July Update
July is nearly done, and I’m also nearly three weeks into my 8 Week Challenge (which under Draft 1 of the rules I would have already failed) so I need to update you on my progress.
The success stories of the month have undoubtedly been the peas and green beans, almost to the point that I [...]
Growing Cauliflower
This is my first year trying to grow cauliflower and the experience has been what I’ve come to expect from brassicas – nothing happens for month on end and then all of a sudden there’s a cauliflower/calabrese/broccoli/cabbage, by jove!
I first noticed the cauliflowers…. Hang on, I’d better explain that I’m terrible at labelling rows of [...]
June Update
The year is careening past at a fair old lick, isn’t it?
Much of my June has been occupied with a bit of feline business down in South Africa, but work in the garden (and other areas) has still been going on.
In the garden, the strawberry plants our neighbours gave us have been fantastic croppers. Over [...]
Catch Crops
One of the frustrating things I find with this whole “growing your own” malarkey is that I’m probably one of the most impatient people on earth. The thought that a cauliflower might take six whole months before it bears veg irritates me like nails down a blackboard. The main reason for this is that the [...]
Strawberries and birds, or lack thereof.
In the early Spring we were given a half dozen or so strawberry plants by a neighbour. I planted them out in the veg patch not really expecting much in the first year. And I’ve been completely shocked at how well they’ve done! The first few berries are almost completely ripe and will probably be [...]
Progress Update #1
I thought it might be interesting to write some periodic progress reports to see how this “grow your own” malarkey is going!
As this is the first one, it’s going to be particularly vague as I’ve not really been taking notes, but given that we’re just leaving the leanest part of the year, there’s not a [...]
Chicken-proofing the garden…. Suggestions, anyone?
I desperately want the chickens to be free range, and although I have fenced areas off the garden it has very definitely been done with the intention of keeping the chickens OUT of certain areas, rather than confining them.
However, the three rather large and heavy timber planters (below) I created last Summer (pre-chickens) lie outside [...]
Broken fences and vegetable update
As the gate that leads through to the vegetable patch came off in my hand it reminded me that those tiny brass screws were only temporary and need to be replaced soon. The chickens (who the fence was put up for in the first place) don’t seem to be too interested in heading up to [...]