New garlic, new order
Going wild on weeding at the allotment A (sort of ) natural order has been restored. Gone: 90 per cent of the self-seeding fennel (some into fennel mayonnaise with fennel stuffed fish for supper). Gone, too, 20 per cent of the sprawling calendula which was choking off light and water from the corn (some brightening my morning in a vase at home)
Splash out on an outdoor shower
Get fresh during the sticky summer months with an outdoor shower – they’re a doddle to fit and you don’t need acres of space to have one It used to be that unless you?lived in Bali, owned a?sauna or were one of those hardy, cold-water types, an?outdoor shower was about as appealing as flip-flops in February. But it’s time to reconsider: our summers are getting warmer – we’re growing accustomed to sporadic week-long heatwaves; our gardens are increasingly serving as extensions to our homes as we become squeezed for living space; and the more we travel to exotic climes, the?more our homes, for superior or worse, are reflecting the tropical, Ibiza-in-the-suburbs vibe
Stumped? Best gardening books and compost advice
Which authors will get us off to a flying start? Plus my compost hasn’t broken down We are about to purchase a new home with an acre of mature gardens. The current occupants are virtually self-sufficient, and we are keen to grow as much organic fruit and?veg as we can, but we have limited experience (tomatoes, blueberries and herbs on a roof terrace)
Midsummer murder
Blood letting and culling of the brambles at the beach home So, scarily, the solstice is over and the days get shorter from here on in. Though hard to notice at the Scandinavian summerhouse where it never gets dark at the moment, just a sort of backlit dusk from past midnight through to very primeval ‘dawn’, like a scene from a Tarkovsky film or the Swedish Wallander. Even the birds seem to sing all night and fight for the last late sunlight on the top on the tallest trees.
Rosie Page obituary
My wife, Rosie Page, who has died of cancer aged 67, was a dancer, law centre and overseas development worker, ME campaigner, chorister, hospice-arts pioneer, wife and grandmother. Passionate about diversion from the age of five, Rosie made her first career on the London stage and in films
Plant of the week: Fig Ronde de Bordeaux | Lia Leendertz
Love figs? Well, you’re in for a treat with this one Fig Ronde de Bordeaux produces black figs with sweet, deep red flesh.
Reciple for elderflower fritters, a perfect summertime dessert
The perfect summertime dessert, main ingredient acquirable at your local woodland I think this must be a good year for elderflowers. Maybe because I’ve been looking out for them more than usual but everywhere I achievement I see trees covered in tiny scented billows of white. These beautiful flowers are foragers’ bliss.
Daisy, Poppy, Iris, Rose…
Favourite names, favourite flowers, favourite time of year First visit on the first bus: gets me to the plot before 6am, perhaps my favourite time, when the site seems to hold its breath before the day really starts and the sun (or rain) beats down. Want to weed while it is quiet, just me and the plot and the birds and the bees. Know have droned on about this before, but loving opening the soil, clearing space around the baby crops, letting in light.
Gardens: Oriental poppies
They’re incredible and flamboyant, but the poppy’s moment of glory is extremely short-lived,so don’t blink this month, or you’ll miss them It’s impossible to ignore the flamboyant blooms of oriental poppies. They are archetypal shooting stars, bringing excitement to its zenith for a short time, only to disappear at a moment’s notice.
Full of beans (finally)
Warm weather bring the sleeping borlotti to life So, summer’s here.
