Spring Sprouting

This purple sprouting broccoli has survived all winter to produce prettily tipped plants. Delicate in flavour and super tender (freebie plants from an allotment neighbour, too)

First early potatoes (rocket) going in.

View in early March

The plot has wakened up since this picture. The transferred apple tree is going green as are the gooseberry bushes.

Planted outside:

Dutch Iris bulbs

Asparagus (connover's colossal)

Artichokes x2 (cardan culus)

Parsnips seeds (palace F1)

Carrot seeds (purple haze, autumn king)

Broad bean(bunyards exhibition)

Rhubarb (champagne + victoria)

Peas (hurst green shaft)

shallots

Onion seeds (blue coated from a commercial grower)

Seeds indoors

Nasturtium (tom thumb mixed)

Sweet corn (Sweet Bounty)

Courgette (astria, strigato d'Italia, gold rush)

Squash (spaghetti)

The spinach has come to life again (those plants that were not run over by the drainage machine) proving itself to be perpetual in variety.

Kale is plodding on.

The spring cabbages have perked up also. We have enjoyed them stuffed with pork mince, leeks and caraway seeds and baked in the oven; a definite Eastern European taste to this recipe.

Still practising digging and hoeing on the plot, just as Jethro Tull advised in the 18th century; so putting air into the soil to help the aerobic bacteria work their magic

And of course, adding manure ++.

Lifted the strawberry plants, and from last year's eight plants found I had 30+. Dug in some organic chicken manure pellets and re-planted them more uniformly and spread out. Mouth watering already at the thought of the early strawberries I hope to encourage on the plants under the fleece.

Rhubarb is thin and weedy - possibly because it was split and transferred last year. Will try not to pick any this year to get healthy plants next year - but doubt I shall resist.

Saw a bumble bee which has to be good for pollination. No rabbit related troubles so far but did have a visit from a butterfly so considering to netting -again.

Next phase of new allotments in full swing with over 50 plots marked out on the site - yet to be officially given out, but fences and muck spreading abounds. This field may well become the busiest place in the village!

Seedlings to cosset!