Show rambles

So this was a week of firsts for me as I not only got asked for my autograph but asked for my first autograph off someone else. I am a proud owner of one signed copy of a vinyl 'Things from the Past' by Vetiver. I'm smitten. I think I've actually become a proper fan. Obviously neither of these have anything to do with gardening. Still quite exciting (the vinyl rather than my scrawl of a signature).

When not swapping lovely plants at GWL (and there were some real gems along with some not quite so desirable stuff like Geum urbanum... though I guess if you're starting a wild garden...), I've spent most of the week in the veg garden. A good deal of that has been munching of sugar snaps, broad beans and radishes. I made a very good dish of young red russian kale, broad beans, wet garlic, winter savoury and pancetta.
I've sowed spinach, radish and some more salsola and some New Belt Chinese Chives I picked up from Rebekah's Seed at GWL. I'm very excited by the salsola (land seaweed). It's one of those things that I've been meaning to grow for a while. The indoor toms are already producing fruit, as are the Japanese and Chinese cucumbers (though I think I'll nip them off as I'd like a bit more growth first). I've got lots of baby soya beans all covered in their woolly jackets and the luffa has stopped sulking and is now growing very rapidly. I'm not holding out for any watermelons. I should have stuck with my mother's variety as this Polish variety is just sitting still. With all this growth has come an army of aphids so I spraying with soft soap and gently squishing as many as possible. Some are clearly being parasitised, probably by a wasp, so that's good.

Outside things are moving on. I am very, very pleased to announce my first outdoor melon of the variety Sweet Heart. The Golden Yellow heirloom toms are so healthy as are the Millefleur, which are doing just what it says on the tin and producing thousands of flowers. The others are doing ok, some struggling a little, but on the whole they look a good bunch. I planted out red peppers and a few chillies. Both are a bit of a gamble outside, but I think that the chillies in particular taste so much better grown in the ground. You get proper heat off the fruit that way.

The Tom Collins hangover is kicking in again. So here's just a brief round up of what tickled my fancy at GWL:
Campanula 'Pink Octopus' from Cath's Garden Plants - I really digged that weird pink thing. It has long thin pink petal that open up like an octopus's tentacles;
Heuchera 'Citronelle' is an acid green that would work so well at the back of our green garden, throwing some much needed light under the bay;
Thalictrum kiusianum -a tiny, tiny Thalictrum reaching just six inches high. Perfect for the shady area in the alpine garden;
Anemonella thalictroides 'Doule Green', another wee baby for that area with lovely acid green flowers that I think will pick up the new green growth of the Daphnes;
Asarum caudatum and Arisarum proboscideum - lovely little mousey things to go with Asarum maximum Silver Panda (that is if I can keep the slugs away);
I fell in love with the Allotment Shop's enamel tea pot and love seeds tins. I liked their bunting and am now inspired to make some for the veg garden.

I had a break through moment at Edrom Nurseries' lovely stand and realised that I need to add some Japanese Acers to the new shady area in the alpine garden to throw just a little more shade in the afternoon. There's a shaft of burning afternoon light that needs to be tempered if the new ferns are going to thrive. As luck has it, I have two such Acers kicking around desperate for a home. I spent yesterday moving them round to find the perfect spot. I like it when a plan suddenly comes together.