The other weekend, we let the dog out at 7am as usual for her morning pee, then went back to bed with a cup of tea.
Half an hour later, we looked out of the window to see a huge flock of sheep had mysteriously and silently, with military precision, materialised in the garden like a mass of fluffy clouds, as if we had suddenly been transported into a bizarre live action episode of Shawn the Sheep!
Continue reading
Despite the dry summer, autumn dampness seemed to arrive just in time for a spectacular display of seasonal colour.
The autumn fungi seemed to enjoy it too, with an abundance of edible and non-edible varieties popping up around The Secret Acre.
Continue reading
If you want to be the best, if you want to beat the rest… have a really dry year apparently… certainly some things on the smallholding have enjoyed it more than others… and not necessarily the things you might expect.
Continue reading
It’s shaping up to have been a pretty good year at The Secret Acre, despite the very dry weather.
Where crops simply failed in last year’s unseasonable rain, at least the gardener has the chance to water things, especially, if like us, you live in a well-managed area like Severn Tent Water, which rarely needs a hosepipe ban.
So most things are back to growing reasonably well, even if the fruits are a bit undersized from the lack of rain.
Continue reading
The rotavator man cometh!
Since moving to The Secret Acre, on the principal of cash poor, time rich, Paul has dug over the veg patches each spring, having never quite managed yet to get our ‘no dig’ act together sufficiently.
Continue reading
Readers here in the UK will know that, after the wettest winter/spring on record and stubbornly cold temperatures, finally as we reach mid-summer, we might finally be getting some summer weather.
Continue reading
It has been the usual busy summer period here at The Secret Acre, since enjoying the first produce of spring, punctuated by the sadness of having to say goodbye to a beloved elderly member of the family.
Continue reading
And we say, it’s all right.
Despite the Climate Change driven drought, summer abundance arrived at The Secret Acre.
It all made for a busy July and August, along with the usual influx of willing helpers at the start of the school holidays.
Continue reading
Here’s a quick pictorial catch up of how it’s going on The Secret Acre Veg Patch after our unexpected slow start to the year.
Overall, things have caught up pretty well considering our chaotic spring, and garlic, field beans, salads, strawberries and red currents are all ready to start to harvest.
Continue reading
Last year we created an asparagus bed by the greenhouse, planted up with a mixture of purchased crowns, as well as some plants grown from seed by Emma the year before in preparation.
As the RHS advises, new asparagus plants take a couple of years to settle in before you can start harvesting, so patience is required initially.
Continue reading
The Secret Acre 