As you sow…….so you will reap
I’m sure my father will be laughing when he sees this picture as the thought of me doing any gardening is faintly ridiculous. Sean and I have always liked gardens…….to look at……..but we’ve never wanted to involve ourselves in any of the actual work. In the past few houses we’ve lived in we’ve always employed a gardener, so that we could enjoy the garden without worrying about maintaining it. That’s not as lazy as it sounds as we’ve had large to extremely large plots of land. However, as the picture above shows, this was a smaller area of land, so I decided we should do it ourselves and thereby gain immense satisfaction (and blisters) in the process. Sean wasn’t convinced, but after I’d done all the digging he was a lot more open to the idea;-) So there’s the patch, waiting to be sown, but first we have to convince the cats that is not an new public convenience. We’re going to erect a fence around it to try and keep them off and then we’ll be able to start planting. Junior has her own square of earth and she’s already decided she’ll be growing basil and sunflowers. I’m not expecting her to help (unlike my parents who used to drag us off to the allotment to give them a hand) but just watch the things grow (hopefully!) and then help pick them and eat them. I think that was the only bit I enjoyed when I was little, the eating of the fresh veg, and that is why I want us to grow our own. Also, of course, it will be a lot fresher than the produce offered in the shops.
Ooooo, how exciting! We are wondering whether to stay put for the summer due to the offer of a small plot and some lessons in growing our own. I’ll be watching your plot (which incidentally has the most amazing view!) with interest!!!
Whether anything will grow remains to be seen! I don’t have the greenest of fingers but hopefully something will survive my attempts at nurturing
The bed looks great, you’ll be wanting those cauliflower seeds then? They are an old English variety called All the Year Round. I use them because they taste good and because its simpler to use an all purpose type. I thought they might work here. In England I’d be sowing now for a covered crop in May so they should work outside here. With the cat’s its tempting fate to sow direct. Nikos Orphanos has some decent compost, its a bit ’speny but better than the supermarket stuff (80 ltr bags though). Small plant pots may be harder to find. I’d use empty loo roll holders fixed into an old ice cream box or similar to get the seeds growing. It should take about 10 days for them to appear. Then when you plant the caulis out they can stay in the biodegradable holders so the roots won’t get disturbed. It may be a bit difficult to grow carrots and caulis side by side in a 4m bed because they have different needs. Grow them at opposite ends – carrots need sand not stones and no compost/muck . Grow with salad onions and garlic as a companion plant. Caulis need muck and lots of it. Garlic from the shop will probably be fine. Use the fat outside bits not those from the centre. It might be too late for a full size crop (what do I know I haven’t grown here yet) but you should at least get some tasty shoots. I have some pot marigold seeds just arrived. Junior might like a few for her patch and you could plant them with your crops to attract hoverflies for pest control(though not cats) and their petals are pretty in salads.
Janet, don’t you think it would be so much easier if you just came and did it for me
As if I don’t have a big enough garden of my own. I much prefer to supervise from a distance. So next, you should put in some beetroot and spinach and yes I happen to have some seeds with me.
Back to cauliflowers: sow two to a loo roll in case one fails. Pinch (not pull) the weaker of the two out when their first leaves are fully formed.
As an easier alternative, it would be a wonderful permanent bed for globe artichokes and the prickly bits would keep the cats off and the weeds down. Of course, it depends if you like to eat them, but they are very attractive. The heads turn into giant purple thistle flowers if they’re left. Of course, we’d have to find a kind Greek person with a garden to provide us with some slips – I definitely need at least a dozen as I want to plant them along the edge of my new avli (is that Greek for courtyard?).
Its a bit cold for sowing this week, though unless there’s room on your windowsills.