And now the sun...

   I love the change of seasons in La Creuse, central France. Fresh, cool, sunny in April. Warmth in the air, everything starting to grow and the odd frost just to remind one it is only April!

   It has been another busy week! Tomatoes (Champ Auroa bush, Champ Gardeners Delight) transplanted to pots, more sweet pepper seed sown in a propagator box. I have had to resown brussel sprout and cauliflower seed after a poor germination of first sowing. Not surprising really. One takes a chance sowing early. The cabbages I bought from the market last week I have now uncovered from their plastic bottle clouche and covered with bird netting to stop the chickens from devouring them. First rhubarb of the season pulled (one pulls rhubarb not cut) and the first rhubarb crumble made and consumed...yum! Mixed basil seed sown in a propagor box as those in the poly tunnel are not showing any signs of germinating. Germination in the poly tunnel has been poor so far. Probably just a little on the cold side I guess.  I have started to remove the over winter early purple sprouting as it is now going to flower. Time to think of what to plant in its place. I gave in and bought two packets of Golden Bantam sweet corn seed and sowed them in modules in the poly tunnel. I was not going to plant sweet corn this year but I was in the local agricultural shop and just could not resist. I hope I get to the corn before the chickens this year!

  The chickens are being chickens and I have had one day where every hen laid (11 eggs!).

  Of course the usual chore this time of year which I must admit is made a lot easier and much more fun with my ride on mower, mow grass! 

The egg pile grows

Frost....

    This spring has seen a lot of mornings of frost. In some ways welcome in others not. Early sowings and plantings need to be protected and it is a gamble as to whether or not one manages to succeed in getting anything off to an early start. They french more often than not do not plant anything out until the middle of May. Beware of the days of the Saints de glace which are  St Mamert (May 11), St Pancrace (May 12) and St Servatius (May 13). In my neck of the woods May 15th is touted as the last day of frost. Despite what the pictures look like all of these plants will come back and are generally frost tollerant to about minus two centigrade.

18/04/21 Frost affected broad beans

      It has been a busy week in the garden. Some work done at my daughters house but much done in my vegetable plots! 

     Sugar snap (mangetout) pea netting set up and seeds planted. That will please my  youngest grandson, Toby. Yet more potatoes planted although only a small bed. A delivery of horse manure meant shifting and spreading over the plot where I will be planting out sweet peppers and other plants. Also muck spread on the long bed in the poly tunnel. I have sown some tomato seeds in two propagator containers as those in the poly tunnel fleece clouche do not seem to be doing anything! First radishes pulled from the poly tunnel much to the delight of my grand daughter Caitlin and more sown. A couple of greyhound cabbages transplanted withing the poly tunnel. Never know might get something. I prepared my brassica bed which had been manured with the chicken bedding over the winter and planted out some Cabet Poet (french pointy cabbage) cabbage plants which I had bought from the local market. Of course the usual mowing of grass and I have finally got down to the bank on the river and mostly mowed that area. Small area of weeding done and I have some lettuce bought also from the local market to plant out in that area. They, like the cabbage, will need to be protected from the frost. I have an ample supply of plastic water bottles with the bottoms cut off which are ideal for the job.

   Last week I mentioned that there was no sign of the asparagus. There is now. Two spurs are up and hopefully more will follow.

18/04/21 Frost affect peas beetroot parsnips

   Chickens are being chickens (menaces!) and over the last week produced a average of 6 eggs a day. A little down on last week but heck I have a stack of 90 eggs!!

Potatoes, potatoes, potatoes.....

   With the milder weather, clear sky and dry conditions which meant frost in the morning the priority this last week was to get the main crop (Desiree) potatoes in. I managed to finish off planting up my large triangle plot where I have spaced out the planting with it in mind that more space means bigger spuds! Fingers crossed!

Spaced out Desiree potatoes

  My main potato plot needed to be weeded in preparation for planting and it is the biggest plot in the garden! I attacked the issue with weeding one half and planting that up and then the other half later and then planting that up. 

  At the start of the week I had to get chicken food and as it happened there was a tray of Iceberg lettuce plants for sale. As I have been unable to get any at my local market and my sowing of lettuce in the poly tunnel produced only one plant I bought these and planted them up in the poly tunnel.

First half of the large Desiree plot planted up

  Elsewhere in the garden transplanted parsnips and beetroot are established, peas are up but no sign of parsnips sown from seed! I have allowed some Red Top swede to go to seed so hopefully I will be able to gather some seed later. The early purple sprouting is now coming to an end. It has been a really good crop. Onions, shallots and garlic are all well established and growing away! No sign of the asparagus yet. 

  Cherry and apple blossom is starting to show a real sign spring is well under way.

   On the chicken front usual maintenance done and I am sorry to have to report that Mrs Ixworth has died. She was about four years old and was a hen that had been hatched and raised at Watermeadows. She was the last pure Ixworth in the flock. Egg production is up with an average of 6.57 eggs per day this last week. I have more eggs than I know what to do with!

Sunshine!

   Happy Easter! So another Easter comes around and the weather here in La Creuse has been really quite delightful. Nice spring sunshine, couple of really warm days with the temperature reaching a high of 24C on two days! So, it has been a busy week forking and weeding beds and planting the first lot of main crop (Desiree) potatoes. Sweet yellow Spainish onion and mixed basil sown in my new garden toy, a propagator. Woolly guests were expected at the weekend so the old shelter revamped and some old fence wire removed. Still plenty to do and those potatoes need to go in!

   Chickens are being chickens with an average of 4.5 eggs a day this week. A little down on last week.

Flowering broad beans

Sprouting peas!