So this is a day earlier than usual because of my upcoming adventure tomorrow walking from Bury to Clare. As a consequence I am going to make it short and sweet, so that I at least get a bit of relaxation this Saturday evening.

“How did you get on with the Soil Association audit last Tuesday?” I hear you asking in voices quivering with anticipation/trepidation. Well it went swimmingly thank you very much. I appreciate your concern. It seems that I ticked all of the relevant boxes, and he was happy to renew my certificate (subject to me sending him a couple of documents) for another year.

There was a dodgy moment before the inspector arrived though. I had been rushing around like a blue arsed fly tidying up, sweeping, hoeing, and generally trying to make the place appear as professional as I possibly could ahead of him arriving. Satisfied that I had done all that I could I sat down in the greenhouse with a cup of coffee to enjoy the calm before the storm. I happened to look down, only to see a substantial split in my jeans there. You know….there! There was nothing to be done at such a late stage, I didn’t have anything to change into, so I just acted as if nothing was amiss. And I decided that there was no earthly reason for him to be glancing at my nether regions anyway, so I would be alright. It could explain why he was in such a hurry to get away after the audit.

The very next day I had another wardrobe malfunction. The weather was fine, the grass had dried out nicely, so I got on the ride on mower to do some mowing. So warm was it that I was wearing only a t-shirt on top, and when I made a cut along the hedge line I got snagged by a long bramble that dug its vicious claws into the cotton, and with the forward momentum of the mower it inflicted multiple slashes to the shirt, almost ripping it from my torso. I was left looking somewhat like the Incredible Hulk immediately after somebody had made him angry. For the rest of the day I had to cover up with my hoodie to avoid an potentially embarrassing encounter with one of the natives. The lesson to be learned from these incidents is that I really need to have a change of clothing in the shed just in case.

The shop is still sparsely populated this week, though there is a return of leeks. Chard is in limited supply, but not as limited as lettuces. I only have about a dozen of the polytunnel ones remaining, so these will go to the first customers that bag them. I will remove them from the shop as soon as they are sold. What we do have are mini plum tomatoes from the Isle of Wight. They are firm and tasty little fruit, and it’s good to see them back. I apologise for not having enough aubergines for everyone last week. I haven’t ordered any for this week because the price has increased significantly, but when it reduces I will get some in again.

I removed the netting from all of the plants I have managed to get in the soil so far and hoed them all. The lettuces have largely recovered from the earlier slug attack and are now putting on some growth. The same is also true of the cabbages and broccoli, though the chard still hasn’t made much progress. I now have quite a few items to get planted, including French beans, cavolo nero, kohl rabi, Florence fennel and more lettuces. Celeriac will be ready to plant out in another week or two. Meanwhile inside I have planted all of the sweet peppers and have got two rows of tomatoes in the polytunnel. Another couple of rows will be added this week.

I had a Swallow on the potting shed last week. It swooped in the open door, did a recce to look for a nesting spot and then promptly left. A couple also had a look in my machinery shelter. I hope that they find a suitable nesting site that is safe from Sid the resident cat, and the squirrels.

Right I’m off. I need to get my kit ready for tomorrow. Sun cream, plasters, hat, tuck, water bottle. I have done no preparatory long distance walks, so I am hoping that my general level of fitness will see me through. I will give a full report next week, but expect to be walking like John Wayne tomorrow evening. I wasn’t looking for sponsorship, that can all become a little tedious, but 3 customers have voluntarily made contributions, for which I am very grateful, as will be the Hospice. The weather is looking set fair for tomorrow so it should be a good day to walk through a section of beautiful Suffolk countryside.

One last thing. Well done the Tractor Boys for gaining promotion to the Premier League today.

Have a good week

Phil