The potting shed has arrived at last! A very nice young lady and
an equally nice chap arrived from the Forest View nursery, where we bought the shed, and erected it in next to no time (skip
the obvious joke - don't be childish). It took a few days to sort out the inside so that it worked for us but once done Sue
was in there planting seeds like there was no tommorrow so we now have a fair few underway.
We were given a wind up radio by my first born Emma and husband
Rob for Christmas which was intended for the allotment. It now has pride of place in the shed however and I can see both Sue
and I pottering about in there for ages. You get a great close up view of one of our bird feeders so I could happily
sit in there with a cuppa and watch the birds for days on end.
We’re growing peppers this year. I’m always a bit disappointed
in them really, even though I love the idea of them. They always look so inviting; great shape and a beautiful glowing red
colour (the same as my car actually – capsicum red) which promises a full and fantastic flavour. Yet when you eat the
supermarket varieties they’re always a bit bland and insipid tasting. True, you can roast them which improves them quite
profoundly but even so, I don’t find them particularly inspirational. I hope that growing them changes my opinion; I
truly want to be converted. We’ve gone for a variety called Friggitello which is supposed to produce lots of smallish,
chilli shaped fruits with a full and sweet flavour. Time will tell.
Although I'd planned to get down to the plot last month and get
my broad beans in, circumstances, mainly getting the new shed base ready and the weather, have conspired against me and
so far I've failed miserably. It's not too late though and they'll be in before the end of the month.
I've got my first and second early potatoes chitting away merrily
in the shed along with some Anya maincrop. I made the mistake of keeping the Anya in the dark and they produced some very
long, very white shoots. In fact they looked more like Asparagus crowns than potatoes! Sue broke off the triffid like
legs and we'll see if better, healthier looking shoots develop before planting them. To be on the safe side
I'm off out at the weekend to buy a second lot as I don't think the ones we have will be up to much.
On a more unusual note, my daughter Jo and partner Joe bought me three
peanut plants for my birthday back in January which have just been delivered. I've no idea how to grow them so will need to
do a bit of research on the internet. The thought of home made peanut butter makes me pretty ecstatic. You have no idea how
much I adore the stuff. Sue doesn't usually let me have it except when we're on holiday (I'm not complaining - I know
it's for my own good) but you never know, I might be able to swing a little extra consumption by putting the
old "home made is good" spin on it. Sometimes in life you just have to take a chance...
