The end of March

I know I am behind folks (mostly Nan) - I will do some catching up on posts in the coming days!!

29/03
I was away from home this week, but still managed to have the plot on my mind and with insta, email and pretty shocking self control I managed to spend money on:
A book - (pre-order) Nettles and Petals: Grow Food. Eat Weeds. Save Seeds by Jamie Walton. @NettlesAndPetals
Strawberries x 36 - three types
Seeds - Sweetcorn, Squash x 2 (butternut and baked potato), Parsnips and runner beans.

There was a bit of an issue with the seeds and strawberry order, my first attempt on the website didn't seem to work, I got no confirmation and the basket stayed full, so I tried again. The second order gave a confirmation. Later in the day when I got 2 dispatch notes I realised there was a minor issue, oops.

When I got back home I got some more propagator trays from Lidl along with 2 cold frames. I was running out of space for bringing on seedlings so they were an essential buy. I might however make some, or buy better ones when these die. They were not easy to build and some of the parts had not been trimmed correctly so they didn't quite fit, but they are together(ish). I have weighed them down with bricks. I have started to fill them with little seedlings, it remains to be seen how they hold up in the wind. I can always move them to the lawn and peg them down if needed. They were £29.99 each and I got 2. I would not recommend them, but they are also not bad enough that I will faff with taking them back.

Other jobs today:
I finally emptied the sandpit shell into the new composter. I also cleared out the fridge of out-of-date stuff and fed that to the compost. I watched the lunar eclipse with my brother and husband, we used my telescope with a sun filter and also a Pringles tube. Now I need to decide if I am planting from my collection or waiting impatiently for the post to arrive with the new stuff.

Things I need to do at the allotment:
Bed prep and clear the rubbish pile.

31/03
Yesterday at the plot I found my poor stressed rhubarb has created three flower buds. I have pulled them off the plant. My plot neighbour was surprised that it had done it so early.

I trimmed all the edges of the plot and cleared up the scrubby rubbish pile. I put a good mix of dry stick type stuff into the composter on my plot before adding two bags of green stuff. I pulled, dug and trimmed nettles. I think that is going to be a constant battle. I used a rake to loosen weeds in beds with space and a hand weeded between my rows of onions and carrots. I have a small patch that is actually growing stuff which is so nice. My sticks (raspberry canes) are also showing signs of life particularly the autumn fruiting sticks. The summer ones are slower, but I think that makes sense. Autumn Raspberries grow on this years growth, the summer ones will grow canes this year that will fruit next year, I think... maybe.

The issue with the strawberry order is unresolved, so there are currently 72 strawberry plants on the way. If I can intercept and reject a delivery then that is what I will do, although the seeds are an envelope coming standard Royal Mail, so I don't expect that will be easy.

I dug and sieved another stripe, weeded the soon-to-be brassica bed and added some more soil improver. A modest session at the plot but I needed to get ready for the first BBQ of the year.

Time at the plot: 3 hrs
spend: £107.26 (not including the extra £30 for the duplicate order)
Mood: Contented