....on a cold and frosty morning

I know the rhyme is 'here we go gathering nuts in May' but hopefully we will be finished with frost by then but for the moment we have to contend with it.We are back to a spell of severe weather with freezing temps and frost but not quite as bad as earlier in the year.The upside of the clear frosty weather is sunny bright days not the usual gloomy days we experience here at this time of year.A cheery start to the post is my single crocus is now 3 and the daffs are budding up nicely.
I bought these chives in Lidl for 99c last week,put them into a pot in their own pot, watered them and they are growing, great to have to hand for sandwiches etc and look cheerful on the kitchen windowsill as an added bonus!
I wondered what these green shoots were pushing through and remembered they are my chives from last year and yes that is frost all round
I used my stash of loo rolls to set peas this morning.They are Oregon super pod Mangetout.The funnel was made from the neck of a 3 litre mineral bottle (from the recycling stash)it was much easier and cleaner for filling the tubes with compost.They will be brought indoors tonight.
The left side of the plastic greenhouse, I lined it last week with bubble wrap after reading about it on Veg and Flower time blog.I bought the roll in B&Q for 20e and while there are clips to attach to a greenhouse frame I just draped it over the bars here.It does hold heat inside, I was actually amazed the first morning I opened up the flap and that was after a night of frost.
The seed potatoes are coming outdoors now as they have been on the bedroom windowsill chitting up to now. I hope I am not tempting fate after last years fiasco!The cauliflower and cabbage seedlings are only just developing their true leaves so I will leave them in the seed trays for another few days. They also go indoors at night.
The green trays were bought in Aldi yesterday , 3 trays,3 seed modules and 3 lids for 4.99e which is not a bad price.They also have a stock of fruit trees if anyone is interested for 4.99, now is the time to buy while they are fresh and not exposed to the heating instore for a few weeks.
Right side,Spring onions , set about 5 or 6 to a module when planting out they are already bunched and should need no further thinning being allowed to grow on as a bunch for picking. I read that handy info on Blackvillage blog.
A tray of Musselburgh leeks, which we were very happy with last year so see no reason to change.
A tray of white onion sets a donation from Mike on the allotment.
Underneath the winter cos lettuce,transplanted this morning. I will leave them grow on in these containers. I put compost from the bins underneath the bagged compost to give them a head start.They will be left out in the greenhouse now after being hardened off each day for the last week or so, again maybe I am being over optimistic but they are at the house side of the greenhouse so should be protected from frost.
The seed trays are covered with a layer of vermiculite which I found under the stairs since last year!
The view into the greenhouse, lots of room to fill yet but I am not setting too many seeds too soon as if the weather deteriorates I need to be able to bring them into the house overnight!My Rosemary seems to be suffering from the fresh frosts, it survived all winter but may have put out new shoots in the last couple of weeks, I used the end of the 3 litre bottle to put a cloche over it but had uploaded my pics by the time I had thought of doing that.The new occupants of the bedroom windowsill, Red salad onion Purplette set 5 or 6 to a module again, Bedford Darkmar Brussel sprouts and Medina Spinach both of which we grew last year and were very pleased with the return.

Comments

Ann said…
Great to see all your plants Peggy, makes me feel spring is nearly here - even though we had snow again yesterday.

My tomatoes have their first true leaves now, got to sew a few more things soon or I'll be late with everything.
Becca's Dirt said…
You sure have it going on over at your place. You got me wanting a salad.
Shaheen said…
Wow, Peggy you are ready steady go. I do hope that rosemary perks up. I appreciate the plant in my garden border to much, esp this winter.

PS Thank you so much for your kind words and encouragment.
I love popping in to see what you've been up to ... you are keeping busy as usual & I love that you recycle things like old toilet roll tubes ! The plastic bubble wrap is such a clever idea, too ! Hope that your weather warms up soon, my mother-in-law returns to the UK next week after a 3 week visit with us under the hot African sun & is not looking forward to those cold temps again !
Anonymous said…
Nice post.
Good idea about using a pop bottle as a funnel...Ill be pinching that one ;0)
Peggy said…
Ann; I have not set any tomatoes yet, this year i am setting when the packet says to set them!

Becca's dirt: I visited your blog and you have quite a lot going on yourself in the seed sowing and recycling!

Mangocheeks: I had forgotten to check the Rosemary under the cloche until I read your comment,its doing OK! I hope you get another allotment plot in a nicer area soon and I look forward to seeing what you grow at home in pots and containers.

Lynda: I read most of these tips online too and adapt them to fit my own needs.Your Mom in law will find a big change in weather temps after being in Tanzania!

Lynda: no problem, thanks for the links you put in for the moon cycle and gardening calender as you will see lots of people are interested.

Dirty girl gardening, the chives look a delicate plant but they seem to be the hardiest,popping up through frozen ground1

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