Yesterday, took delivery of a rather nice stout coffin of a box from
Spalding B & S. In it was a small lemon tree - smaller than I'd
anticipated, and without any of the lemons I was expecting from the
catalogue illustration. (Yes, after I placed the order I bought two
lemon trees from a stallholder in Norwich, one with a basket full of
lemons, and the other, smaller one, with a few small ones. OK,
Spalding's offering wasn't dear, but the smaller one with lemons was
cheaper...).

Potted the lemon on in a slightly larger pot, with citrus compost. It
now graces the bathroom windowsill. I was expecting the compost to be
gritty, but it was very much like peat.

There were three small blueberry bushes, different varieties, which have
been potted-on in small planters, and these will be replaced with larger
ones when the blueberries are bigger.

Had to go inside and find a straw hat.

Three Solanum something-or-other - muricatum - melon plums?
Honeydew-shaped fruit (but smaller!) which taste of melon (allegedly).
Not potted these on yet.

Potted a bare-root persimmon for planting out later. Neighbour wheeled a
barrowload of bonfire material past - I pounced...

....acquired two tatty but usable planters and some paeony tubers.

Did some weeding.

Now, if I'd known quite how enthusiastic the autumn-fruiting (golden)
raspberry was going to be, I'd never have bought another one - little
canelets pushing-up everywhere! The summer one (red) is much more
subdued - for the present, anyway.

Anyone want some pretty bittercress plants before I pull them all up?
(Dream on!)

Now, I've got to find places for all sorts of other fruit, red and
blackcurrants, goosegogs, more raspberries, and they've got to be
somewhere I can net...

I've to finish the line of (scaffold) poles so I can plant the other
Chinese Gooseberry, and strain some fencing wire between poles, on which
to fan and espalier train a fruiting hedge. Grapes and Chinese goosegogs
will sprawl along the top at a height of around seven feet.

Thanks again to Anne J, who sent me a substantial hop crown this week.
Not only will this place be freezered with fruit come autumn, but it'll
be brewed with beer innit.

There will be pics...

--
Rusty
Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional.
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