Weather watch Wednesday....week 13 2010

Well outside right now the skies are grey and rain is threatening...this has been the weather for the last few days!!

Last week the Met Office was predicting an icy blast for us this week with heavy snow but this hasn't materialized and I'm sincerely hoping it won't. Some snow is forecast for the higher ground which thankfully doesn't affect me and I am hoping that it it won't come down off the hills to say hello.

I have my newspapers at the ready just in case the temperatures plummet and my seeds need protecting though.

Tomorrow is forecasting nicer sunnier skies but with a strong wind but I know the weather changes continually so I tend to look out the window more than take note of what is given out in the weather reports.

The wind has been quite strong and gusty and as I want to get the greenhouse moved on Friday I am hoping that the winds drop if only for a few hours then.

Haven't been to the plot at all but with Easter period starting this week I get some time off work so I am hoping for sun and mild temperatures so that i can make a good start on my new land and get some more planting done!

Hope the weather is being kind to all of you...a new month starts tomorrow so I am hoping a change in the weather too!!!

Greenhouses...water-butts and daleks!!!!

Well I've told you all about my new plot that I have been allocated and I have to confess to being totally unfocused and not even visiting it as of yet....I'm not worried about this though as I have plans for the land and if i don't get it all dug over for this season then I shall just plant some out knowing that i have other land to plant on too. I intend to make preparing this land pleasurable and not tedious!

The mess we started with

Anyway I think I mentioned before that i was hoping for a greenhouse ....and I have one!!

It's 8" by 6" and I am very excited about it. I also manged to get a water-butt, 2 composters and a raised bed...and all this for the bargain of £70. The catch is that i have to move the stuff to the allotment myself from a very derelict garden but at that price I wasn't going to complain and I have enlisted family help!

The greenhouse before being cleared.

We started this weekend by clearing trees, brambles and grasses from the area so that next weekend we can get stuff moved. All the items are in a garden down the street where my Mum lives and one of her neighbours provided us with hot drinks whilst we worked so we got everything cleared in record time and are all se to go next week.

My son cutting up the wood..we filled two wheelie bins!!

I'm just now worried about the weather as the met office is predicting heavy snow for next week....What about my spuds?? My seeds??? Getting the greenhouse moved?? Does winter really have to come back???? *sigh*

Pictorial Spring!!

Just a few photos I took at work today...
hope they give you a spring in your step as they did me!!

Seeds are in!!!

Well I finally got around to getting some seeds in.

I started off with a mammoth task as I had just bought so many seeds that at first I didn't know where to start so a plan had to be devised.

All the seeds I have.

First I sorted all the seeds into date. I sat in the conservatory to do this where the sun beat down through the roof and the smell of the lilies that my hubby bought me last week permeated the air...it was a lovely feeling! I really thought I was going to have way too many seeds for this season and was going to pass them around to neighbours so was pleasantly surprised to find a good selection from now right through to 2012. This made things a lot easier. All those for planting this year will go in, then where I was missing some things I wanted to plant I went to the following years stock.

These are the ones that have to be planted this year.

I am glad I got this sorted now as I have found that I don't have any marrow or sweetcorn so they are on my 'To buy' list.

I have a few things I have never grown or tasted before..such as kohl rabi, swiss chard and aubergines but the seeds were on sale so I though it would be a good idea to give them a go.

Pretty Daisies on my lawn!

I have only planted one each of courgette and cucumber and will do the same with the marrow when I get the seeds and then plant another one of each in about 6 weeks time so they last longer. After last year I have realized the I don't need 5 of each plant lol.

I have put in a lot more beetroot then last year as it was gone in no time and I loved it roasted!! The beetroot has gone into peat pots and I am also trying the 'chitting' thing with the parsnips as I didn't get any through last year.

My mini greenhouses with all the seeds.

I also planted out my 'Mothers Day' presents...again things that I haven't grown before so it will be interesting.

My lovely Mothers Day presents!!

I haven't planted everything yet and some stuff will go directly into the ground so I am hoping to get to the allotment this weekend the get some work done and also start on my new half.

Hopefully have something good to tell you over the weekend!!!
Happy Gardening.

Weather watch Wednesday....week 12 2010

Okay...so it's Thursday morning and I'm a little late with the post but with having such a busy week and helping out at Scouts I just didn't get the time to post yesterday.

The weather is slowly improving warmth wise and I have got to the stage where I am only putting the heating on for just half an hour in the morning to take the chill off but the week has been quite wet. This isn't surprising as the mid lent fair came to town this week and it always rains when the fair is here!!

I haven't managed to get down the plot at all and even though I have an afternoon free I'm not sure it will happen today either as the ground is very wet outside and the sky is heavy with clouds.

I still have the seed plan in my head so I'm hoping to get them sorted this afternoon if nothing else is done so I can figure what is what with that. I think I may have too many seeds for this year so I am pondering giving some away if that is the case...just way too many double up's so if you are just starting out and think you could benefit from a few seeds then just let me know in the comments section.

Well that's all for now. Hope you all have a great day and I hope to be blogging about something over the weekend!!

Planting the seeds.....nearly

Well this was going to be a totally iconic post of how much I had got done today. You see I had a plan, get up the plot for a nit and photograph my new land and start on the digging, get my new mini greenhouse put together and get the seeds in.

It started well with me putting the new greenhouse together and I even got the seed boxes arranged inside it ...but that is as far as I got. I just couldn't find the inclination to go up the allotment and start on the new barren landscape I have been issued...it's such a daunting task to be back where I was two years ago....I didn't even go and take a photo of it.

As for the seeds...I opened the box and just had that many I didn't even know where to start. I kind of went crazy in the sales last year and just kept pulling out more and more stuff...so in the end they all went back in the box and I got none of them planted. I was totally defeated!!!!

This is however going to be a very minor lapse, I have got my head around the seed problem and will be sorting them out by dates and going from there first so that no seeds get wasted...and I have a plan for the new plot which includes a greenhouse, composting daleks and a raised bed all of which I am hoping to get my hands on. With this in mind I will start again next weekend and hope that the weather is going to be kind to me!!!

Allotment work....FINALLY!!!!

Well I did it...I actually went up the plot this morning and did some real work. I awoke at 5:30am to glorious blue skies...(well it was getting there as the sun rose over the horizon!) and I thought 'YES!! I can get some real work done today!!!!'

Well my triumph was very short lived as by 8:30am the clouds had rolled in and the sky was a dark grey block. This however did not deter me totally and I dutifully went up the plot to get my first early potatoes in. Whilst there my Dad came to join me and gave me a hand with digging over and planting...all the while moaning about how untidy my bit looked and how neat he was...Thanks for the help Dad...I really appreciate it ...but at the same time.... :-P

Dad digging...well complaining about his back actually..lol

Anyway the heavens opened up on us but we stayed to get the potatoes in and with the two of us at it and the ground so well prepared last autumn...(and this point I am grinning and patting myself on the back!!) it only took us an hour from start to finish...and that was with a break as well!!

So that is it...my season has officially started!!

Lovely dug potato bed!

Hubby went into town when I got back from the plot and he picked me up another mini greenhouse so now I can start planting my seeds..YAY!..

Mini greenhouse.

He also bought me some beautiful flowers...for no reason other than because he wanted to...it's not a special day or anything so that made me very happy!!!

My beautiful flowers.

Oh and when I got back from the plot there was a letter through my door...it's this years allotment fees. They have gone up by 100% which seems an awful lot I know but that still only puts a years full plot charge at £18 which I am more then happy to pay and then there are extra charges for water and greenhouses. In that letter was the rent for Plot 15 (which is the plot Kate and I share) and also the fees for plot 17b....yup I got the extra land I wanted so I am very happy...but also a little daunted to be back where I was two years ago knowing what a lot of hard work I have ahead of me...It's going to be worth it though as I have greenhouse plans!!!!

What a difference a week makes!!!

Well it was back to work on the garden today and my god what a difference just one week makes. I could really see spring sprouting all over the garden today with all the bulbs I planted from last season popping up all over the place in some glorious colours. I intended to take some photos but just didn't have the time with all the weeding and clearing of the winter debris so I hope you are happy with just the little pictures I have.

I am hoping that when I go next week I won't have missed the best of the display and can get a picture for you of the beautiful array of spring.

The snowdrops.

Some of the bulbs are very pretty but I have no idea what they are as Maureen was given a load of bulbs and I just planted them randomly around the garden to give some spring colour.

When I first went today the sun was shining brightly and although the wind was quite strong it didn't take anything away from the glorious spring day. As time went by thin clouds covered the sky but the wind did drop quite a bit and it was still lovely to be outside. Right now it's dark and a steady rain is pouring outside but it is that first spring rain that brings all those glorious scents with it so you know that summer really is on it's way to you very soon. The clocks move forward an hour in Britain next week so then I will have more time to work in the evening outside and with this happening I know that my favourite time of year is approaching. Every season has it's place and is special for it's own reasons but Summer is by far my favourite season with all the animals and plants coming fully to life. What is your favourite season and why???

Plenty of bulbs coming through...
it's quite exciting waiting to see what we will get!!

Well the allotment meeting would have been last night but I haven't seen anyone yet and I am itching to know whether I got that extra bit of land so i will be heading up there tomorrow to see if I can find Dave and see what the outcome was....oh and I will be getting some allotment work done tomorrow too so maybe another post will be on the cards for tomorrow...that is if this rain peters out overnight.

That's all for now!!!!

Weather Watch Wednesday...week 11 2010

Well The skies are blue, the sun is shining....and there isn't a frost!!!!
Yes Folks, I really think Spring has arrived!!! We haven't had a frost in a few days now and the days are definitely warming up a little....the weather man even mentioned the possibility of double figures for today, though personally I think that's being a little optimistic..lol

I haven't been down the plot since the weekend as I have been busy with the Mum/Wife stuff and also decorating my friends place which is taking a lot of time. Typical really, the weather picks up and my time is taken but seens as I am all dug over up the plot I'm not too worried....however I may be tearing my hair out this time next week if I am given the extra land which is in very bad shape!!

Oh yeah...this is supposed to be weather watch....erm..temps between 5-9degrees, sun warm when it comes out but the wind has a nasty bite to it...only two days of rain this week...and I have sen a few daffodils coming through too!!!

I went to the Allotment!!!!!

Well yesterday I finally got to the allotment to get some work done. I was up early and the blue skies and rising sun gave me all the incentive I needed to make a date with the allotment although I have to admit I did leave it until after lunch when the temperature had risen a little!!

I didn't do any planting as such on the allotment but spent the time sorting and tidying and the kids came along to give me a hand.

The first task was the shed, it's only a little thing but boy had I crammed some crap in there plus the spiders had major parties over the winter so it was emptied out, rubbish sorted, swept through and then the good stuff put back neatly.

Clearing the shed.

My sister bought me a redcurrant bush and I also planted that yesterday and my Nephew planted some sunflower seeds on the top border of the plot to make it prettier for summer and also to supply some seed for the birds come fall.

Planting sunflower seeds.

The other two major projects were to sort out the brussels and the runner bean canes. The canes had to be stripped of the left over debris from last year and the kids went through the pods looking for any good seeds to save...we found quite a few so pocketed those and brought them home with us.

Sorting out the bean seeds.

Then for the brussels. I'm a huge brussel fan and had put a lot of plants in but didn't get a very good crop. The seedlings were in on time, netted so didn't get stripped but the caterpillars but they didn't produce a very good crop. A lot of them 'blew' before they were bigger than peas and a lot just didn't get any bigger than peas. I really don't know what I'm doing wrong. Because I had planted so many i got quite a few brussels but no where near as many as I had hoped...anyone give me any tips??? I did ask another allotment holder and they said that brussels just don't grow well on the allotment.....I think I will give it one more try this year so I'm all ears for tips!!

The Brussel plants.

In all we spent about three hours up there and it was a very enjoyable afternoon and then as I was leaving the Chair of the committee came and had a word with me...A meting is to be held on Thursday and that's when I find out if I get a bit more land. Fingers crossed for me peeps!!!!

Seriously what is wrong with my planting skills????

Hi ho, hi ho, it's back to work I go!!!

Well I don't think I have ever mentioned it before but I have a little gardening job that I do...it's only a seasonal thing (obviously) and I don't have to cut lawns or anything but I do get to play around in the dirt lots and sort out plants and bulbs and stuff.

Today was my first day back after the long cold winter and as always for the first day out their it was a back breaker...and of course it was a cold wet day which the weather likes to do to me every year!!

Anyway I thought I would tell you about this as after all it is gardening and it is a very nice garden...and very large...I have took a couple of photos so you can see a little bit. One of the photos if of an 'Abolution' which has been over-wintered in the greenhouse and obviously knows something I don't as it already has some lovely buds coming. Maureen was worried that what had been stored in the greenhouse for the winter may have died with the harsh weather we have had this year but they are all doing well and forming new buds.

New buds on the Abolution

This next pick is an overall view of part of the back yard....it is a very big garden having more land out front than back and has some wonderful plants in it so as the year progresses i will share these with you and show you want I find just to give a little bit of colour to my blog and also at times maybe see if you can help me out with some of the plants that I find.

A part of the back garden.

Hoping tomorrow will be warmer and brighter so that I can get up the plot!!

I really want to get some work on done on the allotment now I've started gardening again!!!

Weather Watch Wednesday...week 10 2010

Well this should be a weather watch Wednesday but to be honest with a busy week of meetings and a funeral today my heart really isn't in the post so this will just be a quickie.

The weather has remained dry for the most part but still not warmed up very much, not getting above 6 degrees and often with a very cool northerly wind.

My friend came up from down south last weekend and I did spend the day at her house that she owns up here in the garden taming Budlias (I just realised I have no idea how to spell it so if you are confused I am talking about the butterfly bush!!) and Maple trees so we had a bit of fun outdoors there but I still haven't been down the plot yet.

Starting back with my gardening job this week and hopefully going down the plot to get started this weekend so will blog more then.

Take care all...spring really is coming!!!!!

Weather Watch Wednesday...week 9 2010

Well Hi all....I know I'm a day late with this post but I figured you would all forgive me when I don't moan and groan about the weather all the way through it!!!

Well Thursday through Sunday which pretty much the same as we've gotten used to so I won't mention them but then on Monday....BAM!!.... it was the start of a new month and I'm pretty sure that spring decided to come along with it!! I awoke to watery blue skies with the sun shining and we even manged to get up to 6degrees Celsius at one point. Now if you live in the tropics then you won't be amazed...but I am amazed and it's lifted my spirits no end. I still haven't been down to the allotment as I really don't have anything to do yet.

Even the crocuses are starting to bloom.

I was getting quite worried reading other peoples blogs and thinking I must be really far behind this year but when I checked my garden diary from last year I found that I didn't start until mid march and I had a lot of work to do before planting, so technically I am ahead of myself this year...yay me!!

I did however spend the whole day in the garden yesterday, just your general tidying and weeding and stuff but it is always such a long job after winter so I only got the front done...hopefully get started on the back this afternoon!! Needless to say I was quite tired last night but at the same time totally energized...I just love to get outside!!!! The garden still doesn't look beautiful but it's neat and the edges are trimmed.

Nice neat garden!

I really think Spring is here folks..HOORAY!!!!!!

On a slightly different note I would like to thank allot of veg for their help on parsnips...if you're interested you can see the advice in the comments section of my previous post...or you could check out their blog.

Here's hoping you're all having better weather too!! :-)