Strawberry time!

I just gathered the first strawberries of the season from our one-metre-square strawberry patch. Hope it's the first bowl of many!

Giving up on growing from seed

Almost none of the dozens of seeds I planted a few weeks ago have germinated. Our conservatory is just too hot on the hot days, and I think they baked rather than thriving, but if we put them outdoors the birds get them. So I officially give up on growing from seed, for this year anyway.

Pride put aside, I went down to the garden centre today and spent $30 on:

• nine green beans (bush, not climbing)
• six Early Girl tomatoes
• more red onions, white onions, and spring onions than I can count
• six Drunken Woman lettuce
• six Tom Thumb lettuce
• six dill
• six celery

I think I got my money's worth anyway! Let's hope they all grow and thrive in our garden.

Six tiny Early Girl tomato plants

There are reasons for my selection of green beans (which I dislike) and dill (a herb I've never knowingly used). The beans are to go in the bed between the potatoes and the cucumbers -- apparently those two plants do not like each other, but they both like beans, so I'm hoping the beans will act as a buffer zone. And the dill is also a companion plant to encourage our sweetcorn to thrive. I'm also planting climbing beans in among the sweetcorn plants, to take advantage of the natural climbing frame provided by the cornstalks, and to add nitrogen to the soil.

Green beans planted between the cucumbers and the potatoes

The onions are also companion plants, but at least I know I'll eat those! Onions benefit strawberries and make them taste more strawberry-y. Our strawberries last year were absolutely delicious, so I think onions are definitely good for them. Let's hope the trend continues.

Strawberries and tiny onions

Ho hum

The garden is ticking over. There definitely isn't the same level of activity as last year -- part of this is because we are doing other things, but it's mostly because the whole thing is already set up for us. The hard work of clearing the ground, then building and filling the beds, has all been done. All we have to do this year is add some compost and dig things over with a hand trowel. Square Foot Gardening is a great timesaver!

I've got some tomato seedlings on the go, but I've restrained myself this year and am only planting a few varieties:

• Aunt Ruby's German Green
• Sungold
• Moneymaker
• Black from Tula
• and one random bargain-rack Dad's Delight (I think it's called) from the Warehouse

I'm most excited about those and the cucumbers which are also sprouting nicely. The cukes can go outside in another week or so, and the tomatoes a couple of weeks after that.

We still haven't decided what to do with the far corner of the veggie garden. I want to make it into a bee-attracting flower patch, but I'm very unlucky when it comes to growing flowers and haven't managed to produce anything that will stay alive. Right now it contains a huge thistle, which isn't much good to anybody, some self-seeded potatoes, and a brick.