Chugging Along

Off on errands shortly - I've run out of seed compost!  (Crisis level - not quite teabags, but at this time of year above bread shortage). 

I've started using Dalefoot compost this year.  One of the local garden centres (two bus rides away as opposed to a train & cab or wait till we hire a van) started stocking it, so having heard good word about it, thought I'd give it a try.  It's made from composted bracken and waste sheep's wool, so no peat, and more consistent ingredients than green waste based composts.  It's got a nice light texture and so far we've had good germination, even though we've used the general purpose version rather than dedicated seed compost.

So yes, I have been getting busy between the rain & snow with the seed sowing.  We've even started cutting the first batch of salad leaves (micro greens, to be precise, but still a joy to have some fresh greenery from the garden), and the Ramsons are getting into full leaf, so there have been assorted garlic tinged dishes to liven up breakfasts of late.  My pots of herb are springing back to life, so there will be fresh mint & oregano for use in the kitchen pretty soon.  The salad burnet is doing really well, so I'm starting to use that for a slightly bitter cucumber taste.  I fear that despite all my efforts the lemon verbena plants didn't make it, so I'll be on the lookout for replacements in the next month or so.

As usual, I've been using the Planting By The Moon book as a guide as to what to sow when.  Not in terms of adhering to biodynamic practices (too rigid, too much hassle for my brain), but more as a way of keeping some sort of order.  For instance, as yesterday was a "flower" day, I got more summer flowering bulbs, corms & tubers started (freesias, gladioli & dahlias), to be planted out at the allotment once the weather is closer to dry and warm.  Also sowed plenty of flower seed.  Some to go with the bulbs & so forth in a cutting garden patch, others to be dotted around the vegetable beds to attract beneficial insects & repel others.  Tomorrow is a "leaf" day, so once I have stuff to fill the trays, I'll get the next batch of salads started, then over the weekend "fruits", such as peas, beans and the last batch of tomatoes can be dealt with.  If we can work out a way of moving them without the expense of a hire van, some of my fruit tree purchases may get planted at the allotment too.

All but a couple of trays of onions, garlic & shallots we started in modules have been planted out at the allotment, as have first and second early potatoes.  The rhubarb is sprouting, so in a few weeks we can start eating that (along with some of the sweet cicely which is looking particularly good among my herb pots.

I lost so much time after my fall last year that, since I started getting mobile again late last September, I've determined to make full use of my time to garden.  Of course this year Spring has been slow to start, so I've been able to pace myself.  But there is still a inclination to make use of every shaft of sunlight.

I just have to remember when we have another cold or rainy spell and I can't get outside for a few days (still using a picnic table on the deck as a potting bench - must get a new shed this year), or the ground is too sodden to work, that even if a bit late in sowing or planting out, the plants will catch up.

Cabin Fever - Slight Return

Well, this has been the coldest Winter for some years here on the northern reaches of London.

We're in the midst of our third bout of snow, with more due later today.

Good thing I got busy with seed sowing ahead of time.  I have plenty of trays safely tucked under cover in my mini greenhouses, plus trays & pots of onions, garlic & shallots stashed outside to allow the cols snap to kick start them into growth before planting them out at the allotment as soon as the soil is ready to take them.

The cold and wet has meant it is slow going at the allotment, but as we are switching to no-dig, it should get easier.  Even so, Howard has been busy making a new set of compost bins (as per an old Lawrence Hills book I found), and every time a batch of wood chip arrives has been layer down some as paths between the beds, which makes everything look neater, as well as easier to walk on.

I finally got out of the house without using my walking stick as an aid.  Was tiring, but I felt able to handle things OK.  I think having both hands free was a great help.  Now the cold is back it feels a bit sore, and I shan't risk the ice for fear of tipping over.

Instead, I shall take advantage of this enforced indoors time to catch up on the Civilisations TV series, and sketch out planting plans for the fruit beds.  Spring is just a matter of days away, and the sap is well & truly rising!

Oops! No Plums!

Late last year, I took the decision to cash in my smallest workplace pension.  Partly to take some pressure off Howard in terms of household finances, but also as there were some big purchases I needed to make if I planned to put more effort into growing our food.

One of the things on my list was more fruit trees.  We'd lost a couple of pear trees then the allotment flooded a few years ago, and having rethought the layout last year while I was laid up unable to actually do any gardening, I had a section of the plot to dedicate to fruit growing.

So in the Autumn I took advantage of an offer Deacons nursery had for half price bare root top fruit trees, and ordered assorted apples, pears and other fruit trees.

The order arrived late last week, but not having transport to get to the allotment this weekend, we had to heel them in until we can plant them in the new fruit area in the back garden.  Saturday it rained all day, so much thumb twiddling took place.  Finally Sunday morning dawned damp, but not actually raining.  Unfortunately, by the time we were both ready & got outside to the garden, it was raining lightly, but we were determined to get the job done - opening the packages, bagging up the straw used to protect the trees, sorting through the trees, then planting them,  in batches of 5 or so, temporarily in spent compost in the potato planting bags, so they would be easy to transport to the allotment next time we hire a van.

Of course in the time it took to get all this done, the temperature dropped further, and the rain turned to sleet, then to snow.  But it was a job that needed completing, didn't require walking on soil or disturbing it in any other way, so we persevered.  As the snow once again morphed into sleet and then rain, the job was completed, and the trees were neatly placed in a sheltered but light patch.  I then ticked them off against my order - a selection of eating apples to crop & keep from late Summer through to early Spring, cooking apples to crop & store through Autumn & Winter, a small selection of cider apples to experiment with, a couple of pears to replace what we lost to flooding, a peach, a nectarine and a cherry to grow in the sunniest patch of the garden at the house, a damson and a greengage. 

Somehow I had forgotten to get any new plum trees.

Still, having done a scale plan of the fruit area, I reckon there's space for a couple more trees (as well as raspberries, gooseberries & assorted currants), so time to study the lists again.