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March 2020 propagating, myth busting, weeding, mulch new beds, store vegetables
28th February 2020 Featured, Spring, Uncategorized
Early spring: March comes in like a lion, a little warmth of strong sunshine tempered by a lot of cold winds and nights. Then March goes out like a lamb, well let’s see! Stick to your known best
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Mid February the sun is climbing, first sowings under cover, potato varieties, climate zones, Q & A
12th February 2020 Featured, Winter
I can feel the energy as daylight increases rapidly. In just one week here, we gain 23 minutes between sunrise and sunset, plus the sun’s arc is noticeably higher. For undercover sowings, this means
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February 2020, not spring yet, no dig compost, Q & A vegetable growing
26th January 2020 Featured, Winter
February, hold your horses. No sowing just yet. Make the first undercover sowings after mid month and even then no rush. Meanwhile here is a cheerful thought – If winter comes, can spring be far
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January 2020 plenty to see, eat and learn, mulch if you have not already
5th January 2020 Featured, Winter
ND3 New decade, no dig, no dogma. If you aren’t yet using the no dig method, now is a fine time to start – cover the weeds, feed the soil. Then you plant into compost, in early spring. See
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December 2019, no dig ease and success, harvests all year from good timings
5th December 2019 Featured, Winter
December 2019 The new gardening year is already underway, with winter’s simple and quick bed preparation of my no dig method. 1 Clear any plant residues and weeds – or if a lot of weeds la
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Towards winter 16th November, harvests, no dig microbiology results, frost hardy vegetables
16th November 2019 Autumn, Featured
A principle which always works well (for me since 1982) is to mulch the soil and feed soil life, after clearing last harvests in the autumn. Any decomposed organic matter is good to use, enough that t
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November 2019 clear asparagus, many hearts to harvest, sow broad beans, salads growing, make a bed
26th October 2019 Autumn, Featured
October was wet and November could be cold. I hope that frost won’t hurt some late harvests of fennel, which I want to cover with fleece. Most other autumn veg can stand light freezing, includin
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October 13th rain and no dig, compost making, last tomatoes, salad planting, Brussels sprouts
13th October 2019 Autumn, Featured
Autumn has brought 160mm/6.4in rain in three weeks, but thanks to no dig the water is draining away, and without leaching nutrients. Almost all beds at Homeacres have had no compost since last year, a
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October 2019 no dig plantings, make compost, harvests, book offer, Q/A
25th September 2019 Autumn, Featured
We pass from late summer to early winter in a short space of time, and since the weather is already making that shift, here are my tips on being ready for the cooler and darker months. My recent inter
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September 2019 sow again, interplants, brassica pests, mildew, no dig allotment, more pyralid damage
28th August 2019 Autumn, Featured
Often the weather flips in late August from summer to autumn, and this year is no exception. The last 7 days here had an average maximum temperature of 25C/77F, then next week’s forecast gives 19C/6
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August 2019 summer winds down, open day, no dig transformation, insect problems, new no dig beds, onions
11th August 2019 Featured, Summer
Writing this in a thunderstorm, our first substantial rain for two months of lovely warmth, over 40mm so far and 46mm in the end (1.9in) in four hours. All soaked in, watering finished for 2019 except
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August 2019 new sowings, planting tips, seed saving, pest protection, onions, tomatoes, pyralids
28th July 2019 Featured, Summer
Be ready with seeds of this month’s top sowings; spinach, salad rocket, mustards, pak choi, land cress, spring onions and spring cabbage. August can be a second spring in the garden, when it rains.
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July 2019 harvest-clear-replant, no dig success against pests, clean paths, identify aminopyralid damage
1st July 2019 Featured, Summer
Be prepared for everything: picking planting sowing weeding watering pests heat. Give as much time as you can now, for best results later. June here was much less hot than across the Channel. Our aver
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June update 2019 new sowings, harvests, making compost, no dig flowers, more on aminopyralid
15th June 2019 Featured, Summer
Is cool and damp better than hot and dry? Last year we were short of moisture, this year we are deprived of warmth and light. I preferred last year! Mostly you can add water, but can’t add warmth. T
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June 2019 no dig trials, new polytunnel, garlic harvests, interplanting, pyralid problems in composts
31st May 2019 Featured, Summer, Uncategorized
Summer begins now, but don’t bank on too much fine weather this summer is my hunch. The soil is dry here at the moment and plants look well except for rusty garlic outside: garlic and leek rust is e
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Mid May 2019, plant out and sow more, garden open, new polytunnel, podcasts, perennial weeds, aminopyralid
15th May 2019 Featured
Summer is coming and it can be a mad rush, now that we can finally plant out frost tender plants. It may also be a question of finding space for them all! Of earlier plantings, my greatest success thi
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May 2019 spring garden beware late frosts, potting on, small spaces, perennial veg
30th April 2019 Featured, Spring
At last it’s May, a wonderful month. Just go steady though with plantings of any frost sensitive plants, be aware of your last frost date. For example it is almost freezing as I write this, and we a
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April update, warmth loving veg, no dig cropping and weed plus slug control, small garden
18th April 2019 Featured, Spring
A season change is happening and most of us can make new sowings undercover of vegetables that need summer warmth to germinate and grow. The frequency of cold nights is reducing but you need to know y
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April 2019 sowing and planting, no dig advice and dealing with weeds
28th March 2019 Featured, Spring
Early spring can be deceptive, with the temporary warmth of strong sunshine, yet with cold winds. Stick to your known best times for sowing, and don’t be tempted to sow earlier. For example I have n
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March update 2019 – sow, plant, winter veg, new online course
12th March 2019 Featured, Spring
12th March and the weather has been wild, the famous March lion, so I look forward to quieter conditions soon – a full moon on the equinox may initiate a shift! We had a gust of 63mph on 10th an
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March 19 sowings, online course, no dig, rocket
23rd February 2019 Featured, Winter
It feels like an early spring here, yet it’s still winter, just! Choosing what to sow and plant becomes confused when the seasons go out of order, and generally it’s best to stick with the dates y
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