No news from Parley or Whalsey so it's off to the greenhouse, but first... trees!
Tolkien delighted many with his stories of the Ents – tree-like beings which became angry when Saruman’s armies started cutting down large numbers of trees to fuel their furnaces. On our many walks we often liken trees to animals, and try to imagine them lifting themselves from the ground to ‘walk’ around the forest. Enough of the anthropomorphising – an update on our own trees grown from seeds collected in our driveway and from Eggesford forest. We have had great success and now have around 20 tree seedlings (mainly oak and sweet chestnut).
As you know, we plan to add them to the top four acre field hedge, keeping on top of some to ‘thicken’ the hedge over the years, and allowing a few to grow tall to provide shade for the animals during those long sunny summer days.
The current plan is to keep them going in pots over the spring/summer and then transfer them to the hedge in the autumn when they will then hopefully get established before the winter. If we were to plant them out in the summer, they may not get enough water and artificially watering them in such a long hedgerow would not really be viable. Autumn planting out should hopefully mean they get the rain they need as well as some warmth, (particularly living here in the south west)!!
Elsewhere, the vegetable seedlings are all progressing well with the photos showing; tomatoes potted up in separate pots, lettuces filling out nicely and our grapevine cuttings really starting to sprout.
Each week more and more seeds are being planted in seed trays, last week it was beans, cucumber and courgettes, this week it is melon. Our full list now includes all the following as well: potatoes, coriander, onions, garlic, carrots, chillies, lettuce, tomatoes, basil, cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli, calabrese, oca, asparagus, leeks and pak choi.
The greenhouse is filling up nicely. So much so, we are considering getting a second….!!!!