With water predicted to become a scarcer resource in our part of the country it is important to try and improve the water holding capacity of the soil and recycle the rainwater that falls onto our roofs.Over the past couple of years I have been embracing the Organic farming idea of using locally sourced green waste compost and growing winter soil management crops to try and help conserve moisture as well as improving the structure and biology of the soil.
I have also started connecting tanks to the down pipes of the farm buildings to try and save as much rainwater as possible.
As I go to check on my garlic crop I notice two cock pheasants, they look at me and almost shrug their shoulders at my presence, then they continue, taking a row each they walk down the recently sown broad beans, flicking out and eating the seed, occasionally they stop, look at each other their heads moving as if they are having a good old gossip then they return to their tea.
Last Friday the second-hand seed drill I have purchased arrived. With carrots and parsnips moving on to a raised bed system this year we needed to improve the existing equipment or look for an alternative. The twelve row folding machine is far bigger than I need it to be but it gives me the option of lots of spare parts (which I recently discovered are very expensive) and once I have split it, a second machine that I can sell on.
Good spring conditions continue and the autumn planted garlic and broad beans are looking really well. Peas, radish, spring onions and spinach have all been sown in the past week with carrots and parsnips to follow. Calabrese, beetroot, lettuce, onion and parsley transplants are due in any day now, hopefully providing lots of tasty treats for the summer.
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