The rooftop garden update - strawberries, peas and potatoes

I've been busy studying for these 2 exams I take in around 3 weeks, but I took a chance to pop outside for a few update photos for you. Here is the strawberry patch, in front is the grow-bag from last year, and in the back are four planters which are baby strawberries which were runners last year from this main planter which I planted in smaller pots and then replanted here at the beginning of the season, in the green containers in the back:

I had no idea how they would perform since it is year two for them (which should be impressive!) but they overwintered on a very cold and snowy balconey this year. So far I've been very impressed with their performance thus far.

Here is a close-up for what they're up to:

And a super close-up of a strawberry on one of the first year plants:

(Please be ripe before I head over to the continent for a week in June...pretty please!)

On the front garden, if you put your back to the strawberries and face the street, you'll see potaoes, garlic and peas. I decided to do potatoes again since they did so well last here here. I had done peas before in DE and I love fresh peas, but it was an experimental year, since I know they like cool temps and the balkon is geared to hold in heat.

To try and give the peas a fighting chance I laid the 13 plants out long ways, next to the wall, so that they avoid sun until the afternoon where they get some partial shade as the sun goes over the building. In addition, I then put other plants (particulary the potatoes) next to them, to provide protection against the sun for their pots, as well for the plants themselves as the potatos are pretty leafy and spread well to soak up full sun exposure:


Here is Slocombe standing in 'her' pot of garlic, checking out the peas, so that you could see the long way view of the peas against the wall, sheltered by potato bags.

My rooftop garden is one of my absolute favorite things about my flat and about my life here in the UK. While container gardens are often limited in comparison to unlimited ground space, I have the advantage of unblocked sun (when we get it!) and concrete walls which retain heat. So the end result--while people on the ground have frost, I don't--so I get a fuller growing season than 'regular' allotments on the ground.

Advertising in Germany

I'm not trying to get back into the misogynist eggs debate again, however, I know many people at home have visions of Germany with snowy alps or the sleek glass structures of Berlin...

so to present a different view, this was my corner of DE, taken on a previous trip back. This sign was on a public street pointing down the driveway of this auto related business. This street has both residential and commercial enterprises on it.

Can you imagine an auto fix-it place in the US having such advertising?

Back in the saddle

Sorry internet, I've been a little slow in posting. My seasonal allergies have been horrendous this past week. I find myself writing a bit less as well as I seem to be more involved in UK outside life than I was in DE. However, I was in DE recently for a wedding, so plenty of fodder now...

New friend Ian and I took the overnight boat from Harwich to Hook of Holland and then drove Mr. BMW through Holland (with a very long lunch break/tour) to arrive at our destination in Podunk, NRW in the afternoon. As I knew it was Himmelfahrt, I was in no rush...this was new friend Ian's first (and last?) trip to DE, so you can imagine how impressed he was driving through he Ruhrgebiet to arrived in a closed Podunk.

I kicked off the interactions with the Hotel Frau auf Deutch, having had to knock on the kitchen door to find her in the recommended 10 double, 4 single room hotel. She was pleasant enough, here's the key, here's the room, etc.

H: And what about the car? (We parked in the town square in front of the hotel which was covered with bott's dots so that you knew where to park. I saw signage, you could park there excluded 0415-18.00 Sat and 07.00-18.00 Wednesdays)

Frau: You can park in the spot behind the hotel (there were two tiny spots next to the building which were reached via a one-way alley). The kitchen worker, she leaves at 18.00.

H: oki doki

We decided to move the car at 18.00 and then take a stroll around. Her car was still there at 18.00, at 18.15, and at 18.30. As it was Thursday and there were plenty of other cars in the Square as well, I said F it, since we're going out anyway at 09.00 on Friday morning.

Friday morning, we head to breakfast at 08.40. As always, breakfast for me is a coffee fill-up and maybe some bread with cheese for the pocket, for later.

Frau: Is that your car!?! (gesturing to the square with 20+ cars parked.)

H: Yes, the GB plate is our car (wondering when the 'good morning, can I get you tea or coffee' would come)

Frau: You must move it immediately!!!

H: (I may be getting soft living in the UK, but I lived in DE long enough to play this game, and it wasn't hard to get back into the saddle....knowing very well I'm legally in a free parking zone...seeing the moving van on the other side of the square but no paper signage posted and thinking--someone F'd up here, but it wasn't me. And knowing that it would blow my schedule to go through the myriad of one way streets to get back behind the hotel, just for 10 min.)
H: The hotel parking space, it was not free at 18.00. (insert solid stare here.)

Frau: Yes, the girl, she left late. (Not mentioning that 'the girl' obviously reports to her.)

H: We leave at 09.00.

Frau: (cluck, cluck, mumble mumble)

H: (insert German disinterested shrug which says 'not my problem.)

Frau: Grrr....ok, but you must move at 09.00.

H: That's fine. And where shall we park later when we return in two hours?

Frau: Behind the hotel, the spot will be free.

H: Supi!

Frau: Tea or coffee?
I purposely wait until the church clock is chiming 9 before moving the car at this point. Some random person drives up and takes the spot. I wonder if she is now going to bark at him?

--2 hours later we return. Sure enough, the spots are both full. Back to the square I park, and march inside.

H: Haaaaaalo! Where should I park now?

Frau: (frownly) Goes to window to see who is in spots. You can go over there, the boat club parking.

H: (irritated and wondering as this is plastered all over with signs to not be here illegally, and with a lockable gate...having visions of being locked in on Sunday morning when we need to leave for our boat).

Frau: (marches off to bark at whoever parked in the spots, I hear the German tirade and two minutes later someone scurries out to move their car.)

(Heather not surprised.) At this point I can only giggle at such interactions since I no longer live there and acknowledge them as cultural differences in how things are done. :-)

How do you know that Heather is supposed to be travelling?

The volcano is disrupting air travel again.

I smartened up after the last go round, however. This time I'm taking the car on the ferry from Harwich to Hook to get into Germany. It's the reverse of the route I took when I moved here.

I'm looking forward to doing a little shopping in the Netherlands and Germany since I'll have the car with me.

In addition, Mr. BMW (the temporary pool car, as we wait for our 'real' car--Mr. Polo 2), takes diesel. We'll take advantage of cheaper diesel prices on the continent and fuel up upon arriving and leaving.