Monday morning

Guess what!  It's raining - what a surprise!  A wonderful start to the second half of the so-called summer term!  Yesterday morning was so lovely but it didn't last beyond early evening.  I'm going to be grateful and agree that as the experts tell us we still need a lot more rain, it has to be a good thing.  I doubt those caught up in the floods in Wales will agree with me though.

Yesterday was a day of paperwork.  I had a few breaks - I find I cannot keep going as I used to be able to.  After a while my brain gives up and I find myself writing total rubbish which is a sign for a break!  I had intended to do a bit of refreshing gardening in the evening.  On Saturday I went to Wyvale and found dahlias at three for a tenner.  I like dahlias and these were very pretty shades of pink and just right to fit in a space in my middle bed where the bulbs are now dying back.  So I dug some whitebells up, cleared away some leaves and made a nice space.  Ah, well, it won't go away and at least the ground will be well soaked when I do get round to planting them.  I also found some trailing geraniums which will soften the bricks around the beds and a yellow tomato which looks as if it is a tumbling variety from the way it is growing.  I think I will treat it as a tumbler and place it on a few blocks to raise it up - or no, I know, I will plant it in a big pot (for watering) and put the pot in one of my raised planters.  It will make a nice display as well as being useful!

The vegetables in the willow planter are growing like fury and I have had some radishes.  The mini gem lettuces are thickening out nicely and the carrots are also sending up nice green growth.  But, if you remember, I was trying seed tape.  Never again.  Given that some of the seeds didn't germinate, it has made for very sparse lines of shoots and the most recent rows I sowed have been sprinkled seed, not from the tape.  You live and learn!  The other thing I have now done is planted some salad leaves seeds in another pot, so in three weeks or so I should be starting to harvest them (given some warm sun).

And today.  Back to school.  It will be lovely to see the children again and I can hardly believe that the school year will be over in six months!  Amazing!!!