The Vegetable Garden - April

The vegetable garden is really taking shape now, and the wonderful weather we have had for the last week, and the longer evenings, have meant we can get out into the garden for longer and get a lot of weeding done.

On the right you can see the raspberry canes and the strawberry patch; and the second raised vegetable bed is now under construction. This will have peas, beans, pumpkins and squashes in it this year.

On the left at the back are the mounds where the first early potatoes have been planted. We're trying Arran Pilot this year. This bed is also destined to have sweet corn, broccoli and cauliflower in due course. In the raised bed, spring greens/cabbages, onions and garlic and some radishes. Carrots and parsnips will go in the middle.

The greenhouse is now in use, with tomatoes, peppers, chillis and basil on the staging, and on the left are seed trays in which I have just sown the squashes, pumpkins and courgettes, some more sweet peas and marigolds and salvias for summer bedding.

The new trees have leaves! which is very exciting.

Wandering into the front garden, there are already some new flowers in the last couple of weeks:

scarlet tulips, and the first bluebells (and can you spot the Heuchera pushing its way through the patchof bluebell leaves there).

The beautiful creamy blossoms of Viburnum;

and this lovely white-flowered cascade, in the shady bed where I have also just found my hostas coming through. They were smothered in weeds, but are actually doing quite well. A bit more weeding needed here, and I also have some Convallaria and some Hellebores to plant.