Gardening in February

A frosty start to February, but our primulas are beginning to flower in our raised bed in front of our building.

Adding some chippings to our paths.

The local council very kindly gave us a trailer load of wood chippings, they were spotted cutting down some bushes in front of our school and were happy to give us the wood chip.  We use a lot of wood chip at school in our hen run and on our paths in-between the veggie beds.

Our wine crate hedgehog house is now complete - we just need a hedgehog!

Thanks again to The Wine Chambers who gave us the wine crate.

We decided the hen run roof needed a bit of attention, we had tried to keep off the water with a tarpaulin, but it had got all torn in the high winds.  We bought some plastic sheeting and some roofing screws, the staff and students put together a frame to fasten the sheets to.

Here is the frame which has been fastened to our existing run.

Some of the fencing posts had to be trimmed so that the roofing sheets could be fastened all the way up to the sides of the run.

The first signs of our purple sprouting broccoli.

Salads growing in the poly-tunnel

Pepper plants growing in our heated propagators.

A path along the side of the poly-tunnel is started, weed barrier has been put down, chippings will eventually go on top.

During the half-term holidays some of the staff got together for a bit of planting.  We have plans to have a mini garden centre during our enterprise week this year, so we needed to get some of the plants started early.  

Some transplanted seedlings - I think these are pinks?

Some tomatoes - we have decided to grow a few different varieties this year.  The little yellow tomatoes were really tasty last year, so we have put some more of those in, also some stripy ones too.

We are having a go at forcing rhubarb this year, it is starting to sprout - we have covered it with a spare compost bin to keep out the light.  Apparently it is very tender and sweet if you do this?

We had a delivery of compost to top dress the new raised beds in the scholarship garden.  The students moved the soil in wheel-barrows and carefully raked the soil until it was nice and smooth.