Spring Blows In

Any recent reader could be forgiven for thinking I had abandoned the allotment but I can assure you I have not. It's just that everything has been in suspended animation this spring.  Until yesterday when these appeared:

and these:

Blame the weather, and it's bad habit of being non co-operative at weekends. Now the weather seems to have turned... and at a weekend! We've gone from cold to warm, wet and windy.  Last night my sleep was disturbed by the arrival of gusts of wind, each seemingly stronger than the previous. Empty pots rolled around outside the window and half full compost sacks crackled.  Also crackling was the plastic cover on the "growhouse".  Had I anchored down it down well enough???  I am still scarred by the occasion, a few years ago now, when the wind toppled the whole thing over and I lost the lot.



As you will gather I have been sowing things in recent weeks.  The problem has been the available indoor space has been exhausted and this problem escalates when seedlings are potted on. It becomes a question of what is to be risked by moving pots outdoors where the night time temperatures, up until very recently, have been hardly above zero. I haven't lost anything yet, but it's 'early days'.

Tomatoes, Parsley and Basil

Taking stock, I've sown the following at home:

Basil
Parsley
Broad Beans
Celeriac
Onions seed
Onions sets
Sweetcorn
Cucumber
Courgette
Leeks X2
Artechoke
Lettuce mixed
Brassicas - a wide variety in a raise bed with fleece
Carrot Early Nante - raised bed and protection.

And at the plot:

Jerusalem Artechoke
Early potatoes
Broad Beans (transplanted from modules)

on top of autumn sowings of Turnip Rooted Chervil, Garlic, Onion sets, Shallots.  I've added to the perenial soft fruit by planting out raspberries and Marshmello strawberries to add to the rhubarb and blueberries.

It's been a long time coming but maybe spring is here!

Growhouse still standing

Rhubarb emerging