Last year Rich built some raised beds for vegetables. We had a very arduous process filling them with top soil, as we couldn't get any bulk-delivered up here due to the narrow steep road, so we ended up making about 15 trips to B&M for a million small bags of it! And finally now spring has sprung, its time to plant things.
Currently, they have a big and happy rhubarb plant that was transplanted from the kitchen garden, and a set of raspberry canes, some of which still look like dead twigs which is slightly concerning. Also, a very measly parsley plant that is about the size of a pound coin and mostly yellow. So, plenty of space left for some more veg.
Here are the seedlings a month or so ago - two types of cherry tomatoes and two types of courgette. No idea which types are planted where, as the careful planting method rather went out the window when Willow insisted on "helping". We were lucky that any seeds managed to make it into the pots:
Now, the courgettes are in the ground, but the tomatoes had a bit of a mishap as I left them out one night by accident when hardening them off, and there was a bit of a storm. A lot of their tiny stems snapped! So now they are back inside and I hope I can nurse at last a few of them back to health. Homegrown cherry tomatoes are my absolute favourite, so hopefully they will make it through, at least to run the gauntlet with the slugs and hungry hares outside.
Poorly tomato seedlings:
Upon seeing these the other day, Willow asked what they were. "Mummy's tomato seedlings!" I said, trying to look proud. She considered them for a moment, before announcing "Mummy's 'mato seedlings sad. Maybe naughty bunny?". I wish I could blame it on a bunny this time, little Willow, but nope, its just mummy's brown fingers making plants sad! Today, they had perked up a little, and Willow announced that they were just "sleepy". Well, I guess that is an improvement.
Rich is also going to plant some runner beans soon. He's made a bean wigwam with willow sticks - it'll have to be sturdy to withstand our dramatic weather up here. I don't have high hopes (don't tell him). We might start the bean seeds in jars with tissue paper, so Willow can see the root and the shoot emerging, before transplanting into the ground.
Our wonky bean wigwam (with Willow caught in the act of trying to put soil in her mouth, and the Pig caught in the act of hunting mice in the long grass...):
My other new attempts are saskatoons! I hadn't heard of them until I was googling alternative berries to grow, and they caught my eye. Mostly because I like saying the name (for some reason, best said in a Scottish accent). They are also called Juneberries. They grow as a small tree, with white blossom in the spring, and blueberry-like fruit in the autumn. One account claims that saskatoons taste like a blueberry but with marzipan-flavoured seeds. That sounds amazing. So, I have two incredibly small saskatoon tree-lets, one planted either side of our bench in the vegetable garden. And so far, no-one has tried to eat them, so that is a success already.
One of my wee saskatoons in the morning sun, now in an anti-bunny cage:
Rabbit and hare-proofing is definitely going to be very important. I already had my new autumn-flowering clematis munched to the ground, right outside our kitchen door! You would think the scent of our dog would be enough to put them off, but evidently not. I have ordered some more canes, netting and pegs, and some bunny-repellent stink powder of some description, but I don't have high hopes!
This little beast is probably one of the guilty party, although I can't hold a grudge because he is beautiful little nibbler:
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