Despite the cold, it really does feel like spring is on its way at last.  The daffodils are out, the pear trees are coming into bud and the garlic is throwing up fresh green shoots (the garlic bulbs I planted before Christmas are well on the way, despite some animal digging them up every now and again, which I then put back, and the ones I planted in February are not far behind).

I picked my first rhubarb of the season today.  I put a forcing pot over it in December, and there’s now masses of long pink stems, so much more tender than the stuff you get the rest of the year.  It’s so pretty, you could almost put it in a vase, but perhaps a crumble is a better idea!  Last year’s spinach is coming up again – picked a handful which we had for supper later that night – delicious. The leeks are not so good, full of little worms which have made holes in the stems, but if I chop finely and pick through the leaves, should be ok for soup as long as I boil it well (if bugs put you off, you’d be hard pressed to eat much from this site!).

The soil on my plot is very heavy and acid – the fruit does well but have had less success with brassicas and potatoes, so today I added some lime to the beds to see if that will help.  I was very worried about using it as the gardening books make it sound such a dangerous substance, so was pleasantly surprised when I found it in granules at the gardening centre, which didn’t require a face mask and all the other paraphernalia, but was very careful to measure out exact quantities per square yard.  

Also made a start on sowing some seeds in the greenhouse  – sweet peas, leeks, Cos lettuce and Merveille de Quatre Saisons Lettuce.  I usually sow the sweet peas in the autumn but was caught out by how quickly winter descended.  But I usually find them one of the easiest plants to grow and an autumn sowing usually comes on too quickly anyway.  We don’t have any electricity on the site, so I shall have to keep my fingers crossed for the sunshine to continue and hopefully a little more warmth.  Roll on spring, the bluebells should be out soon....