No Room at the Patch...Part 4

On to the mixed bed...Spinach, Beetroot and Courgette.

Now, last year the courgettes grew brilliantly, but I did plant them in a whole bed of compost, so will wait to see how they develop this one. If necessary, I'll dig out the bed and replant!

The spinach is growing well and really needs more regular picking than I can give it. I think my garden might have just the right type of soil for leafy plants. Is that extra nitrogen in the soil? I can't remember which nutrient is best for which type of plant!

The beetroot plants look so colourful. I'm looking forward to seeing how they turn out.

No Room at the Cabbage Patch...Part 3

Brassicas next then...well, you already know the progress of the cabbages - amazing! I'm using the leaves as spring greens, and have even tried crispy seaweed. Just a few fennel seeds, a pinch of sugar and a quick fry. I also seeded some broccoli but couldn't seem to find it. When I investigated further, however, I found several little shoots hiding under the cabbages, so moved a few into the light and cropped off a few cabbage leaves to help the remaining ones along! there are already a few little 'flowers' forming so hopefully, they'll go the same way as the cabbages. Time will tell.

No Room in the Patch...Part 2

Next up were the aliums. Now, I had several, well, about 30, little leeks and plugged them all in to their own little hole which I duly filled with water, and re-filled. I know they don't look all that healthy, but with a little sun and little rain there'll be a lovely row of...oh no, that's potatoes not leeks! Oh well, all in a soup!

Unfortunately, as well as the lovely sunny weather today, we've had numerous thunder storms and much, much rain! hope they don't drown. will keep you informed. The onions are looking good; a range of sizes but hopefully if I leave them in the ground a little longer, they'll expand and i won't have quite so much peeling to do. the garlic is looking fantastic: think I planted a few too many though!

No Room in the Patch...part 1

Well, the final little plug plants arrived, all be it a few weeks late, and I spent Saturday clearing and weeding the remainder of the beds and Sunday planting everything up. As well as the main beds, I tidied up the Nasturtiums with the hope of popping a few into a salad this week, and made sure everything in the greenhouse was 'up to date'. My one remaining job in there is to plant up the peppers: there are now strong healthy shoots and I need to find a pot in which to put them!

First up... the umbellifers! All my little roots. I planted the carrots early in the greenhouse, and despite everyone telling me that you couldn't uproot them and transplant them because the tap root would be damaged, I was very careful and it looks like ti's worked well! They are growing bigger and need harvesting soon before they get tough and lose their sweetness. I also found a few parsnips that I'd popped in with radish to mark the rows. Well, the radish have been eaten and a few parsnips survived, along with the extras I've grown on from the greenhouse. This week's new arrivals is the celery. All planted in and ready to grow!

I just can't help it...

I really can't. They are such a distraction and are now happily feeding themselves! At one point, there were 3 on the squirrel-proof feeder, 3 on the fatball and 3 on the other peanut feeder. Also, there was a female blackbird taking up one of the fatballs!