Diary for May 2021
Oh my, it’s 12 May already. This month is roaring by, although the weather is stuttering into late spring. We’ve had heavy rains, violent storms, frosts until 3 May and some wonderfully sunny days. The tomatoes look weather-beaten but are finally fruiting, albeit small and late. Wonder of wonders. I thought the black tomatoes would turn black when they ripened, but no - they are black as tiny fruits.
Pretty much everything is planted out now except for some more San Marzano & Pineapple tomatoes, climbing cucumbers, some courgettes, more melons, some sweetcorn and a couple of aubergines. Frankly, I’ve run out of space until the broad beans are over. And we’ve only picked them once so far.
Currently being harvested we have cauliflowers, chard, spinach and a ton of coriander. The latter is being pressed into service via a really lovely salsa with which I have fallen in love.
Basically it is as many armfuls of coriander as I can pick blitzed with six garlic cloves, the juice of three limes, a few of glugs of lemon-infused olive oil and seasoning. Oh, and you may like to add some honey to take the edge off. It keeps bright and fresh in the fridge for three or four days although it really doesn’t linger when it can be slathered on virtually anything for lunch.
16/5/21
Yesterday Andrew, my new greenhouse creator, came to talk through the plans. We checked out the site together & made plans for timings. First things first though. He’s going to order the Douglas fir next week. It takes at least six weeks for it to be kiln-dried.
My requirements for the greenhouse are that it needs to be a) windproof, b) big enough and c) attractive. It’s going to have a 90cm rendered wall all round and 7 elegant arched Douglas fir ribs will rise to 2.5m, meeting in the middle. We’re using polycarbonate for the ‘panes’ and zinc along the top of the arch where the two sides meet. Each end will have a stable door so I can open the top halves to let air through and keep dogs out.
It will look much like a squat upturned boat and should be very light with around 60m2 of polycarbonate.
Inside there will be long preparation staging with a built in sink and shelves underneath. Rather like this.
Down the centre there will be shelving for seedlings and plants. On the left hand side I’ll have a 1m3 space for a hotbed which I’ll fill with fresh horse poo each January and move out around March April. This will provide heating at the most crucial time. The rest of that side will be a long raised bed for growing early tomatoes and overwintering citruses. There will also be storage space for compost, tools, pots and all the other paraphernalia.
I may be able to add some grow lights by extending my current external solar lighting system.
We’re hoping that it will be ready for use by mid-autumn and before the first frosts.
The current greenhouse is not at all windproof so I am in serious danger of a shard of glass in my neck when I’m pricking out in high winds. When the weather’s awful the place to be is in the greenhouse, but not if it threatens to kill me. So, I’ve offered it to someone free of charge as long as they come and dismantle it and take it all away without my involvement. They need to understand every last details so they can erect it independently afterwards. It’s been a great greenhouse but it’s time to move on. The next one will be just over twice the size and much better configured.
So there you have it. The thing that’s causing me great excitement for the next few months.
