Lilac in bloom

Lilac with black elder (sambucus nigra) in the background

The viburnum flowers are all gone, but I still get my aromatic fix: The lilac bush is in bloom right now, I love the way it smells throughout the garden! But I'm also quite pleased with how the pale flowers look with the black elder (sambucus nigra) in the background.

Las flores del viburnum ya han pasado, pero las lilas estan en flor ya. Me encanta como huelen por en todo el jardin, pero tambien me gusta el efecto de las flores en contraste con las hojas oscuras del sambucus nigra en el fondo.

Planting tomatoes

Tomato plants under plastic

There are a few basic things that tomato plants need to produce lots of fruit: sun, water, and no frost. The date of the last spring frost in London, according to this website, is late April (about now), so it's OK to plant mine outside. However, they were growing indoors until now, so I'm covering them with plastic for a few days, to give them a chance to acclimatise gradually...

I can't do much in terms of sunlight (my garden is surrounded by the neighbours' buildings and tree), but this year I'm trying something new to give them an extra drink: I've built them a self-watering container! The idea is that the container has an extra reservoir of water at the bottom that the plant's roots can access, without making the whole of the compost waterlogged. I got the idea from the verticalveg blog, but this time I've made the "poor" version: with two big milk bottles, and two small plastic pots to act as the wick. This is what it looked like before being filled with compost:

Homemade self-watering container

A los tomates les gusta tener sol, agua, y no soportan heladas. En teoria las ultimas heladas en Londres son a finales de abril, asi que no deberia de ser un problema. El jardin, con los edificios y el arbol en el jardin del vecino, no tiene mucha luz, pero en cuanto al agua si que hay una cosa que puedo hacer: Este ano voy a probar un sistema que he leido en otros blogs en internet, y consiste en poner un reservorio de agua en el fondo del macetero al cual las raices de las plantas pueden llegar, pero sin que toda la maceta se sature de agua. Este sistema casero lo he hecho con dos botellas grandes de leche y un par de macetas pequenas de plastico. La foto segunda (aqui encima) demuestra los dos reservorios de agua antes de llenar el macetero con compost. La foto primera muestra el invernadero temporal que he montado encima de las plantas de tomate, porque aunque no deberia de haber mas heladas las plantas han estado dentro de casa hasta ahora y de esta manera se aclimatan mas gradualmente a la temperatura exterior.

Slug attack

Snail-proof propagation

Sometimes things don't go well. I woke up yesterday morning and the snails and slugs inside the greenhouse had eaten all of my purple cauliflowers that I've been growing from seed since February (I had 6), 5 out of 6 cosmos, half of my purple tomatillos, 3 out of 5 purple chillis, and a third of my Padron peppers. So, after such debacle, I'm taking no risks now. Everything inside the greenhouse has a plastic cover now, lids for the trays and plastic bottles for the pots. Not the prettiest, but if it means I have something left to plant outside next month it's well worth it.

A veces las cosas no salen bien. Los caracoles han atacado mi invernadero y se han comido todas mis coliflores, todos los cosmos menos uno, la mitad de los tomatillos, todas las guindillas moradas menos dos, y un tercio de los pimientos de padron. Tras semejante debacle, ahora todo lo que hay en el invernadero tiene una cubierta de plastico. Las bandejas vienen con su tapa especial, y en las macetas he puesto botellas de plastico. No es lo mas bonito, pero si funciona... merece la pena.

A tunnel covered with netting

Onions growing on, pea sticks in the background

I put up these metal hoops and netting today. The onions were covered with fleece originally, but it's warm enough at the moment and the growing onions were pushing it up, so I thought it was time to move on to a more permanent form of protection (against birds. I'm not sure if they would still pull them up, but I"m not going to take any risks...). The hoops come from the plastic tunnels that  my friends Ali and James gave me, and which were too long for the beds. I cut out these three from the end, so they're recycled and cost me nothing. The netting and the pegs (to stop the netting from flying away) weren't expensive either, well worth it to get a neat bed that looks good I think!

Estos arcos de metal en las cebollas los puse esta tarde. Los aproveche de los tuneles de plastico que me me dieron Ali y James, y que eran demasiado largos. Corte estos tres del final, asi que no me costaron nada. La red y las piquetas de metal (para sujetar la red y que no salga volando) tampoco me costaron mucho, pero yo creo que es dinero bien empleado por lo bonito que queda. Es posible que los pajaros no intentaran levantar las cebollas, pero por si acaso no voy a arriesgarme y las sigo protegiendo. Hasta hoy tenian una manta termica encima, pero las plantas ya la estaban levantando, asi que ya era hora de poner una proteccion mas permanente. Al fondo de la foto veis los palitos que he puesto para los guisantes.

What I did on the sunny April weekend

Scented daffodils I picked today

It's been so warm (up to 20 degrees, apparently) and sunny this weekend, that I was very lucky to have two full days to play with. It's been very productive (I even got the beginning of a tan - if only face and hands...), and quite varied (I even squeezed a trip to the garden centre!).

At home I'm still mostly sowing things in pots. It's been so warm that I'm having to open the plastic greenhouse during the day, I've already lost a tray of beautiful sprouting broccoli seedlings that got cooked in the overheated greenhouse (the problem with the plastic ones is that they don't have vents at the top, so you either roll up the door fully... or end up with boiled seedlings). I also sowed things directly in the beds at the back, but I suspect the slugs are eating the seedlings, although it may well be that I'm too impatient. Perhaps carrots are not the crop for me, and I'm doomed to only grow rocket, and perhaps radishes, which sprout in a week... And I also picked the scented daffodils of the picture - they're a variety called 'Winston Churchill' and they make the whole room smell (mental note: I should plant more this autumn!).

The allotment is also coming along. It was peas and broad beans day. They're going in the third bed, behind the onions, and they're going to share their home with some french beans (that get planted next month) so I have to be careful to not fill up the space yet. I have dedicated about a third to peas, which produce a lot for the space they take, and I also sowed a row of broad beans, which are not as space-efficient but Nick really likes them. In the end I did move the compost bin that was at the back of the plot (I put it next to the communal bins), and I extended the flower bed so I could plant some lavender that I propagated last year. I'm quite proud: every plant I've planted in that bed I've propagated myself, from cuttings or seed (but the comfrey I'm going to buy as a plant, I think).

Los narcisos de la foto los recogi del jardin hoy, y huelen de maravilla! Huele toda la habitacion, en otoño voy a plantar mas, alegran la casa. El fin de semana ha hecho un tiempo increible aqui, calor (20 grados, que en Londres es veraniego) y sol, y por suerte he tenido tiempo de hacer muchas cosas. En el jardin, aparte de cortar los narcisos, he seguido sembrando en macetas y bandejas. Con este calor tengo que abrir el invernadero de plastico todas las mañas para que no se me cuezan las semillas (ya perdi una bandeja de brecol, que habia germinado y se cocio), y cerrarlo por la noche para que no se enfrie demasiado. Es el problema que tienen estos invernaderos, que no tienen ventanas arriba para ventilar.


En la huerta tambien ha habido progreso. En la tercera jardinera he empezado a sembrar guisantes y habas. Un tercio lo sembre con guisantes, y de habas he puesto una hilera (del lado corto). Quiero poner judias el mes que viene (aun es demasiado pronto, en este clima), asi que tengo que tener cuidado de no llenar todo el espacio ahora! Y el caldero negro del compost que tenia al fondo al final lo he movido a donde estan los bidones comunales, lo cual me ha permitido extender el espacio de las flores. Plante unas  plantitas de lavanda que tenia de esquejes del año pasado. En ese rincon, todas las plantas que he puesto las he criado yo, o bien de semilla (digitalis, alhelies, lunaria) o de esquejes, estoy toda orgullosa :-).

The allotment gets sown!

Potatoes and onions are sown already

This is what my allotment looks like today. As you can see, we've built those three beds since last month. The idea is to build a fourth one before the trees, and something else behind (will post on this soon). I may even find a new home for the black bin, as there is a big communal compost bin on the site, but I'm still deciding on that...

You can't really see much at the moment, but use your imagination: From front to back, the first bed (closer to the communal path) is sown with potatoes (my arran pilot that I had chitting since last month), and the second has the onions - half of which I pre-planted also last month. They're covered with horticultural fleece, so the birds don't pull out the tasty green shoots! The ones I had in compost had all of them sprouted (they had a nice bunch of roots, and some of them green shoots!), but I had enough space to plant half the bed with dry bulbs too. I wonder if they'll mature at different times? I'm intrigued to see if the extra few weeks' head start will make a difference to the harvesting time. I planted these two on Saturday, and because the beds aren't very big (and the bags I bought, in a last minute panic, were too big!) I had spare seeds of both potatoes and onions; luckily two of my fellow allotmenteers were around, so I could rehome all the spare seed, which felt really nice :-).

There's two things that the photo doesn't show very well, so I'll point them out: First, at the back, next to the black bin, are some flowers, the first thing I planted (last month): perennial purple wallflowers, lunaria (aka honesty) and foxgloves. The lunaria has flowered, but the rest are still tiny! And second, have you noticed a white "box" sticking out from the potato and onion beds? It's a milk bottle with the name of the crop written in permanent marker - free, recycled, and big enough to not get lost!

Esta foto de la huerta la saque hoy. Como veis, ha cambiado bastante desde el mes pasado! Las jardineras (o mas bien marcos de madera, haciendo bordillo) las pusimos este sabado, y he sembrado (empezando por el frente): en la primera, la que esta mas cerca del camino comunal, tengo las patatas arran pilot que tuve germinando desde el mes pasado. En la segunda tengo las cebollas, cubiertas con manta termica para que los pajaros no las levanten y se las coman. Las que plante en compost el mes pasado habian todas echado raices, pero me llego el espacio para plantar tambien de las secas. A ver si se nota algo la diferencia a la hora de madurar, en teoria las que germinaron unas semanas antes deberian de madurar antes tambien, no? Me sobro semilla tanto de patatas como de cebollas, pero por suerte un par de vecinos de huerta que andaban por alli las recogieron para plantar en sus huertas, asi todos contentos :-). 


Hay un par de cosas que si no os las digo seguro que no las veis en la foto. La primera son las flores al final de todo, junto al tubo negro del compost; fue lo primero que plante, el mes pasado. Tengo: unos alhelies morados, unas lunarias (que estan floridas) y unas digitalis, todavia enanas. La segunda cosa son esas "cajas" blancas en las esquinas de las patatas y las cebollas: son unas botellas de leche en las que escribi el nombre de lo plantado - un sistema gratis, reciclado y lo suficientemente visible para no perderse!

First time: Honesty, Pulmonaria and Dog Tooth's Violet

Lunaria (Honesty) and Pulmonaria in the background

These are flowers that I'm growing for the first time ever, this year. In the foreground it's the Lunaria (also called Honesty) that I grew from seed last summer, from seeds that my dad sent me from his garden. And in the background, behind the bells of the Fritillaries, you can see the blue small flowers of the Pulmonaria that I planted last autumn - I read it likes moist soil and semi-shade, and it's really doing well by the pond.

He aqui dos flores que tengo este ano por primera vez. En primer plano (arriba) esta mi lunaria, de las semillas que me mando mi padre el ano pasado de su jardin. La lunaria se siembra en verano y florece en la primavera siguiente, como se demuestra por la fotografia adjunta. Y detras de la lunaria y de las fritilarias (los globos rosas) veis las florecillas azules de la pulmonaria que plante el otono pasado. Yo habia leido que a la pulmonaria le gusta el terreno humedo y sombreado,  y la verdad es que se esta dando muy bien junto al charco.

Dog tooth's violet (Erythronium)

This is also a new addition this year. I planted the bulbs last autumn, and I'm quite pleased I got one plant out of 3 bulbs because I'd read they're tricky to grow from dry bulbs. But here it is, my very own dog's tooth violet (aka erythronium)! I chose it because it thrives in shady spots, and it's growing well in the narrow corridor between my house and the neighbour's.

Esta es otra novedad de esta primavera. Se llama erythronium, y la elegi porque dicen que le gusta la sombra. La tengo plantada en el pasillo entre mi casa y los vecinos, que casi nunca recibe sol directo. Yo plante tres bulbos en otono y me ha salido una planta, pero estoy muy contenta porque habia leido que son dificiles de conseguir a partir de bulbos - es mejor plantar la planta en verde.

Viburnum and rosemary in flower - a bee's feast

Spring flowers have opened

I was so busy last weekend, enjoying the warm and dry weather (aka working in the garden), that I haven't had time to write until today! The morning started in the best possible way: I stepped out of the kitchen and... I was greeted by this view, and the gorgeous smell of the viburnum (the white flowers in the foreground). The rosemary next to it is also in flower at the moment, and the garden was buzzing with bees, a truly Spring day! And if you look at the back (towards the left, behind the red acer) you can see the magnolia with its flowers almost open. I'm quite proud of this Spring garden :-)

El fin de semana estuve tan ocupada disfrutando del sol y del calor (es decir, trabajando en el jardin) que no tuve tiempo de escribir hasta hoy. El sabado empezo muy bien, las flores por fin habian abierto. En la foto en primer plano veis mi viburnum (las flores blancas), que huele de maravilla. El romero al lado tambien esta en flor, y el jardin entero estaba lleno de abejas e insectos dandose un banquete en las flores. Y si mirais detras del acer rojo, hacia la izquierda, veis mi magnolia que tiene las flores a medio abrir. Un dia de primavera perfecto!