The artichokes are in full swing now, with enough buds for a good feed each week. We started out with Green Globe and Purple de Jesi seedlings. One of the flowers which was left for the bees turned into a flower full of seedlings – they all just germinated while still in the flower. We planted these and they must have been purple – there don’t seem to be any of the green ones at all anymore. I love to see the bees on the flowers we leave. Sometimes 6 or 7 bumblebees seem to spend the night on a flower – such an extravagant bed.