New Year bits and bobs

[Johnboy]

Hi Geoff,
This is as bad as the Thatcher era when a politician said "we have invented a thing called an apprenticeship." Whatever next!
JB.

[Geoff]

Things are looking up - the frogs they are a wooing.

[Parsons Jack]

A lovely day here today.

A pair of Robins were inspecting the old kettle in the hedge behind my allotment shed this morning

[Primrose]

We have spent much of the day digging out one of our two compost cages which was half filled, , resurfacing it with new wire and making it as ratproof as possible. (Ha Ha !). It's been beautiful listening to the birds singing and smelling all the Daphne perfume wafting around the garden.

The only downside was the realisation that all the wire gridding needed to rebuild the cage probably ended ended up costing twice as much as the original cage did nearly thirty years ago but that's inflation for you! Still, if it's lasted that long I suppose we can't complain too much. I always feel a little digruntled when things wear out, no matter how long I've had them. In fact, the longer I've had them, the more attached to them I seem to get!

[PLUMPUDDING]

Well to move from snow on Saturday and Sunday to t-shirt weather today is rather unusual, but very much appreciated.

The pond is full of frogs sounding like little motorbikes, there are ladybirds sunbathing all over the place, and my new bees are all out and covered in orange pollen from the species crocuses. All the birds are pairing up and the Song Thrush is singing its heart out at the top of the silver birch tree. What a lovely day.

I've been multi-tasking - planting a new weeping silver pear, digging and weeding and I've made 3 litres of blackcurrant ice cream. I decided to start using up all the fruit and veg lurking in the freezer and convert it into things that are more likely to get eaten like ice cream and soup. There are bags of things that have been in there for years, so I'm determined to either do something with it or throw it out and have a fesh start this year.

[Primrose]

I decided to start using up all the fruit and veg lurking in the freezer and convert it into things that are more likely to get eaten like ice cream and soup. There are bags of things that have been in there for years, so I'm determined to either do something with it or throw it out and have a fesh start this year.

Sounds a bit like our freezer despite us making an inventory of everything last summer. I stocked it up with all our soft fruit and with all the comings and goings in our house, we often end up making our own separate meals or snacks and don't seem to be able to eat our way through the freezer contents quickly enough. Where soft fruit is concerned I often end up making some kind of compote mixture and stirring it into a fruit jelly. Sm still frantically trying to clear the vegetable patch of the remaining Kavalo Nero and Swiss Chard so that I can string all the sowing lines up. Bit too wet at the moment though.

[alan refail]

Still raining here

Potatoes chitting nicely, but I still have their bed to prepare. After being frozen solid for weeks it has been totally sodden for weeks now

At least it's dry in the polytunnel - so a start on serious sowing in a few days. Maybe there's hope yet.

[Parsons Jack]

Raining steadily here this morning as well

As I can't get on the soil, I'll find a nice coffee shop and a couple of papers I think

There's always tomorrow

[Shallot Man]

Went in to my local aldi store, they were selling feathered bare rooted fruit tree's for £2.99. Bought one out of curiosity, on unpacking found to be very similar to one of our local nurseries who are currently charging £19.99.

[Primrose]

I do envy (in a nice way) all of you who have greenhouses or polytunnels. I just love the thought of being inside in the dry whilst listening to the rain pattering down as there are so many jobs which you can get on with in there at this time of year, even if it's too wet to be outdoors.

And in this household, it would be a great refuge, with a cup of tea, from all the football and rugby that's on TV at the moment. If every man should have a shed, I reckon that every woman should be able to have a greenhouse! At least all this rain should hopefully ensure we have no hosepipe bans this summer.

[PLUMPUDDING]

Well, the rain has put off my birthday trip to Harlow Carr Gardens, but will probably go tomorrow instead. As everyone says, it looks like a day for greenhouse and indoor gardening today.

[alan refail]

Well, after my early morning post about the rain (just about losing the will to live ) the sun came out and I was in the polytunnel sowing lettuce, cabbages and coriander and setting the dahlias in trays of compost). Will to live restored

[oldherbaceous]

I too have been setting up Dahlias in trays, Alan, but i'm fast running out of inside jobs as it's still wet here..

[Primrose]

Have got quite a few over-wintered endive seedlings growing in my patio containers,covered by jumbo "water fountain" cloches. It's far too wet to plant them outdoors so have planted them in 3" individual pots in the hope that they will grow into reasonable size plants in my shelved plastic greenhouse. Am quite surprised how hardy this paticular variety of salad is as the seedlings all survived the pre-Christmas sub zero temperatures.

[Elle's Garden]

Dear OH and Alan,

Can you expand on the comment about setting dahlias in trays please? I grew some dahlias from seed last year and gathered up the tubers at the end. I placed them in some dry compost to overwinter ready to grow again this year - but I would love to know what you are doing to them so that I can do the same. Bearing in mind that I have an unheated greenhouse - so should I be doing this anyway knowing how frost tender they are...