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

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.

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

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

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

4th December 2018 Autumn, Small Garden, Summer, Videos

A follow-up to Small Garden of June, see how summer plantings of beans, kale, beetroot, carrots, leeks and salads have grown. Plus how the outdoor tomatoes are ripening already, early for this tempera

4th December 2018 Small Garden, Spring, Summer, Videos

How spring plantings coped with a cold, wet April followed by a warm, dry May. Clearing spring harvests to make way for summer plantings of beans, kale, carrots, leeks and salads.

4th December 2018 Making Compost, Sowing, Summer, Videos

Summer arrives and the garden is full, with harvests happening and more to follow (this is zone 8a oceanic temperate). I show sowing and replanting to keep the harvests coming into winter, give tips o

14th August 2018 Summer

A second spring after some rain, still warm, days reasonably long – what are you waiting for? One days growth in August is two in September, four in October, eight in November, 16 in December an

29th July 2018 Summer

Here, July 2006 was hotter than this year. However in 2006 we had 41mm lovely rain, after 36mm in June ’06, whereas this year the figures to 28th July are 6mm & 4mm respectively, most unusual

15th July 2018 Summer

No rain since my last post, just a dusting of 4mm in June so it’s now full-on drought. At least the grass does not need mowing, but we are spending a lot of time with a hose, and I wonder what t

1st July 2018 Summer

It’s a drought: June was the driest month I ever recorded, just 4mm/0.2in rain, with a lot of sun and dry breezes. At least with no dig you have roots able to access extra moisture through teami