Oh, how I miss Haddock's.

I am suffering from potager deprivation.

Haddock's used to be a big part of my life. We bought very little fruit or vegetables throughout the year, and our annual preserves were more than adequate. Even with such a small actual growing plot, there was always far more produced than we required. We gave a lot away.

At this time of year I begin to get itchy spade, trowel, and dibber. My brain is telling me that I should be preparing for the year's crops, but I have nowhere to plant them. When you are used to having a productive vegetable and fruit garden, not planting anything is difficult to cope with.

At the moment there would still have been Kale, Cavelo Nero, and Chard from the previous year. I never took anything out until every last leaf had been eaten. 

I didn't bother to grow much from seed as we had a wonderful garden store nearby (Gamme Vert) that provided all the small plants I required. Now is the time I would start to visit, and buy the first seedlings that would cope with the cold weather. Other plants would be bought after the 11th 12th and 13th of May (The Ice Saints) after which one was guaranteed that nothing would die of frostbite. 

In the photo above, I can see my old white plastic chair beneath the Yellow Cherry tree. That's where I would sit and admire, and watch the world go by as my crops grew.