Midsummer update from my homestead

It has been some time since I have posted a blog update from my homestead. Looking out of the window at grey skies it is hard to believe that July is just around the corner. 2024 so far has certainly been a very strange growing year, weather-wise.

A cool wet year so far

Here on my hillside in Ceredigion, the rain started falling in mid-July last year and barely stopped until May. Temperatures are mostly much lower than usual, especially at night. Cool days and night temps only reaching or exceeding 10°C for the past seven days or so, has meant that growth of warmth loving plants such as squash, courgettes, cucumbers, melons and basil has been poor. Some just gave up and died, even in the greenhouse.

I am wondering whether the sorrowful looking squash outside will ever start growing properly. Likewise the polytunnel cucumbers and melons which are tiny for the time of year.

Fortunately French (pole), dwarf (bush) and runner beans are now starting to grow with some enthusiasm, with flowers on the runner beans. In the polytunnel, the tomatoes are looking good. Outdoor varieties are a quite yellow and small, due to the cool weather. I am hoping they will perk up, and signs are looking good because new growth is green and healthy.

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Abundant asparagus!

I’ve been enjoying the first year of asparagus harvests here at the homestead. The polytunnel grown asparagus has been the most productive, advice I was given by a nearby smallholder Saronne for growing asparagus in Wales. Broadbeans were later cropping than usual, and we are now enjoying their abundance. Pod and sugar peas are starting to crop, so many delicious flavours from the summer garden.

Weirdly, the multi-sown beetroot has been incredibly slow. Usually I would be harvesting small summer beetroot but they just sat there for weeks, refusing to grow (due to the weather). Thankfully they are now starting to grow. All of my carrots germinated and were eaten by slugs, so I need to sow more. The parsnips however are looking fantastic.

Sluggy summer

Slugs have been an issue nationally, it having been a perfect year for slugs, with a mild damp winter. I have lost some things to the slimy ones including half the basil and almost all of my first sowing of marigolds. They slithered up onto the propagating benches and feasted. They ate all of the carrot seedlings, and around a quarter of the squash transplants. Fortunately I have some spare squash to plant out.

I really ought to whisper this, but despite some losses slug damage has not been as bad here as last summer, and I haven’t seen the giant monster slugs that were everywhere last June. This is likely due to a better balance of predators here including toads, frogs and beetles. Many birds use the garden as a foraging place, and it is likely that the local rats are also munching on some slugs. There are hedgehogs here, but slugs are a famine food for them, not really a good part of their diet.

This week in the garden

This week, I am harvesting all of the garlic and clearing some of the broadbeans that were flattened in a recent storm. This will make space for planting out winter brassicas, which have been growing in pots inside a large full-height frame I use as an outdoor propagation area. The fine mesh means that butterflies can’t get in and lay their eggs. The large brassica cage is from Gardening Naturally. I’ve grown more brassicas than I need, in case some get munched by slugs.

The fruit cage, which is covered with a metal mesh to keep off jays, magpies and squirrels and other more determined garden visitors, is like my polytunnel from First Tunnels. The fruit cage comes with a plastic mesh as standard.  I bought the metal mesh from a local agricultural supplier.

Bees, butterflies and moths

There are plenty of bees and other flying insects, but I haven’t seen wasps for weeks now. I know there was a nest being built somewhere near here because the wasps were gathering strips of wood from the sheds, but I haven’t seen them foraging. Hopefully they have another foraging place, and haven’t been harmed in some way (there has been some really awful unseasonal weather). There are some butterflies, but not many yet. I grow a lot of plants to encourage butterfly and moth populations, so hopefully their numbers will increase. There have been plenty of mullein moth caterpillars munching on the figwort.

Latest News!

Gardening and Homesteading Courses here

It has been wonderful welcoming so many people to the homestead on my sustainable grow year round gardening courses. There are still places on the next three courses:  July 13th, August 17th and September 21st. Learn the skills you  to grow your own affordably year round, using methods which are soil, wildlife and planet-friendly. The next few months are key times for sowing and planting for harvests throughout the winter, and next spring, and beyond.

On the homesteading skills courses, which are part demo and part practical workshops, learn what to do with all your wonderful harvests (or purchases from local growers, or supermarkets) including dehydrating, waterbath canning, drying, fermenting, wines and more. They are all on the Sunday after the Saturday gardening courses: July 14th, August 18th and September 22nd.

All of the courses are small groups, so that everyone can fully participate and cost £95. Concessions for lower incomes, including people feeling really skint due to the cost of living*, are available on all courses, just contact me to discuss.

(* having been hit rather badly by ever increasing prices, like most people I think, I am planning a “frugalling” series for my You Tube channel and social media. It’s a bit behind schedule because I was poorly with a lurgie, but hope to have it online soon.)

No Dig Organic Home and Garden on Sale!

My award winning book is currently on sale at a huge discount of only £10 (plus P&P) – a saving of £13 off the RRP of £23. Order your copy here.

Sale price is strictly whilst stocks last, and only from my website shop. P&P is set by the Royal Mail. I have no control over their postage prices 🙂

Kitchen Garden Magazine cover

I’ve been a regular feature writer for Kitchen Garden Magazine for five or six years now, and currently write the Jobs for the Month feature each month. However I wasn’t expecting to see myself on the cover of the July issue – which is in the shops now.

Mag editor Steve Ott recently recorded a podcast with me all about my visit to Chelsea Flower Show – I’ll post the link here when it is live.

Royal Welsh Show

I was delighted to be invited to create a micro show garden for the Royal Welsh Show, which takes place from 22nd-25th July. The micro show gardens are a new addition to the event and will be situated in the horticulture area. I am busy raising the plants for my garden and doing many sun dances willing them to grow!!

I’ll share more details about this in another post. The last show garden I was involved in was much larger, for the RHS Hampton Court Garden Festival in 2021 and that one used plants raised by Terry Porter and Jon Wheatley. Pop up show gardens created for Sunrise Festivals in Bruton and the Royal Bath and West Show in previous years all used plants I’d raised myself.

This will be an edible garden – of course!

Hampton Court Garden Festival 2024

Looking forward to attending the show again this year on Press Day – Monday 1st July. If you’re heading to the show on Wednesday then do make sure to catch one of the fabulous Becky Searle’s talks on the Get Growing Festival Stage at 2pm “Save our Soils – How Your Soils Could Help Fight Climate Change” and also on the How To Stage at 11am and 4pm with “Greener Gardens – How to Use Your Garden as a Force For Good ”

Lampeter Food Festival

I am delighted to be running a plot to plate demo at the Lampeter Food Festival on July 27th. More details soon.

RHS Wisley Flower Show 2024

On Saturday 7th September, I’ll be returning to the wonderful RHS Wisley Flower Show to give talks at the Hilltop Live Theatre.

Welsh Permaculture Festival 2024

Looking forward to attending the Welsh Permaculture Festival near Abergavenny on 27th-29th September, where I’ll be running a demo/workshop sharing some homesteading skills for self sufficiency. There’s a fantastic programme of speakers and workshops. Tickets which include camping and all meals are available here.