Seasonal Update: April

"Sweet April showers do spring May flowers." - Thomas Tusser.

Fat chance. Standing at the sink this evening, I was filling a small watering can at the same time questioning why I was about to go outside and water my seedlings at all. It's cold, and seems unusually so for this time of year. As I glanced up out of the kitchen window all I could see was a shower of snow not rain.

The sprouts on my radishes have just started to burst through the damp darkness of the fresh compost from which they were planted less than a week ago. Admittedly I have a small plastic greenhouse, and if I had sown the seeds earlier I could have had fresh radishes before the month is out. Either way, these are a seasonal veg and will brighten up salads and slaws with their peppery crunch. 

If said radish is stacked with watercress, a bed for a fillet of wild salmon served with a side of Jersey Royals then you really are quite the seasonal purist. Seafood is a common theme throughout the month as lobster is in season with crab, brown sea trout and turbot coming in. 

Ironically this morning I did come across a seasonal treat while walking to work. No, I did not come across a clump of dandelions on a verge. Nor did I cop the first sighting of outdoor rhubarb on someones allotment. What I did see was the unfortunate body of a rather plump wood pigeon, face down in the pavement. 

I did not stop to inspect how this particular bird met its demise. I was however carrying my knife wallet back after the Easter break. After gutting & plucking a few lunch ideas went through my mind but they soon passed as at the same time the possibilities of how it met its seemingly untimely end did too. In all seriousness you can get a perfectly good wood pigeon prepped by your butcher rather than the neighbourhood moggy.