Six or seven weeks ago we sowed our brassicas into a nursery bed - their temporary lodgings until they reached a suitable size for transplanting. Cavalo Nero, purple sprouting, Romanesco cauliflower, and kale ‘Emerald Ice’, have all now put on enough growth and were teased out of the ground with plenty of roots attached and moved into their new homes. Once transplanted and well watered they were draped in fine horticultural mesh to protect them from sap-sucking insects and hungry birds.
With five beds designated for the brassicas we still have one vacant and ready to be filled with sprouts which were sown a little later and will follow on in a few weeks time. Our nursery bed also contains needle thin leek seedlings which need to reach pencil thickness before moving home.
While in the vegetable garden some perfectly formed radishes (pictured) caught our eye and made it back to the kitchen to be enjoyed as an afternoon snack with a sprinkling of flakey sea salt.
In the greenhouse Cosmos and Tithonia seedlings were pricked out into individual 9cm pots. Larger tomatoes and peppers were potted-on into 2 litre pots and will be transferred into 10 litre pots in a few weeks' time. It’s a busy time of year but we also think it's one of the most enjoyable.