sigh ... the Easter hols are almost over :(

I've managed to dig over three of my remaining beds - just one more to go. I'm not in a rush to clear it though, as I think I will need to sacrifice it for the new greenhouse.



In the greenhouse I've sown my peas, borlotti beans, courgettes, sweetcorn and melons. Oh, I've also sown some more cat grass, ironically the mice ate the last lot ! My Queensland Blue squashes have germinated along with a couple of Acorn & Winter Festival. Two tiny African Marigolds have appeared ... another week and I'll be overrun. The Okra has appeared ... wonder if I'll manage to get it to flower again:



The greenhouse is now bursting at the seams and just to add to the fun, I noticed that several of the greenhouse strawberries are in flower :)



I've sown some beetroot, parsnips and 4 varieties of carrots outside - although the flippin' foxes have been having a party overnight - I suspect I'll have to resow some of the lines ... if I can find them again !

The garlic is pushing through the soil and the red onions are beginning to show signs of life too:





There is loads of frogspawn in the pond - most of it has little wriggling tadpoles, it won't be long before the pond is full of them





I don't seem to have as many froggies this year:





Jobs still to do:

- make pigeon proof cage (have got some wood & mesh)
- get manure and plant potatoes !
- knock down brick greenhouse
- erect & glaze new greenhouse (should only take a couple of hours ;) )
- dig over the dormant jungle



I've also been busy on the homefront. We had our horrid backyard landscaped late last year - here are the plants we bought in October - we did wonder whether we'd fit them all into the car - we had a bit of a Dr Who & the Tardis moment ... OH is pulling the trolley - can you see him !



I ordered a tonne of topsoil last year, but we needed about another 3/4 of a tonne to fill the railway sleeper planters. I've planted some golden bamboo, an enormous green varigated phormium, a small black phormium (you would not believe how much it cost), a standard bay, some grasses (that the cats appear to have eaten) and a lovely ecalyptus tree and bought the japonica back from the lottie. As some of them are thugs, I will need to keep my eye on them. Here is our (almost finished) city garden:



The slate is Chinese, it looks gorgeous after it's rained - our landscapers have recommended that we seal it in the summer with some special wet look varnish.



It looks lovely, but I'm pretty tired now, it's been a long week !

I also became an Auntie this week ! Here is my lovely new niece, she is a little poorly, but hopefully she will soon be well enough to go home. She is just two days old in the picture with her daddy (my brother - maybe I won't tell him he is achieving world fame on my blog haha). She is beautiful ... not that I'm biased :)