Where are the snows of yesteryear?

On their way back, apparently, so today's first job was to cover the broad beans with horticultural fleece to protect them from the Arctic weather we are braced to expect. One or two of them had succumbed to last night's frost but there are still some vigorous specimens there. They all got stakes to climb up, too.

Then it was back to scraping off the remainder of the turf, while listening to Susie Orbach on the radio pronounce that we no longer engage in productive exercise in modern society. I've now filled compost box 1, so will have to get another for the rest of the grass. I uncovered two more Strongbow cans - I think the Noughties cider revival must have started early on my plot - some broken glass and a piece of almost-composted blue carpet, which can finish its decay in the compost heap.

I seem incapable of remembering my camera when I go up there, but will try next time - when it will be time to create some more raised beds.

Bowing and scraping

I went up to the plot yesterday with the firm intention of actually doing some work, having the unexpected benefit of a still, sunny morning. It was cold up on the site, though - the puddles in the weed-suppressing black plastic were still frozen at 10 am. I spent an hour with a spade, bent down to scrape off the turf and weeds from about six square metres of plot. An hour felt like long enough for that sort of labour - I'm certainly feeling the effects this morning. Another hour will probably see the rest of the end third of the plot cleared, and ready to dig over so the raised beds can be installed.

The broad beans continue to survive, and the larger ones are showing signs of leaf buds, which is encouraging.

Praise be ...

... the broad bean seedlings have survived the extreme cold and ground frost. Well, most of them have. Hopefully the survivors will be even more vigorous and fruitful than usual.