Extreme Gardening

Less than a week ago, the day temperature failed to reach 7 degrees. This week we've had 26 degrees in the sunshine that appeared spontaneously for the arrival of the WSP coach tour. The seedlings that sprouted in the March heatwave have until this week sat stunted not knowing what's going on. Fifty days since our first excited cut of asparagus, last night we managed a second one. All in all, not a great time to go on the annual seed-buying field trip sometimes known as a Mediterranean holiday. Yes, it's cooler there than here. I am up at 4am to do a last watering of my onions (it's already light!) because, as you'll know, if you want swell onions this is a critical time for growth, especially if someone has just stood on them. Here is my latest time lapse shot. Note the wide open spaces where things haven't germinated or I didn't bother sowing until this week, and also the absence of leaves on the ash trees. On our return, it will look very different but will the garden have burst into life or be fried to a crisp?

All hands on deck

There's a lot more out front these days. The decking I meant

Field work manager (right)

Now that the weed season is in full swing, you need all the help you can get. Labourers are being coached in from all parts. Unfortunately some deckhands are more useful than others, and if you are really unlucky you'll end up with someone who tramples on your onion patch and spends the rest of the shift on the phone. Still all is forgotten over a chard & spring onion pizza and rhubarb upside-down cake watching the sun go down over the northwest highlands. Next field trip and onion disinterment training course now booking.