I thought I'd start with a round-up of what's growing on the allotment and in the garden. These hollyhocks have suddenly bloomed, and isn't that a glorious pink? The leaves do tend to get rust spots, which is a shame when the flowers are so beautiful. Also on the allotment are evening primrose, dotted around where they've self-seeded, growing here among a sea of seed pods. The marjoram's flowering too, and will be a bee magnet. They love it. I think these white flowers are mallows. The apple tree's going to provide plenty of fruit. Should be lots of blackberries too. I know I can gather them from the hedgerows, but cultivated ones tend to be more productive than their wild counterparts. Redcurrants are ripening. Blackcurrants too. Gooseberries too, or goose-gogs as we always called them. In my front garden the valerian is everywhere, another favourite with the bees. Astrantia, also known as Hattie's pin cushion, mixing with the vivid