So changeable...

    The weather changes again! Still a morning frost but the sun is shinning and its warm! Temperatures have hit 19C! So with the better and warmer weather I have more desire to get on with the work in the garden. It has been a busy week. I wonder if I will soon be moaning that the ground is getting too dry?

    My planned onion and shallot bed was cleared, forked, weeded and planted! Stuttgarter Risen and Sturon onion along with Red Sun shallots. A spill over bed was also prepared and planted up with Sturon onion, Champeau banana shallots and Champeau Violet garlic (called Champeau as the sets are the harvest of sets bought last year so are now home grown rather than bought!). I have never planted garlic in the spring before so this will be an interesting experiment. My over winter garlic bed is doing well as are the early purple sprouting which is  now ready to pick. The rhubarb is showing and I have covered it up with manure and some wire to stop the chickens from scratching in it!  The broad beans are growing well and I have hoed and weeded inbetween one half. The other half bed the beans are still small but they are coming along. The early purple sprouting is now ready to pick. The last of the Brussel sprouts are being eaten and all in all I am pleased with the crop. In the poly tunnel Great Lakes lettuce and 18Jour radish sowed and put under a cloche. I have found that early sown lettuce works later I need to buy in plants. Also sown in the poly tunnel Greyhound cabbage.

  I have now more or less completed my attempt at a "no dig" bed and look forward to expanding my population of stawberry plants from runners. Another bed has been forked and weeded and will probably have some early peas sown in it.

  I have bought a new toy! An electric propagator. Never had one before but this year I am determined to grow sweet peppers and probably chili's and so I needed to get them off to an early start. Another interesting experiment!

 Chickens are being chickens and normal maintenance done and an average of 3.25 eggs a day being laid!

Main onion and shallot bed

New toy...electric propagator

Second onion banana shallot and garlic bed