It’s probably the best time of year. Fresh green foliage, the palest of pink flowers and the cat napping in his favourite spot. This corner of the Balcony doesn’t need much preparation – the rose, the clematis and the pelargoniums manage on their own. I did replace the reed wind break this year though – and bought an extra chair for me.

The roses on Herzogin Christiana deserve some close-ups. Their apple and citrus scent is as crisp as you would imagine from these photos.

Late April and May tend to bring one heatwave after the other, and the roses sadly don’t last very long once the intense afternoon sun hits them. On the other side of the doorway, the climbing rose is also thriving (and blooms wilting).

It does offer some shade for my sage plant though. The neighbouring rosemary is coming back to life after I nearly killed by forgetting it in its supermarket packaging for about a week.

“Herb garden” is the name of the game this year – and making full use of it is the goal. I’ve planted french tarragon, basil and Jamaican black mint from the nursery, as well as chives and parsley that I’m trying to train through the wire shelf for ease of harvesting. Couldn’t resist a strawberry plant, though I tend to forget and dry them out, too. This one I’ve mulched with a layer of orchid bark and I may pot it up again before it starts to develop flowers. Missing from this photo are a couple of pots where I’ve sown some old dill and spring onion seeds, hoping they’ll germinate.

The boxes are for sowing rocket and lamb’s lettuce. This area of the balcony gets four to five hours of direct sun, which should be enough. 

I planted a half-mummified tomato from last year. It quickly sprouted and I picked out two seedlings to raise. The mini greenhouse is already getting too hot, so I’ll just use it as a nighttime cold frame from now on.

The balcony railing, with its full sun and heat, has usually been too much even for the mediterranean herbs, when left to fend for themselves for a couple of days. Single flowering rose Lupo does well here, though.

As do my old pelargoniums and a eucalyptus.

This solar-powered irrigation system from Irrigatia was a gift from my dear friend Ola and it’s up and running this year. I’ve initially installed it only around the kitchen garden area.

You can decide where you want the drippers and cut the tube accordingly, so a few can be grouped in large tomato pot, for example. I have high hopes.

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