yams, peas, onions, broccoli, calendula

This afternoon Fionn and I planted the yams. They all fitted in the punga raised bed with the garlic which has left me some room in the other garlic bed for more swiss chard and some lettuce in a few more weeks.

As I planted, I removed any weeds. Including the germinated pea shoots from two weeks ago. But perhaps my foolishness was a little fortuitous as I then consulted my companion planting guide and found that peas do not like growing near garlic, onions or shallots. Oops. Scarce is the garden bed at my house without one of these alliums at the moment. So I've planted peas amongst the freesias and pansies and hope to fit the crop in before it is time to fill it with perennial herbs.

I transplanted some calendulas.

I transplanted my red brunswick onion seedlings from their tiny propagator trays to a larger planter box. Then I placed our long cloche from last year over the top and put them in a sheltered spot outside. I won't plant them into the garden for another month, perhaps longer. Last year I sowed these seeds direct into the garden and the blackbirds, who are very hungry and always fossicking in my garden at this time of year, ate all bar one seed.

I transplanted four broccoli seedlings. I have another two to plant out once we've harvested some leeks and thus made room. Leek and spud soup dinner likelihood this week is very high.

I fancy planting more seeds - I have no shortage of packets of seed - but there is the vexed question of where to plant them out. I have spaces put aside for zucchini, pumpkins and tomatoes, for the onions and with them will go carrots (fingers crossed) and beetroot. Lettuces and herbs will squash in somewhere I'm sure (hope). There won't be more room for more than that until summer when higher and longer sun will make some currently shady spots viable.