May 2007

1	We've invested in a Linkabord raised bed kit for one of the paddock beds as Crow is keen to find a way to stop the weeds proliferating quite so much.  I don't think this will be effective from a weed point of view, but it will provide an easier environment for improving the beds with topsoil and other materials.  However, with a bed 4.5 x 1.5 metres, the Linkabord module is not that stable and a double height would probably be necessary.  Another drawback is that the raised beds are then going to be difficult to rabbit proof. So, thoughts have changed to consideration of a net polytunnel.  At first, this seems like an expensive option, but remember, we have both weeds and rabbits to repel.  When costed with other options like properly fencing off the area or totally raised beds plus bed fencing, it compares favourably and will be the best option for weed suppression.
2	We're still trying to dig over and clear weeds from the paddock beds, now really needed for potato and onion/shallot planting.  So both Crow & I spent the afternoon digging, weeding and breaking up the rock solid clay soil.  It's very hard work.
3	Crow's still digging and I planted three potato tubs.
4	Crow's still digging and I ordered the polytunnel and did outdoor sowing of leeks, sprouts and broccoli, plus indoor sowing of melon pear pepino and lemonade berry.
5	I participated in a research study related to eye tests this morning, which was interesting. Back in the garden, we built the frame of the fruit cage and I started to attached the side netting.
6	Most of today was spent a the wedding of a friend's daughter.  Lovely!!!
7	I know it's Bank Holiday Monday and everyone (except me) is miserable because it's raining.  I'm over the moon because my veg really need it and I can enjoy the sun any day - sorry!  But I do realise how lucky I am! I found a home for 6 courgette plants with one of the neighbours. Then, I finished netting the fruit cage & filled it with 3 currant bushes, 3 blueberry plants and 3 strawberry troughs.
8	Thinned carrot pots & radishes.  Dug and weeded plot outside bedroom where I might try some "overflow" courgettes. Germination: 2nd salad pot (only sown 4 days ago!), climbing courgette. And more theatre - this time a play translated from Russian in the Mercury studio.  Performed excellently by three young actors, it portrayed life in Leningrad between 1942 and 1959 and was funny, sad and moving.
9	Mummy-in-law visit, then I finished knitting the silky camisole and I am very. very pleased with it. Crow's still digging!
10	Planted out 7 more broad bean seedlings but had to stake them as I had let them become far too leggy.  Potted on 33 (!) physalis and one garden pearl tomato.  Sowed three more melon seeds, three more west indian gherkin and another tray of celeriac.  Better luck with these last two this time, I hope! Then, TRextasy in the evening at Chelmsford Civic.  Nostaglia!!!
11	Today's garden activity was filling a giant pot and digging in preparation for courgette planting.  Something is eating my physalis seedlings which were on the bottom shelf of staging in the potting shed.  I've lifted them up to try to salvage the remains but the best are gone and I've put some mouse poison down. Indoors I started knitting a jumper in a combination of Aran and Patons Splash chunky.
12	Flower border 1 had another good wedding as my new heathers were in danger of being swamped.  I also planted out 6 courgettes, 2 in the veg garden, one in a giant pot and three in the plot outside of the bedroom window, protected by wire mesh.  5 fennel and 2 kohl rabi had germinated but they seem to be disappearing now  :-( Picked rhubarb for pud.
13	Just too wet today to enjoy anything in the garden, so reduced to ironing and housework.
14	Still it persistently rains.  I only ventured into the garden to pick my last leek from the 2006 crop as I'm making a veggie lunch for visitors tomorrow. Meanwhile, in the living room, the back and front of my new jumper are complete.
15	Mum & Auntie-in-law visited us today. Menu: home made vegetable soup (potato, leek, onion & carrot) with fresh brown bread, followed by roast vegetable torte with asparagus & roast potatoes, followed by cardamom date rice.
16	Start of the net polytunnel construction - how exciting!   Well, I'm easily pleased and just a bit zealous about my veggie growing.......  The hoops are up. Whilst that was going on I planted out my beans reared in the potting shed - 4 haricot (one in a pot) and 3 dwarf.  I started another giant potato pot  with 3 Amandine, added two finishing touches to my fruit cage netting and put out moth traps in the apple and plum trees.
17	Germination: 2 valor potatoes, 2 melon pear pepino, outside sprouts & broccoli but no sign of leeks yet. A trip to London for dinner with Crow's two daughters.
18	Most of the net tunnel trench was dug this evening by a neighbour who just happened to have access top a digger this week, saving hours and hours of hard labour. Earlier I moved my wooden trellis planters - one into veg garden for  climbing courgette and the other into the potting shed for a melon plant. Outdoors I resowed kohl rabi, beetroot, fennel and raab, sowed a new carrot trough and planted out two pea plants raised in the potting shed.  Then I popped in five more sweetcorn seeds in pots that had failed.
19	My alpine strawberry plants look as though they have stopped growing in their germinating tray and seem large enough to pot up, so I put three in each of two small hanging baskets and the rest in two troughs.  I left the hanging baskets hanging outdoors but put the troughs in the greenhouse.  The rest of my gardening day then consisted of digging in veggie garden and weeding flower border 1. In the veggie garden , I seem to have two fennel plants which have jumped to another bed - or are they some kind of clever weed masquerading as fennel? Germination: one of the three new melon seeds.
20	Disaster with the washing machine which expired this morning, making so much noise that I was afraid to venture into the kitchen, let alone get close enough to pull the plug.  It was on its final spin so I took a chance and let in struggle to the end.  I then emptied it, very glad for good weather to dry the 'not very well spun' clothes and to blow away the metallic smell they were harbouring.  The rubber seal had parted from the drum and the drum itself now turns to the sound of scraping metal.  It had always been noisy since we inherited it with the house and now it is an ex-washing machine.  But that's not the only problem - the cold water isolation valve is completely seized up and won't close, so we'll need a plumber before we can disconnect it.  We've tried and failed to find a local plumber before....... Germination: 1 west indian gherkin. Harvest: salad leaves.
21	More pea sowing in the potting shed, 9 feltham and 9 jaguar in 1.5 inch peat pots.  In pots, I planted mint, red and green basil and beetroot and I filled the trellis planter ready for its courgette.  Since the net tunnel will be finished soon, I prepared three trays of onions to root. Germ: 1 sarpo potato, 1 amandine potato, leeks.
22	My internet washing machine searching has failed to uncover a hot and cold fill machine, like our current one and our gap is very tight for the new machine sizes.  A trip to the local electrical shop in Tiptree confirmed that all new machines are now cold fill only, so we also need a plumber to properly cap the current hot water pipe to the machine.  It was a worthwhile visit because we were able to physically measure a machine and choose the model we wanted.  Fortunately they also gave us a plumber to contact and he's coming tomorrow, so I ordered my washing machine.  I'm feeling very guilty for not supporting our very helpful local shop, but I got the machine, plus fitting, plus disposal of the old one all delivered in three days time for £20 less than the shop quoted price for machine only. Another visit to the theatre for an old favourite "Dial M for Murder", performed by four visiting TV actors giving a very good performance. Harvest:  salad leaves and my first red and white radishes.
23	Very hot today, but I covered up, donned my hat and braved it, resulting in a busy outdoor planting day: scorzonera, turnip, celeriac (I haven't given up yet) and kale, plus and another square foot of salad leaves/polycress mixture.  Then I transplanted two melothrie and my one climbing courgette into trellis planters.
24	Even hotter today but the net tunnel is finished!  If anyone had told me 10 years ago that I would be so excited about a net tunnel, I would have thought they were mad.  That's what a discovery of gardening and retiring can do for you....... Whilst the tunnel was finished, I weeded and tidied up flower bed 1, again! And my sweet potato slips have arrived, so I need to read up on how to get these to thrive. And I had a call to confirm the washing machine delivery tomorrow.
25	New washing machine duly delivered and used.  Excellent service from Tesco. No prizes for guessing where I've spent the afternoon.  That's right, in the net tunnel.  Hard digging first then some potatoes and onions planted.
26	No gardening today, sadly, as I shopped, paid a visit to the local village fair and prepared soup and quiche fillings for guests tomorrow.  Since I have been struggling so badly to germinate cordon tomatoes, I bought 3 plants at the fair for £1 and 3 brussel sprout plants at 30p each. I harvested my first pot of beetroot for tomorrow's lunch.
27	Crow's new (or rather old) Ford Escort RS2000 Mark 1 was delivered today by friends who stayed for a lunch of:  Vegetable soup with cheese and onion bread, followed by tuna & vegetable quiche, spinach & ricotta quiche, sweet beetroot salad and mixed green pickled salad, followed by banana ice-cream and plums in syrup. I used my own potatoes and shallots in the soup, substituted spinach with my beetroot tops, my beetroot in the first salad and my salad leaves, radishes, pickled pears, peppers and gherkins in the second salad.
28	A new knitting project started - a ladies cap sleeved jumper. Also a visit to mum-in-law, taking her lunch, as she's a bit under the weather having had an accident causing a leg injury. Our garden is teaming with bird wildlife at the moment.  Not only have we got the moorhen activity (see Chicken Diary), but we've got the blue tits nesting in the water barrel spout, loads of other small birds around and a family of blackbirds, mum, dad and three young, feasting most days on the hen pellets.  Today, the two of the young were up on our table outside the study.
29	Crow is clearing turf from inside of the tunnel to maximise my growing space.  I took immediate advantage and planted out 2 more of my potted courgettes in there.  I also had to stake my broad beans as they are all falling down and I prepared the ground for my sweet potato slips, digging in some sand and covering the patch with black plastic.  I've had to temporarily plant the sweet potato slips in a trough in the potting shed, but even in there it's a bit cold for them.  Believe it or not, the weather forecast says 3C tonight - brrrr!  I'm not sure they'll survive. And yuk!  I cleared out the greenhouse which was housing last year's melon pepino plants in the hope that they would re-grow, but no luck.  Underneath their tray I found an ant colony and some big egg-like things which I had to remove.
30	The constant rain on Sunday & Monday didn't hamper my gardening efforts too much as we had guests and were out, but more rain today meant it was too wet and, more to the point, cold for planting sweetcorn, melon, tomatoes or anything else.
31	Since the alpine strawberries that I planted in two small hanging pots have perished, I reused the pots to sow some nasturtium seeds. Harvest: Swiss chard & rhubarb.