Hi Pumpkinwander been a horny-handed son of soil for 57 years, mostly south of London in Sussex/Hants , in my crazy youth did a few years in Buckinghamshire, couple in London same In Edinburgh. Never regretted a minute. 18 months ago was in garden where I’ve worked for 33 years when smitten, zig-zagged home like Zombie told wife I’d done something silly. As I was a great forager of edible fungi she assumed I’d nibbled something nasty, taken to hospital where nurses joked “ your a bit old for magic mushrooms grandad” phoned wife to collect me, got home straight back for 3 week holiday I know nothing about apart from some peripheral vision loss from both eyes on left and a humdinger of hangover, but glad I’m still here and not with Angels. Pds
Veggies seem to taste much nicer when home grown. We try & stagger the planting a bit so that we aren’t overrun with loads of the same stuff all at once 
xx
Evening @Mrs5K. It looks on the brink of something amazing. Just enjoy it. That’s all that really matters, Julia x
Thanks @JuliaH its always great when we get to eat all the veg we’ve grown. We usually help feed the neighbours and friends/family too 
xx
@Pontwander thank you………was worth posting if it made you smile a little 
. The lesser spotted husband is often found in the veg patch although our garden is big enough for him to hide in many places .
@Pontwander oh nooooooo. He has many man caves around the place. I’d never find him again if he had another………oh wait….maybe that’s not a bad thing joking of course 
.
Definitely need to see lots of garden updates as the season progresses. Can see all the nice gardens without all the work that goes with them
Hi Pontwander and other sons and daughters of the soil. I’m old enough to remember when polythene tunnels first arrived ,went to demonstration day at government research station @ lee valley in Hertfordshire in 1960’s. Remember old boys saying “these wont catch on “and puzzled by why anyone would want to grow or eat sweet peppers, aubergine or okra. Wondered if Pumpkin-Pontwander was aware that when you get a radiation frost the temperature inside a poly tunnel can drop lower than outside, so you need to cover tender plants crops at ground level with newspaper or fleece. You can get different grades of fleece , seem to remember glass houses if close fitting gives 4 degrees of frost protection. Was told by Czech bloke at home they have a date ; from which they count the frosts after the 3rd frost it’s safe to plant your veg. These last three frosts have folklore names. Hope this is useful. Pds
Hi Young Pontwander had a mysterious experience when I was a spotty faced teenager in my grandfathers garden in rural Northamptonshire I was a townie born and bred but lived for visits to country. Was standing close to a lovely old elm when I suppose you’d say I had spiritual or Oneness experience, can’t describe it , but think it directed me. Yes your right I’m an earth sign A Virgo! Always chose green and brown clothing, Hippy told me when working in Kew Gardens in 1960’s you didn’t chose those colours They chose you ! Keep planting those trees you’ll get there Pds.
Hi - it’s from 1968. My mother started trying to garden more organically in the 1970s and had a lovely elderly friend who was advocating more natural methods before that, but using fewer chemicals doesn’t seem to have become mainstream until the mid 80s. Genuine question, I wonder how much of difference climate change has made in the years since then
Spent some time in the garden on Wednesday - first lawn cut and a general tidy. Lots of weeding to get on with now 
Lovely garden. Enjoy your weeding xx
Hello @Craftchick . A transformation. Looks lovely. Well done and enjoy your space Julia x
Ah, the sweet scent of apple blossom, I sometimes will hover by a tree and just whiff the aroma with my eyes closed. It’s wonderful.
I have a practice, whenever I do mow, of leaving large patches un-mown. I also have areas I never mow, just leaving the land to regulate through it’s natural cycles.
Many moon rises ago we had an exceptionally wet spring, the large lawn I was responsible for keeping mown like a bowling green sighed with relief, and treasures I’d been mowing off for years burst forth, a clump of green veined orchids two southern marsh orchids and their friends. I managed to persuade my employers to put off mowing for a while but the time came when they wanted a sterile boring green carpet with stripes that turned brown by June. I managed to relocate the orchids successfully but as I mowed that lawn I questioned folks values, this obsession with wanting a close mown green patch devoid of anything wild and beautiful. Twenty years on new owners of that property are more in tune with nature and what was a boring manicured flat area that was by midsummer parched brown is a fantastic multi coloured carpet, still mown now and again but wildlife dictates when. Give it a try. Pds
Hi Pontwander how diverse our gardens are, Loshy seems to have landscaped garden, Rups and you seem to be more country park rangers than horny handed sons of soil. I’m (sorry we !) I dropped a clanger there, are about to plan our new patch, 4 free range chickens will now have to be penned and allowed out under supervision wife’s dahlia collection (yuk) would take up entire garden so hard bargaining to be done. Veg and fruit patch, both in agreement essential. My man cave will be big glasshouse ,negotiations needed here. The answer to our problems would be to rent a bit Of land in village as no allotments. Won’t be mowing at all this year, as we feel we have to get feel of place. Garden adequate it’s just planning it to attain maximum potential. Local dairy had open day and guess what ? They grow your lupin, large white seed milled and mixed with cows dry rations. Pds
To be honest @Pds, I am more of an orchardist than anything else with a keen interest in permaculture. I spent this morning working on an espalier quince, this afternoon, I’ll be pruning back the grapevine. I had a few people from the village turn up to collect some bamboo I am trying to reduce in size, talking with them (not the bamboo) made me feel nauseous, I think I’ve got a handle on things and then symptoms creep up and put me to rest. Hope you are doing well in your new abode.
just a little question - if one does “no mow May” isn’t it a bit harder to mow in June or whenever? We are hoping to create a back lawn and I certainly want to encourage as many wildflowers as possible but I have been pleasantly surprised at how possible mowing with my little electric mower has been (the stroke has left me just a bit uncoordinated and wobbly) so don’t want to create a problem for myself
@Pontwander that’s really funny