First sowing

Bed one now has 18 broad beans, bed two planted with rye.

Yesterday I finished digging the first patch. Bed four was easier than the others after a small amount of rain softened the turf. I tried grading the whole area (making it level and even), and found that I hadn't dug bed one properly.

Today I forked over bed one, to remove roots and stones, and put string up to show the boundaries.

I decided to change the plan described in the last post. Initially I was going to put rye in beds one and three, thinking that because they are sunniest, I would improve the soil over winter with the green manure crop, and then plant my favourite veg in them. I changed my mind, because the whole area is reasonably sunny, and this is likely to be more of a constraint for winter crops. I also decided to put the brassicas in bed three, because it is more sheltered and they can suffer from too much wind, particularly in light soil. The new plan is thus:

1. Legumes, initially broad beans (Aguadulce) and peas (Meteor).
2. Winter grazing rye, a green manure.
3. Brassicas, initially kale (Nero di Toscana) and cabbage (Advantage F1).
4. Winter grazing rye.

I have planted 18 broad beans in bed one, and scattered rye on bed two. I will see if the rye germinates before planting more in bed four, as I want to see if birds come and eat it before planting all my seeds.