Hello from a windy but bright Viking Way. I do the family shop every week and every week just lately I come out with less in my carrier bags. Add to this the energy price increases its little wonder people are having to choose to eat or heat. But its great to see people who have never before given “grow your own” a thought using the space they have so ingeniously. People approach me in my local watering hole and ask me all sorts of questions on gardening which I endeavour to answer. The interest in strawbale gardening has never been greater. I did a small piece on BBC radio Lincolnshire last week which went well. Its not for everyone, but it definitely has its place. It is just a form of container gardening. I am putting together some zoom workshops for next month. If you are interested in these please let me know. I will be demonstrating the method in some detail. Its not simply a question of pushing a few seeds in to the bale. You need to prepare the strawbale to receive the seeds and or plants. As I have said before, most vegetables will grow in straw. Talking to fellow strawbalers the most popular seem to be runner beans, onion, garlic, potato’s and tomatoes. I planted some garlic in three bales in January and it seems to be doing fine. If you are interested in trying strawbale gardening and cannot wait for my workshops then please have a look at my e-book. I hope the weather settles so we can all get out and grow.

Good gardening.

Simon.