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the good life ain't easy

Allotment life @thegoodlifeainteasy and chicken-keeping

Tag: lovemychickens

November 16, 2020November 16, 2020

Gardening with chickens: plants to avoid.

Chickens, 2 Comments

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Just over here sowing sweet peas and dreaming about the first flowers. It’s not too late to sow them, as I’ve been asked a few times lately. In fact I’ll be starting more off across the next month and that’s given me a good display in previous years. I’ve sprouted some on damp kitchen paper in a warm spot before planting up and others have been put straight into deep pots in the greenhouse. I don’t normally bother sprouting them, but I had read about poor germination rates on one of the varieties (turquoise lagoon if you’re interested!). Other varieties this year are: Black Knight, High Scent (saved seed from @aflaskofteaandmuddywellies’ saved seed!) and pictured ‘Wiltshire Ripple’. Always, always one of the things I look forward to the most in the garden. #sweetpeas

The allotment at the end of February. Whisper is quietly, but we’re not doing bad 🤞🏻. Just one more bed to go. The paths are cleared, the planters topped up and the pallet furniture moved down. Oh and ➡️ for the beautiful crocus in the garden. Come on March, let’s be having you - I’m ready for you now! 🥳

I found some tulips I had forgotten to plant - sound familiar? 🌷 I decided to give them a home in a vase with gravel just like my Christmas paperwhites. I brought them inside to a warm and sunny spot and now they’re bringing some spring joy on the kitchen table. It turns out even the slightly floppy tulip droop stage is really quite charming in the vase, and they’ve lasted so much longer than cut flowers ever would. What’s rather pleasing is there’s still one left to open, and I’m 99% sure it’s a different variety. Every year I plant new displays in our containers. These bulbs are then saved and stored to be replanted in the garden the following year where there’s no pressure on them to be high performers. It turns out these tulips had other plans. So, if you find any forgotten bulbs you know what to do. You can even pretend you planned it that way 😉

It may have rained on us and I’ve discovered new muscles in my arms I didn’t know existed - but I’m just over the moon that the paths are sorted. 🥳 This year I really want the allotment to be a beautiful (and safe!) place that Arlo and I can come and picnic. And this was the first step. Also, fresh woodchip is my second favourite smell ever - the first is that newborn puppy smell. Huge thanks to Him Outdoors for his outstanding efforts and Arlo for his token efforts. I promise to stop banging on about woodchip now 💁🏼‍♀️ ps I had a marketplace alert set up and someone local had chipped some trees to collect from their front garden, but it’s worth contacting tree surgeons too if you’re on the look out!

Because few things make me smile as much as rhubarb awakening. It always feels like the start of something oh so good. ➡️ for little helpers and fresh woodchip. Am hoping to finish the paths tomorrow. I might then just spend a while walking up and down them.

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