成人快手

Movement in the patch!

Post categories: Sara's garden,听beetroot,听carrot,听lettuce,听squash

Sara Cox | 14:14 UK time, Tuesday, 5 May 2009

Hurrah hurrah la la la! Massive excitement in the garden yesterday morning, made even sweeter by the fact I was doing my least favourite thing ever when I made my discovery.

Every couple of days I don rubber gloves and a disgruntled expression and trudge round my garden on the hunt for my basset hound Snoop's special stinky parcels and it was during this grim task I glanced over at my patch to see some green! My beetroot and lettuce babies decided to make their debut TOGETHER overnight, I can only presume in some sort of weird plant pact to freak me out. When I saw them I did a cartoon style double-take.

What I'm LOVING about gardening is the surprise element. It's like: nothing... nothing... nothing... something! Only a small something but a something all the same.

Thought it was a good time to get my 4 year old daughter Lola involved so I presented her with a blue dolphin-shaped watering can (thanks Ann) and we gave the patch a celebratory drink. Lovely stuff.

While I think on, is there a best time to water the patch? For some reason it's rattling round my head that night time is best? Is there any truth in that?

The butternut squash have been growing at Jack and the Beanstalk-esque speed - I'm sure one sprouted an inch whilst I was cooking dinner yesterday. Do I need to put them in bigger pots now, or straight into my massive tub? Won't the tub be too heavy to drag in every night while the squash are getting used to being outdoors? Maybe Chris can help (with the problem, not dragging the tub in).

Speaking of Chris, thanks for your help with my carrot fly worry, I'm no longer waking screaming from nightmares where the little sods are gorging themselves, Roman banquet-style, on my beautiful carrots.

Hadn't checked the patch since yesterday afternoon so thought mid-blog I'd better just pop out into the mid-morning sunshine to see if there's anything to report... laydeeees and gentlemen, I have carrots! Tiny teeny bright green babies pushing through! V. pleased. Think the patch is loving the warm sun we've been getting. p>

Ok, so other questions: when I re-pot my squash, will compost do or do I need to buy some manure? How big do my toms have to be before I plant them out? They still look a bit weedy. Is the woodpigeon sitting on the lawn on a covert spying mission, or just innocently sunbathing? Help please.

Am off to do a small victory lap round the garden... lettuce, beetroot AND carrots, all in one weekend! Huge.

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