1. The joy of seed. HPS seed is dropping through letterboxes up and down the country and what a lovely thing that is. I spent a morning getting to grips with my order, but also preparing for one of my “projects” this year. Another gardener friend and I have formed Ready, Steady, Grow! an attempt to get Walthamstow growing from seed.
It is a simple idea. We give a packet of 3-5 seeds, a recycled pot , growing medium and instructions to as many people as possible ( we have 500 packets!) and get them growing. We will support them via social media. Then,in July, we get everyone’s efforts together in a central location and have a two day celebration/ display/ party. There is a very wide group of annuals and half-hardies which will grow from seed to flower in 12-14 weeks. What are your favourites and growing tips?
2. Shed. Who doesn’t love their shed? I tend to take mine for granted a bit, but a lack of much else to do caused me to give it a good sort out in the week. There was a lot to chuck out and reorder. It was the most productive hour and a half this week.
3. Polycarbonate or glass? I am making ( still!) two coldframes. I had some glass and some polycarbonate sheet for the first one. I need some glazing material for the second. Glass is £51, polycarbonate is £31. Seems a no brainer. Poly is lighter, cheaper, easier to cut, has similar thermal properties. But it’s more plastic, isn’t it? I worry about these kinds of things.
4. Trees. I love Winter for the backlighting of trees in the morning and evening. When I was 11, I did an ink and watercolour wash painting of a scene like this. It probably wasn’t very good, but I have always remembered it. The word that comes to me is Mesopotamia. Something about river tributaries?
5. Hazel catkins are popping out all over Walthamstow. Such a beautiful and useful plant. I love them coppiced as a hedge or in a mixed border.
6. Cyclamen coum. This is a favourite patch in the churchyard, under some trees along the railings. It is in rough grass, with various bulbs. I am aiming to spread the many seedlings and bulbs along this area each year. It is just that when this is best done, in April or May, I am overwhelmed by other jobs!
Tim Hewitt, Gardener 
That’s a brilliant idea! Spread the joy. Do you know if you can use fresh hazel for plant supports or do you have to dry it out first? I don’t want to grow hazels around my roses.
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Well, I have used them fairly fresh and they have not sprouted, unlike Willow. I reckon you would be fine.
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Good idea ! You just have to find the right variety to share …and go ! Beautiful catkins and trees pictures.
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What a fine idea, hope you are going to share the results later in the year. Talking of sharing, I have sent the Allan Jenkins book to N20 Gardener and if you are interested she will then send it on to you. Love those cyclamen!
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That is a very kind thought. I would be interested, definitely. Will contact Ms N20.
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She will, I had the idea that we write our names in the front when we have read it and then pass it on to someone else. A chain book, without the curses or other general daftness. 🙂
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That’s not a shed, it’s a palace; at least compared to mine. Good luck with your Ready, Steady, Grow project, it sounds like a great idea.
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Thanks, Jim. Made the shed myself, out of wombled bits and pieces, it has a top deck too for my daughter’s den.
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Got to love a shed. I bought some flowery wrapping paper to decorate mine this week and when I met a friend on the way home they thought I was bonkers.
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Well, I am not too sure about flowery wallpaper for mine, but each to their own. I am happy with functionality!
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Great Six. Catkins are a show at the moment. Love the tree photo.
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Ah, that tree silhouette! I also will watch for Ready, Steady, Grow updates. Excellent idea. Having just come through the glass v. poly dilemma, we opted for a glass greenhouse for beauty and weight with some polycarbonate roof panels to diffuse light. Choosing plastic components irritates me, but not enough to forego completely.
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Love the seed sharing idea, look forward to hearing updates.
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Ah, the tree and the sky are divine. Sadly my shed has a rotten floor and I don’t know quite what to do about it. I’m no good at DIY or at least not the sort that requires power tools that I don’t own. I wonder if a Handyman sort of person would fix it for me? Or does this mean a new shed?
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I guess a reasonable local handyman might do it. But if the floor has rotted, you might be best to investigate why. If it is sitting directly on the ground, then raising it an inch or two should prevent that. Mine at the allotment is on breeze blocks in each corner. Don’t raise it too much as to invite foxes to set up a den, just enough to prevent soil to timber contact. If it were me, I would be raiding skips for suitable timber to repair it, but that is easy round here. I guess you can only find out by getting quotes for floor repair and a new shed!
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It is a few inches above the ground which is a concrete base, so I’m not sure of the cause. Thanks for the suggestions – you are right in assuming there aren’t many skips around here 🙂
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Oh, the seeds! Bad habit. Bulbs and bare root are addictive too.
This Cyclamen coum, as well as Cyclamen hederifolia, are something that I have never seen here. It seems that they are popular everywhere else.
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