Stephanie's Kitchen Garden Diary

May started with refreshing rain but that did not last long. It was a hot and dry month, so much so that it was the driest since 1896!

It is challenging times we are all facing at the moment but the garden offers some sanctuary. The plants are unaware of the current crisis and continue to grow and bloom as they normally do and we continue to care for them.

It has been a month of storms, strong winds and rain, but still not as cold as it should be at this time of year. In the kitchen garden it has all been about tidying up and preparation for the upcoming growing season.

As gardeners we have to adapt to what mother nature offers us and keep a close eye on our plants and give them what they actually require which is not always at the time the books say it should be done.

December is always a dark month with the daylight hours being very short and having officially entered the winter season. But there are still things to do in the vegetable garden and things to harvest. This month we have harvested celeriac, parsnips, leeks and spinach.

Winter has certainly arrived in the kitchen garden this month, it has been cold, wet and very windy. We have been able to harvest a few winter vegetables this month more spinach, leeks, celeriac and the first of the parsnips these have been of good size but unfortunately they have forked a bit.

It has been a busy month of taking out the old and putting in the new, with summer crops finishing and new winter and spring varieties being planted.

The change in weather has meant that the summer vegetables in the kitchen garden are now nearing the end of growth. These will be lifted and composted and in their place the winter vegetables will be planted, spinach, pak choi and other spring brassicas.

Well this has been another month where we have been scanning the skies looking for any sign of rain and unfortunately, we have not really been rewarded with any sufficient quantities; the occasional down pour and half an hour of drizzle every now and then.