Greece Donkey Droppings

Almost a foot long in less than a week - and still growing fast!

We seem to have hit the period of endless hot, dry days faster this year than last. One day it was cool, the next it was like a wall of heat, and it hasn’t eased up much since. There does seem to be more wind though, sometimes with a cool edge but at others a hot, dusty breeze that feels like we’re sitting in the path of a hairdryer. A couple of nights ago a strong wind – reminiscent of winter – started in the evening and continued through the night. But with it came lower temperatures and I gladly slept with the windows open. It was beautifully cool, the breeze wafting the bed sheet like fingers gently massaging my back.

My intention had been to get up around 6am the following morning to water the vegetable garden before the heat of the day kicked in (it can be uncomfortably hot by 8am), but as it was still windy I decided to give it a miss. Better to water the ground slowly later, I thought, than get myself thoroughly soaked as the wind whipped the spray everywhere. So at 8am I was out there, working slowly among the plant with the hosepipe, doing my best to water the soil and not the plants themselves.

For some reason I was preoccupied when I finished the task, and I forgot to turn off the water at the main tap. Unfortunately I didn’t discover this until around 12 hours later, as I put my foot down and sank quickly into the muddy ground along the side of the plot. Oops!

Despite these mishaps, our gardening experiment continues with mixed results.

On the positive side every type of vegetable we’ve planted is growing, although we’ve lost a few individual plants here and there. The speed of growth is surprising, and we’re already faced with dilemmas like what to do with 5 large cucumbers, all ready at the same time. But that’s where non-growing friends come in. So far we’ve harvested our own lettuce, French beans, cucumber, courgettes, strawberries and tomatoes.

Courgettes are also coming along well

The heat is taking its toll, and lettuce and carrots are protesting by bolting. A day is a long time in a sunny garden, and we’re learning the hard way about the need for regular feeding, as the water quickly dilutes the impact of the feed. We need to rig up some sort of shade – olive netting over some bamboo poles should do the trick – to try and give the plants some respite in the afternoons, otherwise I think we could lose more to the sapping heat.

The only times of day when manual work is comfortable are early morning (preferred by me) and late evening (preferred by Ken). The ground is so hard – a combination of heavy soil and lack of moisture – it’s difficult to dig down more than a few inches, and gardening tools can easily get damaged. The weeds are, obviously, comfortable in this environment and grow so fast that we need regular weeding sessions among the vegetables to keep ahead of the game.

Container growing seems to be a good idea, giving us more control over watering, feeding and shading options. We already have carrots, strawberries and potatoes in containers, and may have a go with a few lettuce and tomatoes.

Potatoes seem happier in containers where we can almost see them growing

Although we haven’t had particular pest problems (a few holey leaves is all) we’re also trying some companion planting, putting basil and oregano in amongst the crops. Basil is also finding a use as insect repellent (pots by windows and doors) and to treat insect bites. The oregano was collected from where it grows wild in the hills, in the company of our landlord’s mother. She’s 70, but put me to shame as she climbed up and down the steep slopes like a mountain goat, gathering bags full of herbs, most of which she apparently gives away.

As if caring for our own patch during the few comfortable hours of the day wasn’t enough, I seem to have become unofficial gardener for the rest of the site where we live. We had already offered to water the flower beds each night, which made sense as we were already out there watering our own stuff, and another 15 minutes or so would make no difference.  But then in casual conversation I said I was tempted to weed an enclosed bed where the flowers were fighting for space, and suddenly I was being given requests (I’d like that one moved somewhere else please, and these things in tubs need to go somewhere – put them wherever you want) and presented with new plants to incorporate into the beds!

Actually I don’t mind at all. It’s a good way to get some exercise, which is a rare thing these days, plus it means we get to learn more quickly about which plants will grow best in this climate. Another bonus is the opportunity to take whatever cuttings we want, which means we can start to build up stock for our own garden now, and without the expense of buying plants.

And it’s another example in Greek trust: our landlady gave us the keys to her pick-up yesterday, phoned ahead to the garden centre to say we were coming, and told us to go and get whatever we wanted – on her account.

It’s also confirmed for us that we don’t want extensive flower gardens ourselves. Lots of stuff in pots, and ground cover plants spilling onto gravelled areas makes much more sense – and much less work!