15th - 31st October

15^th October

I have painted the front wall and its brightness is startling. I have also half filled up a wooden box pallet with soil to be a large container for hopefully a Japanese maple to grow there. I think the stunning red leaves will look good. I have also make a raised bed edging out of pallet wood that goes from the far end of our bay window, in front of this box, along in front of the newly white wall and along the front wall. I’ll fill this with compost and soil and it will be for sowing poppies and cornflowers next spring. What with the fuchsias and grasses already there, the front garden will still be a small area but one that is full of plants and colour.

21^st October

The rain stopped after the last entry and we have continued to enjoy mild and dry weather. Sadly, the courgettes have finished. I managed to pick about a dozen in the last week that were about finger size but now the plants are shrivelled up, damaged by cold nights. Now that the plants have shrivelled I have found another butternut squash plant weighing about a pound – it’s always good to have these little bonuses. In the garden, I have harvested a couple of small portions of rocket and the hanging baskets are still managing to provide a display of colour from the purple surfinas plus the salvias are still in bloom and they make a good impact against the silvery cinerarias.

31^st October

Yesterday we returned from a family holiday to just south of Bude in Cornwall, not that far from where we were last year. It had a wood burning stove in the lounge so we took 2 large bags of logs from the garden that I split here one evening and that proved to be a roaring success. We also paid another visit to the Eden Project – again it was a delight and an inspiration. The boys were surprised to see a display of cotton plants and a cotton harvest in the Mediterranean biome. One said ‘It doesn’t really come from the plants does it Daddy?’ That kind of comment is fine from a 5 year old but when my wife let it out that she never realised it ‘grew on trees’ my eyes rolled in their sockets!

So today we took a trip to the allotment where I pulled some leeks and harvested all the carrots. A lot were damaged by carrot root fly but we still managed a pretty impressive haul considering I did nothing more than sow the seeds and watered a little. One carrot was 13 oz in weight. The calabrese plants are still producing side shoots and I cut off well over a large head’s worth. The sweet peas are still flowering and my 10 headed sunflower had all heads in bloom. It was magnificent to see such a bright yellow ball of sunshine on the last day of October amid so much end of season deadness. Before the holiday I took a couple of photos of the sunflower and I will enter them into next year’s show if they repeat the photograph category. On that note I really need to plan a time to come down and do an autumn clean up.

Back home after the holiday it seems that the salvias have come out even more.

Next post: 27th Nov

1st - 7th October

1^st October

I’ve lost track of exactly what I’ve done and when but today I picked 1 large and 2 fist sized butternut squashes as well as 4 small courgettes and 1 small red pepper from the allotment. On Tuesday I picked 9 courgettes – still going well late in September! I also picked another decent posy sized bunch of sweet peas. It makes it all the more sad as I could have been picking sweet peas at home were it not for lack of watering while we were away.

At home I have made no progress on clearing away the lilac tree which my wife is in favour of, nor of the purchasing the 3 silver birches, which she is not in favour of! One birch tree would be a good compromise but where can I buy just one? The good priced ones on the internet come in multiple batches and singular trees from nurseries are pricey – and large.

3^rd October

Today was the first autumnal weather day. The Indian summer has gone and rain threatened all day although it merely stayed dull. My 5 year old had a birthday party to go to this afternoon so we had no trips or outings planned which meant I could tackle the job of tidying the shed. Before that I mowed the lawn and then it was the main event of the day. Out came everything, some of it got put in a rubbish sack, then the remainder went in again in a neater manner. All this was achieved with the help of the 2 year old who had a great time ‘painting’ things with a small paintbrush I found. I had time at the end to cut back the fennel and saved some seed heads to harvest the seed, as well as the stems which are partly hollow and will make a good overwintering place for solitary bees. Filled with the satisfaction of a good days’ work, I planned to put white masonry paint on the front wall that divides us from our neighbour as a good background for poppies and/or cornflowers in the front garden next year. I’ll try to make some edging too for a small level raised bed.

 5^th October

The autumnal weather continues, now with light continuous rain reaching heavy at times. So I decided that the butternut squashes weren’t going to ripen anymore let alone grow any larger so I harvested them. I now have 3 large ones and about half a dozen small ones the size of my fist weighing a total of 7.8kgs. I also found a large cauliflower that must have dramatically increased in size whilst my back was turned, 3 small red peppers, so small I think they might be chillies (a few years ago there were reports of nurseries mislabelling chillies as peppers) and 1 small courgette. It won’t be long before all summer vegetables have finished and it will be onto the carrots and leeks then later the sprouts and broccoli.

Another rain-fuelled decision was that I would not be able to paint the wall!

7^th October

Today was our third day of rain and it got heavier than yesterday at times. The gardens definitely need it. My lawn looks worse than at any time in the summer and the vegetables require a really good drink. I just long to get out and cut down that lilac tree, make those raised beds and paint that wall.

Next post: 15th Oct

14th - 25th September

14^th September

A wonderfully varied harvest from the allotment brought in 7 courgettes, 5 sweet corns, 4 pumpkins and 1 cauliflower – I stumbled on that by accident as it was well hidden (well, the curd was beneath the foliage!).

I guess since the last leeks went in and the sprouts were planted, the rest of summer and early autumn are the good times on the allotment. Whilst winter maturing vegetables become established and grow, you gradually harvest the others, either the cut and come again ones like courgettes or the one time a season ones such as the sweet corn and pumpkins. The sprouts are now well established and putting on a growth spurt and the leeks are as good as anybody’s and that encourages me. The best thing is that now is not the time for weeding. I have membrane down so no weeding is necessary on the beds, and the long grass around the edges is not troubling anyone so it can wait until tidy up time a little later. Good times indeed. The wet summer also meant that watering was not a chore. That being said I did partake in some watering today for the squashes and courgettes as we have had some great late summer sunshine and a good dry spell for a while now.

Back home my garden tidy up continued with me scrubbing the paddling pool clean as well as the tarpaulin that it was sat on. These were put out way back in late spring, used on one day, and have just sat around getting dirty ever since. It wasn’t even me who got them out – or used them!

15^th September

In gardening, like comedy, timing is very important and mine was displayed yesterday in watering some of the allotment exactly 24 hours before the rain came followed by a deluge which went on for some hours. Ah well.

 17^th September

I was just taking a sheet of cardboard to the allotment and simply dropping it off when I spotted some calabrese re-sprouting as side branches from the main stalks. I collected the equivalent of a large head and we had them for dinner – nice! I also picked the last pumpkin and a small posy of sweet peas.

Later on at home I was to be found on my hands and knees by the strawberry bed clearing away straw and dead leaves and stems and some runners, then uprooting some weeds in front of the privet hedge. I had cleared away the sweet pea canes yesterday as well as those from all along the fence panels. The compost bin is beginning to receive its autumn glut of spent plants.

20^th September

The day of the allotment show and competition. Alas, I forgot all about it until it was too late. I had 2 lots of 3 onions to show plus I could have dug up some leeks and maybe shown some sweet peas. Great!

24^th September

The Indian summer continues with warm dry days that I would have wished were the make up of our summer holidays. There is a chill in the mornings with some condensation on the cars and heavy dew on the grass but otherwise summery. Today was the day I could finally mow the lawn again. Our new mower is here and I set to work getting the grass cut and the compost bin almost filled up. Mind you, that will soon rot down.

25^th September

I finished pruning the strawberry plants of dying leaves and runners and found 28 new plants that I have transplanted to a nursery area at the other end of the border. I have cleared away the straw and the place looks really tidy. I also gave the lavender plants a trim as they have finished flowering.

I was able to collect a decent posy of sweet peas from the allotment. I have been told by one of the allotment committee that I would have won a prize for my onions had I entered!

Next post: 1st Oct

4th - 9th September

4^th September

Eight more courgettes from the allotment and today I also picked 2 cobs of sweetcorn which I blanched and froze.

5^th September

After the family inspected the allotment plot we went over to my parents where Dad has allowed me to dry off my onions in his greenhouse. I peeled off the outer, flaking and dirty skins and filled a bag of these for my compost bin but 3 bags full of onions, and I also have a load back home as well making a total of 151. Great!

7^th September

Only 2 courgettes today but another 2 sweetcorn cobs. This time, we had them for dinner. My wife has never had them this fresh before and she was amazed at how different they taste. A satisfied customer!

9^th September

Yesterday the weather suddenly picked up and felt like summer – that’s at least the second time this year! There has been talk of an Indian summer – there always is when we’ve had a poor one, I think it is people’s wishful thinking for some compensation before winter - well, we had an afternoon of it anyway, and today was quite warm and sunny too so maybe autumn has been postponed although leaves are changing colour.

This afternoon I finally started to wash the flower pots and trays. I took an old bowl of soapy water and one of clean water out to the garden and set about the task. I got quite a few cleaned up as well as sorting out what plastic items have to go in the bin and which ones I can recycle – they needed cleaning as well. So there were many yoghurt pots and plastic cups to wash as I can take them to a local plastics recycling plant (our council doesn’t take all types of plastic). I even washed out the compost bags as they can be recycled too. Basically this place I’ve found will take any plastic as long as you can positively identify what type of plastic it is. They all have a number 1-6 (7 can’t be recycled) according to the specific type. A lot of plastic these days has a triangular recycle symbol on it with either the number in question of the initials of the type so that you can identify it. We keep a large black bin bag in the conservatory and put all our plastics in there that we can identify and when I’ve got too many of these bags knocking about in the shed I get out 6 boxes, label them for my 5 year old and I pull out the items from the bin bags and read the number, give it to him and he runs off and puts it in the box. He loves it. Then I bag up, label and take them to the plant. A good thing is that I can take supermarket carrier bags there so although we now have these bags for life, I don’t have any guilt if I ever go shopping without one as I can take a normal carrier bag and know I will be recycling it when it is not needed anymore.

Back to the garden. I really want to get it tidied before winter this year including all pots and baskets and trays cleaned, sorted and stored where they will not be in my way. I need to tidy the shed again and burn off some of the wood I have stored as I keep collecting but still don’t have a wood burning stove – alas! I want to whitewash the front wall to the left of the front garden and make a small raised bed in front of it to grow poppies and/or cornflowers next year which will be set off well against the wall. It was white once but needs re-doing. I also want to implement the idea I had last year of planting 3 silver birch trees where the lilac stands now. I had the plan just too late last year to have the time to clear the old tree and prepare the ground but made a mental note that this September I would do that, so I have to cut down and grub up the tree, and its roots, and prepare 3 holes for delivery in October. In planting bulbs for the spring I will transfer bluebell bulbs to around the birch trees as they will be better there I think. I already have quite a few bluebells on that left side but I could really make a good show of it if I concentrated them there.

Next post: 14th Sept

August

1^st August

Well it may be August but the rain continues. A constant light drizzle all day. Of course the good thing is that I don’t have to do any watering at the allotment. Imagine how many trips to the trough I would need to water the entire plot, and to have to do it maybe 2-3 times a week if there was a serious hot, dry spell. On our travels today we stopped at the allotment for courgettes and picked 5 including the first 2 of the yellow ones and yes, 2 of them found their way on to our plates for dinner, as well as 2 older ones. We are easily managing to consume them as we go, but then not every plant is in the full swing of production yet – that will probably happen whilst we are away. We leave on Thursday for 2 weeks in the Lake District and I can foresee a huge glut of overly large marrows by the time we get back. I would like someone to pick them while we are away but I really want to have an accurate record of how many have been picked for my records (how sad am I?) so I will have to ask and instruct someone reliable.

I haven’t really mentioned much about the garden for a while maybe because due to the weather we have not been spending much time in it. The flowers are doing well. The silver leafed cinerarias are generally coming along fine, and as for the salvias, some are in a good bloom whilst others have nibbled-off tips. The ageratums are in bloom and they are not as large as the picture on the packet suggest (one shouldn’t be surprised) but that may well be due to the fact they are cramped and were potted-on late. However, they are multiple headed and provide a good contrast and point of interest at the bedding level. The fuchsias are in full swing and looking good and the sweet peas are still doing well along the fence but struggling up the wigwams – are they too close together there? The container of nicotianas is absolutely stunning, a real success. My wife and I are so pleased with it. The white and pink roses are in their second bloom already and the lavenders are still going strong. The herbs are looking good; the fennel is setting seed and is over 6 feet high. The rosemary, French tarragon and sage are thriving but the oregano looks like the leaves have been affected by something but now it is in flower so looks better.

I have already had an idea for next year's bedding – cornflowers. They are doing really well on the allotment and if a flower can thrive down there it will be fine in the garden. I also saw a friend’s potted container of mixed cornflowers and that looked really good. They provide good height, a bushy appearance and some good sized flowers that stand out while also giving ground cover. What is more, you simply sow them direct into the ground, no seed trays, potting-on and planting out which for next year is something I’ll be looking for as I hope to be out of my easy non time consuming job and into something more meaningful but alas more like regular hours. I was going to sow poppies in the front garden this year but ran out of time because I need to make a decent bed with a good amount of soil, and make a border edge too and I also meant to repaint the (what was) white wall behind to give a good backdrop. I can do this in the autumn and be ready for next year. I may also put some poppies in the back garden. Look at me, dreaming of next year already and I’m yet to go on my summer holiday.

5^th August

At lunchtime I planted out about 27 purple sprouting broccoli at the allotment and scattered many slug pellets around – I will not be around to protect them at all for over 2 weeks after all! Looking at the calabrese, I noticed that about 4 heads were looking ready to harvest but not quite as large as I’d expect. Thinking that they would bolt whilst I’m away I picked them concluding that it was better not to let them be wasted but to have them safely in the bank, well, freezer.

In the evening I did a rush job of planting out all remaining cinerarias and to plant the laurentias in a container and I gathered all the containers together to be watered by my neighbour during the holiday. It is my ‘other’ (non DIY expert) neighbour who will be looking after things as there is a gap in our fence which enables us to water each others’ gardens. I picked one large bunch of sweet peas and gave them to a neighbour a little further down. Yes, it was a young, female neighbour so I was glad when her husband answered the door. He wasn’t at all jealous, just deeply hurt that they were not specifically for him.

6^th August

Passing via the allotment on work duty I picked a small bunch of sweet peas for someone at work and 15 courgettes. I gave some of them away but took the majority on holiday for one of my now favourite dishes - zucchini alla carbonara – yummy!

So it is off on holiday to the beautiful Lake District leaving the grass high before we even leave. We stay overnight tonight at a bed and breakfast place to break up the journey for the boys and get to our accommodation tomorrow. On the way back we are staying overnight at some friends in Leeds and visiting some other friends in Nottingham for lunch on the Saturday so it will be a little over 2 weeks away.

22^nd August

We arrived home at 6.30 pm to find all container plants in the front garden dead, that is, the petunias in the hanging basket and the 2 pots of sweet peas, all through lack of water. OK I had not explicitly instructed them to be watered but I would have thought they would be included. What would the back garden hold in store? Well the lawn was higher and the pots and hanging baskets had been watered but the sweet peas also looked pretty dour, again due to lack of watering. I’m guessing my neighbours thought they wouldn’t need watering as they were in the border but they were right up against the fence which protects from the rain by a surprising amount. Again – not specifically instructed but . . . Later on I trimmed back all tendrils and deadheaded merely to get rid of all energy and water sapping material to give the plants a better chance. This was of course followed by a decent watering.

How did my Dad do with counting the courgette harvest? He told me he picked ‘about 15, no, let’s say nearer 20’!

24^th August

At the allotment I picked 12 courgettes and 10 heads of calabrese. Some of them we had for tea and very nice they were too, the rest I blanched and froze.

In the garden I borrowed a lawn mower from my neighbour (the least he could do considering the sweet pea situation which shows no sign yet of any improvement) and got the lawn under control. I must get a new mower soon though. The mower I used had no grass collection facility so my 5 year old helped me rake up the grass and he was kept busy and happy using his little wheelbarrow to take it all to the compost bin. He was a delight to watch. Apart from that I cut up the rest of the lilac branches I cut down at the end of the garden before the holiday to take the pressure off the back fence.

25^th August

The garden sweet peas may be finished but those on the allotment are still going great. I picked a bunch for my wife. What does the allotment look like I hear you ask? Well the paths and edges are overgrown with grass but apart from that and some strong bindweed growth in section 1 around the carrots, each section brims with good vegetable greenery and the weed suppressing membrane seems to be doing its job.

In section 1 the carrots are doing well. I have not had a huge germination rate but those that are up look large enough from what I can see under the fleece. The 5 teasel plants are just bushy leaves, no stem. I’ll have to check if they are an annual or biennial, the latter would explain this. (They are biennial.) The cornflowers at the end of the section are fantastic. Many are still in bloom and the bees are buzzing round them – a definite choice for the garden next year.

In section 2 the older leeks look great, we’ll be getting a good harvest this winter, and the leeks I planted into section 3 to follow the onions are doing fine, but obviously not as large – at least we’ll get something from that section as a double bonus after the great onion harvest. I’ve recently read that you should not bend over the onion leaves as I did as that breaks and bruises the leaves and can be an entry point for mould which would mean less storage time or damaged veg so I’ll have to keep a close eye on the ones back home.

In sections 4 and 5 the sprouts and purple sprouting broccoli have established themselves with some of the sprouts looking quite strong. Two of the first plantings are large plants with sprouts forming well. I just hope that the rest were not planted out too late for a harvest. Still, plenty of time to go yet. In section 6 the 2 surviving cauliflowers are large but with no curd that I can see from outside the netting, the sprouts I put in as extra seem mostly to have succumbed to slugs and the calabrese are now harvested so this section would seem to have finished but with a small amount of hope for any extra benefits that might just come my way.

In section 7, 2 of the yellow courgette plants I bought from the nursery are producing pumpkins! Otherwise, despite some courgette plants being rather large, I have not had the volume of courgettes I was expecting and I put that down to the bad start I had. That said, we have done well and feasted on courgettes a lot, I just haven’t had the lovely glut that enables me to give some away to elderly friends and work colleagues, something I like doing as I want to keep hold of pretty much all other produce as it keeps so well.

In section 8 the sweet peppers have been a disaster. After the holiday I have seen some small red ones which look more like chillies. I think it was a mistake to put them in the open ground where they were so exposed (I was expecting a hotter, dryer summer just as the Met Office predicted – hah!). Elsewhere I have one crown prince squash and a few pumpkins but the cucumbers are not producing anything.

In section 9 not only do I have the colour of some healthy sweet peas but also the grand upright sweet corn which is showing some good large pods and at ground level, most of the butternut squash plants have survived that period where a few looked as though they were dying (one definitely did) and there is definite proof of squashes developing. So if I do well with the brassicas I can say I’ve had a pretty good year, but as I said already, it is still early days.

27^th August

I did a bit of weeding in the garden but did not get too far. I think the garden sweet peas are dead. Whilst rummaging around for courgettes I found an enormous cucumber so that’s one for the year at least!

It is not even August bank holiday yet but already I have noticed yellowed leaves scattered on the road at one point of a country lane I drive along each day and cycling into work I have felt that it will soon be time to don a light fleece for the journey. Surely it can’t be autumn just yet can it?

15 - 30th July

15^th July

With due sense of expectation and purpose I stepped out of the car. I looked down at the metal object in my hand – a cheap multi use penknife bought from a petrol station. I carefully unfolded the large blade of the main knife and walked over to my intended recipient of a quick but effective slice of the steel. Two short slices later the job was done. I had harvested the first 2 courgettes of the year – a great moment and one that was overdue. A relief and a joy. Then later – looking back at last years’ records, I realised that the first courgette picking last year was the 7^th July so I am only 8 days later this time. Mind you, last year they all came together in great abundance whereas this year it is only about 4 plants that seem ready with others still in their infancy. That might mean that the later plants will be cropping later when the earlier ones have stopped so it could work out rather well. Then again . . .

It was also the day to plant out the leeks. I made an evening trip to the plot as this was the only feasible time that I had to get this job done (I’ll probably have to do the same with the sprouts and broccoli too). I filled up section 2 with 66 more leeks so that now that section is full and yet there were still more to go in so I dotted some at the end of section 1 as well, another 13 and still I have more to go in. Perhaps when the onions come out they can go in there. It was definitely dusk if not nightfall when I left but it was great to be out. It reminded me of when I was young and I would be out as late as possible on a summers’ evening playing football or cricket and invariably moaning at my fellow players’ lack of staying power as they sloped off earlier.

17^th July

I gained another 2 courgettes from the allotment and a really good sized bunch of sweet peas from the garden. It won’t be until Monday or Tuesday that we can start to clean and move back into our kitchen. I am really grateful that we have been able to get a new one – we certainly needed it given the state of the old one, but it has dragged on a little too long and we haven’t really been able to settle and the house is in a somewhat disorganised state although I’m pleased with how we have been able to manage. This has led to less time being available for gardening. We have had a few dinners out at both sets of parents and that takes up gardening time too, although I am definitely not complaining at other people cooking dinner for us!

Today was the day to push over the onions. The leaves have been going brown and yellow for a while and I am told that bending over the leaves stops any fungal infection getting into the bulb, though I can’t see how a bent leaf would stop that – it’s still attached after all. There is an art to harvesting onions, and that is in stages. First you bend them over, then lift them from the ground but lay them on the soil, and then lay them out to dry which surely has to be done under cover because it takes from 1 – 3 weeks and when do we ever have that length of time guaranteed as having no rain? By drying them properly, they store longer, about 6 months, and any that are affected by rust spots and the like, you eat up rather than store, or they can be frozen. If I can dry them properly, then the 3 biggest will be entered into the allotment show in September. My Dad said that the other day he was chatting to a chap at the allotment and he pointed out the good size of my onions and Dad was proud to be able to say they belonged to his little lad.

20^th July

At the allotment I noticed that something unusual is happening to the butternut squashes. Back on Friday I had seen that one on the far left seemed to have simply wilted a little. I thought little of it as we were expecting rain and none of the others were like it. On Saturday we popped in as a family and I noticed that the next squash in line was the same. Then today, the third one had suffered too. I gave them a good drink of water and I will have to return to make some sort of deep cut into the soil to make a gap barrier before the fourth one goes – perhaps there is some organism in the soil.

22^nd July

I picked 5 courgettes today – the first decent amount of decent sized vegetables, and in the evening I cooked a recipe I learnt from Jamie Oliver – zucchini alla carbonara – ‘delish’ as Jamie would say!

24^th July

After a frustrating afternoon at work stuck in traffic, I managed to get to the allotment armed with a series of baskets to harvest the onions. 54 sturons, 53 settons and 36 centurions, a grand total of 143 mostly decent sized onions with many large ones as well. Some were so large that I just about got them through the hole cut in the membrane. With my wife spending £1 on a kilogram of red onions yesterday I think we are on to a winner. I also picked 2 more courgettes and it was time to dig up the garlic. Despite the fact that from above the ground they did not look like they were up to much in terms of growth, the bulbs were of a similar size to last year and I ended up with 10 of them.

Especially after last years’ total disappointment with onions, it was with a huge sense of joy, that I drove off with the car stinking of onion and garlic. It really is a great satisfaction which has an added sense of achievement considering previous failure. This is what is so good about gardening: you learn from your mistakes and repeat what you did well and work on what went wrong, you research the possibilities and try different ways. Mind you, isn’t that true for pretty much all aspects of life? It’s a good metaphor for life and the type of thing that can be taught practically to children. Perhaps it would even work on managers. I only mention that because I heard this week of a car sales manager giving a start of the day pep talk to his sales team and ending with a motivational one liner: ‘a sale is a transfer of energy’. Apparently when he said this his hearers did their best to not splutter into their coffee. If I had been there I would have had to have asked the question: ‘oh really, how come?’ I mean, it isn’t true in a literal or a metaphorical sense – what does it mean? This is the same manager who gathered the workers together at a new car dealership he was put in charge of and said ‘I hate negative people’. When I heard that I made the obvious remark of ‘that’s pretty negative isn’t it?’ This manager does not strike me as a gardener!

25^th July

After 3 Saturdays of fiddling around with the kitchen we at last had a family day out which was really good. After coming home and before dinner I pottered around in the garden tidying up after the mess that was left by certain people who helped with the kitchen project. The grass of course still needs a good cut as it is looking like a wild area now, but it must be rather wet as we have had damp conditions for at least 3 weeks. This does not help the courgettes to grow either as although they need plenty of food and water, they really benefit from decent sunshine. How ironic that just after a bumper onion crop I am faced with lean picking on a crop that has been super bumper for the previous 2 years!

29^th July

I had planned on going to the allotment after work and planting the sprouts but time ran out for me and I only had opportunity to merely drop off the plants at the plot. Dad was there picking blackberries and so I cut a batch of sweet peas for him to take back to Mum who was rather pleased!

30^th July

At lunchtime I went to plant the sprouts. At first the weather was a little drizzly and so I put on my coat and stood picking off all caterpillars and eggs (again) from the plants. When I was ready to actually plant them I took off my coat as it was warming up, dry and I didn’t fancy crawling around under the netting in my coat. Once inside the netting the sun was shining down on me and I was rather hot. After planting, and as I was just watering in the plants, the heavens opened and I raced to put on my coat again. I got soaked from the thigh down. Nevertheless I managed to plant out 16 sprouts as refills for the ones that have been eaten. Two of the existing and surviving ones are no larger than the ones I planted, but the other 2 are growing really well. I also picked 3 more courgettes and when I got home I washed and sliced them and cooked them in olive oil and butter with black pepper and crushed garlic and had them as a warm side dish to my sandwiches. They went from the plant to my plate in 45 minutes and they tasted great.

10 - 13th July

I went to the allotment again to do a feeding programme on the peppers and squashes – it takes awhile. I was also able to pick some sweet peas. We have enough at home to supply our cut flower needs so what to do with these ones? I had decided on giving a small posy from each cut to one of the receptionists at work and I had a particular one in mind who was not too far down the time line when I could give them to her (I was worried that they would wilt). The problem arose in my mind however – ‘How do I, a married man, give flowers to another woman without her getting the wrong idea and making mental attachments to me, or think that I’m a creep, and without being so obviously the other direction and declare loud and clear that I have no interest whatsoever in the poor lady and don’t be so ridiculous as to think that anyone would be so inclined as to present you with a small gift?’

I approached the lady in question, raised the small bunch and asked ‘would you like these with no strings attached?’ She smiled and said ‘yes please’. Success! I don’t always get it right with the fairer sex you know!  Like most men I get a bit confused as to why women seem to smile and giggle at the inappropriate advances and comments of handsome men, but when a less aesthetically pleasing man does something nice for a woman, he is regarded as a creep!

Yesterday I cut a bunch of sweet peas of various colours for my Mum. She and Dad have been hosting us for a few meals while the kitchen is in chaos and this was a little thank you. Today I cut a bunch of the red and white sweet peas for ourselves and they have a certain stunning quality when combined in a vase.

11^th July

As some light rain drizzled down I was found out in the garden checking over the sprouts plants and rubbing off the many caterpillars and eggs to be found on them. I fed the garden plants before dinner.

Everything seems broken at the moment – my glasses, the car (a starter motor fitted just long enough ago to be out of warranty but has only done about 9 – 10 thousand miles!), the old kitchen, the toilet seat, the back fence and the lawnmower!

13^th July

I potted up the sprouting broccoli into old plastic cups and then proceeded to go about removing caterpillars and eggs from them. I will have to recheck the brassicas in a little while before they get planted out. That is a job which is overdue but no good in this damp weather as it involves digging into wet clay soil. Dad’s brassicas are large and productive and mine are at the starting gate.

Another bunch of sweet peas from the garden, a nice mixed display. This is now the third decent sized bunch, probably 4 if you add together the 2 early but small offerings and the ones at the allotment. You can’t buy them in the shop as they wouldn’t last long enough to reach the shelves but I guess you would pay at least £2 for a handful, more if you were not buying in a supermarket. I also picked a few more strawberries. Again, they are deep red, juicy and sweet, no need for sugar or even cream!