Thanks to the mid-spring Easter sunshine, it almost feels like we are on track with our planting plans this year.
Already Emma’s seeds in the greenhouse are shooting up.
Get Ready, Set….
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Category Archives: Garden
Over the Moon
In previous years, last Friday would have seen me out on the veg patch planting our chitted seed potatoes.
The ‘Good Friday Potatoes’. I read it in a book way back and the idea stuck.
Apparently, Easter potato planting is a very English thing. The Irish prefer to use St Patricks day. Continue reading
Cracking On
Even as Emma was planting the first of our new seeds in the greenhouse last month, I was still cracking on with some of the winter clearance jobs which we were, as usual, still behind on.
Not just the last of the pruning, and the fencing repairs, but some more taming of the overgrown boundaries too. Continue reading
Hail the Salsify
Thoughts may be turning to Spring and the new growing season ahead, but the Winter veg bed is still providing the last of its produce.
Including this year, Salsify, a Victorian staple now out of fashion. This vegetable even featured in the Victorian classic Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management! Continue reading
And so the cycle begins again…
The New Year barely seems to have got underway, before the occasionally feel of a Spring like day arrives, and the veg growers cycle begins again.
For us at The Secret Acre that usually means the chitting potatoes gets underway, the rotated veg bed plan is drawn up and the new seed order arrives. Continue reading
The Mystery Christmas Tool
We arrived back at The Secret Acre after Christmas away to find that Santa had delivered a ‘mystery tool’. It was actually a double mystery.
Santa’s Elves had failed to include a note, so we didn’t know who the gift was from. We quickly guessed it was from our friend Derek, he of the Cider Motion Picture and the Boot Rack, as he has past form in the giving of mystery garden tools, which turn out to be fantastically useful, thanks to his own veg growing experience. Continue reading
Wednesdays we go shopping & have buttered scones for tea…
For once winter clearance work has started early at The Secret Acre.
Despite being here three years now, there’s still a long list of overgrown areas and hedges to be tackled eventually, a couple at a time each winter. Continue reading
The Bountiful Harvest
It seemed a slightly odd harvest this year.
Thanks to the unusually hot and dry summer, some old reliables failed, like our potatoes, while some pervious underperformers flourished, like our aubergines. Continue reading
A Win and a Score Draw
September marks the start of Produce Show season, even if the football season, rudely earlier every year, has already kicked-off too.
Our history of mixed results continued this year…. Continue reading
Yesterday’s Veg Patch Harvest
Particularly pleased with our first ever crop of Padron Peppers (bottom left), continuing our Mediterranean weather themed summer. And one of our favourites in the kitchen.
At this rate of climate change we’ll soon be able to supply our favourite local tapas bar!
The Secret Acre 