Beds and borders
What grew, what didn't, and what the slugs thought of it.
Garlic in October
October 2, 2026
Planted the cloves from the market, not the ones from the seed catalog. Next summer will tell if that was cheap or clever.
The bean frame
September 2, 2026
Bamboo and string held up until the first real wind. Rebuilt it lower, which the beans did not seem to mind.
Seed packets
August 13, 2026
Half the packets in the drawer are older than the drawer. A germination test on a wet towel sorted out which ones still count.
Watering
July 16, 2026
A barrel under the gutter covers the beds for most of the summer. A lid keeps the leaves out.
June 24, 2026
The compost pile
It works when it is wet and does nothing when it is dry. Grass clippings in thin layers, never a heap.