1st February

Here we are - the first of February - and so much to do in the garden. All my tomato seeds are now sown in pots which I keep in the airing cupboard until they begin to show then move them to the spare room. They need the heat to germinate, but once they come through I don't want them to grow too quickly so move them to a slightly cooler environment with more light. As you can guess, my greenhouse is not heated. However, I have been able to sow some other, more hardy seeds out there such as brassicas. As usual I am in too much of a hurry to get things planted. I know from past experience there is no point as later sowings always catch up.

We have been having some very mild weather, but only occasionally sunny so the grass has grown terrifically, but has been too wet to mow. Nevertheless, I thought I had better have a go at mowing before it grew any longer. So on Tuesday when the sun was shining, I got my husband to sharpen the blade of the Flymo, set it back on a high setting and had a go. What a mess the lawn looks now. But at least it is shorter and this will help it dry off when we do get some drying weather and make it easier to tidy up later on.

(With regard to the said husband, you may wonder why he doesn't mow the lawn for me. Well he has something called Polymyalgia Rheumatica which affects his back and legs so he has great difficulty walking.)