May bank holiday weekend – yahoo

So I am guilty of not blogging for a while.  I suppose I have been so engrossed in the garden, I think to a dangerous level.  I am out in it all the time, I think, watching it grow.   I have to say I am quite happy with progress this year.  Either I have taken control of my garden or it has taken control of me!!! I suppose I could be worse, stuck in my phone or on the computer or watching telly, I do that too sometimes.

Just the few updates:

Cucumbers:

First year trying these, I purchased indoor and outdoor variety’s, now the outdoor ones cant be set till May, so that will be next week.  However the indoor variety I have in peat pots a while.  I started them in the dark warm hot-press, with cling film over them.  They are coming on very nicely, producing a second leaf, I have them on the sitting room window in direct sun, I believe they need a huge amount of watering over the growth period and need very sturdy support for their vine like growing!!  I will try my best I am sure they will be sweet to eat.

Cucumber, second leaf coming

Tomato’s:

I am so thrilled with my tomatoes this year, looking back on my writings last year I had no confidence in even putting them outdoors for the daytime, however this year I have them in pots and in the ground outdoors for the past few weeks, I bought an organic tomato feed, and hope that they thrive, goodness knows I have enough of them.   I have a couple of variety’s, Tumbling Tom Red trailing, which gave me a huge crop last year and Gardeners delight, which I have mostly in the raised beds and some in pots.

Tomato

Tomato

Tomato

Aubergines (Eggplant):

These were a fail last year, however I have successfully re-potted about 8 plants from the peat pots to larger pots, they are all in my porch.  Which, at this stage will be totally full of growth this summer, what with the cucumbers vining and clinging to everything in sight and the Aubergines (hopefully) with their beautiful bounty gracing me with there presence!  They seem to have gone a bit dormant since I re-potted them but I think they are ok.

Aubergine

Eggplant

Lettuce/Radish/Spring Onions/Beets:

I have all of these succession planted in the raised beds, the first set seem to be thriving,  I think I planted these end of march, the second set seem to be a bit laid back, not sure what happened and the third set seem to be ok, I think maybe I am too impatient.

Lettuce

Radish

Spring Onion

Beetroot

Asparagus:

I am so very proud of my one asparagus.  I purchased 3 crowns in Lidl ages ago and planted them at the back of the vegetable garden, gave them plenty of room, weeded the area well and watered them well..  I thought they had all failed till one day I was above and low and behold my small one little asparagus, so I can grow asparagus, I might try and get some more now that I have confidence, so I hope Lidl have more.  I am so thrilled with this.

 

Red onions:

My sister is usually the one to grow the onions, but this year she bought too many red onion sets, so she gave them to me.  More to grow, running out of space, so, I got to work digging and found room for them all, all 30 sets!! Some are in fish boxes!!I am thrilled, they are poking their heads up to me and from the past harvests of my sister there is nothing like a home grown onion…… there is nothing like home grown full stop!!!

Red Onion – looking good

Potatoes:

They said there was a hard frost the other night, I was a bit freaked out, but my spuds don’t look like they got any bit shook, I think they look very healthy really, all 9 of them!!

Potatoes, earthed up this evening

I also bought some red currant plants, another Rose and raspberry plant in Lidl earlier in the spring, the 3 red currant plants have thrived, I thought the rose had died, but hope springs eternal and I see small buds on the beauty, however I think the raspberry plants have died, but I have one from last years purchase and it is looking very healthy!

I just love my garden, it gives me such pleasure and delight and I love to watch every single thing every single day growing for me.   Roll on summer and growth.

Happy GARDENING!

P.s. not very happy to find this little casualty this evening, blackbird I think