Coronavirus lockdown diary weeks 11 & 12

After three months, tomorrow marks the start of shops reopening. As much as I'd like to look round, I think there will be long queues and a lot of people milling around, so I will probably wait a while.

I'm missing the sunny and warm weather,it's been very rainy and cloudy most days. However my gardening efforts are just starting to pay off! In the first week of June I harvested my first courgette, quickly followed by two more, including a round one. We've been snacking on fresh peas straight from the pod and pulled up one pot of potatoes, which were delicious - full of flavour and firm. I just used some old supermarket potatoes that were past their best and already sprouting and I think they were tastier than last years from seed potatoes. My only regret is that I used two potatoes per pot instead of the three I did last year, as I'd read that cramming them in actually reduces the yield. However, the foliage seemed a bit sparse and my concerns were confirmed when i pulled them up, as I had a yield of just under 600g, approximately a third less than last year! So from now on I'll stick to three seed potatoes in my pots as it doesn't seem detrimental.

At least however I can now use the potato pot for something else and today I filled it with radish seeds. They are fast growing so hopefully I can get a few batches.  I've sown two more waves of spring onion seeds and some carrots. The carrot seeds are five years old so may not sprout, but there's only one way to find out!

My eBay sales were fairly busy last week, but so slow this weekend. It could be in view of the shops opening imminently, but I do hope it picks back up again as it has been a good way to declutter.

My gorgeous rose bush has finished flowering for now and I miss its scented showy blooms, but the sweet peas have started to put out flowers so hopefully it won't be long until they take over. I'm going to try to take cuttings from the rose next month so I have more plants.

It is such a treat to pick roses from the garden for your vase, especially whilst it's been difficult to buy flowers.

Finally, up until last week we were still seeing the cute great tit family in the garden, the chicks still sticking together and being fed by their parents. I haven't seen them this weekend but think I heard them in the trees. I bought a new feeder for them so I'm hoping they come back to visit soon!

Coronavirus lockdown diary weeks 9 & 10

Most of the last two weeks were spent in the garden on warm days and updating my eBay listings on cooler days.

The garden has really started to burst into life now, with the roses out in full bloom, the lavender starting to flower and the sweet peas are taking off. I've been filling out the border with my home grown zinnia plants which have finally all been planted out, along with some marigolds and petunias.

In the back garden, I've used a raised bed to create a wildflower patch. I'm not sure if many seeds are growing; at the moment it's hard to tell between weeds and flowers as the only shoots are very small. There are however a few rogue tomato seedlings, I have no idea where they came from but perhaps it will be a vegetable bed instead!

The vegetables are doing well having enjoyed the warmth and sunshine last week. The courgettes are starting to produce viable fruit, early thanks to the nice weather and early start. It's a risk starting seeds too early in case the weather is too bad for them to go outside when they need planting out but this year it seems to have paid off; there are four courgettes which will be ready to pick in the next day or two. The tomatoes have started setting fruit too and the runner beans are producing flowers. Two of my cucumbers are looking very healthy now with big leaves any tiny fruit. The next two don't look as good, with split stems and small leaves. I don't know why this is, but I'll be trying to coax them to grow stronger as there's nothing to lose. I have another two cucumber plants which were sown later to replace failed seeds and one looks particularly healthy, so I'm aiming to pot that one up by this weekend too.

My lobelia plants finally looked big enough to plant but as I'd grown them in a tray I was concerned about splitting them, so I decided to just split them in half and used one half in a hanging basket and the other in a terracotta pot, but mixed with petunias. They're looking good and I'm hoping to put them out soon.

On my days off from gardening, I listed some clothes on eBay and then went through my stash of seeds and listed some of those too. It was successful and I managed to sell over twenty items, so I
was pleased to declutter and make a little cash.

As the days went on through May, it became clear that the adorable birds and their chicks would soon be vacating the bird house, as the birds started calling to the chicks and they started to look out of the nest box. We noticed one had fledged on Wednesday 20th May, when we saw it hoping around the patio and clumsily flying around the plant border. We didn't need to worry though as it flew into the nearby plum tree and was then found by one of the parents who had brought it some food. On Sunday 25th May, the last of the chicks moved out, and the once buzzing little box now seemed sad. I was quite sad about their departure but hoped to tempt them to stay near by replenishing the bird feeder which seemed to work. We've been hearing them in the trees daily and I've even spotted them a few times too, all together in a tree being brought some food. The smallest chick was just a tiny ball of fluffy feathers! So far we have been able to count five chicks, though there may well have been more as they are tricky to see in the trees. I'm hoping the parents will return for a second brood, if not this month then next year.

I've finally started reading a new book. I mentioned previously enjoying dreaming of st Tropez by TA Williams and was thinking about buying another from the dreaming of series. Last weekend it was sunny so I pulled my sunlounger outside to the shade and decided to download a summer read, only to find that one of the books in the series was free to download on Amazon, so I'm now reading dreaming of Florence. So far I'm enjoying it, but I also want to get the last book in the series soon, dreaming of Italy, as it has received good reviews following its release at the beginning of May.

Lockdown is gradually easing but everything is still strange. Now more people are going out I sort of feel like I want to stay in more, as places become more busy and crowded. I hope everything returns to normal soon.

Coronavirus lockdown diary week 8

This was a very busy week, I spent a lot of time in the garden trying to get through my long to-do list and I have been able to get most of it done, so I should only need to spend a couple of days in the garden this week and I shall be having a break from it the other days!

On Monday I made a banana loaf and I spent one evening making a birthday list for my dad's birthday in July. My mum and I were hoping to book a weekend away for him this year but that was before coronavirus, so I've been trying to think of some other nice ideas. I've had a couple of eBay sales which I posted out and listed a couple more items, but it's still quite slow. I've also done a little yoga too. Other than that, I really have spent most of this week in the garden, so it's mainly just a garden update hereafter.

We finished weeding the borders and I've started to plant some of the sweet peas I've been growing in pots. I've put three bunches around an obelisk one border with two more pots further along, both supported with bamboo canes. I have some more to go out next week but I'm staggering them in case they don't take in their new homes or if the slugs get them. So far though they're all looking ok.

I also planted some miracle gro border flower seeds. The tub apparently contains everything you need, seeds, coir and feed, so you just put it in the border, water it and flowers should grow. The reviews were mixed online, but I had it in my cupboard from a garden shop clearance last year so I thought it was worth trying. I haven't been able to go out to buy plants like I normally would this time of year so if even any flowers come up, it will help fill out the border.

I planted my second batch of pea seedlings into a window box and added more seeds in the gaps of the two boxes. The pea plants in the first window box are looking strong and have just started to flower.

One of the cucumber plants has grown much faster than the rest, so today it went in its final pot, though I'm keeping it indoors for a short while longer whilst it gets warmer. It's crazy how when you move a cucumber plant from its small pot, it smells so strongly of fresh cucumber! Two more went into bigger pots, but not their final ones and the remaining three are still in their seed trays whilst they catch up.

I also moved five of the courgettes in big plant pots. Three look reasonably happy, though the remaining two look a bit weak as they were very leggy. Hopefully they'll strengthen up soon.

The other big task this week was potting up all of my first lot of tomatoes into their final pots, as a few had started to flower. This took a couple of days as there were fifteen plants and then I had to move my second lot of tomatoes from their seedling pots into the now vacant medium pots. There were another 17 or so to plant so this took another couple of afternoons.

Next week I'm planning to do something more fun, maybe some baking and making more plans for my dad's birthday, plus some tidying and perhaps more eBay listing.

Nesting birds

One of the greatest sources of entertainment in lockdown has been a pair of great tits who moved in to the nest box (just hours after we put it up!), built a nest and now, seeing them fly back and forth all day collecting food and feeding the chicks. You can tell when one of the birds has brought food as the chicks start a symphony of chirps that seems to be getting noticeably louder each day! I don't think it'll be long now before the little chicks fledge!

Coronavirus lockdown diary week 7

Yesterday the government gave a much anticipated update on the current lockdown situation. Unfortunately however, not much has really changed. In short, there are fewer restrictions on exercise now, with the exception of team sports mostly, but otherwise not much has changed. I don't think it is surprising but it is hard to remain optimistic. That said, I had a nice chat with the cashier in the supermarket today who was so upbeat that it was uplifting and for that I was grateful. It has been another slow week, but not totally unproductive, so that's a positive.

1. Gardening
I planted out some sweet peas into the border on Saturday where I'd already set up an obelisk for them to climb up. The temperatures have dropped this week so yesterday I went out with some homemade cloches repurposed from plastic bottles to keep them happy. So far, they seem to be working. I have some more sweet peas in pots but want to be sure the first lot settle in OK and don't need replacing before I find places to plant them.
I managed to get some more of my runner beans planted out into a big tub but still have four plants that need a home, so this week I need to find another tub or see if I can fit them in amongst the others. Everything else has been growing nicely this week, although the spring onions are starting to struggle and a few have gone limp, which could be from overwatering them or maybe the change in weather, I'm not sure. I still have plenty of seeds anyway so I'll sow more every couple of weeks.

2. Reading
I tried reading some more of the book is started a couple of weeks ago but it wasn't for me, so I've decided to put it aside for the charity shop when the re open and this week I'm going to pick out a new one from my book shelf. It's good to finally be getting through my stack of unread books, even if I don't enjoy one book, if it gets earmarked for donation at least I'm decluttering.

3. eBay
Over the past two weeks I've been busy listing items in eBay to declutter. I've only sold one item but I have a bid on another and a few watchers on others. I have some more to list and will be going through my wardrobe again to see if there's anything else to go.

4. Baking and VE Day
This week I baked a sponge cake, iced it and decorated it with raspberries. It was so tasty and we saved half to have a cup of tea and slice of cake to commemorate VE Day.

So that is mostly it for last week. It is quite repetitive and monotonous but there's hope that things will start to improve with a provisional date for the reopening of shops and the hospitality sector. In the meantime I hope the sunnier weather returns so we can spend more time in the garden.

Coronavirus lockdown diary weeks 5 and 6

The past two weeks have been much the same as the ones before. The reality of the situation has become increasingly difficult as the weeks have gone on. That said, hopefully things will improve as the news is reporting a decrease in cases and outlines of the 'exit strategy.'

So, again this is what I've been upto...nothing new!

1. Gardening
The weather has turned a little recently, cooler wetter weather with the odd sunny warm day here and there. I was able to get some of the runner beans in a large pot and all of the tomatoes potted up. The Spring onions are coming along but roughly only half of the seeds I sowed in March and early April germinated. So yesterday I sowed another batch of spring onion seeds and some chives which also need a bit of a boost in numbers. I've also planted a couple of extra cucumber seeds to replace the two which have failed but the other four seem ok so far. The flower seeds however have been a mixed bag. Out of three trays of lobelia seeds, two failed completely! Only a handful of pansies have germinated too, but the zinnias look more promising - there are nearly forty seedlings - and the sweet peas are looking healthy too. We've started weeding the border this week so I'm hoping the sweet peas can go out shortly and will be soon followed by the other flowers. A rhododendron and lily of the valley both burst into flower this week, brightening up the garden and the lilac is still blooming and the gorgeous scent fills the air when you walk by.

2. Cooking/baking
I did some more baking and cooking over the past few weeks. I made a banana loaf which was so good that I'm hoping to make it again this week and my mum and I made some sweet unicorn cupcakes yesterday. I also made some apple and parsnip soup as a starter one evening and tried a recipe for cauliflower Mac and cheese. The latter was not good so the following week I reverted to my favourite tried and tested recipe.

3. Reading
I didn't even pick up a book over the last fortnight so absolutely nothing to report here!

4. Sewing
I made some homemade face masks just in case it's a requirement to wear them post lockdown, as I had some basic and elastic stored away by chance. It gave me a chance to dust off my sewing machine and practice so I enjoyed that.

5. eBay
I finally got around to listing some of the things I've been wanting to get rid of for ages. So far I've listed about six items and one has sold, but the remaining items are clothes which don't seem to sell well anymore so I'm not hopeful but it would be great to declutter.

I think that covers everything really. My hopes for next week are some more baking, finishing the garden border, sowing some flower and courgette seeds and listing some more items on eBay. However, it's very much a one day at a time approach now so I'm just planning to take it as it comes.

Keeping busy during the coronavirus lockdown weeks 3 and 4

It doesn't feel like two weeks since my last diary post, a sign of the days blurring into one and becoming very samey no doubt. My momentum has definitely slowed down, particularly this week with the colder, rainy weather. Thankfully though, the sunshine and warmth seems set to return next week. So here's what I've been up to:

1. Cooking
Not much from the ordinary admittedly, but for Good Friday I cooked a Tuscan butter salmon dish with new potatoes and green beans for dinner and made individual jam sponges for dessert. The weather was lovely so we were even able to sit outside and eat. It was a nice start to the Easter bank holiday weekend.

Tuscan butter salmon

2. Gardening
Over the last two weeks I've been sowing more seeds; runner beans and various flowers. Then I discovered it was far too soon for the runner beans and despite only sowing them one week ago, I have seedlings about 10cm tall. Oh dear. It is more than likely too soon for them to be planted out as we could still have frosts in the next month, but on the basis that I have spare seeds to plant, not enough room to keep them indoors and some homemade plastic cloches, I'm going to put them out anyway. My two earliest courgettes are probably a few weeks ahead of schedule too, but again I'll try my best to keep them happy for another couple of weeks and have more seeds if I need to resow.

3. TV
I'm really struggling to find anything to watch on tv at the moment. At a time like this, it would be nice if more cheerful films and programmes were scheduled. The only show I've really been watching is Belgravia which concludes tomorrow evening. Other than that I'm hoping Netflix comes up with some good new releases soon!

4. Reading
I started in my next book, "The Best Boomerville Hotel". I've only read a little but I'm struggling to really get into it. I'm not sure if this is because I'm finding it hard to concentrate and in fairness, I didn't get into the last book I read that quickly either, but ended up really enjoying it. So, perhaps I should give it another go, or move on to the next one and then return to it later on.

5. Easter
As I mentioned earlier, Good Friday was marked with a nice dinner and drinks outside in the sunshine. On Saturday I made a floral centrepiece for the Easter dining table with some ranches for the garden. It wasn't the best decoration, but it brought a little colour inside and brightened up the table.

 On Easter Sunday we had an impromptu egg hunt as a way to burn off a few calories before enjoying some Easter chocolate! I cut out eggs from card and hid them in the garden, so none of the resident wildlife would find the chocolate eggs first! I'd purchased my Easter eggs well before the lockdown when they were on offer, so I had one for everyone :)

That's been about everything. I'm going to try to be more productive next week than I was this week, perhaps some baking and more garden progress hopefully.

Egg hunt - hidden in bluebells!