April in pictures

Spring onions, pak choi, swiss chard, red veined sorrel and wild garlic are in abundance and this month we ate the last of our stored winter squash.

We had the usual excellent crop of wild garlic leaves and flowers, but also saw an interesting variant of the plain green leaved variety. There was a small clump which had a cream coloured stripe running down the centre of the leaves. I've found a few other examples of variegated ramsons by running a Google image search, so it is not unheard of. We didn't pick any of the leaves or flowers but marked the place and are hoping for more next year.

The rhubarb has been going berserk this year and has flowered for the first time. It obviously likes this spot but I think it has overshadowed and crowded out the Babington's leeks that are nearby. We'll find out later the year if we have lost the leeks from this patch, but we do have more dotted around in other areas of the garden.

March 2018 in pictures

What a start to the month! Freezing temperatures and on March 1st we had heavy snow. This lasted 3-4 days, disappeared and then reapppeared with a vengeance two weeks later. No way were we going to be sowing or planting anything outdoors this month.

In between snow storms the rhubarb was bold enough to poke its head above ground. It was planted about 18 months ago so we are hoping to be able to harvest some stalks from it this year.

Indoors, we were enjoying some pea shoots growing on the window sill but I suspect we may have started them off far too soon. We have no clue as to when it is going to be warm enough to plant them outside.

We finally took the plunge and sowed our tomatoes in modules indoors toward the end of the month, three weeks later than usual but there was no point in starting them off any earlier. The weather forecast is still not good and it will take a while for the ground to warm up. It looks as though that, like last year, everything will be a month late.

We did, though, have some harvest from our perennials: ramsons (wild garlic), Babington's leeks and red veined sorrel. And we were still pulling up the spring onions that probably grew from a packet I had dropped in the autumn last year. 

April 2017 in pictures

Viewed from east to west with the garden shed at the bottom. Looks very messy and scrappy but there is a lot going on. Fruit trees and bushes in blossom, brassicas flowering, swiss chard still growing, onions and garlic filling out, Babington's leeks ready for cutting, strawberries spreading, grape vine against the shed budding.....

Time to assess what we have in the preserves cupboard. Damson chutney in there from 2014!

Cowslips in the lawn.

Early morning - brassicas in flower. 

The early morning light really makes the yellow brassica flowers standout in the garden.

Ramsons doing well in the garden and spreading!

"Bright Lights" swiss chard cropping really well.

Garden veg for lunch: swiss chard, cavolo nero, spring onions, Babington's leeks, ramsons, lovage.....

And this was the result!

The main herb patch is doing well apart from the chives not re-appearing this year. The spanish bluebell has been there ever since we moved in over 30 years ago. I have tried to remove it on several occasions and plant it somewhere else but it keeps coming back. Ramsons are coming towards the end now and the flowers are going to seed. Oregano going bonkers as usual, as is the lemon balm. Mint, lovage, rosemary, sage and thyme in pots.




Looks as though we might have more than one pear this year (last year's harvest). The blossom escaped the frosts we had a few weeks ago.

Poppies

I am letting the poppies grow while the veg seedlings catch up in their pots. The poppies look pretty, they cheer me up, the insects like them and they provide ground cover. I think those are enough functions in permaculture terms to justify letting them do their own thing for the time being!

They are in zone 2 in the tiny strip of ground next to the ancient garden shed. We have a grape vine - now in its third year - growing up against the shed and doing very well. The ramsons to the right of the poppies are spreading but have almost finished this year. The "walking" Egyptian onions to the left  - their second year in this location - are contemplating walking, and there are some peas behind the yellow poppies. The pots are hosting a variety of veg seedlings that will be planted out around the garden.

Alack and alas - the last of our home grown garlic

Alack and alas, we are now on the last of the home grown garlic. It will be a while before we can harvest the next crop but the ramsons are coming up now and we also have chives and garlic chives. 

They may not look very exciting but the leaves and the flowers are delicious. The ramsons seem totally at home in the two patches I found for them and are spreading through self-seeding. 

Ramsons

An Easter bouquet

The weather may still be too cold to sow and transplant crops outside but the herbs and wild plants are flourishing. For our Easter meals I gathered the first bouquet of herbs from the garden: garlic chives, chives, mint, lemon balm, ramson leaves, dandelion leaves, fennel and hairy bittercress.

The ramsons have arrived

The ramson bulbs (wild garlic) have arrived. I ordered the from the the Wildflower Shop (http://www.wildflowershop.co.uk/) and they arrived in excellent condition. Now to brave the rain and plant them out!