The busiest time of the year continues to be busy.

Events are conspiring to prevent me from continuing planting and sowing in both allotments.  Although the old allotment is almost up to date with sowings and plantings the new allotment is far from being filled.

However today I had to attend the RHS level 3 Practical Gardening course at the Cedars where I dug over a vegetable plot and put up some bean canes.  I am proud to say that one of my Corylus avellana grafts with Corylus purpurea has taken, however all three of my apple grafts do not seem to be growing - yet.  I am not giving up on them for the moment but I think that it is wishful thinking for them to take.

I bought three hardy fuchsias to add to my daughter's garden.  They are small plants at the moment. I think that I overdid the daffodils.  Good job that the fuchsias are small.

It is a quirky little garden but it is developing its own character.  The wicker hurdles were bought from  Riverwoods at the Bothy on Shugborough Estate.  I like them a lot and they are ideal to grow clematis, honey suckle and roses up.   Bothies were where the unmarried gardeners lived on large country estates.  

I went down to the new allotment this afternoon with the intention of planting some more stuff, however I spent the time cutting up the blue water pipe to make supports for the mesh and netting to cover the brassicas and then unwrapping a very large piece of concrete reinforcing wire.   The wire had been left at the back of the allotment and was covered in ivy and bind weed so that it could not be seen until the hedge had been cut back.  In order to unroll it, all the ivy had to be cut off and this took some time.  I am going to use it to grow the Alderman peas up.  It is probably too long at the moment and will have to be cut.

Finally, I put the Matis Tiller over where I had been moving the shed.  The ground had been compacted and I would have found it difficult to plant and sow unless it had been made a little more easy to work.  The Tiller has made a fine tilth and also weeded the area.  The weeds are coming with a vengeance now and will have to be dealt with, however I am still waiting for the potatoes to grow out of the soil before I weed this area. Needless to say, I did not have time to sow or plant.   

The heavens opened and there was thunder and lightening together with hail and rain so I took the hint and went home for a well deserved cup of tea.