We have been busy in the garden and the diary moved back to pen and paper.  Detailed records of what seeds were sown when, where, when transplanted and the outcomes have been kept using an old paper based office diary. Everything noted from the first chilli seeds sown in January through until all the indoor sown seeds had reached their final position. But nothing to see here on the blog. Now we are harvesting: chillis, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, courgettes, cabbages, cauliflowers, brocolli, lettuces, radishes, spring onions, salad leaves, mange tout, potatoes, strawberries & more so we can use a rainy afternoon to take a breather and post an update. 

A few weeks ago we harvested the garlic, elephant garlic and autumn set onions. The broad beans we began harvesting in early June are still producing, as are the early peas. And now we have set about building more raised beds, the plan being to reduce the number of container grown plants to reduce the need for such frequent watering. The recent hot, dry spell was a huge challenge with so much in containers (hadopots).

This time last year we were busy making plum jam but this year - no plums. We think it is down to the storms that battered the trees just as they were in full blossom. Instead we have made a few pots of rhubarb and ginger jam with a hint of gooseberry, salvaging what we could after the disaster with the oil and soap spray.