Green house update

Well after a small problem with blossom end rot, sounds painful I know,
the tomatoes are going great now!

I am watering them at the same time every day and once a week with a homemade liquid feed from the courtesy of Colina my neighbour's donkey.

We picked our first 2 tomatoes today and they were yum!
Must be the donkey manure!



















Other stuff is doing much better in the greenhouse too.The peppers are coming along better and the cucumbers are never ending!
Our chick pea experiment is also better than the one outdoors.

No sign of sesame seeds yet...but we wait patiently!

Getting creative

This week I have been spending some time looking at ways to add some interest into the garden.To cover up areas of garden quickly with a few plants to cut down on watering large areas.
I am not very good at this as I have difficulty thinking on a large scale.




I have used some old roofing tiles before to make the herb garden and this time have tried it to around some plants which I think looks quite effective.

I also tried making a 'pond area'.It's in it's very early stages here and looks a
little bare but with some more planting......
At the moment we have unfortunately had to place netting over the top as it's the nest building time for the paper wasps and it has been attracting them in big
numbers!

















But it's OK the birds still have their water dish...

















My next project will be another of the round tiled design .I want to interlace 3 of them and attempt it on a much bigger scale on one of the grass areas to break it up a little......well that's if I can stand the heat at the moment!
Still no rain , almost 2 months now, dreadful....fingers and toes are crossed for next week...

Picture update of the Veggie plot

Most things in the veggie plot are happy...but some did not show at all.

The courgettes, potatoes,onions,garlic,peas,carrots,leeks,beets have all or are doing well.

However the parsnips never even sprouted! after much thought I have realised that the seeds may not have been good.I may try again but I think it might be too late now...

The outdoor peppers and tomatoes are coming along as are the aubergines and chick peas but much slower than they are in the greenhouse.

It's been too dry this year for melons and pumpkins this year but the sweetcorn is up an looking lovely and green even if it does not produce anything!

Busy again....

Things are moving so fast in the garden this year, and with June around the corner I am not sure where the time goes!

More or less everything is holding up fine in the unusual hot temperatures.For weeks now we have had temps of 30 plus in the shade.It has been incredibly dry and no amount of watering seems to make a difference.

The number of insects and birds is phenomenal though! Painted lady butterflies which are currently en mass in the UK are in large numbers here too....it's wonderful the flowers are just teeming!



The lizards have set up their territories throughout the garden and we hope they will be breeding.This is 'Eddie' the lizard who has set up home in this old unused bee hive.Even the moles are 'behaving' themselves at present ...keeping many of the ground bugs in check and providing great potting soil at the same time!


We have worked very hard this year with the flowers in the garden trying to ensure not only constant colour but food for everyone all spring through to autumn.

Hotting up

It was 35oC yesterday in the shade so we have put the gazebo up early .....
The slpash pool is out but we won't fill it for another month yet....wait until it really heats up and then we will be glad of it!




We picked our first strawberries of the year today..as yummy as ever....















The greenhouse is coming along.The tomatoes are getting bigger everyday and some even have fruits appearing on the already!

All going green!

Well we have had some mixed weather again but the mix of hot days with some good rain has done wonders for the garden!



Everything has turned green as if overnight.
The flowers are all starting to bloom and the veggies are popping up here and there slowly.....


Now the hard work begins but we are a little late due to the weather so May will be the hectic month this year!

Back to work!

Well it has been a slow start to this year.
Such a long winter, we thought it would never end!

Even now the weather is not 'normal' for this time of year.
It has been so very unpredictable that it has been very hard to get out and get the jobs done.
It's now April and we are busy, busy,busy...so much so that I have not been able to find time to add to the diary...no excuse I know.


A new addition to the garden this year, the greenhouse.I must admit I have never worked in one before and I have a feeling it's going to be a big responsibility already!
The tomatoes are in but because of the unusual early morning frosts they are covered inside with blankets and if I am honest don't look very happy at the moment.We will have to wait and see.



















We have also been a bit creative with our herb garden this year using old roof tiles to decorate and make it a feature.
Even through the cold winter the parsley and sweet marjoram have survived which is very surprising!



Well it's back to work now...early potatoes to plant along with an experiment of chick peas and monkey nuts.....
I will update on their progress...and won't leave it so long next time!