So…. my greenhouse….

You remember when you were little, and you did that thing with blotting paper and cress? Soak the blotting paper, put it on a plate, sprinkle it with seeds, keep it damp. A few days later….

Something extraordinary has happened. Spidery green shoots curling their way out of the seed cases. Wait a few more days – and there are slender fronds, each with its own hat of tiny leaves, waving gently at you and saying look, how amazing are we? Which is a miracle in itself. But it doesn’t stop there. Because when those little fronds are big enough, you get to eat them.

Well, my first greenhouse year has been the blotting paper experience on a grand scale. I started with nothing but a few packets of husky little brown things. Messed around with soil and pots. Sprinkled the husky brown things around a bit. Got busy with the watering can. After a few days extraordinary things began to happen.

And they went on happening. Every day something new and wonderful. And every week the vegetable garden turns into a new and completely different space.

And then you can start picking.

So the thing is…. what I can’t get my head around…. is how does it happen? I’ve done the science; I’ve sat the exam. But it still feels like magic to me.