Left France for Spain last week – time away from the wind and rain for a while. Just before I departed snapped a couple of pictures. The first is some unfinished work. I had hoped to complete the slight enlargement to the veggie plot before I left but the weather was not kind and trying to edge sodden ground is no fun. So this is the first thing I’ll be doing when I get home in March. You can see I’ve got lots of lovely tree roots to remove before I can make use of this new patch. Also, need to think about fencing in the plot to keep the hens at bay. Not sure how to do it cheaply and for it to look good at the same time?
This next picture is quite amazing for me at least – taken 11th of February and the squashes I’d got left still looked good! They’ve been in the basement on a slatted table in the light for a good 4 months . I’ve put the small ones in the compost but left the big one to see if it manages to hold on till March. When I’ve kept them in the basement where it’s dark they have never lasted this long.
Finally, this is where you hope the winter continues as is and doesn’t decide to go into free fall temperature wise. The rhubarb is all coming up. I grew this from seed last year but didn’t pull any stalks looks like I’ve got about 10 good plants appearing so looking forward to some rhubarb crumble come the spring. I’ve planted a ruby red monarda between each rhubarb plant so hope this row looks and tastes good. The monarda I bought as a tiny plant last spring and by autumn it was over a foot in diameter so I split it into 10 pieces and replanted . Let’s hope I’ve not been too mean with the transplanting and they bulk up quickly.
Jen's Jardin 
Hope you have a nice break away from the wind and rain,can’t you find any pallets to make a fence to keep chickens in or out. I have a couple of marrows still in the house which we won’t eat, but are coming in handy to hold the lid down on the beer fermentor.
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Good use of marrows I’d say! Must try your rhubarb wine if I get a crop this year. Hmm..pallets sometimes you can find the odd pallet at the rubbish dump but in France their ‘recyclement’ appear to form part of an environment target and around our parts they’re like gold dust. The one’s we got our hands on are used to stack the firewood on. I dream of unlimited access to pallets and what I could do with them….
The hens have a big coop but I’m too soft so let them have free range…probably should turn they’re coop into a veggie plot and keep them out of that.
Hope the rain stops in the UK soon – seems relentless. Today not much better in Spain…raining and 14….
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We find a few pallets dotted around he city but a lot now are recycled or sold,people know you can build a few bits from them so decide to make money from them. Bet it’s nice having the chickens running riot around the plot,at least the chickens will control the bugs and give you some eggs. The wine is nice the longer you leave it the better.
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The hens are cool – so little effort so much reward. They are the most industrious beings I’ve ever seem – non stop scratting dawn till dusk. Hopeless, trying to get any work done around them though as they’re in at you’re feet the whole time. They are in the care of our kind neighbours while we enjoy the sun. Sitting here hoping the grass in not growing a mile a minute and the pesky moles are not recreating the battle of the Somme in the back field.
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One of the chaps has chickens at the other side of the site,only problem people can see them from a public footpath. He has had a couple pinched the other week,we think someone has come over the fence and it wasn’t foxes.
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