3000 Plus New Visitors

Just wanted to thank all those who have recently visited and read my blog and an extra special thank you to all my loyal readers who keep coming back to follow what I get up to in my garden and allotment.

Last time I achieved a similar milestone I gave away some homemade produce, so I think I will do something like that again, so stay tuned for a celebratory giveaway, for all you lovely readers out there.

In the mean time please enjoy some pictures of what was blooming in the garden yesterday when I was doing some pruning maintenance to my living willow bench.

Willow buds beginning to show (so soft).

I think this is called Forsythia, which is grown as a hedge in our garden, all twiggy at this time of the year except for a riot of tiny yellow flowers.

The mini daffodils are cute as always.

And the crocuses aim to steal the show.

The lungwort can not decide what colour it likes best.

The first of the celendines are opening.

And some lazy ladybugs are still tucked in.

Arrgh! My Head!!!

The dreaded winter flu bugs have hit my family home and has made it's rounds to everyone at least twice in as many weeks. I was somewhat spared early on and so was the designated nurse maid but though my heart was willing my body gave up and properly succumbed to a chesty cough, a nagging headache and a general feeling of roughness these past 4 to 5 days now.

The kids are still playing musical spells of night fever, hubby and I can't sleep as we are both keeping each other awake coughing and my mum even took a sick day and if you know my mum, you would know she never takes sick days.

Well with all the nursing and being unwell myself the garden has had to wait. So I have no news regarding that development.

Today though the sun was shinning ever so beautifully this morning, that I had all plans to wrap myself up and go clear a few vege beds but I'm afraid once I had the girls breakfast sorted I was just to knackered.

I did venture out and took some photos of what new blooms are opening, I hope you enjoy them...

I told you the sun was shinning.

Still signs of last night's rainfall.


Told you the yellow crocuses would be making their appearance soon.

Doesn't the signs of spring just gladden your heart, I just can't wait for the spring to come and blow away the winter bugs.

Anyhoo, toodles for now, hope all is well and healthy in your homes,

7 months is just tooooooo long, me thinks, hmmmm?

So as I type this I wonder, is anyone still out there, I wouldn't be surprise if that answer was a resounding NO!!

Life has been crazy for me these last 7 months but then whose life isn't filled with ups and downs and ups again :)

I hope all my blogging friends are all doing fine and that life has been treating you all well. I am hoping for a more succesful year in the garden and the allotment and look forward to catching up on all your gardening adventures as well.

Well I don't know if you have noticed but the year has certainly started much more balmy than how it ended. And it seems nature has decided to go along with this unseasonable warm weather.

One thing hasn't changed and that is my love of taking and sharing photos of what is happening in my garden, so here are a few of the early blooms this year.

These lilac crocuses always make me smile and opened over the weekend, the yellow ones will open next.

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You know spring is on its way when the first snowdrop pushes it's head up out of the cold soil. The first one showed itself early week before last and they started to open and share their pretty insides mid last week.

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I could barely believe my eyes when I saw the dwarf iris has also made an appearance, I'm hoping the damaged petals are due to birds and not slugs/ snails, cause that would mean they are up early too, hmph!

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I hope to get some sowing done this week, what are the rest of you planning to get up to this week, anything gardening related?

Its Been A Yucky Week, Blech!!!!

OK gone is the confidence and bravado I felt in my last posting, this past week has been plain yucky with very little productive activities achieved.

So I'll just get to the point....

Monday

Started off promising and I was full of plans for the week but something was amiss, the little one seemed to be having trouble staying awake and kept wanting to sleep on me, somehow my mummy radar was a bit askew and I didn't really take stock of the situation till just after noon when I realised all I had gotten in her all day was a half cup of herbal tea and four mouthfuls of porridge (her favourite). Around 1:00pm I suddenly realised in her current state that she would not have the energy to walk with me to pick up her sister from school and was just planning to call the school to let my daughter know she will have to walk herself home (don't worry we have a password set up for these sort of situations). As I was about to make the call the poor thing woke with really bad stomach ache and crying for tea to settle it, so with this heavy writhing four year old in my arms I went downstairs to attempt to make a cup of tea (at the back of my mind with my mummy radar finally working at 100% efficiency, I knew what was coming). So while I struggled to get a tea cup out of the drawer I suddenly felt her tummy start to convulse against me, which had me quickly sprinting to the sink with me begging her not to throw up on my shoulder.

So that was her lot for the next few hours, not that she had anything to throw up as her tummy was rendered empty after the first to times. Sometime late evening I got her to eat a couple slices of dry toast and drink a cup and a half of fennel tea which seemed to set her right for a full night sleep.

One of the things I promised myself was to create one item per day for my Blogshop, I am pleased to say I did achieve this Monday night all be it quite late when I went to bed.

Oh!! I almost forgot to fill you in on the review of another saved winter squash which was opened this most eventful day for dinner.
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Crown Prince

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It was marginally hard enough to get into, had to ask hubby to help as I simply wasn't up to wrestling with a squash that afternoon. There was very little skin and a lot of flesh which was neither too wet or dry, It was beautifully sweet but not sickeningly so and held its shape when roasted. I also sauteed it and added it to stews later in the week and it also did not melt away. Everyone enjoyed it, it stored very well, changing its colour slightly during storage from a slate grey to more of a washed out peachy orange hue. I will definitely grow it again but from next year though as I have new ones to trial this year.

Tuesday

Not much to add except that I spent a lovely sunny spring day flat on my back on the sofa with listless four year old on my chest slowly getting back her appetite wanting mummy to cuddle and watch one inane Disney movie after the other, oh the joy that is being a mummy.

Thankfully little one was pretty much back to her old self by dinnertime, 24+hr bug confirmed and is on its way, wish I knew where it came from, (although I have a sneaky suspicion that with all the lovely weather we have been having and the resulting increased outside play and pretend tea parties that ensued over the weekend prior to tummy upset, something unsavoury may have been put in the mouth when pretend play may have become too realistic. Hmm! It probably won't hurt to have them wash all their tea party toys with soap this coming weekend).

I did get a photo of a cheeky squirrel sunning itself on the garden fence.

And here are the last photos of the early spring flowers, the resulting rain and wind at the end of the week have finished them off now.

Anyhoo!! I completed another item for the shop, yeah for me, I'm sticking to my schedule (gave myself a pat on the back, as I climb into bed after 1:00am again).

Wednesday

Spent all day in London with the family sorting out new passports, would normally be able to do this via the post but my government are issuing new machine readable passports so for the first reissue we needed to be there in person for an interview and to have our photos taken by some special camera.

The whole day was shot and so was I, the loft studio didn't see me that night.

Thursday

Can't blooming remember what I did Thursday, I better check my camera and see if I took any pictures.....

Ah! Yes! I took some pictures and check to see what was germinating, which was nothing much to report, except a few radishes and an emerging bean in the greenhouse. I also cut and fed the lawn which was just in time for some afternoon shows that came later that day. I must remember to go over it soon and root out a few large leaf perennial weeds and maybe scrape out and make some sort of dent in the ever growing patch of moss.

Anyway here are some photos I took that day:

Forget-Me-Nots in full bloom

Lady's Cockoo Foot with no competition blooming as you would never see it in the woods.

Water Avens heavy with blooms.

I love daisies, these are growing in the lawn.

Ladybugs are still very much about.

The first of the Speckled Woods are here again.

Busy Honeybee.

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Pictures Of Things To Come:

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Iris in bud

Granny's Bonnet in bud

Wild Strawberries fattening up.

Apple blossoms in bud, not much on the tree though, so a poor harvest I think this year.

Weeds to come, all be it pretty ones.

Germinating Dwarf French Bean in the green house.

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Oh! I did make it to the loft and caught up with my quota and made two items for the Blogshop, plus made it to bed at 12.30, result!

Friday

Although being official laundry day, my hubby was home so while he looked after the laundry and the little one, I stole a couple hours at the allotment, my intentions were to plant out the young onion plants and water whatever needed watering.

On arriving at the allotment's parking area I found some discarded chicken wire and lawn surround, which after checking with the person who had thrown it out, I bagged it for myself.

I will use the surround around some of the beds next time I visit and I used the chicken wire to quite crudely cover the newly planted onion plants against bird and fox interference.

I didn't have enough young onion plants to fill the half a bed space but another plot holder had some extra onion sets going spare which I gladly accepted to fill the remainder of the space available.

Items made for shop = 0 :(

Saturday

My eldest and I woke with a sore throat, mine was mild and hers was not too bad, so off to drama classes the three of us went. Well by the end of the day the eldest was feeling a lot worse but mine still felt like just a tickle that I hoped would simply pass me by.

While at Drama classes I got this cool shot of a dandelion seed which appeared to be floating on the wind, (but it isn't anyone has ideas on how I got this shot, I'll reveal the answer after a few of you leave comments on your guesses).

Went to bed early ie 11.30pm as I planned on visiting the local carboot fair on Sunday with my eldest if she was up for it, (it was the first boot fair of the year in my area). So no items were made for the shop again, now down 2 items for my week's quota :( :(

Sunday

Both my eldest and I awoke by 08:00am with very sore throats but still wanted to cycle to the fair, the weather on the other hand had a much different idea, with very heavy rainfall forcasted and playing out all day, bummer.

My sore throat gradually worsened to a general feeling of unwellness and by the evening I was in bed with fever as well, thankfully my eldest improved as the day went by.

Shop item quota down by 3 :( :( :(

Monday

I awoke to a less sore throat but a general feeling of lethargy and some lingering fever spells, so spent the majority of the day asleep under lots of lovely covers. Thankfully my eldest had no further complaints and seemed to be over the worst of it. I also improved as the day went by and by the evening I felt a lot more like my normal self.

Decided to have an early night as I would have to wake early to get eldest off to school so shop item quota now down by 4 :( :( :( :(

On a happier note, I am pleased to share with you the news of a nesting pair of birds in my garden. I first noticed activities as much as three weeks ago, when I spotted a male great tit checking out this old terracotta urn I have sitting as decoration in the herb patch.

About a week later I spotted him again going in but I didn't see any nesting material in his beak so wasn't sure if he was going to set up a home there or not.

Then last week both my mom and I spotted him visit the urn at least three times in a 80 minute period and I deduced that he was probably feeding a brooding female partner.

Then yesterday while my mum stood at the kitchen window she said there were now two birds visiting quite regularly (which is just what i needed to force me off the sofa and into the land of the living - a good dose of wildlife watching).

I got a few pics of them leaving and entering the nesting sight, please enjoy them. I will try to get a recording of the chicks but can't make any promises as I don't want to freak the parents out. But hope to at least get a video or series of photos of the emerging fledglings in approx 10 days time or so.

Well its Tuesday morning and I am feeling much better, I'll take a wander in the garden later and see what has benefited from all the rain and hopefully sow some seeds. Maybe even visit the lotty this evening on my bike ride to water seedlings that are still covered and so would not have benefited from Sunday's downpour.

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Flower garden this morning, all green now that early spring flowers are on their way out.

Hey Ho! I Think I'm Finally Catching Up, Yippee!!!

At risk of sounding confident, I think I have finally caught up with you other fruit and veg gardeners. OK so my young veg plants may be small and in some cases non-existent but at least the seeds are finally sown and some how I am back on schedule, I just need a 90 to 100% germination to remain in the game.

I’ll share with you my weeks accomplished tasks both in the garden and on the plot by a dad by day account.

Tuesday

OK so didn’t actually get round to doing anything that day except take pictures so I’ll share those with you.

My youngest was an ace at bird watching last Tuesday and excitedly called me downstairs to show me a baby bird, which turned out to be a young mistle thrush. I took loads of photos of him/ her making its way from the hedge, through the wisteria and onto the gate before disappearing behind the bin on the pavement but at risk of making the post just about him I’ll only share a few.


Later that day she also spotted one of the resident green woodpeckers out back in the neighbour’s garden.


Wednesday

I’ll quickly show you what’s beginning to bloom in the garden this past week…

Forget - Me - Nots beginning to open.

Lady's Cuckoo Foot

Water Aven

Violas all blooming now

The water lily has breaked the water's level of its bucket home.

Chives in bud

My Cowslips

Bluebells at home

So what did I do today?

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This year as most of you know I have been very slow to start and the gardening mojo has been very scarce if not completely absent at times. I have also not felt like I could cope with all the hassle of sowing seeds in trays and the whole potting on shenanigans that will follow. So this year their will be more direct sowing practiced, I just hope the slugs don’t give me hard time, which is why I generally sow in trays, etc.

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So to get this started I sowed my runner beans, French beans, mangtoute peas and other beans into my legume bed which I prepared the week before. There is not much to see as naturally the beans are all in the ground so I didn’t take a picture.

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I also decided to grow a few pots of dwarf French beans in the used soil from last year South American root crops, I simply enriched the soil with some well rotted compost from the compost bin. I sowed six to a pot and I have left them for now in the greenhouse with the hope that the extra heat will speed up germination and help them come to crop quicker. By my reckoning by the time they are finished cropping the climbers that are outside would be just starting.

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If you remember I shared with you some pictures of the small woodland we have in our neighbourhood, well on our way home we passed along the street that has cherry trees growing at intervals in their grassy verge. Well from the pictures you can see there are a lot of blooms and we look forward to foraging from them this year. Last year we became aware that they were cherry trees just by chance when we passed there end of June and saw the remnants of the fruit, a few that we were able to reach were very sweet. So I vowed to check the trees regularly from June onwards for fruit this year. I’ll have to walk with a step larder at least to reach some of the lower branches but I can cope with the odd stares I’ll probably receive for some free great tasting, generally expensive in the season fruits.

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Thursday

Woke up to some evidence of ground frost this morning but the day soon warmed up nicely. I did some more direct sowing today and some ‘lazy’ gardening too, the best kind really, read on to see what I am on about.

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After preparing some beds with the digging in of well rotted compost and rabbit bedding material I decided to get some of my leafy and herby veges sown today. So in went some rows of lettuce varieties and in between the rows I sowed some rainbow radishes.

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I also wanted to sow my chard and perpetual spinach so decided to use what was already there. Last year I left some plants of these to flower and set seed which brought in a host of beneficial insects, I never actually collected the resulting seeds and so this year there is a plethora of self sown seedlings.

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So the lazy in me said why sow more when there are perfectly good seedlings here. So that is what I did, I dug up some seedlings and replanted them in their designated bed, as a backup I also sowed a seed (from the over wintered stalks) next to each seedling. Between the chard and the perpetual spinach I sowed three rows of spring onions.

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Later that day I spied in my neighbours undergrowth three tiny fox cubs, love them I may but I cannot stand to see the damage they can cause in my garden, so I was sure to close the greenhouse doors properly and the gate to my vege patch was also securely closed as well. They are I think to small to be out on their own but that will soon change and I would like them to get used to going around the vege patch rather than through it and seeing all the tempting playthings. As soon as I can get a picture of them I’ll show them here.

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Other wildlife I saw were tonnes of worms in my beds, which is always good to see and more ladybugs.

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Friday was another frosty morning which then turned into a gloriously hot day. But Friday is my laundry day so I concentrated mainly on that.

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Saturday

Is normally a dud day for me as I normally spend the day on public transport taking the kids to and from the drama classes. My eldest though didn’t go there as she had to join her guide mates to take her pledge which did at the seaside.

So on returning home with the little one, I quickly ate something changed my clothes into my lotty gear and went to meet my eldest at her drop off point which is a five minute walk away from the plot. So she and I went to plot after and while she chatted my ears off (she did help a little) I dug and raked over the recently weeded bed and proceeded to sow myself four rows of parsnips. I had hoped to plant out my onion seedlings I have at home but stupidly I forgot to bring them with me (so that job will have to wait till tomorrow when I go to do some watering).

I was pleased to see that I’ve had a pretty good germination with the previously sown carrots and beetroots, even some of the flower seeds the girls sowed in our last visit are starting to come up.

But there was a snag, there are foxes on the plot, I know this because I have seen adults on earlier visits, which was why I covered the sown seeds with some sheets of corrugated plastic. When I visited on Saturday I saw evidence of foxes most likely young ones ( I recognise the damage they can reek from past experiences in my garden). They had filled in some of my potato trenches with their larking about, no real loss there but they had also pulled out a few of my plant labels for the spuds (so much for diligent labelling), there was also chewed through twine which marked the edge of my beds as well as deep holes in my beds as well and a couple of dead slowworms which were right next to each other (probably surprised while mating). If the corrugated plastic was not in place over the emerging seedlings they would have dug them up for sure.

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So I had a bit of dilemma, the seedlings were up and needed to be uncovered but the foxes in the area would have undone all that I had done if I left them exposed. So I laid bricks in between the rows laid the plastic on top and then lay bricks upon that to keep them wind proof. Hopefully this will give the seedlings a little bit more growing room without the risk of fox sabotage.

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Before we left the plot we sowed some more French marigolds around the newly sown parsnip bed and dotted some seeds of sunflowers of the smaller multi headed varieties for cutting at different intervals around the plots perimeter.

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The weather was obviously ballooning weather as when I looked out the kitchen window the morning I saw this sight on the left filling the window. And later on the plot my eldest and I saw on the right these two.

Sunday

I wanted a nice lay in and my body clock woke me at 08.30, thankfully I didn’t feel cheated of my lay in as I woke up full of energy.

I spent a great deal of time outside in the garden yesterday, initially I did a bit of transferring of plants from the vege patch footpaths to the flower beds, why is it when you plant self seeding plants they always come up everywhere else other than where you want then to come up, arrgh!!!

I also wanted to save some self sown poppies of the red field variety and the opium variety from a vege bed that would be soon dug over. Now poppies don’t like being disturbed but before moving to this home I have succeeded in moving them before (and these I wanted to move as you can see in the pics were big plants with a lot of healthy roots). The slugs and snails in this garden though always decimate my attempts to transplant poppies, I think they can smell the disturbance and before I could blink they eat out the centre of the newly transplanted plant rendering it dead. So this time I have decided to re-pot them and to wait till they have a new healthy root system and maybe even some flower stalks before replanting them into the flower beds. I know they look bad in the last picture but I promise I’ll show you them again once they have got over the shock.

Then I moved into the greenhouse for a seed sowing marathon, it was time to catch up with you lot.

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First up was tomatoes I plan on growing 12 salad varieties and 3 sauce/ paste making varieties.

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Salad:
Idli
Charlie Green
Largest Striped Roman
Broad Ripple Yellow Current (a repeat from last year)
Japanese Black Trifle (a repeat from last year)
Black Cherry
Peacevine Cherry
Orange Banana (can also be used as a sauce tomato)
Great White
Summer Cider
Tamina
Ailsa Craig (a repeat from last year)
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Paste/ Sauce:
Roma (a repeat from last year)
San Marzano 2 (a repeat from last year)
Roughwood Golden Plum
Realeza

I then went on to re-sow the sweet peppers that didn’t germinate from my February sowings.

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Then it was on the brassicus family. I had only planned to sow what I would me planting down on the plot but then decided that since my garden beds designated for brassicus were not yet ready for direct sowing I would go ahead and sow the garden brassicus crop seeds too.
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For the Plot:
Calabrese
Brussels sprouts
Cabbage
Collard Greens (never done these before)
Cauliflower
Romensco

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For the Garden:
Turnips
Pak choi
Mizuna
Kohl rabi
Kale - Red Russian and Nero di Toscana
Early Sprouting Broccoli - white and purple varieties
Chinese Leaves
Sea Kale (for one of the perennial veg beds)

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I also sowed what I simply assumed was a brassicus (due to its name and labelling as you can see in the pic) till I saw the seed , when I researched it further last night I found that it is a edible member of the chrysanthemum family, which I am looking forward to trying, hmmm! I wonder if it self sows readily (I do like a spot of lazy gardening).

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PS I updated my other blog with info a cool blog I came across yesterday, why nor check it out.

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