Autumn? Sorted!

Seeing that the sun was shining in typical February fashion - with it's wilting heat that comes at this time of the year - we made good headway in my garden to do list from last weekend and the new items added this week. I keep my garden diary open all week and add to it as I notice something that needs doing.

This is what out team did today: removed an old gooseberry plant and planted an orange tree in its place. Liquid fed all the baskets. Cleaned the coop and pulled 4 buckets of weeds (there are another 4 buckets, at least, waiting to be done...but enough is enough!).



Then my oldest son and I tackled the unruly compost heap...we really sweated to sort it out, but it's very eye pleasing now.



My oldest daughter had to prepare pots for about 30 strawberry plants that are ready to root from the parent plant. Younger daughter sowed cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower in seed trays.

The little guy collected the last strawberries, cherry tomatoes and was the water bringer to us all and general helper.



I pulled out the spent pumpkin vine and the 4 pumpkins we grew are now ripening in the sun. I also pulled up the oldest of our courgette plants which are no longer flowering. This made space for our broadbeans which are a winter bean. All other beans grow in summer only.



At the far end of this bed pictured above I am sneaking in a planting of autumn veggies of turnips. This section is in shade all winter so I am hoping they will have a chance in the next 2 months before the angle of the earth changes.

Where our tomatoes grew I have planted swiss chard. This area gets sun all winter long. Then on the empty trellises I have planted early peas.



In our first veggie garden I planted beets and carrots in front of the corn in the 3rd bed. We loose the use of the 5th bed in winter so I am just letting the beans run until they stop flowering. The 4th bed holds bush beans and corn, the second - corn, cauli and broccoli and the first bed closest too the coop cabbage and lettuce.

In the newest bed, which is full shade in winter, we still have our rhubarb, chillies and sweet potaotes....talking about chillies they are just drooping with fruits...I am going to have to preserve those soon.



Our herbs are doing so well. I have about 6 basil plants around the garden so it will soon be time to make pesto and freeze it.