If you ever need an idea for a birthday present for a gardener then look no further than buying some packets of seeds, plastic garden wire, a bag of garden grit or bags of soil enricher (and if they like the medium of radio also a fantastic book called “The Voices”). Cheers to all who were involved in buying the above as they have come in well handy and well appreciated here!

The bags of soil enricher stood around in the corner for the grand total of about 24 hours until it was put to good use on the raised beds that have now been stripped of their spuds, lettuce and onions apart from a couple of lone tomato plants.

We tipped the stuff straight from the bag in large doses and hoed it into the beds. In beds where we couldn’t get the hoe in we just left it on the top like a mulch and it probably won’t be too long before the worms and nature works it into the soil. It gives off a creosote type niff but that’s a small price to pay for some decent veggies and flower production next year.Our own natural soil enricher projects are going well, we’re having a lot of success with the open style compost heap (complete with an old bathroom mat to keep the goodness in and the rain out.) It doesn’t smell, doesn’t attract vermin (we don’t think) and seems to be working well in breaking down the garden waste. A weekly turn with a garden fork helps too.

In the dalek bin, things are progressing and it looks like the worms are on the way out (that’s a good sign to say it’s nearly done) even though there’s a few hanging onto the side. The dark brown crumbly stuff inside looks like it’s going to be good for the garden.

As for smelling and enrichment the comfrey liquid is high on the list for those two properties. The container was ponced off a butcher, the housebrick to weight it all down and the comfrey, nettle and borage leaves all from the garden itself. It’s A1 stuff but blimmin’ reeks, keep it off your clothes!

And what does the forthcoming weather in SE23 hold for us you reckon?