Spring Is On Its Way

We have had a gorgeous day today where the wind hasn't been biting in from the East and the frost is finally departing - it arrived the weekend after we got back from the UK so a full week of fairly chilly. I'm glad that it wasn't frosty when we were away though as it adds to the care regime for the hens and geese. Today was really spring like and the air around us was alive with the sound of chainsaws as the French have a last blast at tree felling/pollarding before the sap rises. We took our cue from them and lobbed down a few of ours - there were quite a few where obviously a seed had got into the base of an established tree and no-one had pulled out the sapling, so ending with two trees in the same place. So we thinned them. That's some firewood for the year after next at least. That was Ben and R at least.

B, S and I sorted out the solar tunnel and S loved getting absolutely filthy!!! The hens liked being in the warm soil too and made dust baths all over the place. We're in the process of putting a paving path up the middle. When we lived back in Scotland we didn't plant into the soil in the solar tunnel (it came over with us) as it was covered in landscaping fabric and was more of an extended propogating space. Here though we have doubled the size, dug up the soil, enriched it with home compost and I'm itching to get some salad bits in because they're a ridiculous price in the shops and don't keep. R has already got tomatoes and melons underway, and B is going for cucumbers and peppers. They check the propogator every day. We have however had a 'visitor' into the solar tunnel by cover of night and the photograph shows R and B in detective mode looking for clues - they reckon it's a rabbit as it's making tunnels all over the place. Grrr need to put a stop to that before the seeds go in the ground!

Well, I'd best get on with the tea as they'll all be in from the garden soon - these lighter nights are catching me out as it's light now until after 7pm.