Archives

I've moved my pages from 2005-2007 over here to Blogger. God knows how people spend their days staring at a screen like this all day but apparently they do. It's sent my head a bit funny but it hasn't cost me anything.

Click the labels for lots of new pics!

Oh the excitement. I think I might have to go and lie down.

Apple Blossom Time

Busy busy out on the plot and in the potting shed; well it is spring so that's just as it should be. The apple blossom looks stunning, as ever.

Inside I've been sowing more salad leaves and rocket, spouts, sunflowers and artichokes; pricking out the snapdragons and potting on the cosmos, lettuce and tomatoes.

Outside I've sown a row of maincrop peas and planted out the sweet peas.

All we need now is that rain that the BBC has been promising. Not that I trust anything they say.

Pricking Out Snapdragons

Potting On Cosmos

Sweet Peas

I sowed these in the greenhouse a month ago and moved them to the coldframe to harden off a week ago. Today I've pinched their tops out and planted them out.


Tops pinched out:


Planted out:

Peas

The early peas that I planted out three weeks ago are coming along nicely, I've put up the second string of their support today, and sown another row direct.

Blair Peach RIP

Thursday April 23rd 2009 marks the 30th anniversary of the murder of Blair Peach at the hands of London's Metropolitan Police. Blair was a revolutionary socialist and member of the SWP, and was an activist with the Anti Nazi League opposing the rise of the National Front when he was killed on an anti-fascist demonstration in Southall. To this day, no one has been brought to justice for his death.

Two papers, the Sunday Times and the Leveller, published leaks naming the officers that had travelled in the van that held Peach's killer. They were Police Constables Murray, White, Lake, Freestone, Scottow and Richardson. When the lockers of their unit were searched in June 1979, one officer Greville Bint was discovered to have in his lockers Nazi regalia, bayonets and leather covered sticks. Another constable Raymond White attempted to hide a cosh. None of the officers were prosecuted as they refused to testify against each other.

Staking out the back garden

I grow a few salad leaves and herbs by the back door, otherwise my back garden is all flowers - food for the soul - the usual cottage garden perennials - aqualigias, geraniums, monkshood, foxgloves, asters, astilbe, veronicas, lillies and so on, most of which I've blagged over the years. Today I've been staking the taller ones, to stop them flopping about, as you do.

Not much to do on the plot this week: sown a row of carrots, mulched the comfrey with compost, cut back a few blackberries. Bit of a doss really.

Sowing early carrots

Sowed the early carrots next to the onions:

Happy Bunny Day

Couldn't resist that one. So easter is here again, time to get the spuds in. And sow a few spring onions. Start giving the early peas a bit of support. Lovely day for it, everything greening up, little birdies twittering, blossom on the plums and damsons. It's all happening.

Broad Beans

These are starting to make an appearance:

Early Peas

First string of support put up:

Purple Sprouting

Nice to be picking broccoli again. It must be one of the best plants for the amount you can crop from a small space.

G20 Dreaming

This just in. Representatives of the worlds big corporations meeting at the G20 summit have released a statement saying they are going to abandon the folly of global capitalism and instead provide a stimulus package of a trillion dollars to invest in a programme of worldwide organic agriculture to secure a sustainable future for all the people of the world. "I don't know why we didn't think of it before" said a spokesman. "I mean, a four-year old could work it out really". He later added that they got the idea after listening to a focus group of four-year olds.

In related news the Metropolitan Police have also issued a statement in which they apologise for beating the crap out of the wrong people all these years. "I don't know what came over us" said a spokesman. "We're really sorry. From now on we're gonna be like really mellow and not hassle nobody like no more never again."

Or maybe I dreamt all that.

Meanwhile back on the plot I've been sowing more seeds - lettuce, cosmos and carnations - and planting out the early peas. Vegetable rights and peace, man.


"We're really sorry"

Peas

Planting out the early peas -



- Watered in and given some protection from the pigeons, although the crows seem to be seeing them off at the moment, which is handy. Once they're established I'll put up some supports.

Game On

Time at last to sow some seeds in the greenhouse. Today it's the turn of the cabbages, sweet peas, tomatos, snapdragons and a couple of pots of salad leaves and rocket. Grand to be in the potting shed again and looking forward to another growing season.

Simon's guide to seed sowing:

1. Riddle seed compost to remove lumps:



2. Fill seed tray and sow seeds:

3. Water and label:


4. Place in greenhouse:


5. Give yourself a pat on the back.

Early Peas

I sowed these in the greenhouse about three weeks ago. Today they're ready to go out in the coldframe to be hardened off for a week, next weekend I'll plant them out.

Mothering

Apparently it's Mothering Sunday, so I've been round to the old gals for a bit of mothering but she was out, probably round at one me brothers or sisters giving them the mothering which is rightfully mine, me being the eldest and all. Anyway that's that for another year so we can talk about the weather.

The weather's been about six weeks in front of itself temperature-wise and yes global bloody capitalists I still blame you. A nice drop of rain is what we need now so if we're all very good and behave ourselves and try to think about something else then maybe it'll happen. Not that that ever works but you never know your luck.

It between not getting mothered I've been tarting up the old greenhouse and the coldframes, giving them a bit of mothering. Washing the glass and replacing the odd screw here and clip there. Not that I ever get any thanks.

I was going to do some sowing but now I'm putting it off till next weekend after reading an article telling me how the new moon in Aries will then be shining down benignly, no doubt in a mothering type of manner, and that'll be the ideal time according to this bloke here and who am I to argue. It's not like I write for the newspapers or anything. I wonder how he get's on with his mother. I bet she's well proud of him and goes round telling the neighbours what a bright boy he is writing for the newspapers and when he goes round she's always there with no end of mothering for him. What a gip.