First Ladybird of 2015

I couldn't get a better photograph without disturbing it, but here is my first sighting of a ladybird this year, nestled in my purple sprouting broccoli, hopefully feasting on any pests that the plant might be harbouring. It really seems apt to see this spotted beetle on the sunniest day of the year so far.

I Finally Employed A Gardening Apprentice

One of my proudest moments this year was seeing my toddler try out his new pair of wellies for the first time. During the summer, he would crawl around the grass barefooted but the winter has been an awkward time with a newly walking child. He has a great waterproof suit (bought in Lidl a few years ago and passed down to us from my sister) but was not ready for shoes until recently, although I do admit that I let him ruin his soft pre-walker shoes a few times in the wet grass.

 

This week I unleashed the beast into the wild [garden] fully suited and booted to get messy and wet. I think we've rummaged around every corner and puddle at this stage. I never knew so much pleasure could be got from dipping ones fingers in the water that collects on the lid of a bucket.  Another favourite game is to carry the biggest lump of coal we can find in our hands as we explore. And even when we fall down, the lump of coal cannot be dropped!

 

I look forward to teaching my son about gardening and hopefully in the near future I can post some useful advice on gardening with toddlers. He has already experienced the joy of growing your own food - last summer he would crawl to my tomatoes and devour the fruit straight from the plant. This year he might be able to help me pinch out the side shoots!

 

 

 

 

 

My Garden: 4th March 2015

So we had snow this week but Spring has definitely arrived because I got my first seeds planted this week. It's too early to put anything in the ground uncovered but there are plenty you can start off indoors. It's a good time to sow your tomatoes inside on a sunny window (if you have a propagator or heated pad, you could sow as early as January). I sowed a mix of Sungold Select, Black Cherry (both cherry varieties grown locally in Skibbereen by Brown Envelope Seeds and some leftover Moneymakers from last year.

Outside under plastic, I sowed two trays with a mix of spinach, rocket, pak choi, coriander and dill, all hardy enough vegetables. I neglected do any salad greens last year, concentrating too much on brassicas, but I won't make the same mistake again. Broccoli (calabrese and purple sprouting) and brussels sprouts are the only brassicas I'll bother with this year.

Speaking of purple sprouting broccoli, we are currently eating those pretty little florets. Sown last April, it is a long maturing vegetable but a welcome one during the otherwise unproductive months of February and March. Brasssicas really are the champions of the winter months. They withstand the cruel winter temperatures and actually flourish after a bit of frost.

I have two broad bean plants under plastic but I've started to harden them off by putting them out during the day. One is looking quite healthy but the picture below shows the other plant has started to blacken around the edges of the leaves. I think it is a case of leaf burn. I remember the last time I overwintered broad beans under plastic, I had the same problem of blackened leaves. The plants still thrived once they were planted out, so I'm not too worried.



I'll leave you with a photo of pretty narcissus brightening up the battered swing frame.



Community Spirit and Buying Local

I've been thinking a lot about "community" the last few years - the almost unseen efforts made by ordinary people to keep a town or village alive. Suddenly I realise those pretty flowers in the middle of the roundabout didn't grow wild, those educational talks didn't organise themselves and that farmer's market didn't appear out of thin air. Did you ever wish a certain group or class was operational in your area without realising that maybe you should be the person to make it happen? Many of us are now living away from our family and the friends we grew up with. We have to create our own community support, and this can be difficult. A mutual hobby is an almost effortless way to meet like minded people. I've always held the belief that a single hobby goes a long way to enriching a life. It gives you something to feel useful about, something to talk about and something you can teach others about. Overall, it can give you confidence and that spills over into other aspects of your life.


How can you find out what is happening in your area?

Think small. The library is a good place to start, the local area/church newsletter or the noticeboard in the local supermarket. An internet search probably won't be the most effective way but maybe your town or village has a Facebook page that keeps up to date with local goings-on. The amount of [often free] interesting events organised might surprise you.

What prompted this post? Well I was in my local library recently and the librarian, on seeing that I had checked out a book on healing gardens, gave me a flyer for an upcoming talk in a local hall. The event was organised the GIY fraction in Passage/GlenwoodMonkstown and the speaker was Madeline McKeever of Brown Envelope Seeds, an organic seed producing company that operates out of Turk Head, near Skibbereen. The subject was seed saving - something I have started experimenting with. It couldn't have come at a better time for me. Having a young nursing toddler I am happily limited in my socialising. If given the choice, I'd much rather meet people at something interesting and educational and be home before ten! There was a great turnout of at least 50 people, much more than expected, we donated a few euro each, got tea and cake and were able to buy locally produced seeds after hearing from the grower herself about her history and methods.

It's one thing going to your local garden centre or co-op and buying a bunch of seeds - the choice is overwhelming and the prices can be cheap - but to listen to someone speak about how they choose, grow, nurture, harvest and clean the seed in your local environment is far more inspiring to be a part of. It makes sense that the seed should thrive in your back garden as it was reared in the same conditions. I'll let you know in a few months!

So what did I buy? Firstly I bought two varieties of cherry tomato - Sungold Select and Black Cherry. Since I am still obsessed with beetroot, I had to expand beyond the comfort of the popular Bolthardy and bought a pretty breed called Chioggia which is pink skinned with pink and white flesh in a concentric circle design. Lastly, I looked ahead to the winter months and bought seeds for a salad leaf that any reader of Joy Larkcom will be familiar with - Winter Purslane. By all accounts it grows like a weed and is frost hardy, making it sound like an ideal source of vitamin C. Putting them into my seed box and seeing all the cheap multi packs of seeds I've bought over the years made me slightly wish I was starting off again so I could buy local as much as possible. I'd buy less but hopefully increase the quality of my seeds.

If you want to start buying Irish produced seeds, check out Brown Envelope Seeds and Irish Seedsavers. If you know of any others, let me know!