My Calendar Part 1 - The 3 season year.

I lost my OH 15 years ago after 30 years of marriage. You have to remake your life - and the garden -when that happens.

I like organised but there isn’t space on my calendar to put garden tasks. If I take away the work and home and family tasks I’m left with a few hours here and there for garden activities.

When I’m out in the garden I’m essentially a suited and booted desk jockey taking his shoes and socks off to squidge his toes into the soil. It’s my restful centring space, the minute I add a programme into that the restful nature of gardening will go out the window it will feel more like a chore. Maybe when I retire it can fill the void of my job and I can entertain a garden calendar. I’ll just have to make mental notes of your schedule V.

The good thing about the 4 week rotation plan is that it prompts you to think about certain seeds - and whether you need to sow them.
For example, this week is Leaves - brassicas, lettuce, rocket etc. I've decided not to sow any brassicas but lettuce and rocket will be sown - and I won't even think about them again until 4 weeks time.
Just a pinch at a time is all it needs to keep on top of succession growing - none of this sowing a long row and have everything maturing at once.

Eyren, I've tried Moon Gardening a couple of times but its too complicated for me! I can't be doing with something that changes during the day as well as each day.
My simple mind can just about remember what day it is.

Oh, I don't do the complicated woowoo stuff, just the four phases of the moon. The list I posted is practically the whole thing - though I missed out perennials, which go in the same week as roots, and harvesting for storage, which goes in the non-sowing week.

They're just guidelines, anyway - I often end up doing things in the "wrong" week because the weather isn't cooperating or because a job needs to be done right away.

The Autumn Equinox today, when we are losing daylight at the fastest rate - about 5 minutes a day or half an hour a week.

The summer Equinox was yesterday ....

Never heard of this one before, we just have a spring and autumn equinox. Is it special to Wales?

I find I'm too busy weeding and harvesting at the moment to think about sowing anything else that would need looking after. What with tomatoes, potatoes needing digging up, weeds everywhere, apples,pears, plums and cauliflower all coming at once and what do you do with 12 cabbages all at the same time.
If I planted one seed a week for 12 weeks, would they come in succession?

 Are you sure its the Autumn Equinox today, Mark.

  Re the cabbages, yesterday, on another thread, you were about to sow 80 cabbage seeds! What will you do with 80 cabbages? 

Are you sure its the Autumn Equinox today, Mark.

  Re the cabbages, yesterday, on another thread, you were about to sow 80 cabbage seeds! What will you do with 80 cabbages? 

Yes, I think Autumn is here tomorrow, going cooler (not cold yet I hope). Though for you it is just mid Season No. 2.

Did you not follow Vinny's logic? I understood that you would use the thinnings as the plants grow, in stews, etc or as a portion of veg and end up with about 9 full size cabbages. Then, you cut a cross in the ends, you get another flush of the same or may be 36 small cabbage. This all assumes that slugs and other uninvited guests don't help themselves.

Kickstarting seed sowing!

Its nearly May and I seem to be slacking on the seed sowing front so, I have a new plan, loosely based on my weekly routine of sowing Roots, Shoots, Fruits and Leaves in successive weeks over 4 weeks.
Instead of sowing weekly, I shall sow daily -
Monday = Roots
Tuesday = Shoots
Wednesday = Fruits
Thursday = Leaves
Friday = Flowers

Tomorrow, for example, I'll sow carrots or beetroot and I'll thin out/transplant any roots sown previously
Next Monday, I'll do the same but sow a different root until its time to repeat sow in 4 weeks.
So the Monday plan may be:-
Wk 1 = beetroot
Wk 2 = carrots
Wk 3 = turnips
Wk 4 = parsnip
Wk 5 = beetroot
Wk 6 = carrots etc.

I'm also overwhelmed by old seeds that I just can't throw away, so I'll scatter them in some forgotten corner each week.  Waiting for old seeds to germinate often means losing time, compost and effort (unless they're courgettes ).

Some of you may remember that the VC Calendar has 3 seasons :-
Season No 1 = March - June
Season No 2 = July - October
Season No 3 = November - February

The summer Equinox was yesterday and we are moving into No 2 - or, as I think of it, the Second Spring.  Its the time when I resow the quick maturing seeds I sowed in March - courgettes, beans, peas and some early tomatoes;  salad leaves, carrots, beetroot, radish and spring onions, kale and  cabbage. In fact most veg apart from those that need to be in the ground for a looooooooooooong time.

Don't want to upset you but, with the daylight hours decreasing, July is also the time to plant Spinach, Fennel and many Oriental veggies that are prone to bolting if sown to early.

Just reminding myself of what I said I do at this time of the year - The Second Spring. 

And are you going to do it?