How does your garden grow?

Pretty well, even if I say so myself. It's been a while since I updated, so thought I'd better get around to it.

Most things are growing well. The marrow, squash, pumpkin, courgette, tomatoes, peas, runner beans and broad beans have all got big enough to plant out - and have survived one (very wet) night so far. The cucmbers haven't fared so well and keep being eaten, but the chiclpeas are growing great, and the mung beans, aduki beans, black eye beans and black turtle beans are all coming along. Not sure how they will turn out as it was a bit of an experiment to see if they would grow! The rhubarb leaf is re-growing after being completely eaten - so I now have 3 crowns, as the 2 replacements I bought are doing well (got wise, didn't plant them straight away). Good job I like rhubarb!

I managed to clear a space for the greenhouse and chicken run. Mended the legs on the greenhouse with some plastic pipe, but was away the weekend (ran a marathon in Edinburgh), came home monday to find it had fallen down and all the repairs were broken, so now have to find something stronger.

Haven't had much of a chance to do anything a bout the chicken house as the weather has been naff this week. Can you tell it's half term? But I did manage to get out and pick enough elder flowers to make some cordial. The bush round the corner is bigger than I thought, as is the one down the road a bit, and I've found 2 more. There's a big tree in town, but it's at the junction of some very busy roads, so I'm not sure about the pokkution aspect. Hubby says to just wash them, but I'm not sure how far in things impregnante the surface, if you follow me. Don't want to pick too many of the flowers though as I want the berries for cordial and wine later in the year, and I'm not sure there's enough flowers to make wine AND get the berries. Quite impressed with the cordial though - it's not as sweet as the shop bought stuff. Went down very well with some lemonade.

Water off a chickens back

Wow, what a fabulous few days!!! It's been brilliantly hot and sunny, and the garden has just been crying out for some company, so that's where I've spent the last 3 days. Much to the detriment of the k itchen, I hasten to say.

So, what have I been up to? Mostly I've been planting seeds, tidying up the borders and digging a small extension to the small veg plot, making a slightly large small veg plt. Just enough for a couple of potatoes a shorts row or two of carrots and peas and beans up the fence. Both bean and peas are growing like mad - and I seemed to have solved the slug mucnhing problem by balancing the seed trays on a ladder on it's side. Last year the majority of what I planted got anihilated as soon as it's first leaves poked through the surface. The cucmbers and courgettes are doing well, and are detsined for the patch under the living room window. It's a south facing wall and gets the sun all day, so hopefully they will flourish. I'm thinking about getting a grape vine for that wall.

Because it was so hot over the weekend we put the paddling pool up for the kids. Ok, not very green to use all that water, but I have been watering the plants with it, and refilled the back garden water butt and have now filled the butt in the front garden. I first tried running the hose through the house and attaching one end to a watering can. To my credit it worked, but it took so long I resorted to carrying cans through the house and ignoring the drips on the carpet.

Had a bit of good news - neither side neighbours are fussed about us keeping chickens. Woo hoo! Just need to build their house and run. I picked up some bits of fence lanelling this afternoon from freecycle, soi it's time to get creative. I'm aiming (in a very loose sense) to make a house with a nest box, on legs, contained in a netting enclosure, with access to the eggs from the outside, and a door to get in and out. It will be about the size of a 6x4 shed, and may be joined on to the side of our existing shed.

I'm getting really excited about getting the chickens. I was sitting out there last night after hubby had gone to work and I'd watered the plants, and I was thinking how 'right' it would feel to have them at the end of the garden. It's a really hard feeling to put into words - but certain things just feel right, and natural and normal (like chickens and planting seeds and digging the garden), and other things just feel plain wrong (like shopping in Tesco).

I have a long way to go with the garden yet though - as the pictures show!














Think I need to mend the fence before the chickens escape next door!














This lot will have to go first!














My pile of fence panel chicken housing

Busy in the garden today

Right, that's the herb border dug over at last. We've been in the house 2 years come next month, and I've just got that border sorted. Better late than never I suppose. Have made a list of the herbs I want to plant there - just need to buy them now.

Have tidied up the pots in the front too. The herbs ath spread all over the place can go in the pots, and th no quite so prolific ones will go in the bed. Found a broken pot, so turned it into a frog house:

'Planted' the big rockery stones we rescued from mums garden when she moved too. I've now got a bit of structure in the border, and while it's no Stonehenge, it's not so bad. I didn't like the one lating down, so it's now upright like the others.

There's a couple more stones the other side of the bush, and the couple of leftover bits have been turned into a fairy house.

There's still a long way to go with all the planting, and it's going to be a nightmare trying to decide a) what to plant and b) where to plant it!

Thanks to the lovely weather the seedling I sowed earlier in the week are popping through rapidly. I have 2 cucumbers with nice big first leaves already. Haven't quite worked out where everything is going to go yet, but most of the pots fron the front garden don't have much in them of any use, so some things will go in them. There's a footpath that goes along the back of some houses just round the corner, and living on a council estate it's full of rubbish, tv's, bikes etc, so I'm hoping to find a couple of old tyres down there I can use as pots.

Oh, and I didn't get all the tadpoles yesterday - there was one staring at me this afternoon from its original home! It didn't smile for long lol, and is now happily with it's siblings.

Big plans

Has been a good week for foraging this week. Found a patch of sorrel and hedge garlic, which were tasty chopped up into couscous, and today we went down to the beach and I found sea beat - this time chopped with some sorrel into an omelette, with salad topped with hawthorn and hedge garlic leaves. Mmmm..... even hubby was impressed.

I *think* I have finally transfered all the tadpoles from their temporary home in the water feature to the pond. We rescued some from a pile of spawn laid in the dip in the top of mums sand pit cover. If it had been left it would have all dried up, so we brought it home in a plastic bag and plopped it in the tub.

After building them a nice new little pond I had the fun of trying to get them in it. Every time I thought I'd got them all, out some more would pop from the depths. In the end I emptied the tub and hopefully they are all now in their new home.

We're slowly getting the garden together. I've sorted the adult corner out ok. I wanted somewhere I could sit and chill while the kids run riot in the rest of the garden. Still a little bit to do, but we'll get there.

Here's a before and after shot:

- as far as putting the bench and arch in place

I've got pink and yellow honeysuckle going over the arch, lavender behind the bench, and the pond is just out of picture on the left. Need to get some more slate chips to fill in the holes, and the bench needs renovating, but it's almost there.

Have had a bit of a planting spree recently too. Made a start last year, but it didn't all go to plan, but this year it's a lot more methodical. Have sown peas, sweetcorn, courgettes, cucumbers, herbs, flowers, pumpkins and tomatoes, and things are starting to grow! It always strikes me as amazing when tiny seeds I've stuck in a pot turn into plants.

Can't wait to get the allotment. I've been on the list for a couple of years now, and I have no idea how long I'm likely to have to wait. Really should give them a ring to see how things are going. Looking forward to being able to plant things in reasonable numbers to be able to feed us all, so we don't have to buy from anywhere. We have a plum tree in the garden, and a gooseberry bush and blackcurrant bush, and I have easy access to blackberries, and the apple tree is growing well after being rescued from almost dead last year, but there's nota lot of room with 2 kids, a climbing frame and a swing.

The next big project is chickens. Am hoping to get 3 from either a local activity farm that sells animals, or the Battery Hen Welfare Trust. Need to build a house and run first (AND get some money together!). While they'll be loose in the garden in good weather while we're there, I want a run to keep them from hopping over the back fence, and a house to shut them in at night. Will take a bit of doing - this is where I plan to put them:

Mmmmmm............

Simple things

Having done all the washing over the weekend, I was left with ahuge pile of wet stuff - and pouring rain, so I had to use the tumble dryer. After hanging things on the washing line it just doesn't seem right any more. A washing line was one of the best things I inherited when we moved here and finally had a garden. Luckily it's brightening up so I can get another load out.

In the meantime it was lunch time. I made some rye soda bread and heated up some nettle soup. Felt very rustic, and I was a little smug that I was eating a completely home made meal. So many people miss out on the taste and health benefits by eating pre-packed ready meals, or processed food. The whole meal probably cost much less than 50p.

Talking of meals - need to find something for tonight. Sorted out my many cookbooks this morning after they fell off the shelf. Really should start using a few more of them lol.

It's been a long time!

Well, it's been a long time since I last visited here - can't believe HOW long! Time to bring things up to date I think.

We had a veg box delivery for a while, but have had to stop that as Paul was off sick for 5 months and money was very tight. Instead of running up the arrears I thought it best to cancel. Same with the milkman, so we're back to plastic bottles. I have been trying to do my best by eating organically and being careful with what I buy though.

One fantastic purchase was a Mooncup (for those monthly women things). Nothing goes in the waste, it's easy to use and far better for your body than disposable products. I am contemplating buying one for my sister for her birthday.

Had an idea opportunity the other day to reallythink about the way we live. With Paul being off sick for so long, and just having another 3 weeks (goes back tomorrow), Money is very tight and we ran out of gas and electric. It was lovely not having any television or computer for the evening. nice and quiet and I read a book by candle light. Paul was doing his nut after going cold turkey with no television. It's sad that someone has lost the ability to think for themselves, and to amuse themselves, in the absence of outside stimulation.

Come the enxt day and everything is back to normal. The tv goes on and he puts his head in the laptop at the same time. He calls the kids down from where they are playing together and using their imaginations, to plonk them in front of the dvd he's just put on for them (and then gets annoyed if they're not interested). He buys all sorts of heavily packed rubbish from Tesco (another addiction), rather than pay a little more for less, but the essentials, from the farmers market. The money ran out the same day as pay day, so he doesn't have much choice but to eat completely home made food. If he can buy it rather than make it he will - it's quicker.

It's renewed my commitment to greening up the home though. I will turn the computer off a bit more, turn the heating down a bit, and use the washing line a lot more (now we've finally put a new one up). I've been making bread for the freezer and deliberatley made extra dinner yesterday to freeze some. We'll be eating a lot more pulses, past and rice, and 'boring' food.

I've planted a few seeds too, and will give the allotment people a call during the week to see how I'm doing on the waiting list. The little patch in the garden will have to do for now. I've also been foraging and have a freezer full of nettle soup to keep me going. Following on from the Mooncup theme, I'm contemplating making some wee wipes. Little cloths to replace toilet roll, that go in with the normal washing. To help with the hygiene/smell issue I will rinse them through before putting them in with the laundry. Will help stop as much loo roll going down the toilet, as well as saving a bit of money.

Right - off to find something yummy for dinner out of the depths of the cupboard. The mixed bean casserole thing Idid yesterday turned out wuite tasty - much better than I was expecting!