Tuesday, April 29, 2008
A month on and Summer is almost here!
What difference a few weeks makes to the weather at least. It is all warm air, sunshine and rain now so things are growing at a great rate. Having pricked out nearly 200 flower seedlings I have now planted them on into tubs to harden off. Quite where I will put them all is a bit of a mystery at the moment. The flower beds have quite poor soil and need a bit of work to get them into good shape for taking young plants but the established plants like it fine and would prefer not to be disturbed. I think it needs a bit of thinking through still.
Vegetables are definitely surging ahead now. Peas, mange tout and broad beans are all coming through strongly. Onions are up as is the chard. Spinach is in along with beetroot, which is just starting to show. Carrots are also just germinating. In the greenhouse we have sweet corn and more broad beans coming up as well as green peppers, tomatoes, cabbages and calabrese. I have got some rosemary on the go as well.
The duck visitors have arrived and are much braver than in previous years, taking strolls around the garden and seeing off the cock pheasant with his harem when their paths cross. Hens are now in full production with 4 - 6 eggs a day and a regular double yoker amongst them.
So that is the update on the domestic front. All very fecund!
Recent learning
A couple of weeks ago I was on a course at Henley Management College entitled 'Leading for Sustainability'. It was excellent - a breath of fresh air as far as management development goes, with a focus on the triple bottom line reporting and the roles and responsibilities of business within the context of the economic, social and environmental challenges we now face. The course was also unusual for its wide ranging formats, including a poetry session as well as for the quality of the group work. Underpinning the course is the expectation that the issues under debate are not theoretical but require a response - direct action. Thus the outcome of the course was also different from the usual 'off you go and see how far you get' approach to management development because each participant identified a 'quest' or focus for action which is then supported through continued engagement with the group and one-to-one coaching after the face-to-face element of the course ended. My 'quest' is all about identifying supportive social networking tools and spaces that would enable a community to come into place offering individuals and groups input, support and information about how they can make a difference in their own situation. At the moment the quest is moving somewhat slower than I would like but I have great hopes.
What difference a few weeks makes to the weather at least. It is all warm air, sunshine and rain now so things are growing at a great rate. Having pricked out nearly 200 flower seedlings I have now planted them on into tubs to harden off. Quite where I will put them all is a bit of a mystery at the moment. The flower beds have quite poor soil and need a bit of work to get them into good shape for taking young plants but the established plants like it fine and would prefer not to be disturbed. I think it needs a bit of thinking through still.
Vegetables are definitely surging ahead now. Peas, mange tout and broad beans are all coming through strongly. Onions are up as is the chard. Spinach is in along with beetroot, which is just starting to show. Carrots are also just germinating. In the greenhouse we have sweet corn and more broad beans coming up as well as green peppers, tomatoes, cabbages and calabrese. I have got some rosemary on the go as well.
The duck visitors have arrived and are much braver than in previous years, taking strolls around the garden and seeing off the cock pheasant with his harem when their paths cross. Hens are now in full production with 4 - 6 eggs a day and a regular double yoker amongst them.
So that is the update on the domestic front. All very fecund!
Recent learning
A couple of weeks ago I was on a course at Henley Management College entitled 'Leading for Sustainability'. It was excellent - a breath of fresh air as far as management development goes, with a focus on the triple bottom line reporting and the roles and responsibilities of business within the context of the economic, social and environmental challenges we now face. The course was also unusual for its wide ranging formats, including a poetry session as well as for the quality of the group work. Underpinning the course is the expectation that the issues under debate are not theoretical but require a response - direct action. Thus the outcome of the course was also different from the usual 'off you go and see how far you get' approach to management development because each participant identified a 'quest' or focus for action which is then supported through continued engagement with the group and one-to-one coaching after the face-to-face element of the course ended. My 'quest' is all about identifying supportive social networking tools and spaces that would enable a community to come into place offering individuals and groups input, support and information about how they can make a difference in their own situation. At the moment the quest is moving somewhat slower than I would like but I have great hopes.
Comments:
Post a Comment
Subscribe to
Posts [Atom]
