I’ve started digging a new bed for the squashes and some space at the bottom of #100 to put the onions out. This is the goal for this weekend as I think they are all ready for the World Beyond the Greenhouse. The trays of celeriac, beetroot and chicory have been chucked outside to harden off so the greenhouse is actually looking manageable.

The soil is pretty dry so perhaps the promised rain will appear and give everything a good soaking. I am getting fed up of carting watering cans around. The new squash bed has a lot of roots in that may be left over from when it was an expanse of brambles or might come from my neighbour’s plum tree, which is planted on the border. I am hoping not the latter, because I’m having to slice through them to dig. It’s also got several red ant nests, which can make my digging a bit sporadic – I’m in no hurry to be stung! They come boiling out at the drop of a hat…

The bagged spud foliage is getting huge and I am itching to have a furtle. It’s been 11 weeks since they were planted and I am giving them a couple more weeks as some of that time was pretty cold.

My god-daughter wants to come and help on the plots. I thought she’d go off the idea, but she’s bought her very own trowel, fork, kneeler and some gloves. The cucumbers she sowed haven’t so far come up at her house, so it is lucky that I have spares here. I need to buy some canes as I’ve promised her we will build a wigwam for runners and sow them. And I’ve just remembered I used all my long canes on the fruit cages…

After no fruit at all last year the incredible blossom on my mini apple has resulted in hundreds of baby apples. It’s so tiny – I think at the moment there are clusters of 5 or 6 every 2 inches. Bonkers! I need to thin them out, even before the June drop because I can’t imagine that the poor wee tree has the resources to develop many of them. Will post a photo before I do just to look back on it in amazement!

Sowed: Lazy Housewife CFB, Black Coco DFB for the Heritage Seed Library seed guardian scheme, some more Cherokee Trail of Tears beans and Tromba di Albenga – also sowing a few more cucumbers, just in case.