What I Did Today Archive 2008

[areia]

ok had plastic greenhouse for just over a week now the rain has caused it to stretch and make tiny holes in it, now have to think of a way of covering the roof i think, but for now im joining the gaffer tape gang rain rain go away come again another day

[Hazel at the Hill]

Went to the Hill yesterday with partner-in-grime Jane and we

• dug the rest of the parsnips, and the rest of the beetroot
• planted the rest of the potatoes - picasso and pentland dell. Worried that it might be too early, but Indomitable Fran has put hers in, and the frost wouldn't dare to ruin hers...
• covered the potato beds with a layer of manure
• planted out 8 small pots of swiss chard
• planted out a 4' row of pea seedlings
• Had some celeriac given to us - must ask Flum for soup recipe
• pulled a heap of rhubarb - gave some to mum and have chopped up the rest to make rhubarb wine

came home and bottled celery wine, and today I'm pricking out a dozen cauliflower, and making beetroot chutney

[pigletwillie]

What a glorious day weather wise to go to the allotments.

Today I started to plant broad bean plants out that have been hardened off firstly in the cold frame and then outside. Still plenty to go out but a good start made.

Also into the ground went two rows of maris piper main crop potatoes, the rest ofthem along with a couple more main crop varieties will go into the ground over the next couple of weeks.

The final bare root fruit tree, a conference pear was also planted out completing the top fruit planting for this year.

[queen of the cobs]

the first nice day for ages! I planted out lots of seeds in my greenhouse - it's sink or swim now, I can't wait any longer.

I planted 3 types of tomato, sweetcorn, leeks and cucumbers as well as marigolds. Oh and some carrots in a drill in the ground to see if I have any luck.

oh, and chilli peppers and sweet peppers and repotted my bay tree into a lovely big pot that my m-in-law got me as a moving in present.

Planted out a rose in my garden and am about to go plant out some foxgloves...and then a bath I think.

[allotmentlady]

Lovely

Had a resting time sat in the sunshine on my plot, birds tweeting and looking aorund what I can do, when better. Broad beans are coming through and the winter onions are looking slightly sorry for themselves.

Cleaned all my pots and trays and hoping that we get dry weather for a few days.

What a lovely day.

[middlefield]

I made the mistake of reading the BBC weather offices website and believing their forecast

Therefore, I spent Saturday in the wind and cold digging over the allotment and promised to take my daughter to the cinema today (Sunday), only to wake this morning to a glorious spring day (grrrrrrr).

Still, managed to get some more of the potato bed dug yesterday, and noted that my parsnips have germinated in large numbers (I used a novel new way of sprouting parsnips - I stuck the seeds in the ground and let nature run its course!).

Today post Spiderwick Chronicles (very good film by the way) I've pricked out my celeriac seedlings and chilli seedlings, sown brussels and leeks and made sure all the annual plants for the hanging baskets are OK.

Everything else seems OK, but I'm still delaying the main seed sowing as I feel that there is still some cold weather to come.

[Flummery]

Yesterday I planted out my Latvian Peas (HSL) and some well-hardened off broadies on the lottie plot. Today I stripped turf to create flower beds for the village Britain in Bloom group. Went to check on the Latvian Peas - I'd made them a climbing frame and I was worried last night's wind might have toppled it - no probs. Helped daughter and son-in-law this aft to create veg bed in lawn - more to do in the week!

[heebiejeebie]

Whole day (more or less) on the lottie today!

Couldn't get Wilko staging and too impatient to order it and wait, I got the wire shelving out of the shed and put it in the greenhouse. Don't need it in the shed anyway.

Moved old bath from junkheap (must use that hippobag...) into lottie and a nice man from freecycle came and filled it with soil for me. Pulled some leeks for swopsies. Got some sharp sand from a neighbour to help drainage. Next job: sow carrots and salad onions.

Planted loads more veg - French beans, broadies, sprouts, leaf beet, cos lettuce, chives, coriander...
And some flowers - sunflowers, nasturtium, delphinium, hollyhock, poached egg plant, marigolds, sweet peas, stock, convolvulus...
I'm sure there was more!

Greenhouse nearly full now. Blog updated. Geeky spreadsheet filled in. Did some weeding but not much - only the asparagus bed and the bed in which I had sown Japanese onions last year. I sowed 6 rows of 15. Guess how many germinated. Go on. Guess.

One. I transplanted it to the JA bed where it can have some peace for a few weeks.

[deezyb]

Like others, had a lovely day here! So, put in my New Jersey Royals and Charlottes in tubs/inside out compost bags, that was something I just had to do today regardless of weather. Went to Focus, Aldi and Lidl...bought compost (sorry, mine is not ready!) and seed trays.There were showers, but when the rain was on, I was in the kitchen, planting chilli seeds and the like! Seemed really warm when sun out...is spring here yet you think?

[nick nack]

Didn't do alot today as I am laying a wood floor but managed to sneak out and plant out my leeks which were sown last year and raspberry plants. What a fanatastic day though.

NN

[veg4681]

Pre-Chit Disappointment

Sowed the failed Minidor and Cosse Voilette beans for 2nd time, smaller fruiting bittergourd (thanks to Momol), possibly Rose de Berne tom, the non-chitted k-roll squashes (Buttercup, Butternut, Egyptian White) and a fresh seed of Cornell Bush Delicata using the 2" cell insert for the frist time, all to be put in heated propagator. If only all vegetables had the most perfect predictability of Leeks on window sill (counted that almost all 40 seeds have germinated). I've decided to abandon the PG in k-roll for all squash seeds, not working out as well as I had hoped.

Been to car boot sales market in the morning but didn't see the seeds stall selling exclusively Suttons that was there last year (August?). Hope they'll be back. Didn't get excited by the flowering plants that were on sale except for one vegetable, a pack of 6 broad beans for a quid which was pretty good going except we don't eat that particular bean.

[helly]

Snap me &OH laying wood floor, kept looking out a fine sunny weather,torture kept getting calls fetch hammer,fetch,saw, .....but have to say grand job, dinning room looks fab now...
Looking forward to these light nights now PLEASE cant we stick to them , it makes much better sense and everyone is much happier.......

[nick nack]

Hi Helly

I am laying the wood floor in our dining room as well.

NN

[Jenny22Cumbria]

Today I filled up our porch to the brim with the last of the seedlings I'm going to be able to fit in there, watered and turned the ones that are in there already, dropped my cucumbers UP the stairs (I don't know how I manage this stuff - they took me ages to germinate and pot on and now they'll probably die!) and looked at a greenhouse I might buy on ebay. Then researched some copper strip that I want to edge my beds with (to keep slugs and snails out) and fed the birds. As a bonus I've managed to wear the dog out with all that time in the fresh air

[wellie]

I planted 30 shallots that I'd rooted in the little girls greenhouse.

Pricked out 15 'Swiss Tony' Chard seedlings
and 'as ya do' 60 Begonia seedling plugs wot I bought today for to pretty the garden up later maybe.....

I also sowed 31 Sweetcorn 'Swift' seeds into modules.

Having put all the salad leaves out in their trays in my SALAD BAR, I was completely dismayed to see my Gardening Cat sat squarely on two of them at about 5pm this evening. My Cat has completely squashed them. Bugger...