Hurray Rain !

Well that sounds daft but I'm glad for a bit of rain, the peas are just poking their heads through and will really appreciate the drink as will everything else that's growing.
Last year I completely forgot to harvest my Jerusalem artichoke patch and now it has invaded a bit more of the plot.


We managed to get some brassicas seedlings in the other day & unlike previous years I've remembered to cover them straight up . The wood pigeons seem to take perverse delight in dining on them 5 minutes after you've locked the gate and realised you forgot to cover them.
Last year I managed to get hold of some debris netting that proved great, no caterpillars or birds.

Peas and Runner beans

I love peas, just wish I could grow them better than the last year or so.

So today we planted 3 rows of peas, and half a row of beetroot to finish the row off.
Mange tout, Sugar snap and good old kelvedon wonder, we covered them with netting so hopefully the woodies will keep off.

Constructed this years runner bean frame today with some help from a few of the children.

Made from roofing lathes salvaged in good old allotment style, double thickness across the top to support the weight of all those beans .. hopefully.

I don't use canes seems a waste of money to me, good old string is the answer, beans happily climb string just as well as up canes.

Squash House

I managed to get some planks off freecycle the other day. So an afternoons work turned this.




Into this




I'm intent on growing butternut squash and getting a crop this year. Hopefully I'll be able to create a warmer microclimate in here to encourage fruiting. I wish I could say it was my idea but I came across an article on how to grow butternut squashes and thought I'd use the idea.

All I need to do now is to create a roof preferably one that self waters when it rains.

New blog!

This blog things catching ! I've decided to do one on our wildlife pond back garden project.
It will probably contain various ramblings about our back garden, the environment etc.

You can find it here

Rich's wildlife spot

Inside the greenhouse and others things

Nipped down the lottie yesterday and planted my second early potato's. I've planted them at right angles to the 1st earlies as I've had a flash of inspiration ! they will now run down the slope of the plot rather than across, I'm thinking it will make them easier to water, we'll see.

Here's a few picks of my greenhouse and outside.


Tomato's and chilli's
Cucumbers, Squashes and Melons



Brassica seedlings
Various sorts Cauliflower, Cabbage, Red Cabbage, Purple Sprouting Broc.
Today I'm hoping to get in some parsnips in paper pots, then I'll transplant them pots and all when they have germinated.

There's something very satisfying about ..

Fruit tree planting. My youngest son and I planted a couple of apple trees today. Thoroughly enjoyed doing it, a very satisfying experience. We dug in plenty of well rotted compost to improve the soil.
Nice to think with any luck they will out live me and be there for many years to come. I wonder if the next people will think about the person who planted them ? I know I quite often look at old trees and things and wonder who planted them and what their life was like.




I'm pretty happy with the way the plots looking this year it's two plots side by side. The garlic and Japanese onions in the foreground are coming along nicely next few days they will get a careful hoe and some Blood, Fish and Bone applied.In the bottom far left hand corner I've planted 3 rows of rocket 1st early potato and gave them a generous covering of compost and part rotted leaves.

The raspberries I planted are stirring into life slowly and I've descovered a couple of rhubarb plants alive under the carpet and bark chipping mulch that covers the Blackberry and Tayberry patch and I thought they where dead!

There's a couple of cloches up, they have nothing in them at the minute but I'll be planting parsnips and possibly a catch crop of beetroot there too shortly.