Making Labels, Monica-style

So I was sent this totally cool label maker back in October last year. As you know in Autumn there’s not really much sowing going on so I only managed to break it out of its box earlier this year. I did look at its crazy-looking interface and it did cross my mind that it […]

Forced Rhubarb is Ready!

My forced Rhubarb is ready – hooray! How do I know? Well as you can see the forcing has been a success and the forcing pot works a treat. Each of the crowns has sprouted and the leaves are nearly to the top of the forcing pot. Percy Thrower says to remove the forcing pot […]

Masterplan 2010

Here is my Masterplan for 2010. I didn’t do one in 2009 so I thought I’d better do one this year. There are a few things to note. Firstly, my tiny plot is roughly 13.5 metres long by 8 metres wide. Just to give you an idea of scale. I don’t really do crop rotation […]

Peas Proving Difficult

I sowed some more Peas in lengths of guttering today – why? because the last two sowings didn’t even bother to appear! They just rotted, in situ. Humph! I’ve never really had this problem before. In 2008 I was transferring them into the ground by April 6th! And I can’t even look at the 2007 […]

Introducing My Book (eek!)

I’ve been thinking about writing a book for a while. My problem was that I didn’t know what to write about. I felt like the world didn’t need another ‘what to plant when’ book. My shelves are already heaving under the strain of maybe 30 books that say the same thing, over again. So I […]

Growing a Tayberry

I took delivery of my brand new Tayberry (a cross between a Raspberry and a Blackberry) from Victoriana Nursery yesterday. I’m super excited about growing my first Tayberry. I have literally run out of space for permanent plantings so I’m attempting to grow it in a pot. Don’t worry it’s a big pot and it […]

Sowing My Tomatoes

It’s time to dig out my heated propagator and start sowing some of the more delicate plants, like Tomatoes and Chilli Pepper in order to give them the best chance possible to get big and strong before I plant the out in early Summer. Tomatoes and Chillis in particular need the longest growing season I […]

Photo Mission: Let’s Get Sowing!

Well, I don’t know about you but I’m raring to go with the sowing already! I’ve ordered my seeds, polished my dibber and I’ve even cleared up the leaves. It’s show time. We’re fast approaching the time of year that every vegetable gardener loves, Spring. The weather is sunnier, the garden is calling and it’s […]

Thinning my Winter Lettuce

About three weeks ago I posted this photo of my coldframe brimming with over-Wintering Lettuce. Since then the Lettuce has continued to grow, albeit slowly. Today, I decided to thin out some of the Lettuce as they were getting a little crowded. So I took out about half the original number. This sadly means I […]

Goodbye Mr Heron

Goodbye Anna Maria. We’re travelling back to the UK today after a wonderful family holiday. It’s been one of the most amazing holidays I’ve been on. Idyllic location, fun times with family and totally relaxing. This is our pet Heron. He comes every day to fish off the deck here. This morning he was up […]