Coming Along Nicely

Just eaten a few blueberries picked straight from the plant.  Last year the cold, damp weather and wind did for  most of the blossom but this year I have a few lovely, large berries.  Not more than a good handful in total, so I'll savour every one.

I have a lovely cucumber which is almost ready for picking and many more coming along.  They're outdoor ridge cucumbers, tend to have a thickish skin but delicious flavour.  You can't beat home-grown.

The tomatoes have given up trying to grow upright and are now sprawling along the ground.  I can try tying them back up again but they just get beaten back down by the wind and the weight of the developing tomatoes.

Hoping For Rain!

It's been incredibly dry this summer and we've had very little rain.  Elsewhere in the UK, they have but down on the South Coast nothing.

I've been watering the veg pots from the water butts and an occasional hose when the whole garden needs it and now all three barrels are almost empty.  Hoping desperately for rain tomorrow - there's some forecast but we've not had much more than a light shower for weeks, so I'm hoping for a good drenching.

While we all enjoy the summer sunshine - we really do need the rain for plants to grow.  The courgettes and tomatoes are just about surviving but the broad beans and mangetout have suffered from the dry weather and while I've had a few mangetouts (the slugs and snails didn't help) sadly no broad beans this year.  At least not from my little plot.

Will be recycling the shower water next.

Developing Fruits

It seems like ages but the tomatoes are finally forming and I know I'll have a glut soon as I have so many tomato plants.

As usual, I've not been that good at pinching out the side shoots so I have a rambling mass of tomato plants sprawled across the patio.  The cherry toms in pots are looking slightly more ordered.  Most of them were seedlings.

I've also got a few sweet peppers and chillies expanding nicely.

Late Planting

Very late in the season but I've planted up some runner beans that I managed to find in a local garden centre.  They were looking a little worse for wear being the end of the season but if we continue to have a long, hot summer I might get some beans from them if I can keep the pests off.

First Courgettes

The first courgettes of the year - one green and one yellow.

Bit like making pancakes - the first ones aren't usually very good and mis-shapen (or is that just me) but actually the green one's not too bad.

Been picking mangetouts for a couple of weeks although only a few at a time and the plants are looking very raggedy.

Gave the whole garden a good watering tonight as we've had no rain for a couple of weeks and only a light shower before that.  It's been incredibly dry and even the weeds are wilting!

The cucumbers are in flower as are the tomatoes but won't be picking them for a few weeks yet.

Cool As ...

Planted a couple more cucumber seeds alongside the two plants which are finally starting to get going after a few false starts.  They're now all ridge cucumbers having given up on the golden apple variety which the slugs and snails found too delicious.

First Pickings

Picked my first produce of the summer - a few mixed salad leaves fresh out of the garden for supper.  The salad has been growing well, having taken a while to get going but now it's ready to eat.  Straight from garden to plate in a matter of minutes.