Getting Some Vegetables in.

 A bright start to the day but it gradually clouded over before several hours of rain set in at 3pm.

It was dry enough this morning to sow some beetroot and carrots in the veg garden. I also planted out the peas that have been raised indoors in guttering. I also planted the leeks which had been started indoors in a deep pot. I was always told to sow them into a deep container but I'm not sure why as you have to cut the roots back to a couple of inches when planting. I sowed 3 rows of beetroot, 1 of carrots and planted 4 rows of leeks, around 15 plants per row.

My blood glucose was a bit on the low side by lunch time which left me feeling tired so I took it easy for the rest of the day.

Tradesmen good and bad.

 Mostly bright and sunny with the odd shower later in the day.

Today I have mostly been tidying the flower border at the top of the lawn. I cleared away any rubbish, did any cutting back and pruning needed before top dressing with feed and forking over the soil. It is still very wet in places.

Don came this evening to look at a few jobs that Vicki needs doing in the house. It is the first time I've seen him since I left the estate so it was good to catch up. He no longer works for the estate on account of some altercation with the management. Anyway he seems happy to take on the work offered to him.

Vicki messaged the driveway man again today but as yet has had no reply.

Sowing Parsnips and spring barley.

 More rain at times today.

I managed to get a couple of rows of parsnips planted in the veg plot this morning.

The farmer at the end of the lane started sowing spring barley in the field next to us. I enjoyed a chat with his worker at one point.

Wet border work.

 Wet again. Heavy prolonged showers.

I was at Low Fold again today where we attempted to do some work on the borders. We did actually manage to get them tidied up but it wasn't pleasant with everything being saturated on account of the showers. We made do though with the addition of a few extra tea breaks.

Vicki did some pricking out of seedlings for me today, some Nigella and African Marigolds.

Christmas Tomato Update.

 Hello everyone, I hope you're all keeping well.

I was thinking the other day that it is about time I did a Christmas tomato update. For those that don't know what I'm talking about [Click Here]. So below is a picture of my main crop Tomato plants, the one on the left being from the batch of seeds that I sowed at Christmas. The other two plants are a couple of different varieties sown around ten weeks later. As you can see, there is still a bit of a difference although it's fair to say that the ones sown at a later time are not too far behind but even if I end up getting a fresh Tomato even just a couple of weeks sooner I'm sure to appreciate it.

Rose And Clematis.

 Rose and Clematis, it sounds like a tv detective series, in fact it's just a couple of plants growing by our front door. The rose we had at our old house and brought with us, which just goes to show that you shouldn't be put off from moving such things to a different location if you feel the need. This was an established plant of many years at that location and has moved just fine. The most important thing when planting anything is to never let it dry out, especially if it's an older plant where because of its size you've had to hack the roots around a little.

The Clematis was something that we inherited with the property. It's easy to be tempted when moving somewhere new to have a clear out so you can put your own mark on the place. But if it's the winter months it's not always possible to tell the worth of what you plan to chuck out. I'm glad we kept the Clematis as I think it goes well with the Rose. I think they have become good friends.

A Shady Corner.

This little corner receives some shade through out the day from a pollarded Ash tree. I don't know if it can be seen in the picture but they are set out around a bench where one can rest awhile. There is also a Hosta and Heuchra included - keen to take part they were!

Barge on the River Aire

Usually we don't get many boats on the River but recently this one has been going back and forth. Someone told me they are ferrying stone for river bank repairs at Airmyn which is about a mile downstream of us, but on the opposite side of the river. 

Second Year Geraniums

Today I potted up the second year bedding Geraniums. After lifting them in the Autumn I just trimmed them back and put them in to a seed tray with a bit of compost around the roots. I didn't go to a lot of trouble with them as i look on them more of a bonus than a necessity as i have quite a few rooted cuttings from them already. So today I took them out of the trays and threw away any that were no good then tidied up what was left before potting them up to hopefully grow on to make useful plants for this summers bedding. 

Below is a picture of one of the trays of over wintered bedding Geraniums.

They don't look very appealing in this state but we will see what can be done with them.

Below is after they have been cleaned up and potted on.

There's still not a lot to shout about but we will see how they progress.

Some Pruning Work.

 Today I have been doing some pruning work at the hall. 

The first job was to give the Pyracantha a bit of a trim. I removed all the long growth and then tidied up the arms. There was nothing to be tied in so I was spared that job.

Whilst I was there I gave the Euonymus to the left a trim up. I try to keep it flat against the wall as much as possible so as no to encroach on anything growing around it.

Next I moved on to the Ivy growing on the steps to the right of the Pyracantha. I just cut this back into the allotted space and the clipped up the face of the Ivy.

I like to try and keep this looking a bit tidy as I think they take wedding photo's on steps.