April 2007

1 My gardening season takes off in earnest today.  I planted broad beans, peas and chard outdoors, weeded part of the veg plot and dug over the greenhouse soil.
Crow mowed the orchard and weeded around four of the fruit trees.
2 I've been catching site of a pair of birds in our garden recently and I've now succeeded in identifying them as a pair of collared doves.  I'm becoming quite a little twitcher.
Potted up ten Golden Berry seedlings from the heated propagator.  I hate this bit as they always wilt and look like they're going to die (and sometimes do!) immediately after potting.  Also planted beetroot outdoors and weeded a little more grass out of flower bed 1.
3 Indoor planting of tomato and gherkin seeds, followed by a meal out and a trip to the theatre with four friends.  We were picked up for our trip, so I had the added and unusual bonus of being able to have a drink.  Perfect!
4 Indoor garden activity, ordering potatoes, onion sets and seeds.  It took me some time to work out the best deal.....  Another lovely meal out with friends this evening.
5 Shopping, walking, veg garden digging, then a trip to London for yet another meal out.  Three in a row - I've forgotten what the kitchen is for!
6 Well, I was planning to plant out some radishes and start celeriac and sweetcorn in the potting shed until we had our chickie disaster (see chicken diary).  I did the indoor planting but not the radishes as I was too busy nursing.
7 I've done the best I can at weeding and digging out grass from flower border 1.  I've thrown down some Nigella seeds in one spot and plan to put in some more seeds in the next few days.  Crow dug paddock bed 2 and mowed the lawns for the first time this year - they look so much better now.
8 In the flower garden:  more seeds sown, raked over and watered; Nigella Persian Jewels, Californian Wild Flower mix, Cornflowers, Simplicity, Coral Reef Poppy, Sunset Boulevard Poppy.  As I see it, one of four things will happen; 1) Nothing, 2) the chicks will dig up and eat the seeds, 3) the rabbits will eat any seedlings that germinate, 4) I'll get some beautiful flowers.  I think my money is probably on 2) and 3).
In the veg garden:  more seeds sown; two pots of Carrot Parmex, Cantaloupe Melon, Swiss Chard, Physalis.
9 Visiting day to mummy-in-law and her local garden centre where I cheated and bought 12 savoy cabbage seedlings.
Germination: 2 west indian gherkin in my heated propagator.
10 It's been warm and dry for several days now and a least three more forecast, so I had to water my outdoor bean, pea, chard and beetroot seeds plus plants in the greenhouse.  I also protected my two carrot pots with fleece to stop any carrot fly attacks.
Sowing:  red pepper, haricot beans, chives.
Germination: 2 tomato seedlings in my heated propagator + 1 more gherkin.
Harvest:  the last kale plant.
11 Indoor seed sowing continues with courgettes, dwarf beans, minipop sweetcorn, tumbling tomato, basil and coriander......
12 Dig, dig, dig in the veggie garden - well, for two hours.  Had to stop otherwise I was going to get a blistered hand.
13 Plan, plan, plan veggie garden planting, as my new seeds and two trellis planters arrived.
You may have noticed a barrel with a water pump handle in photos of our flower garden.  Sitting watching the birds, I've noticed that a blue tit is making a nest inside the neck of the handle - amazing!
14 25C today - altogether too hot, too suddenly for me!  I need time to acclimatise.  Even though I do my best to avoid the sun and keep covered up, I've already got a brown face and hands from just the last few days and my garden is starting to cry out for some rain.
Crow's off  rallying, so this Chick went for retail therapy and bought some garden goodies, including 5 small heather plants for flower border1.  If I can get them to survive chickens and rabbits perhaps they will be hardy enough for this dry bed.  They're protected by cloches at the moment......
15 Green plantersPut together two new green planters.  I was pleased to find them very well designed as they constructed well, no tools required, and a sturdy structure resulted.  These are now filled with my own compost mixed with a little multi-purpose, feed plus some sand and waiting for gherkins or climbing courgettes.

Meanwhile, in the veggie garden, I'm a bit puzzled and upset that nothing at all has germinated in terms of outdoor planting - that's peas, broad beans, chard and beetroot.  I gently dug around and couldn't find any trace of pea or bean seeds.  Could they have been eaten by mice?
16 A third really hot day left me keen to stay cool indoors.  Still, it was good for the housework situation.
We took to the local footpaths for an evening walk and went past a small wood about half a mile away from which mournful sounds often emanate.  We had been told they were the calls of wild peacocks and we saw one tonight!
17 At last, a slightly cooler day.  Still about 17C but much more pleasant.  Finished my latest knitted jumper creation and crocheted a cord to make a Millifiori heart necklace.
Germination: 2 tumbling tom tomato seeds which I had given up on!
Harvest: 2 leeks.
18 The BBC are at it again with their poor use of the English language, describing the terrible gunman in Virginia as an English student, rather than a student of English.  The first time I heard the report, I thought they meant he was born in England.
Seed planting session today: peas, beans, sweetcorn, tomato, sprouts, broccoli and kale.
19 Crow transferred the contents of compost bin 2 into bin 3 where its now ready for use.  Bin 1 is covered for cooking, leaving bin2 to start anew.
Harvest: salad leaves, chives.
I start to crochet a shawl tonight in Sirdar silky look yarn.
20 Since all  but one of my first lot of physalis seedlings have died, I sowed more seed in the heated propagator along with some cordon tomatoes.  My celeriac has shown no signs of germination in the last two weeks, but I'm exhibiting patience as it does say 14-21 days on the packet.  Chilli pepper and melothrie also sown.
21 I collected twigs and deposited them in the bottom of compost bin2, then started it off with dead daffodil heads, rose bush prunings and chicken poo.  This was followed by an outdoor seed sowing session of fennel, raab, radishes and salad leaves.  I also transplanted five chard plants grown in a pot last year.
22 More garden pottering:  building two wooden trellis planters, wedding around the pond, planting out four cabbages and sowing two pots with mini cauliflower seeds.
23 I had three houseplants that were desperate for re-potting so they got some tlc today, plus I planted a pot of lemon geranium cuttings.
24 An excellent night at Colchester Mercury to see She Stoops To Conquer, a Georgian comedy, not unlike a Shakespearean comedy.  Thoroughly enjoyable, a great performance by the resident cast and the best show so far this season!
I've acquired some exciting new fruit seeds on eBay; melon pear pepino (to grow my own from scratch this year), lemonade berry and furry pink banana.  Can't get any of these in the supermarket.  Crow has ordered a Linkabord raised bed module for one of the paddock beds to do something to stop the weeds.
Germination: 7 broad beans, 2 feltham pea.
25 Sadly, my indoor west indian gherkin seedlings have died and I've given up on celeriac germination both indoors and in the potting shed.
26 This evening I finished crocheting the silky shawl and very elegant it looks!
27 I got eight free strawberry plants with my onion & shallot order, so I planted these in a new strawberry trough.
28 Busy day out to Stockbridge for lunch and to view a historic rally car that Crow is interested in.  Followed by a visit here from our "Portuguese" friends who we haven't seen since before Xmas, which was a real treat.
Menu: Spiced fruity egg salad, tuna quiche with roasted vegetables, date & cardamom rice pudding.
29 My 7 remaining cabbages have been planted out under a long fleece cloche and I've attempted to protect our new cherry tree so that the birds don't eat the forming fruit.
On the knitting front, I've started a silky camisole.
Germination: at last 6 jerusalem artichokes have made an appearance, and in the potting shed, 5 asparagus pea and 4 sweetcorn.
May is another busy birthday month so I made 3 birthday cards.
30 Busy lizzieI was rewarded for my houseplant re-potting on 23rd when three flowers appeared on my busy lizzie today.

In the potting shed: 5 sweetcorn Sundance seeds and one climbing courgette sown.
Outside: 18 kohl rabi seeds sown.