SPRING FORWARD

Spring forward, Fall back - that’s how to remember which way the clock goes when the hour changes.  I think we need it to happen the other way round, so that we get more light in the autumn evenings, but maybe getting an hour less sleep when it’s getting colder and darker, might be too much.  It takes less time to recover from the hour change when you know that the long summer evenings are just around the corner...

Now is a good time to plant up a new border with container grown plants - before the weather starts to get too hot and dry.  Try to get the plants established before the summer. 

RHUBARB RHUBARB

Rhubarb is not to everyone’s taste, and in fact only a couple of us like it here, but I seem to have planted about half an acre regardless.  Luckily I love rhubarb - the colour of the stems, the wonderful leaves (there’s an ornamental rhubarb - Rheum palmatum, which looks great in a damp border) and the taste.  You can use a Rhubarb forcer early in the season (or an upturned old flowerpot) to make the stems longer and less stringy - by depriving them of light.

There’s meant to be a photo and a link to my Rhubarb and ginger crumble cake here, but something went wrong and the crumble part sank to the bottom of the cake when I made it.  It tasted fine, but I can’t unleash the recipe until it behaves itself better or is more photogenic, at least.