting up of the plat and a salutory lesson that by squashing in more crops they get mould and rot. This year I have planted up at the correct spacing in a different section of the plot!
Sweetcorn
- Sunrise - Great fun to grow - need to be planted in a grid not a line which i did and i prepared the bad but the water issue was a real problem, the cobs did well but overnight went from being edible to dry and i just didn't have the experience to judge when to pick.
Onions
- Red Baron - These did really well and then one day just stopped growing so we started to use them and even though they were little they were fiery! Wow they have heat - will be growing these next year as well.
Shallots
- Jermor - One of the best crops & pretty to have in the bed as well - we companion planted with the Chantenay carrots and both did exceptionally well.
Carrots
- Atlas - These didn't in all honesty get a fair chance as they were used as a sacrificial plant to protect our Red Barons (which they did brilliantly). I will try these again but probably under protection.
- Chantenay - Again - one of our very best crops - planted with the shallots these cropped for months. We will definately grow these again this year.
Leeks
- Edison - Like the atlas these didn't get a fair chance - the wedding was around the time these fellow should have gone in the ground and they held on for a while and then one day i realised they were only going to be good for the compost so on they went.
Courgettes
- Black Forest - a small compact bush! - RUBBISH! We didn't get even one courgette! And all 8 plants germinted but nothing happend which after the glut of last year was just crazy. We did try them in tubs and i suspect that their roots need much more space so don't try these in containers!
- Midnight - Tub based climber - RUBBISH AGAIN! And this one was really purchased as a pot plants and yet although we got fruit they grew to about 3 inches then the ends tunred brown and dropped off. This year I will be trying something more robust.
Butternut Squash - in a pot this year! We didn't in fact grow butternut - somewhere a sensible voice inside my head suggested space might be an issue! We did try a pumpkin but it got attacked by aphids and died over many weeks which was heartbreaking.
Tomatoes
- Growbag & Greenhouse - Gardeners Delight - In fact we grew Harlequin which took a while to get started in the greenhouse and just like my neighbours they took ages to go red this year but my god we were harvesting them for months and months - we had the last lot in a salad for 10 people on Christmas Day so we will 100% grow these next year. The ones outside suffered from a lack of water as i tried an organic growbag which just didn't hold any water at all - but the bees liked the flowers so we did well in that respect.
- Hanging Baskets - Garden Pearl - Again I changed my mind and grew 'tumbling toms' which were a vine like tomato and we grew them with marigolds in hanging baskets around our pergola. It was so successful that we will be doing exactly the same thing again this year.
Cucumber
- MarketMore Not hugely successful, I think that again the lack of water was an issue as both the plants were grown in the organic grow bag which simply refused to hold onto water.
Lettuces
- Cos & Salad Mix - Never got round to these!
Spring Onions
- Guardsman - I can't remember what we grew but I think it was white lisbon, I'll check but they were damn hot little onions!
Peppers
- variety tbc depending on greenhouse - we got some free yellow peppers - only 5 of teh 8 germinated but all gave us a pepper which sadly failed to turn yellow but i think this was feeding incorrectly!
I did plant for bees in a big way this year, the spectacular mistake was BORAGE - it actually took over my entire veg patch and used many of the nutrients that the beans could really have done with - my neighrs borage grows to about 18 inches - mine was topping 6 foot. The bees it did have to be said absolutely loved it. I successfully grew honesty (Lunaria), Limnanthes (Egg Plant) and Marigolds from seed which i was pleased with. I also grew Sweet Williams (though only 3 of the 12 germinated), Aqualigia which was vaguely successful and managed not to kill the geraniums.
The factor which increased productivity was the greenhouse which was totally brilliant although the November gales have left it a bit holey and I will have to upgrade to much stiffer polycarbonate sheeting this year when the weather warms up. The wood needs attention in places and one of the structs needs bracketing. The tomatoes totally took over causing the damage to the wood, this year i will be stricter and nip the sideshooots but i just wanted to see what would happen if i didn't snip them. The aubergine I bought failed to do anything other than becaue haute cuisine for the local slug population who devoured it.
The factor which we hadn't considered was a dry start to the year and I think that most of our plants suffered from a total lack of water. This year we are going to put in another cheaper butt. I also intend to grow hardier crops and mulch. Watch this space for a proper herb garden as herbs might like to be dry but in pots they simply need so much water they become more expensive than shop bought herbs!
Tuesday, 6 October 2009
Winter Preperations
This weekend saw the start of the flu season in our house. Which was a real shame because it was a beautiful weekend for getting out into the garden and i had veg which i wanted to get on the ground. I decided that fresh air would kill me or cure me and proceeded to cut down the grasses (they spring up in the spring), empty the hanging baskets and have a general tidy up. The general tidy up also led me to dig up the last of the Chantenoys for my sisters dinner party (7 guests including us = much potential for carrot eating), prop up the wonderful cornflowers so that they don't rot and get another large pot of Harlequin tomatos from the greenhouse. And compost all the old sweetcorn stands
After the carrots and two 'balls' of shallots had been dug up I thought about the green manure we bought and decided that as I was still standing I should plant up the winter veg. This took a bit of planning and eventually after reading the instructions properly and spacing things as they should be to reduce the risk of moulds I got the 10 Jermor shallots planted up. Along with the Aquadulche broad beans, garlic and winter peas the veg patch does look quite organised. I also put the cloche up to get the soil ready for some winter salad leaves and late carrots. If I find any which I haven't totally nissed the boat with! Will also be planting up some sweet peas to over winter next weekend.
And after that I felt really ill!
After the carrots and two 'balls' of shallots had been dug up I thought about the green manure we bought and decided that as I was still standing I should plant up the winter veg. This took a bit of planning and eventually after reading the instructions properly and spacing things as they should be to reduce the risk of moulds I got the 10 Jermor shallots planted up. Along with the Aquadulche broad beans, garlic and winter peas the veg patch does look quite organised. I also put the cloche up to get the soil ready for some winter salad leaves and late carrots. If I find any which I haven't totally nissed the boat with! Will also be planting up some sweet peas to over winter next weekend.
And after that I felt really ill!
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