Planting spring bulbs: upcycled crockery

I’ve been inspired by the amazing Chris Mosler, to get some bulbs planted inside. I can’t remember if I’ve mentioned my total inability to keep anything of the green kind alive for any length of time, but it’s true. There are days when I’m amazed and baffled that I’ve kept a dog, husband and my two precious girls going all this time. But in an effort to up the ante on myself and actually become the Domestic Goddess I’ve aspired to be for so long, I thought it was time I made a concerted effort to grow stuff.

Admittedly I’ve been bolstered by a partial triumph in the garden this summer. Not only did I successfully grow plants from seeds, I managed to keep those plants alive long enough to actually harvest them. The peas were undoubtedly the biggest hit: my girls had one taste of a fresh raw pea and snaffled the pods before I even had a chance to cook any of them. It was the same with the strawberries: for several days they came in to bed with faces dyed red with the juice of gobbled berries. I can add a handful of tomatoes, carrots and potatoes to my tally of successes too. None of the crops were abundant but it’s a beginning, and I have been incredibly proud to serve ‘homegrown’ fare.

Inside the house, there is very little growing, unless you count The Girls, who seem to grow in height and attitude by the hour, and my age, which marches steadily upwards. There is a solitary green Peace Lily, our very first house-plant, which travelled with us from Blackheath to Bromley, sharing our B&B room for the three weeks whilst we waited for the keys to our very first house, and onwards from there to the current DG Manor. It steadfastly refuses to give up on us, despite significant periods of drought. Many other houseplants have fallen by the wayside by my precious Lily has not failed us. The rest of the blooms are silk. Beautiful, lifelike, expensive (I may not have mentioned that to DH.)

So, I surprised myself, quite frankly when I took to the garden armed with a bevy of Charity Shop finds (given a new lease of life with a quick spray paint in a racy red), a few packets of winter bulbs and a pair of gloves. A few minutes later, with very little ceremony and a lot of mess, I have veritable battalions of bulbs which will hopefully spring into action and brighten the dark days ahead. Fingers crossed I keep them alive!