2023 - What I did today

I had a narrow window before the rain descended this morning and tried to use it as well as possible. I've finished adding compost mulch to my existing beds, then came inside to build two obelisks while looking out for the parcel delivery man (finally getting internet installed at home tomorrow so today's delivery was the new router). I've put those up and sown two varieties of soup pea around them, as well as a few other seeds here and there. To do much more sowing, I need to get the other side of the garden converted to beds. Except where do I have huge piles of prunings? So I've sat and sorted through my prunings piles: thin twigs and very green bit to one side to age until I can snap them up by hand to use as bulking agent once I get a hotbin, big bits either trimmed and put aside to use as canes/supports, or piled at the side if the garden to provide habitat for creepy crawlies (and any amphibians should they choose to visit).

Didn't quite finish sorting the prunings before the rain started. However, my rhubarb was flowering so I cut the flower stalk off before I came inside. The internet tells me that rhubarb flowers are edible and often eaten in Eastern cuisines, so I have had it stir-fried with some sesame oil, soy sauce and a dab of butter. Not bad! Would definitely eat it again.

I didn't do anything at all, however one of my siblings visited so I was able to offload some spare tomato plants and a courgette so it *feels* like I did something useful at least.

Planted out the onions. Lifted another 16 slabs and loaded them straight onto the trailer. Loads up a few other bits. Fish boxes, bag of spent compost and a blow away tunnel. Then sorted out my 2 garden sheds. Throwing a load of rubbish, a big pile to put on buy & sell group for free. Worked out what’s stay and what’s moving. Boxed a lot of it in preparation

Planted out my swift potatoes and some vitabella to make up the row. It's been blowing a gale since. I'm sat here now just listening to the wind.

Harvested some lettuce from the greenhouse bed.
Re-potted some of the houseplants, including separating 13 baby dwarf aloe plants from their mother. These are now sitting in their own little pots on the greenhouse shelf, cos there's no room for them in the house.

I had a bit of time in the gh this morning before the rain started so got some sowing done. Set up the gh heater on the off chance there might be some frosts in the next week or two. Went to the theatre this evening to see Brief Encounter. Very good it was too.

Sowed some peas - Lincoln, which the blurb said are heat & drought resistant, plus some radish & coriander.
Then went for a 14km walk mostly through woods which are carpeted with flowers at the moment and quite beautiful.

Pricked out ammi Visnaga seedlings.
Threw out yet more dead clary seedlings.

Strimmed the front in front of the gates; weeded the gravel at the front too.
With MrPP fixed another section of fencing at the front - only one boundary is not yet boar proof and that's a brand new house & garden so hopefully too open for them. There's just a hedge at the moment.
Weeded the herb bed.
Strimmed the veg garden paths.

Rain and hail stopped play in the garden so I did some mucking about in the Kitchen Garden aka the Kitchen.
Potted up some Cosse Violette & District Nurse CFBs, 6 sorts of tomatoes (Derby Striped, Irish gardeners Delight, Aurora, Whippersnapper, Bitesize and Koningsberg).
Sowed 20 varieties of CFB (3 of each).
Took them all up to the bedroom for the night.