Looking good

Batavia Blonde Lettuce

    The weather this spring has been very good for the vegetable garden. It has rained at the right time (least for me it has!), it has been warm at the right time and despite the poor germination of some seeds most seeds have germinated and the plants are now well established and growing well. As can be seen from the photos below lettuce, peas, potatoes and broad beans all growing well. It will not be long before I will be digging up new potatoes and very likely withing the next week. My experiment with spacing out main crop Desiree potatoes in the large triangle is looking very good with the plants really large. Fingers crossed for large potatoes. 

   So what has been going on this last week. More transplanting, Aurora bush tomatoes and  sweet peppers and the usual mowing grass and weeding! That is one downfall of the wet and warm weather....grass and weeds. Sowed an unusal herb...Stridolo Sculpit Silene Inflata. An realively unknown herb grown in Italy used to flavour pizzas, quiches and risottos. Going to be interesing to see if it germinates and grows. Most plants are looking like they are about to burst into growth. There are peas on the pea vines and the mange toute is going well. My experiment with spacing out main crop Desiree potatoes in my large triangle plot is looking good with the plants large and about to flower. I have found one or two Colorado beetles but so far there is not an infestation. Unfortunately beetroot plants that grew over the winter and I transplanted went to seed. Also the same has happed to parsnips I transplanted. Still I have some parsnips that did eventually germinate. Finally got around to making some Comfrey tea. This will be a liquid fertilizer that I will use for my tomatoes particularly those in the poly tunnel. 

   Chickens are being chickens although they have really slowed up this week with laying. I suspect the weather has not helped. There have been some quite servere thunder and lightning storms and I think that has put them off. Also I have noticed that the rats are back and maybe they are nicking some too.  Another hen has gone broody and I have put ten eggs under her. She has made her nest in the plastic coop which at least means she has more protection from predators overnight.  Average lay this week 2.6, roughly half of last weeks average. Still, not complaining have plenty to eat anyway!

Broad beans

Peas

Desiree main crop potatoes