Posted by malissa on 2013-06-17 11:46:47 UTC

(Originally posted December 01, 2012 at 11:47)

One of my tomato plant is now quite tall, taller than me. I was complaining to a friend today that I didn't know where I'd get the next stake from if it had to be taller than 6ft. She, rather wryly I thought, suggested I pinch out top shoots. What kind of common sense it that? At any rate, that plant can consider itself properly pinched and thwarted from its towering ambition.

The sun covers a linear half of the courtyard now. Everything is getting plenty of sun.

A pigeon is building a ratty nest in the tree. It's kind of charming, but experienced people tell me pigeons are rubbish at nests and to expect some smashed eggs at some point. I'm not convinced I want a nesting bird in my tree while it's fruiting. But who knows if there'll be fruit?

The chervil has died off, the hyacinths never flowered. I'm going to leave them in the ground, along with the two lilies of the valley, which did flower most prettily. Go on, little bulbs. Be amazing next year.

Historical notes for this year's garden:

October 27, 2012 Beetroot and lettuce planted. Beetroot in new large pots, lettuce replace rocket.

September 22/23, 2012 Three tomatoes planted in a superceded recycling bin, basil planted around them.

September 9, 2012 Today was gorgeous, a perfect true Spring day, warm in the sun, cool but not exactly chill in the shade, and with very little breeze.

To celebrate there was gardening. I pruned all the diseased nectarine leaves I could see. Naturally they were mostly near the blossoms and pretty much all at the top of the tree, near the end of the reach of my long handled secateurs.

I cut back the purple flowering shrub. Its leaves are yellow and black spotted which seems not a good sign.

When I planted out the hyacinth bulbs under the tree, I dug up some oval shaped objects. They appear to be charcoal and were perhaps part of the original garden bed. I shoved them in the dirt around the chervil as I planted that on enough of a little slope that the water runs away when I water it. This gardening business requires thought and planning, it seems.

At 1.30 the sun reached half way down the south fence.

September 8, 2012 Food plants: mint, majoram, chervil, thyme, watercress, flat leaf parsley, rocket gone to seed but with pretty flowers, nectarine tree.

Chervil, thyme, watercress and parsley from the same market guy.

Non-food plants: 2 x hydrangeas, 4 x hyacinths, several madonna lilies (four pots, various sizes), unidentified palm, unidentified fern, unidentified plant with glossy leaves, unidentified shrub with purple flowers.

Everything except the tree, hyacinths and the chervil are in pots. The chervil and hyacinths are under the tree.

The tree's flowers came out last weekend and leaves have followed swiftly. It's got the curly disease still. I pulled off affected leaves earlier this week but there are more in evidence today. It may be affecting the parsley. I don't know if it's a disease that affects parsley. None of the other non-food plants have ever been affected, nor were the mint, marjoram and rocket which all date from spring/summer 2011.

The chervil is having a grand time under the tree. Couldn't be happier or leafier.

I have likely planted the hyacinth bulbs too late. The most vigorous, the largest bulb, has leaves about 2 inches high, the next two in size less than an inch, the tiniest - which was hardly the size of a small shelled hazelnut - is barely poking out of the dirt.