Cold

Very cold today, but sunny. Water tanks frozen on the top even at 4pm.

Cleared herb bed of weeds and planted out small sage, thyme, and parsley plants (cloches on the latter two to give them a start).
At home potted up French Tarragon, Garlic Chives, Sweet Marjoram, Thyme, Parsley and Rosemarty plug plants to grow on before filling the rest of bed with them. Awaiting summer Savoury seed from Franchi to complete what I'll need.

Put in another Rapsberry cane to fill the gap in the rows. There's 16 canes now.

Turned over the newest compost box, very nice at the bottom, crumbly and full of small red worms. The oldest one will be sieved shortly and go on the beds.

Back aches.

Je creuse, pas encore!

A 'real' February day, steely blue sky, ice cold wind, snow flurries, but dry. As it is dry I decided to dig over the potato bed, it will need another quick going over prior to planting, to try and remove the couch grass roots I missed, however the hard work's done.

A fieldfare on site, the ones from the garden disappeared with the snows.

Shed. Now.

2010

Plan for 2010 based on re cut pathways and (semi) accurate measuring of the beds.

Fruit area weeded and the random rapsberry canes floating about were dug up and put with the rest of the herd.
The flower bed also weeded and dahlia tubers lifted and separated, so are now in four groups. A few of the tubers had rotted and were hollow, no idea why. Should read up I suppose.

Bit dryer, so some digging done on Saturday, mainly just forking over, still too sodden for a really thorough going over.

The Kale has had a real growth spurt, result of last weeks mild spell and lengthening, daylight hours no doubt. I' would imagine if it warms up for a longer spell it might run to seed. Has been very successful: it's tough (not too eat), relatively unaffected by pests, tasty and abundant.