Rocket (Eruca sativa) Science?

I read in this April's issue of the RHS magazine that seeds of my favourite salad leaf are being sent into space and later returned to earth.  These will then be distributed to schools, sown and compared with seeds that have not previously spent six months orbiting the earth.  It is hoped that this will aid attempts to grow food in space.

I have confined my experiments with rocket to the back garden, greenhouse and shed.  Will the leftover seeds that I scattered on the flowerbeds after dehusking germinate, or will they be eaten by the hedge sparrows?  Will the packet seed I sowed in the potting seed come up before the saved seed from the allotment that is now in the greenhouse?  Will rocket under glass in seed trays do better than rocket sparsely sown amid the cos lettuce seedlings that I pricked out in the warmth of the greenhouse yesterday?

I do not need a micro-enviroment with zero gravity.  I have a new greenhouse with doors that lock but no airlock.  I have no hydroponics, just two bags of compost, sieved and sorted into seed trays by my husband and a selection of watering cans; no heating and lighting except the heat and light of the sun that rises in the east and shines at its zenith on shed and glasshouse. 

Growing salads - it's not rocket science.

Changing views

I have managed to import a new picture for my blog.  This is our back garden in February 2015 as it waits for the spring.  All the tender stuff is in our potting shed.  (We have moved some plants around since this photo was taken.)  Here are the geraniums that belonged to the previous owner that we are overwintering.  Next to them is the jasmine that my sister rescued from a supermarket (I am not the only one in our family to do this).  Then comes the lettuce.  This seed came out of a partially used packet that I bought in a pound shops last year.  Given that it was old and cheap it has done better than I expected under shelter and I live in hopes of filling growbags in our new greenhouse (due a week today).  Next, we have the broad beans that were a housewarming present which, as I noted yesterday, are sprouting at last after nearly six weeks and finally the golden oregano. 

The new herbs in the low wall that I am trying outside are sage, golden thyme, thyme and mint.  Still to sow in warmer conditions than at present come flat leaved parsley, basil, more thyme and garlic chives.

If you were to stand with your back to the shed, facing up the garden, you would see an expanse of flags where once we had a lean-to porch.  The structure came down this week with the help of our builder D and his apprentice and has been repaved.  At the moment is is empty space, but in my imagination I see our patio area filled with tubs of flowering plants and miniature vegetables.  I can also visualize my husband's outdoor tomatoes along the sunny side of our yet-to-be delivered greenhouse. 

I will keep this summery view in my mind's eye, even as D, in the rain, adds the finishing touches to our refurbished patio.

Changing the picture

I note from my diary that we sowed broad beans under cover in our old shed on 31st January 2015.  This week, sheltered in our new potting shed they began to sprout.  The time elapsed signifies that we are now in the cool north west rather than the warm south. 

Our lovely golden oregano, which used to feature on this page, bought in Cheshire over ten years ago did not survive the transition and we had to buy and pot on a new one.  It did not come out of the new potting shed until today and is in a warm spot on our back patio.  It may go back inside if the weather threatens frost.

Outside in our front garden the Iris Reticulata which were a housewarming present from LK are just beginning to show their tightly furled pointed spears.  Saved on my phone is a picture of the allotment with the same irises in full flower.  It is dated 10th February 2014. 

Moving up here has not always been an easy transition.  Maybe it is time to change the picture.

Roses, Raspberry Canes, Rhubarb

We have exchanged three allotments for one back garden.  This has made us plan carefully.  You can spread yourself over 3 x 25 rods' worth of ground, leave beds fallow, try out things that never stood an earthly chance - Florence fennel, cauliflowers, or neglect persisting problems.   But tending your own backyard and spending your own money brings a different perspective.

Last week we purchased raspberry canes and rhubard from Myerscough College's plant shop.  In order to fit in the canes, which came to ten when unbundled, we had to take out two climbing roses.  We were ruthless.  These had very little sign of new growth, whereas the rose by our front door, in its sheltered spot, is already budding. 

The canes were planted in the sunniest spaces we could find to the correct depth according to the instructions on the label.  The first time we came into possession of surplus raspberries I put them in deep in an exposed allotment bed under the mistaken impression that this would help them.  It didn't.

That left the rhubarb.  Our allotment rhubarb found itself in its proper spot on our second attempt, after languishing in a windy space for a season.  Our new rhubarb went straight into a sheltered nook next to our shed, protected on two sides by shed and shrubs and also with plenty of sun. 

Our 'herbacious border' raspberries are now standing up to the hail, sleet and occasional flurries of snow that characterise early March in the north west.  Underneath, I noticed as we put them in, they were just starting to form their new growth.  Like our blackcurrants and cooking apple they are Scottish, which is probably no bad thing.