Following the arrival of spring, the garden has put on a growth spurt and it would appear that Mother Nature is trying to make up for lost time. The peonies are quite literally growing as we watch and we just managed to pop the plant supports over them before their stems became too tall.
The rhubarb is growing stems faster than we can pick them and the salad drawer in the fridge is stuffed with lovely spinach leaves. This week we will be putting bird betting over the strawberries as some of the plants that were covered with a cloche are already flowering. The bees are busy and it won’t be long before fruit is beginning to set. The net will make sure the birds don’t pinch them before we do.
Inside the greenhouse it is time to pot up the tomatoes, aubergines and chilliest into larger pots. They are very big plants now and hungry for more soil to spread their roots into.
Despite recent hot weather, we are now forecast some very cold nights so we have moved some of our tender plants back into the greenhouse from the cold frame for the weekend. There is only a little floorspace remaining now - just enough for us to stand in!- but we should be able to move them back out after the cold spell is over.
All around the garden plants are growing leaves and flowering. And amongst them the weeds are also thriving, we will be out with the hoe on a dry sunny day to cut them off while they are tiny and before they’ve taken hold. The garden is certainly enjoying the traditional sunshine and showers that April has brought us - even if the gardener is not always thrilled at working in the rain!
