This weekend mum and I planted up some tasty vegetables to get the year going. Very sadly last year we had to make the decision to remove our box hedge which we've had for many years. The box moth had weakened it and it was dying. This invasive species has decimated the local box in the surrounding area! The Box Tree Moth is originally from South East Asia and was accidentally released in the UK, it was first found in Scotland in 2018. It was a shame but it has equally provided us with an opportunity do something new. Gardens are always evolving, which is part of the fun. We have now added two new vegetable beds and planted them with Lettuce (Lollo Rosso), Brussel Sprouts and Kale in one, and Beetroot, Broad Beans and Spinach in the other bed. We can't wait to see the results! We also planted some Tomato and Chilli (Lemon Drop) seeds for the windowsill, as it's too cold to plant them straight outside. Amazingly some of the tomato seeds have already popped up just three days later!
Our new beds complete with smart plant covers (to stop the foxes digging everything up!)
For the rest of the area we plan to add another new bed, this time for perennial herbs, like Rosemary and Thyme. We also want to expand the paved area so Dad and I have more room for our birdwatching sessions down the end of the garden. As a special treat to ourselves we have also bought a wood fired pizza oven, which we can't to experiment with! We hope to complete the project with a covered area outside the shed for those drizzly days. Finally we plan to add another small pond to make the garden even more wildlife friendly.
Meanwhile Dad's been finishing the base for the shed in our Norfolk nature reserve project; and we are all going back there this weekend to put the shed up! Huge thanks to my cousin Jon who is coming over to help hold shed panels up whilst my dad screws it all together. All systems go & so exciting to be at this stage. I can't wait to tell you all how it goes!
Shed base all ready to go!