Who dares wins

I have to confess to being a little obsessive and competitive when it comes to my garden.
I blame the weather. Not in a complaining whinging kind of way. No that would not do. But in a matter of fact this is the way it is, how I can I beat the weather and grow what I want, kind of way.

If the climate was reasonable and delivered adequate sunny periods followed by just enough rain to refresh the plants and keep them growing I would not be at all obsessive. If the climate did not send howling winds and pounding rain or if it did not serve up snow and frosts at unseasonable times of the year I would not be obsessive. But sad to say the weather around here is totally non-interested in playing fair and sends all sorts of isobaric challenges to confound the home gardener. And so I have resorted to obsessive tactics to get the upper hand.

Like making little plastic shelters for my plants and covering the ground with sheep dags to keep the heat in. It is of course questionable how effective these measures are. If I was really honest I would have to admit they are not really effective at all. The weather usually wins and it would be cheaper to buy vegetables rather than wrestle with the elements and try and produce my own.

However, while the weather seriously influences the success of crops like beans, corn, pumpkin and tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, cabbage and yams do grow well no matter what the weather. So I can win if I am selective about which crops I grow but there is not much of a challenge in that is there? And incidentally I should add broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, cabbage and yams grow well only if  the foraging chickens do not scratch them up. Yes I battle chickens too.

My ultimate coup against the weather is growing chillis and okra. Impossible, I hear you exclaim. Not so. Last year I raised four okra plants and one chilli on the window sill at work. I took them on holiday with me over Christmas and brought them back to work in mid-January. They flowered happily and produced a crop which I joyfully ate.

Admittedly it was not a bumper crop but it still counted as a victory which makes me the vanquisher I believe.