Monday 29 April 2013

Signs of Spring

I find it so uplifting to see the garden coming back to life after what feels like the longest winter ever! This morning I popped outside to check on our fruit trees that we had planted last autumn and to take a few pictures.




They are all in bud and some with blossom. None seem to have suffered from the cold weather. We have apples, pears, plums, damsons and a mulberry tree. Fingers crossed we will have some fruit this year (and lots of crumbles!)

The rhubarb has also suddenly sprung into action. A week ago, it was just starting to push through the pile of compost I had dumped on it. Today it looks like I may have to start picking this week!

Last weekend, the boys and I went to the garden centre to buy some seeds and compost. They both picked out all the vegetables they would like to grow, and I added in some flowers too. We went home and started planting!

We have a strange conservatory-thing on the side of our house. There is no access from inside the house, so you have to walk all the way around the outside to get into it, which is a bit bizarre. Consequently we don't really use it.

It has the wicker furniture in it that we brought from the Breeze House in our old garden, but we just never go in there. Until now! It now has some growbags with tomato and cucumber plants, and LOADS of seeds planted.



So far we have planted carrots, peppers, chillis, courgettes, sweetcorn, red onions, broad beans, peas, pumpkins, mint, parsley, basil, sweetpeas and lupins! We still have more peas, beans, carrots and spring onions to plant, but plan to sow these directly in the ground later in the summer.

The big one enjoyed the whole process immensely, and even wrote some of the name tags.



The ones we planted last week are just starting to show signs of life...

Carrots

Peas
I have since read that carrots do not like being transplanted as it can damage the root, and should be sown directly into the ground. Oh well, we will just have to look forward to having lots of mutant carrots!

Little one has shown very little interest in the whole planting/growing thing, but hopefully he will become more involved with the harvesting/eating process!

This is the spot we have ear-marked for planting our veggies once the seedlings are big enough. We need to move the sorry-looking rhodedendrons first though and prepare the ground a bit.

I think some will have to be grown in pots though, due to the sheer volume - we got rather carried away!

I'm off to wilf around some veggie and allotment websites!

2 comments:

  1. what lovely photos! Love the conservatory looks like the perfect place to grow some things!

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    1. Thanks Sarah! We were at a bit of a loss as to what to do with the conservatory - it is to the side of the house & nowhere near any doors & it also pretty knackered & almost falling down. But now it is our greenhouse!

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