I’ve discovered a new found passion and it’s gardening. When we bought our house last July, amongst all the dust, walls being knocked down and fireplaces being created the window ledges were full of pots with seeds. I just couldn’t wait to start growing my own vegetables and flowers, much to the delight of the handsome one and all the builders!
Not only was the house a building site, but the garden was totally overgrown – I’m talking about the grass being at waist height and nettles galore. Did that stop me from creating a vegetable patch? Hell no!
Last year, it was rather late to be planting out vegetables, but I did get some gorgeous carrots, tasty green beans, vivid radish and little beets of joy. The happiness of eating my homegrown radish or pulling the beetroot was insane.
Everything I grew last year or that I’m growing this year is all from seed and I think that has something to do with feeling so happy and also a real sense of achievement.
However because of that, you really are disheartened when the slugs, or Betty, Edna or Matilda break into the vegetable patch and decide they quite like kale. The joy of having feathered little chickens (whom I absolutely adore).
This year I’m growing so much more; shiraz mangetout, five varieties of tomatoes, runner beans, cucumber, courgette, broad beans (that I planted last year and have survived so much snow), kale, scented annuals (soapwart, night phlox, night-scented stock), accompaniment annuals and more.
Luckily, our kind and generous neighbours have offered us the use of their greenhouse, so I have been able to grow so much more.
I have never had access to a greenhouse before, I’ve never grown anything more than I did last year and I am just reading lots of gardening books, taking tips from blogs (I find Mark’s blog so lovely and informative) and just fumbling my way around.
I’m so proud of my tomatoes, my granddad used to grow them and my parents tell me stories of how he used to love growing and would spend so much time in his greenhouse. I hope he’s looking down on me and pleased with my progress so far.
Fingers crossed we soon start to see the fruits of our labour!
A x
Abi in the Garden 