Naughty

I confess: this picture is not of our garden, and I haven't spoken to the owner either... But I took the photo from the pavement and I'm not saying where it is, so I don't think that's a huge invasion of privacy. I think it's super. I love the tiny bit of grass! And it's fairly "real" too - you can see roses and delphiniums ready to take over later.

Well, back at the ranch. Yesterday I tidied the conservatory. There was, ahem, quite some scope for this. During most of the year this is our main living room, but it does tend to accumulate stuff in transit to other places (the garage, the utility, the dump...)

We had beautiful sunshine yesterday, same today, and it's set to continue for several days! I'm so happy about that.

The cucumbers I sowed only 4 days ago are now nearly an inch tall.

I spent ages thinning snapdragon seedlings. In future I must mix them with sand I think. I also thinned some mystery seeds I collected a couple of years back but forgot to label. They germinated fantastically - wonder what they'll turn out to be? I find thinning a tiring job though.

Today I sowed "Milkmaid" nasturtiums, although I find these plants always seem to grow better when self-seeded. If I'm organised this year I'm going to sow some annuals in the autumn, since that's what "nature" does and I have a feeling it may work well. They'll probably have to be in the highly unnatural environment of indoors though.

I also sowed Golden Sweet yellow-podded mangetout, Bleu de Solaise leeks, Sanda brussels sprouts, Ishikura Long White bunching onions, and Nero di Toscana tuscan kale. I sowed the finer seeds with great care, my experience of thinning filling my mind!

[Quick note: a few days ago we bought some unpasteurised milk from a farm about 2 miles away, and it tastes wonderful - if you get the chance and you're not in vulnerable health, do try it.]