A Big Old Catch Up.

Hi! Well, how good has this weather been, although I did see somebody on social media saying it wasn't right to be this warm in February, meaning that the planet was warming up, I think....

On Thursday it was my youngest's Ysgol Eisteddfod, school Eisteddfod. He recited a poem, in Welsh, for of the categories and came 2nd; he also won places in two writing classes. Very proud of him.

On Friday I had a delivery of my bare root fruit canes and some blueberry plants and seeds from Thompson & Morgan.

Sorry about the last photo being a bit scew!

At the weekend our Airbnb guests enjoyed the sun. We were really very busy with that as well as jobs around the house and outside.

Jon was doing the first cutting back of trees near to the roadside. 

There is more to do but with help as we'll have to take care of the passing traffic. 

In the afternoon he took the boys down to the river for the first try out in the kayak we bought them for Christmas.

On Sunday I manged to get into the garden. Yay!!! I sowed my February onions, variety Sturton in one of the large tyres. After it being suggested to me I've planted 5 of my existing strawberry plants in a drainpipe.

I may suspend this from the rafters of the poly house. I still have a couple more along with the 12 that came in the fruit order.....!

Last Friday I sowed the following: 

Sweet Romano peppers x 4 pots of 2 seeds
Sunflower Pacino (pots as above), these have been put in the conservatory, one of the Sunflower seeds is showing its face.

I've sown a couple of other things which are in my homemade propagator again, but I'll spare you the details as its early days yet. 

Cornflowers and Field flowers in the chimney outside the poly house and I'm looking forward to those coming up as they were lovely last year.

Yesterday, after the two sets of guests left,  I got myself outside. I discovered the other day that one of my rhubarb crowns have survived when I thought it had been flattened following some work in the garden. This morning I saw signs of the second one; they are very small!

I decided to clear the space properly, which included exposing the Wild Garlic I could smell as I was working, and to build something to protect said rhubarb. The area was a BIT over grown....the crowns were planted somewhere in the bottom left of the photo so was a little tricky to find them.

This is how it looked after a bit of work.

And here is what I am chuffed with. I used branches left from Jon's tree job on Saturday and made pegs to twine them around.

I am ridiculously pleased with myself. I just really hope after all my hard work that the crowns survive. If anybody has any advice for me it would be really appreciated.

The boys were busy too, one helping our elderly neighbour with some logging and the other sorting out some kindling for the store.

That's about it, apart from since I began planning this post I now have three Airbnb bookings for this week, and it is not quite the end of February!

Weather gorgeous again today so after getting both rooms ready this morning I'm having some lunch then going out into the poly house where, about 2 hours ago, it was 29 degrees. I plan on taking up the blueberry bushes from the garden and putting them in planters along with the cranberry I was given at Christmas. I bought ericaceous compost yesterday for this job.

Bye for now.

Fun In The Sun, A Sowing And A Growing!

Good morning.

Oh my what a weekend! On Saturday we spent, as a family, 3 and a half hours putting up the greenhouse gifted to us by friends; where they live was apparently too windy for them to use it so they asked if we'd like it. You betcha!

It was a bit of a task but we did it in the end, all but the glass - Jon will get to that after a couple of other jobs around out little Homestead; there are a few broken pieces but he has some in stock so no trouble there.

We started putting it together where it will eventually be set down but it was a bit of a squeeze so we moved across to the other side of the garden to complete the task.

 I took this one as Harry was tightening up all the nuts and bolts.

This photo is after I'd re-sited the blackcurrant bush that was in the doorway, can you see? Its loaded with flowers and smells fab, as does the other bush, and I'm very confident of a good harvest, as long as I can keep an eye on them regarding the birds....

I now have to strim the area, it will be secured, I'll put some membrane down for this year and Jon said he'll build me some staging. Next year I'll see about having some raised beds but I'll have my planters for the tomatoes and other things this year when I get organised - v.excited!

Sunday was a great day! I got outside after a hearty breakfast I cleaned out the chooks with some great shavings I use from the sawmill. I sowed cabbage Offenham direct into the bed outside the Poly House. I have some in the conservatory in pots but thought I'd go belt and braces as really hope they come out as well as last year but just more, barring caterpillars. 

I forgot to sow peppers after the first lot didn't germinate so I've, again, gone for sweet pepper Romano and California Wonder. Because of the extra space with the greenhouse I've decided to sow gherkins again as they did sooo well last year.

I've direct sown sugar snap peas in the main bed and used some more willow canes for a little support. I've got a really mix going on in there just now. I was only thinking this afternoon that I must work out where to put things once the first early spuds are up as there is broccoli to think of, too, that is currently in the conservatory - nowhere near ready to go out yet, though.

I am continually checking my books and magazines for things I can sow just now, and as our weather is set to be great for the next week too I have to hold myself back! I'm lucky to have a good sized area and the new greenhouse, too, but it is never enough is it😃?

The raspberry bushes were getting properly larey so I've tied the other large one to supporting canes and noticed where they have self-seeded so will have to deal with that soon. Last year our neighbour gave me some raspberry canes and I planted them at the fence line between his and our garden and completely forgot about them. They are now well established now and it looks like there will be a great crop from them this year! 

We popped to Aber after lunch and I came home with four more bags of compost. Just out of interest, what do people pay for it where you live? I can get 200 litres for £10. Work clothes back on and with new supplies I planted out more sweet peas, this time in a planter with one of my trellis (2 for £1) and willow canes so that should be a lovey sight outside of the Poly House. 

I could finally put the last of the maincrop spuds Cara in! I admit to some of them being spoilt with overheating so I had to ditch a few.... but they are in the second massive tyre and one growing bag.


I clipped some of the big weeds before strimming and checked that it was ok for some to go on the compost; I also turned over one of the compost bins to see how it was progressing.

We managed to get some of the grass cut and it looks so much better - lovely view from the Poly House. Hope to get the rest done this week.

In other areas of the garden the three blueberry bushes are really coming on well - not sure if there will be any fruit this year.

The end of the small patch where the parsnips and radishes are sown are now quite defined by the radishes which is good to see.

The Marketmore cucumbers are peeping through after being put in the propagator in the Poly House after not doing well in the conservatory so its great my recycling has worked.

Right, have to get on. Just enjoying the weather today really, not too many jobs outside apart from drying the washing. Back to Slimming World tonight after a couple of weeks away and then Welsh tomorrow, also been off for a couple of weeks as life just got in the way.

Oh, in my quest to do a bit of writing where I can I've had a piece about learning Welsh accepted and is going to be published in our local mag promoting Aber. go me!

Looking forward to seeing what everybody is getting up to on your own patches of paradise in this fantastic weather we are enjoying just now.

Bye for now.

Lou.xx

Warming Weather And More To Come?...

Hi!

The weather is definitely improving. (Hope my sunflowers grow this well!)

Even though in Wales we're still getting rain showers, of course, the mercury is still rising. 

No more so than in the conservatory which, you probably know, is standing in as my Poly House until such time as the storm damage to the latter is mended.

Outside I can see the tops of the first early spuds from the Poly House, such is the rate of growth just now. 

On the fruit patch the apple blossom and other fruit trees are flowering and the blackcurrant bushes and raspberry canes are coming on a pace, too. 

The rasps have re-seeded themselves in a couple of places, which I'm very pleased about, but I'll wait until they're a bit bigger then tidy them up with bamboo canes and string as I did with the biggest of them this morning. 

Ooh, today my neighbour who works at the local nursery brought me another rhubarb crown; I've planted this with the first one and I'm looking forward to having quite a sizeable patch eventually; just grateful that rhubarb is not too fussy where it grows as the area I've chosen is a bit stony but it doesn't seem to be bothering it.

The wild garlic is getting huge so I MUST do something with it very soon!

Today I've sown carrot seeds in the same bed as the parsnips and radishes. 

Whilst doing that I've, hopefully, sufficiently bunged up a hole where a mole or rabbit got through into the bed at the end of last year's growing season. Not that much damage was done then and hope to minimise it this year.

I also sowed some spinach beet, perpetual spinach, among the 2nd early spuds in the main patch; this is another of my efforts at a bit of mixed planting; it is described like this:

- A delicious spinach substitute but easier to grow. High yields of nutritious greens and resists bolting in Summer. 

I'm getting very excited about how things are coming on and feel really positive for the coming weeks and months. I'm sure the good weather forecast for the weekend will help towards us all catching up after a very poor start to Spring.

That's all for now with my ramblings.

Bye for now.

Lou.xx

Here Comes The Sun!

The weather the last couple of days, as in most places, has been glorious, absolutely gorgeous. My boys' had a school football tournament yesterday so were pleased with the weather and I put out some washing to dry and got into the garden. Today my youngest is taking part in a cross country event in Aberaeron so he has gone with a hat and strict instructions to stay in the shade where possible. 

I'm just going to share a few photos; this is so I can see where things are progressing and to let you see how things are coming along.

In the fruit patch the blackcurrants and raspberries are leafing up really well. as are my baby blueberry bushes. A couple of the fruit trees are starting to blossom especially this one.

I've been sowing turnip and beetroot - a cylindrical variety - in the cold frame bed. In the lettuce sink I've added American Cress; I like that this one could be ready in as little as five weeks - saw Monty sowing it this week and happened to have some so spurred me on.

I was going to plant the three Charlotte tubers I have but only put in two, using the growing bags provided, as one hadn't chitted as much as I'd like; I'll leave it a little while yet.

Talking of spuds, I've the beginnings of my first earlies peeping through already!

The onions are progressing nicely but the garlic is doing really well.

Since moving the strawberry plants to the conservatory they are thriving, but no flowers yet.

The first lot of climbing peas I sowed 10 days ago are already sprouting; have moved them from the propagator into the conservatory to make room for other things getting a head start.

I sowed another lot yesterday; I hoped to get the frame for these put in place as I thought I had enough tall bamboo canes... and I did! Woop woop! A before and after of course.

Need netting at the weekend but chuffed with it, even though a little wonky at the top but very pleased with myself. Its one of those things I always dreamt of having when I thought about ever having a proper veg plot.

Today, before I put up the frame, I skimmed off the remainder of the chicken poo I laid on top of the patch before covering over for winter. Although the poo had, the straw/hay had not rotted down completely and I didn't want to leave it all on the patch. 

I came up with a great idea, I think. I'm definitely leaving the fruit area to go a bit wild, it does IN the wild so why not, but I thought to keep the weeds down from around the blackcurrants and raspberries I would take up a few of them then mulch with what came off the main plot. 

Very happy with the result but I didn't let it touch directly to the bushes as not sure that it a good thing to do - whatever!

Right, I've eaten my lunch whilst doing this in between the work outside, making bread, checking on the lambs (we are not bottle feeding anymore but just keeping an eye on now and then) and putting the washing out. Need to go move the last of the bought compost out of my car boot then I'll see what else I can do.

Looking forward to seeing what everybody is getting up to in the good weather and how your sowing and growing is coming on.

Bye for now.

Lou.xx

This And That Really...

Hi. 

A couple of things going on these last few days. I had a box of cranberries I bought in December still in the freezer so thought it would just about make a jar of sauce to add to the cellar store room shelves. I had everything I needed luckily, apart from port so I use a glug of cooking red instead.

It just made a good far full plus a little extra to eat up.....

Outside I grabbed my secateurs and FINALLY pruned the raspberry canes and the blackcurrant bush. To be honest not all the raspberry canes are looking super healthy but we'll see what happens....

This is the blackcurrant, only have the one;

I think it looks much better now the dead parts have gone...

and it has some lovely new shoots on it, too.

The sheep have really enjoyed being out in the garden but don't get too close to the chicken enclosure!

I'm enjoying watching Gardeners' World again, normally on catch up at lunch time. Love The Don's "Jobs For The Weekend" spot toward the end of the show as it inspires me to get out and do something! I've sorted the seeds out that I hope to sow by the beginning of next week; these are tomatoes, sweet peas and some wild flowers - failed miserably with the last items last year so giving it another go to add a bit of colour to the garden. The seeds will go in the conservatory so I'm pleased the lambs are outside apart from when we feed them as there is no chance of damage to them, or the spuds that are in there chitting, now they are both quite bit; I think they should be going into our neighbour's field full time at the weekend but we'll still bottle feed them for a couple of weeks more.

I also have the rhubarb crown I acquired from my neighbour who works at the local nursery; I think I've decided on the spot where to put it and this will require some clearing, de-stoning and digging; it is close to the spot where my wild garlic grew last year. (That is a bone of contention, though, as we had some clearing done in that area and I cannot see it coming up just get but hope it survives.)The crown is only just showing above the top of the soil so is this too early to cover over to force? - never grown it before. Jon's gran used to have rhubarb growing out of her compost heap so I get the idea they are not always too fussy about where you site them! If you saw my post about Kim Stoddart you will understand that I am trying new things and being a bit rogue in the garden. 

The days here have been a bit nippy but dry which is good, for now, but the next week is forecast to be wet with the chance of sleet and light snow showers over the Easter. I do hope it is not too heavy as we have guests in the Airbnb room for three days over that weekend.

Ok, that is a nice little ramble for a Thursday morning. One more brew and then I'll get on with something.

Bye for now.

Lou.xx