Cook with Toucan

April is one of those months when I can say that the most things are happening in the garden, at least for me. I am germinating and sowing a lot of vegetables, pruning raspberries and herbs... and there is also the Easter holiday. Which might not seem like a big deal to someone, but when you have two sons and a husband at home, and you are the one knitting the Easter whip, it is quite a stretch :D And since I felt like I didn't have enough on my plate this year anyway, I decided to finally finish the greenhouse project :D                                                                                     

You would think that after making several gardening management fails right at the beginning, everything would turn out well. Well, no! "How I cooked a sweet potato" would be a great article. It is just a pity that this is not an article from the Recipes category, but from the Garden category :D Long story short, I found a sweet potato. First, I overwatered it. Then I saved it. Then, following advice on the net, I put it on top of our snake Floki's terrarium. And he cooked it. Except not really :D                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

It is February, time to put the greenhouse in order and do some spring cleaning. And me and the Junior Key Manager had some really exhausting work waiting for us. Because in the autumn, there was no time to clean anything in the greenhouse. Old overgrown tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, and grass everywhere, simply a pain. Luckily, my little helper, my older son, decided to put on both gloves and pulled weeds like a pro. It was worse with the seeds, it was literally an ultimate fail!                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

When the first pepper and chilli seedlings successfully germinated and started growing, I wiped the sweat from my forehead in suspense. But in garden project management, there's no time for slacking off. It was time to launch the next sowing phase. This time, ornamental plants, leeks, and strawberries were next in line. Historically, growing ornamental flowers from seeds has never worked for me; it was my personal "Failed Project." But this year, I refused to accept failure, made sure to study the exact technological processes, and deployed a strict PM regime. The result? You'll be amazed!

It is January. As the Key Manager for the home gardening division, I am starting to feel the breeze of the new season. Key Stakeholders are starting to raise requirements: "Mommy, we have to plant cucumbers already," (older son); "You have to plant the chillies you pickled in autumn, they were super," (husband); "We would also like to grow something this year and we need seedlings," (three neighbours). I feel that this is a clear Request for Proposal for starting „The Gardening 2026“ project.                                                                                                                                                                        

This project usually initiates the moment Junior Stakeholders (the twins) detect the sound of a carrot peeler. The "HELP" protocol is immediately activated. In practice, this means: Stakeholders getting underfoot, scraps flying around the bin (intentionally, of course, as part of cleanup training), and a single audio loop playing in the kitchen over and over again: "I'am a cowboy!" (from the wooden rocking horse).                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   

This project was initiated based on a direct requirement from a Key Stakeholder (my four-year-old son). The Request for Proposal was clear: "Mommy, I want spaghetti with tomatoes, peppers, and leek."