The Shed, the Veg and the Rain

The Shed

Well, it's up...it took two people a day to build the base (reinforced old pallets on bricks and rocks, topped with old flooring sheets):

...then two more days on the shed itself.  Some people watched, some wandered up and commented ('Your apex isn't right...') and others grabbed a drill (see previous blog) and got stuck in.  It kind of came together - several times owing to a few re-builds - and began to look shed-like:

...and at last the plot is starting to take on a bit of shape:

Finished!  

The Veg:

The onions are holding their own.  I sneaked up there today and weeded them (Remember, onions hate weeds!), and because it has rained they came up easily.  I hand weeded the bindweed (nasty stuff, you have to try not to leave even the tiniest bit of root) and the buttercups (nearly as annoying as bindweed) and any weeds close to the onions themselves, then hoed the rest.

The potatoes are all up and doing well.  I did a quick earth-up of the maincrop ones today.  

A few days ago (before the rain) I planted out the runner beans and french beans.  I can report that they are all doing well.  Planting beans always brings out the inner eight year old in me - I love putting in the sticks and tying them up!  

I put in a short row of 'cut and come again' lettuce, one of 'normal' English lettuce, one of globe-shaped radishes, one of the longer type, By the time I popped back up today all of them were through.  So far there's no sign of the other things - a short row of carrots which are a bit experimental as it looks too stony up there for good carrots, one of globe beetroot and one of the longer ones that are great for slicing.

The reason the veg are doing well is:

The Rain:

After a lengthy spell of weather so hot and dry the ground was like concrete on the surface - though to be fair it was still damp a few inches down.  Watering is a huge problem at the moment as the shed has no guttering and I don't have a water butt.  My friend has now loaned me a couple of huge plastic containers which have helped a lot but I must sort some guttering out next!  However...within a couple of days of planting the beans it began to rain...and rain...and rain...

...am now thinking of utilising my newly found carpentry skills and building an ark, just in case...