Happy Easter!
It was great to be able to work on the plot with more people this week due to the relaxing of the Covid rules. We had cake on both garden sessions in celebration which went down very well, particularly Theresa’s carrot cake on the Saturday morning as it was freezing cold out there. We had a couple of beautiful warm days at the start of the week, and since then it has gradually become colder again with the threat of frost and possible snow to come in the next few days.
We really could now do with a good amount of rain to finally fill that pond to enable us to finish tidying the edges. We have only had 51.3mm of rain in March, and with all the new sowings and plantings, we have managed to empty our water bowser already. We have sown leeks, carrots, parsnips, celeriac and nasturtiums, plus some tree spinach and a few more flowering annuals such as cosmos and French marigolds. We checked the new plantings for any casualties due to damage and replaced them with spare plants, and planted the perennials given to us by Morrison’s last week.
Two spinach beds got planted up, and three with lettuce. We have a few different lettuce varieties in shape and colour to make that salad bowl as interesting as possible. The broad beans got staked, and time will tell if there are enough bees around willing enough to visit their flowers. Some blossom is out on the old plum trees, and the maiden pear trees are trying hard to flower but it would be better if they remained closed for just a few more days until the cold snap has gone.
The kale has gone to flower and so they have been stripped and pulled up, the purple sprouting should be carrying on for a few more weeks as should the spinach from last year and the remains of the chard.
We are waiting on several things to arrive in the post, which does not seem to have been very reliable of late. Our new rhubarb plants have gone astray and we are told they could take up to a couple of weeks to arrive – always a worry when you have live plants in the postal system! We are also waiting for our new tool box which has been on order for weeks!
The situation with the continual bombardment of sycamore seedlings continues. Fortunately a few of our gardeners find pulling them out quite therapeutic and we probably have at least another couple of weeks of attacking them before the plague begins to subside. Happily they make good compost but what a shame they are not edible too.
Incredible Edible news
The Incredible Edible team have been busy filling Cheriton High Street planters with new plants, and continuing work on the new herb garden. The addition of a lovely new cherry tree to the garden is a reminder of the cherry tree orchards that apparently used to flourish in the area.
What’s next?
- Any sign of the missing rhubarb?
- Stake the raspberry patch
- Possible planting of the sweet peas if they are ready
- Continue the war on sycamore seedlings
- Fill any lettuce gaps
- Sow more celeriac and celery
‘Freckles’ lettuces ‘Azure’ lettuces Maiden pear tree trying to flower Purple sprouting Incredible Edible leeks in high street planters Cheriton
- Keep watering carrot and parsnip beds plus pot plants and new plantings