Going...going...gone!

Well, they went yesterday. I wasn't lucky enough to actually see them leave the nest but caught up with them immediately after, all sitting together on the nearest branch!

I've followed their progress since and they're happy to sit around and pose for photos! having looked in more detail, I think now they may be Great Tits. Originally, it was a pair of Blue Tits that built the nest but at some point, and without me seeing!, the Great Tits must have moved in!

I've noticed a large and noisy flock of Willow or Long Tailed Tits. The thing that makes me think they're Willow Tits is the 'v' in the end of the tail, but you can never tell with juvies! Will post photos of the later this week!

Fledging

Here's mum (or dad?) looking pretty on the way from the nest.

Well, I was rather worried while away with the children from school that by the time I returned, the little tits in the box would have gone. But I needn't have worried; they're all still there and mum and dad are feeding them well. They make regular stops to the fat ball and back to the box and some longer trips for worms!

The little ones really aren't so little any more and one in particular is so ready to go, peeking out and chirping loudly for more! I don't think it'll be long now and am looking forward to keeping an eye on them this half term, hoping to see them take their first flights - I'll make sure the cat is securely away first!

Now and Then

Every day I venture into the garden, I wonder at how things grow: Just how does the one garlic clove planted make more of itself and finish off as a fully formed bulb?! Is it magic soil? That's what I like to think!

Anyway, I am totally in awe of everything that's growing, and the fact I can cut it and eat it (see my cooking blog for ideas) so I thought I'd post a few more before and after pics...

Onions and Garlic

Broad Beans

Cabbages

Carrots and Radish

from foreground to background...

Raspberries, Cabbages, Garlic, Onions, Spinach, Chives

Roots, Shoots and Leaves

Everything seems to be nearly ready to eat in the vegetable garden now, so I'm going ahead and beginning to harvest the lot! It's happy and sad at the same time; I'm happy the crops have worked and are edible (!) but sad that I have to crop or pull them from the ground!

I have a selection of herbs ready to go, and I use these in nearly every meal I make! The cabbages don't seem to have a heart, ahhhh, but I'm using the outer leaves as spring greens. The asparagus seems to be arriving in dribs and drabs but I don't yet have enough for two for starters.

The radish are great; easy to grow, quick and big! They pull up well and are delicious dipped in a little salt or tossed into a salad.

I've recently used a range of herbs and spring greens in a Herby Pork with Bean Puree on a bed of cabbage. If the onions and garlic had been ready too, nearly everything would have come from the garden! Hurrah!

Asparagus

Well, its certainly asparagus season and we were told that there was asparagus in our garden. I went to the site we believed it to be and saw not a thing! On closer inspection of the soil, however, a few little heads were seen to be poking their way through the earth! How very exciting! It didn't take long before the little shoots were tall, leggy asparagus and I had to quickly chop them down before they grew any more. I had no idea how fast they grow!



Let's face it though, I'm not going to win any prizes for them! Firstly, I'd never be able to harvest enough to compare as they are few and far between. Secondly, look at them! All shapes, sizes, lengths and breadths!

There were a few edible ones however, and I'm collecting them as they appear so we can at least have a decent sized starter portion of a few spears each! I'm keeping them in a jar of cold water, changed regularly each day and they seem to be doing ok!