Eventful week!

   Well it has been an eventful week. One of our sheep gave birth to twin lambs. One we believe was still born and the other only managed to survive the day. We have also lost two chickens.   We suspect that their time had come rather than anything untoward but who knows! We wait and see what is going to happen with the rest of them.On the plus side the other two lambs are thriving.
   In the garden the week began wet and cold and ended warm and drier. The couple of days of warmth has encourage everything to start growing and as I look out the window I can see leaves coming on next doors willow tree and the forthesyia has a yellow hue to it. The first grass cut of the season has been done.
  In the outside garden the shallots and onion sets are sprouting. I have picked more sprouts but I think it is time to call it a day and give the plants to the sheep. I am going to need the space soon. I have planted the remains of my red onion sets and garlic amongst the strawberries.  I have sown a short row of organic Early Nante carrot seed. The Lucerne that I sowed last Autumn is growing fast. Hopefully it will flower for the bees before I need the ground! Rhubarb, garlic, peas, broad beans and spinach are all growing well. The broad beans are showing signs of coming into flower. There still a few Chou Milan cabbage, carrots and some leeks still to harvest. My potatoes are chitin away albeit a little slowly but that I do not mind and I am planning to plant most of these over Easter.
  In the poly tunnel/porch tomato's are growing. I have transplanted the remaining Latah tomato's to pots and put them in the poly tunnel fleece cloche. My own gathered yellow tomato seed has germinated and have now been designated "Champeau Yellow Giant". These were seed collected from harvested "giant" yellow tomato's that were grown from side shoots. My hope here is to breed a giant yellow tomato by selecting only seed from the biggest yellow tomato's. We shall see. 18 Jour (18 day) radish has germinated and the red salad bowl is not far behind. Broad beans and kohl rabi are growing well. One of the two cauliflowers is suffering from mould but I am hopeful it will still produce. No sign of the asparagus yet. A little early I think.
   The herb beds look "alive" and are developing a vista of shades of dark green.
   It is not going to be long now and the planting and sowing will really get underway. I have asked my farmer neighbor to drop some cow manure over. Hopefully it will arrive before I plant the potatoes.

Paaah! Spoke to soon.

   So, where did the mild weather go? It has turned cold, frosty and wet again and the inevitable loss of plants. I have lost about half of my Latah tomato's and most of the Coeur de Boeuf which is darn right annoying. I have resown the Coeur de Boeuf but I do not have anymore Latah. They were seed bought from the Reel Seed Catalogue and doing what it said on the packet - growing fast. For whatever reason the poly tunnel cloche fleece is not doing the same job as it did this time last year. Maybe it is to do with the damp rather than the temperature or perhaps a combination of both. Cauliflower seedlings are growing well, lettuce seedlings are looking good  and I have sown Chou Rouge (red cabbage) for next winter. One year I will get these to grow into reasonable cabbages. More onion seed planted. This time a french variety called Paille de Vertus (Straw of Virtue) which is supposed to be a good storing onion. The poly tunnel I believe is on average cooler and certainly I am noticing more frequent below freezing temperatures within the tunnel. Hey ho I struggle on and surely it can only get warmer!
  Outside I have sown Tender and True parsnips. A row of older seed and a row of newly  bought seed in the hope that one or the other will germinate. We missed parsnips this winter and I am determined to get some going this season. The effort to clear weeds goes on and beds have been gently forked and weeded. Still some to do but I need it to stop raining! 
  I have just read a gardening article in a local free paper. The writer advises planting garlic and onions amongst the strawberry plants to improve their health. Oh well, nothing ventured nothing gained! I have some onion sets left and some  garlic so I will give it a go and see what happens! The rhubarb is going well and I have it covered up to protect it from the frost. I need some chimney pots to force the rhubarb! I left those I had back in the U.K and now wish I had not!
  Ending with a happy note our sheep have started to drop their lambs. Two born so far without any problem.

Watermeadows new born lamb

   

Don't mess with bees...

   I decided that I needed to clear out some brambles around our bee hives. This I did without incident. Then, unwisely, I decided to try to cut the grass down near the hives with the bush wacker. Mistake. As soon as the wacker got close to the hive out came sleepy bees crawling around the entrance. Umm. I beat a hasty retreat with one or two bees buzzing around me. Bees are not supposed to be active below ten degrees celsius! Once I had gone they soon went back into the hive. 
  Seed sowing has begun in earnest. All the Year Round cauliflower, Celeriac (Giant Prague), self blancing celery, sweet peppers,  have been added to the tomatoes that have already been sown. The last of the red onion sets are in (Red Brunswick). I  have been busy forking and weeding beds getting them ready for sowing and planting. I have put out some lettuce plants (Rouge Grenobolise) under a clouche. Pot ash in the form of wood ash has been spread on what will be the potato bed and the brassica bed has been limed. I have been very impressed by the Latah tomato's which have germinated in under a week. The Real Seed Catalogue said they were ridiculously early and it proving to be so!
  In the poly tunnel 18 Jour (18 Day) radish, salad bowl lettuce and Rouge Grenobolise lettuce has been sown/transplanted. The early french leeks have been transplanted to modules and large pots. This is an experiment as I want to see which do better. Those in the modules or those in the large pots. I have take blue sage cuttings and found a self rooted sage branch that I have put into the herb bed. Hopefully a few new sage plants! The old main plant is now looking a little woody and could really do with being replaced.
  It has been a busy time and the pace can only quicken as the milder weather starts to kick in for real.