I’ve planted broad beans out into the Biodynamic Garden this week. These have been grown in our polytunnel from seeds I sowed a couple of months ago. The broad bean variety is ‘Express’, and, as the name suggests, it is one of the fastest varieties to mature. It also produces lots of pods on each plant. I can’t wait until the broad beans are ready to harvest, as they’re a delicious and versatile vegetable. They make a great tasting dip with fresh mint. My next jobs for taking care of them will be to stake them when they get taller and to pinch out the tips of their shoots when they start to flower as this discourages black bean aphids. The rest of the vegetable seedlings destined for the Biodynamic garden are also growing well; peas and lettuces should be ready to plant out in the next few weeks.
The Soft Fruit Garden has now transformed from the beds of bare twigs it was over winter into a forest of green. The gooseberries and currants are in full flower and I’ve even spotted a few tiny fruits starting to form. The flower buds of the raspberries will be opening soon, so I’ve hung up raspberry beetle traps this week. The raspberry beetle lays its eggs in raspberry flowers, and the hatching larvae eat the developing fruit. So hopefully the traps will catch beetles before they get a chance to reach the flowers.
I’ve also been spending a lot of time working in the shrub borders over the last month pruning out damage done by the winter frosts. It’s a pleasure to work in there with the colour and fragrance of the blooming shrubs and bulbs.
As the apprenticeship draws to a close there’s still plenty of work to do preparing the gardens for the summer.
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