Struggling

May Day. Up the workers. April in central England turned out to be the hottest and driest since records began 350 years ago, ie it didn't rain. At all. The sun is blazing and just to rub it in there's a stiff easterly wind doing it's damnedest to desiccate everything in it's path. It's blowing just cold enough for me not to notice the UV taking my skin off. Not good growing weather. The perennials and anything planted out last year with their roots well down in the soil - the broccoli, asparagus and spinach - is doing well enough, so I won't starve. Even the autumn-planted spring cabbage is hearting up nicely without any watering. But anything planted out this spring is struggling - the peas look sorrowful and the cabbage positively pathetic.

9-star perennial broccoli undersown with trefoil.