Master Darcy

I had a very special visit today from one of my youngest blog followers, maybe the youngest, his name is Darcy and he is 11 years old,  he came to GD today for the first time with his family from Australia. They landed in London early and made it in time for lunch. I have to say he does know what he is talking about and asked some very interesting questions on the tour of the vegetable garden. The family as a  whole are great to be around and I hope they have a fun trip in this part of the world, I am sure they will make the most of their trip.

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Z is for

Zaluzianskya. Matt Reese came to visit a few weeks ago to collect some artichoke plants and with him he had a number of plants for me that I could have in pots for the kitchen yard. Three of these plants where zaluzianskya’s which are night scented plants. I gave away one of the plants to a friend who also gave me a number of plants for pots and the other two I have on my bedroom window sill. It is such an amazing thing to smell as the light starts to drop, I can smell the scent from my bed, it all rather intoxicating and sexy I have to say.

Earth up

What most people need in the garden as they get older is an 18-year-old boy, well I have come to that conclusion anyway this week. Zac was with me again yesterday and in the morning finished the weeding. After a large plate of pasta he asked if he could be given something more  physical. I almost cried with joy, once I got over the shock for someone wanting harder work I showed him how to earth up potatoes and let him get on with it. Zac did a great job of it and my back feels so much better for seeing the job finished. A very big Thank You Zac.

Fruit cage

We had a great day today in the fruit cage, I was not on my own today, I was part of a team. I had Zac and my friend Connie up there with me getting the area weeded and sorted out. I was on such a high by the end of the day. I am not too sure why but I feel that things are going so well up in the vegetable garden this year, I can not get enough of it and it is in my mind all the time. I have great plans for the left hand side of the cage which I will put in place tomorrow. I know I have Zac back with me and maybe Connie will also come and help.

Sorrel

After all the rain things are looking a little flat in places up in the vegetable garden. One of the areas that was not looking great this morning was the row of sorrel, I worked on the area this afternoon and have cut the plants to the ground. It had all gone to seed and so it was a job waiting to be carried out. While cutting the plants down I was thinking how  sorry I was not to have made soup of it yet this season. Once it produces enough new leaves I will make it, I love it as a cold soup. The row will need organic slug pallets on it now, they love the new growth.

40 years

Today 40 years ago a great thing happened, well two great things happened. I was able to eat a packet of chocolate biscuits that my Mother had set aside for the birth of my sweet little sister. I think it was a very good thing my Mother did, she made a marriage of two importants things in my life, my sister and chocolate. My sister Lisa is as sweet as chocolate. I want to wish her a very happy birthday and hope now that she has come of age she may be a part of another passion of mine, gardening. Lisa and gardening have not found each other but maybe soon they will.

Earth up

We got the much needed rain, it now will not stop. They say we have a week of rain this week. The great thing is that the weather is not cold but wet and so the plants have gone mad. The crop that seems to have enjoyed the rain a great deal is the crop of potatoes, they have put on a lot of growth, so much so that I think I am going to have to earth them up before I go off to Rome next week. The work will help me get my body ready for the trip, I have just eatten half a block of chocolate….that is not going to help.

Bite size

I have taken a very different approach to the garden this season. I am not spending too much time looking at it as a whole but have broken it down and now just spend the time in one place at a time, get that cleaned up and move on. I think this system works better and stops us feeling it is all too much. It was a great week in the garden, I really do not have a lot under glass anymore. The gourds and Pumpkins are now out and on the compost heaps, sweet Adam has said he would come and help next year. Most of the beets are now out that ran to seed and frozen for study days and the next symposium. A very happy birthday Linda Smith for yesterday, sorry I missed it.

 

 

Yelp

I gave out  a yelp of delight today while walking up the path to water the glass-house, not something that often happens to me. I was looking at the orchids in the meadow on the left hand side of the path and suddenly something caught my eye on my right. It was one of the first poppies that I have run through the artichokes. It was such a delight to see. I have three out today and can not wait to see more come over the next few days. This is the sort of thing that makes it all worth while for me, I am not a man with many needs.

Water

I got a weather watch thing on my i-pad to say we would have a lot of rain in the night so I went mad to get as much in the ground as I could but by the end of the day I knew that the rain would once again miss us.  I started the sprinkler off and by 8am today the whole area was  watered and the plants looking good for it, it did mean a 4am start. Today was very warm so the plants have had a perfect start, well watered and sun. Now I need to get some beetroot seed in the ground.