Last week felt quite summery during the day, but the temperature dropped considerably at night. This isn’t ideal for the seedlings we are trying to start in the greenhouse.
There has also been a lack of rain, which isn’t ideal for the allotment. Not long ago, we were reporting that the soil was too wet to dig. Now it really is too dry. Such is the nature of heavy clay soil; the sweet spot is very short-lived. This year, however, the swing from wet to dry seems to have happened in the blink of an eye.
The fruit trees have enjoyed the sunshine and the blossom is opening. The greengages and plum flowers are fully open. I have seen one or two bees, so hopefully some will find their way to pollinate them. Last year, pollination was poor.
Cherry blossom is also open. It will be an irresistible draw for the wood pigeons
The pear blossom is just slightly behind
On our walks, we also noticed the ornamental trees were flowering.
We got through quite a lot of work at the allotment. As well as more bed preparation, we started planting. The first lot of potatoes was planted. We use the trowel method and avoid the back-breaking trench digging, which doesn’t seem to improve the yield.
We then planted the first bed of onions.
The bed was covered with an environmesh tunnel to try and keep onion fly and allium leaf miner at bay.
A video of our planting methods is posted here.
Despite the dry soil, some beds still needed preparing. After I had weeded, Martyn went over the beds with the tiller.
At Temple Newsam, the goats have had kids.
At Nostell, the swans are sitting on their nest. The juvenile swans have disappeared, so no doubt they have at last been chased off.
With no pushy young swans to contend with, feeding time was much calmer.
We even had some new visitors. A pair of mandarin ducks joined the feeding party. I wonder whether they will breed at Nostell?
Also at Nostellt, the path from the car park to the house was lined with Easter egg designs in celebration of the coming festival.
Bluebells are beginning to flower in the wooded area.
Celandines are also increasing in number.
Our hippeastrum/amarylis was at its best last week. The weight of the flower heads necessitated some support to prevent the stems from bending over.
Ruby looks forward to a treat after her walks.
She also likes to explore,
A video is posted here of her checking out the greenhouse,
That’s all our news for this week so as always stay safe and stay well.
