Friday was another day of rain. Whilst always welcome for watering the plants it is difficult to be motivated. However my first attempt at pak choi was a good success as this picture shows. These went into a nice stir fry with sweet chili sauce.

Saturdays weather was a little better quite sunny in the morning but then the rain came back. I try to work outside in the good weather and inside when it is not so good. It sounds pretty obvious but i try to save jobs for inside when the weather turns. So in between showers i cut some new pieces for the staging from old pallets. This gives me more work space and frees up a section of staging to make a complete section for the back of the greenhouse. The bottom photo shows the salad tray pricked out into respective pots.

The next job was to make a large cloche for one of the salad beds. Both the beds are the same size so the cloche can move from bed to bed depending on requirements. These will be handy for protecting early and late crops. The design is similar to geoff hamiltons from gardeners world. A rectangular frame is made from 4"x1" treated timber. Blue water pipe is then fixed to the insides with screws. A ridge of timber helps hold the pipes and rigid and supports the polythene which is then stretched and stapled to the wood. The cloche can be propped up for ventilation and access. The crops inside really do grow better under protection. Next step a polytunnel i think! The smaller square raised bed has a similar cover made from a timber square with a polythene cover. Finally i planted out some lettuces between to strawberries. It's good not to be tied to certain crops in certain beds, with salad leaves etc they can go anywhere there is a gap without affecting any crop rotation.

Sunday was a good planting out day. I put the green calabrese and dwarf kale in their permanent positions 12" apart and covered them with netting to prevent cabbage white butterflies and other pests. The sprouting broccoli's (Italian, early and late purple) are put into the nursery bed for transplanting later. Apparently the calabrese not good for transplanting. I also started off the compost heap properly. I got a load of fresh manure, grass, cardboard and materials from last years heap and built up in layers so there wasn't too much of one material. The compost heap was filled to the top but a few days later it was starting to heat up and the heap has settled down. in a week or so i will turn the heap over and mix everything up so that oxygen can get in and rot everything down quicker. The heap needs enough heat to kill weed seeds etc but not too hot or it will kill useful bacteria and worms.

On Tuesday i planted out the peas, celebration, alpine strawberries origen improved and the second sowing of delphiniums. The tomatoes in the greenhouse are doing well and the first strawberries. These are aromel which are an everbearing variety. The last picture is the asparagus bed. Most of the crowns have taken and are sprouting. It's just a case of keeping them clear of weeds, a little feed in summer and patiently wait

The recent windy weather has prompted me to buy some windbreak material to put between me and George's plot to try and protect the plants. Now that the border between our plots is finished off i can carry on planting up beans and some hardy annuals for colour and to attract pollinating insects. One plant that is doing really well is an honesty plant, grown from seeds found on a walk a couple of years ago. It has very dark purple flowers and the seed heads are round and flat like paper coins hence its nickname, popes money. The comfrey next to it is doing well and i may have a go at comfrey 'tea' to use as liquid fertilizer.

On Saturday the weather started out quite sunny tho still very breezy. The next few photo's show the raised bed i edged with leftover timber and how the rest of the allotment is coming on. The salad potatoes are doing really well from and earlier planting after warming up the soil with polythene.

The next shots are of the salad leaves in the greenhouse either waiting to be planted out or taken home to be eaten!

These plants are waiting to be planted out later when they have hardened off, mostly brassicas and some mini sweetcorn. The potatoes in bags are doing fine, i just need to make sure there is a enough drainage when it rains too much but also enough moisture because the leaves can deflect any water away from the soil.



These onion set are doing really well now. i may have to net them off to prevent onion fly. The herb bed looks well. It has a mix of mints, origano, tarragon, garlic chives, sage, thyme and lemon balm. I also have some pot marigold for colour and the attract beneficial insects to the plot

And finally look at the size of that! One of the asparagus spears is reaching for the stars. Most of the crowns have now produced one spear which means they have transplanted well. I do have some younger plants that are in the seed bed now but i am tempted to buy some more older crowns to get earlier crops.

Asparagus and Strawberries

What another glorious week. The weather has been very sunny and warm yet a little cool at nights, a couple of nights there was a slight frost. No damage to any plants but a reminder that there could still be frosts well into May.

Thursday i planted out the spring onions from modules down the side of a strawberry bed, any spare soil will get used up with catchcrops to make good use of space. So far they have settled in ok. Some one was getting rid of some top soil from a project at home so i now have a couple of ton's of soil to sift through. There are lots of stones in but it will do for topping up beds and the stone will come in for gravel paths, nothing is wasted here.

I have widened out the fruit bed to make space for peas and beans. I then dug a trench and filled it with garden compost from the wooden bin, not as good a quality as bought compost but still useful for improving soil.

Saturday was a big day because the asparagus and strawberries were delivered. I thought i had prepared the bed ready for them but it took a while to get it just right. They are all in now, 10 Backlim and 10 Ginjlim, but it will be a couple of years before any can be picked. I still have some growing on in pots and some still in modules, but it is where to put them as they take up so much space.

These photo's show the crowns as they arrived, the trench dug out and the crowns laid on a mound at the bottom of the trench and finally the crowns covered over












Here the strawberries 'aromel' have been planted next to the rhubarb, this frees up the bed i had planned for them for a three sisters experiment (sweetcorn, bean and squash)



The children have sent off for som Dig In seeds from the the tv. Gardeners world and other programs are getting people started growing thier own with free seeds so on Sunday i finished off some raised beds for the kids to sow the seeds when they arrive.

On Sunday I finally painted the archway into the allotment and fixed the honeysuckle to it. Sowed some seeds in the salad bed under fleece, carrot 'tendersnax', beetroot 'boltardy' and radish 'sparkler/french breakfast'

In the garden plot i moved the huchera and gunnera near to the pond which will suit these moisture lovers. I divided up a red priumla that was looking past its best and potted up a couple and some hostas for home

Today I planted potatoes 'pink fir apple' in two sets of tyres

Elisabeth, Millie and Ziggy come for a visit


Seedlings and plants in the greenhouse

Potatoes in bags can go out now but need cover if frosty

April

The end of march brings promise of better weather and the sowing season can begin in earnest. Still working on allotment finishing off beds and fencing. Hopefully when all these jobs are done then a little more time for plants and enjoying a more relaxed pace. Picked first crop of forced rhubarb which was a great success, very tender and almost sweet. All the seedlings at home are coming on well and will soon move to the greenhouse in the allotment.

At the allotments the garden plot (49d) was given a good sort out on wednesday, the lighter nights mean longer time to work. The kids came with me and we didn't get home til after 7:30. Planted the 'jacobs ladder' and dug up and moved self seeded 'poached egg' plants. Most of the work is done now with most plants established and not too much preparation work.

Made another cold frame during the week from old pallets and some window openers. This is bigger than the others and can accomodate larger plants. The asparagus are in now ready to harden off along with the sweet peas. To make room for the coldframes i have put down some flags that were given to me to create a hard surface.

Firstfruits of rhubarb!

Windowcill herbs in cans

Salad seedlings coming along nicely

Courgettes and squash seedlings


A full windowcill of tomatoes