Allotment Diary: Gone to Seed

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packets of vegetable and wild flower seeds

This week, we finally got to do some proper planting on the allotment. We bought a selection of vegetable seeds, got given some allium bulbs by our neighbour and sent off for some wild flower seeds that were being given away by BBC Countryfile & Go Wild.

sweet corn kernels sown into toilet roll inners

We sowed some sweet corn kernels using toilet roll inners a few days before we went to the allotment…

sweet corn being sown into an allotment bed

…and transplanted them into a newly-laid bed when we got down there.

When we get to the allotment, the first thing we did was to have a quick inspection to see if anything looked any different. And lo & behold, a few of the sweet pea seeds we planted up a couple of weeks before had sent up little shoots – no more than a couple of centimetres tall!

sweet pea seedling

Adelle set about sowing some cornichon seeds into one of the other beds we’d prepared the week before…

cornichon seeds being sown into an allotment bed

…while Justin continued with laying paths and beds…

Justin putting tiles around an allotment bed

…and Fudge did what he does best… loaf!

He sometimes gets a bit bored which can often lead to naughtiness so we keep him occupied by giving him a big bone to gnaw on.

Fudge gnawing on a bone

We found this old wire basket on the plot so we decided to use it to keep all our tools tidy.

Wire frame where we keep our tools

We also found this snail skulking around. The first live one we’d seen up to that point. We doubt it will be the last!

snail on the allotment

The last job of the day was to clear out these two sinks we found at the back of the plot and put them into place, ready to plant up next time.

pair of old ceramic sinks on the allotment

Gimme Five: Spring bulbs

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selection of 5 spring bulbs

Hasn’t this past week been lovely? After a long, grey, damp squib of a winter we’ve been enjoying the ever-lengthening, brighter, warmer days.

We’ve just spent quite a lot of time in the garden, sweeping away the rotting leaves and moss. We plan on making a trip to Gordon Rigg’s just down the road and investing in a few different types of spring bulbs.

Our garden is fairly small, mainly set with cobblestones that we’ve filled with plants in a mix of terracotta pots and galvanised metal containers. We have a few raised beds that we’d like to plant up with bulbs, with the promise of orange and white late-summer/autumn flowers appearing year after year.

Our soil is acidic and the beds are short on sunlight so we’ve had to research our floral options very carefully. Here’s what’s made our short-list…

  1. Eucomis autumnalis: £6.99 for 2 bulbs, Suttons Seeds and Plants
  2. Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’: £3.99 for 10 corms, Crocus
  3. Large-flowered Gladiolus ‘Peter Pears’: £5.75 for pack of 25, Spalding Bulbs
  4. Spider lily ‘Zwanenburg’: £12.99 for 10 bulbs, Thompson & Morgan
  5. Japanese Anemone ‘Blanda’ white: £9.99 for a 1 litre pot, Jersey Plants Direct

Galvanised Garden

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stacks of of vintage galvanised zinc florist's pots

We’ve just added a dozen of these galvanised metal containers to our garden – the tall shape is a give-away as to their original use.

vintage galvanised zinc florist's pot with drainage holes drilled

They’re actually vintage flower sellers’ tubs that once housed the long stems & blooms. A few holes drilled into the bottom and they were ready for their new role as garden planters.

vintage galvanised zinc florist's pot used to grow herbs

Over the years, we’ve replaced most of our terracotta pots with galvanised containers. We just love the colour of the metal and the small details such as seams & rivets. There’s a great variety in size & shape which makes a collection visually interesting. Dolly tubs, tin baths, water tanks and buckets all make great planters. Another huge advantage is that they don’t break or frost shatter like terracotta and pottery.

collection of vintage galvanised zinc florist's pots used to grow herbs

We decided to grow all our culinary herbs in this batch of pots – and they’ve taken very well to their new homes!

Wednesday Wish: Hosta White feathers

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Hosta White Feathers
Hosta ‘White Feather’ – £9.99 for 2 barefoot plants, Van Meuwen

Maybe it’s the promise of spring that has me thinking about our garden a lot more. In our recent post about planting some fruit trees I mentioned that our shady garden really suits hostas, and we have quite a collection. This year’s new green shoots are just about breaking through the surface of the compost.

I’ve never seen this unusual, striking variety before – it’s called Hosta White Feather – it looks almost albino! It will look amazing in a galvanised metal bucket or dolly tub!