Thursday 20th April
After spending the morning sowing the seeds I should have sown long ago, I came down to the plot to plant the rest of my potatoes. Before I could start my new neighbour told me about a couple of thistles that he had tried to dig out but their roots ran deep into my plot so the first thing I did was to dig out the accessible one. I seemed to be digging down for ever but eventually got it out without it snapping off. The root was about two feet long and fortunately there were no side shoots! I left it on the fence for my neighbour to see.
For a moment I stopped to admire the blossom on my crab apple tree. The variety is Everest and I transplanted it here after a neighbour at home complained that it was dropping 'berries' all over her garden. It flowers profusely and has hundreds of red crab apples all along its branches. A few have been taken by birds and if you look carefully you may be able to make out the odd one still attached to the branch from last year. It is so good I might even try transplanting it back into a new position in my garden!
Once that was done turned to digging over the rest of the patch I need to plant my potatoes. With no rain of significance for some time the soil is very dry and I had to use a fork so I could break up the clods of earth. Happily there were only a couple of bits of bindweed. I then planted a row of Maris Piper and a row of Sarpo Mira scattering some slug pellets as I buried them.
To plant the Sarpo Mira I had to clear the Purple Sprouting next door. That is the last picking until next season so I will savour it.
Having completed the potato planting and picked the sprouts I cut a couple of very fat asparagus spears. While there I hoed the scattering of weed seedlings, unfortunately cutting of the top of one promising spear just emerging from the soil. Realising that the dry weather was ideal for hoeing, I moved on the the weeds between the cabbages and soon had them cleared. I then spent some time trying to adjust the net tunnel, without success. Next time I must make sure that the patch is level before moving the tunnel onto it. I left fixing them down with stakes at the corners until next time I come down.
Before finishing by watering the seedlings I hammered six Dahlia stakes in around the emerging peas and, topping them off with the bottoms of plastic bottles, I stretched some butterfly netting over them.
It was dusk as I left but there were several plotters still at work as I shut the gate, leaving the padlock open but with the number scrambled so they could lock up - even in the dark.
After spending the morning sowing the seeds I should have sown long ago, I came down to the plot to plant the rest of my potatoes. Before I could start my new neighbour told me about a couple of thistles that he had tried to dig out but their roots ran deep into my plot so the first thing I did was to dig out the accessible one. I seemed to be digging down for ever but eventually got it out without it snapping off. The root was about two feet long and fortunately there were no side shoots! I left it on the fence for my neighbour to see.
For a moment I stopped to admire the blossom on my crab apple tree. The variety is Everest and I transplanted it here after a neighbour at home complained that it was dropping 'berries' all over her garden. It flowers profusely and has hundreds of red crab apples all along its branches. A few have been taken by birds and if you look carefully you may be able to make out the odd one still attached to the branch from last year. It is so good I might even try transplanting it back into a new position in my garden!
Once that was done turned to digging over the rest of the patch I need to plant my potatoes. With no rain of significance for some time the soil is very dry and I had to use a fork so I could break up the clods of earth. Happily there were only a couple of bits of bindweed. I then planted a row of Maris Piper and a row of Sarpo Mira scattering some slug pellets as I buried them.
To plant the Sarpo Mira I had to clear the Purple Sprouting next door. That is the last picking until next season so I will savour it.
Having completed the potato planting and picked the sprouts I cut a couple of very fat asparagus spears. While there I hoed the scattering of weed seedlings, unfortunately cutting of the top of one promising spear just emerging from the soil. Realising that the dry weather was ideal for hoeing, I moved on the the weeds between the cabbages and soon had them cleared. I then spent some time trying to adjust the net tunnel, without success. Next time I must make sure that the patch is level before moving the tunnel onto it. I left fixing them down with stakes at the corners until next time I come down.
Before finishing by watering the seedlings I hammered six Dahlia stakes in around the emerging peas and, topping them off with the bottoms of plastic bottles, I stretched some butterfly netting over them.
It was dusk as I left but there were several plotters still at work as I shut the gate, leaving the padlock open but with the number scrambled so they could lock up - even in the dark.
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