A Woman Of The Soil

February Round-Up

2012-02-29T07:22:00.000Z

As you can see from the photograph the allotment crops have just about all gone. Half a row of perpetual spinach has survived, a couple of cabbages and the psb which didn't weather the winter very well at all.

The bottom leaves have dried out completely but there are a few flower heads

not enough for a complete meal though - I am seriously considering not bothering to grow it again - for the amount of time it is in the ground and how many meals you get from it - I don't think it is value for money.

This is the last Savoy cabbage

and this is the last January King - when they have both been eaten, that's it - nothing left. What you might call the 'hungry gap' has begun.

I did pull the last of the Parsnips and Carrots at the weekend as they were starting to regrow I will store them in dry earth till needed or maybe even cook and freeze them for later.

The last crops from 2011 - altogether I am quite pleased with the harvests from last years' sowings - because of this blog I now have good records of what did well and not so well, I will learn from the mistakes made, over-sowings, under-sowings etc. and adjust quantities accordingly. In previous years before I started this blog about veggie growing I had to rely on my memory, which isn't very good at the best of times.

Hopefully, this year I will remember to do repeat sowings at the right time and try to extend cropping where possible. I haven't had too many disappointments - most crop failures have been down vagaries in the weather. This year I must try not to be too impatient and sow too early - waiting for the soil to warm up, planting out into cold soil doesn't make things grow any quicker.

As the temperature rises there are signs of spring - the rhubarb is slowly emerging from hibernation, there are buds on the fruit bushes, and before long I will be panicking because I am running out of freezer space - and so the veg growing season begins!

It's Nearly All About Onions

2012-02-22T08:22:00.000Z

There isn't much left in the veg garden now - a few cabbages maybe, purple sprouting broc looking the worse for wear and a few leeks - but I guess that's the way it should be at this time of year. Of course space is now needed for getting ready for the new gardening season and preparations are in hand.

Shallots, onion greens, garlic and leeks

I decided to plant the shallots in last years potato sacks, all I have to do now if carefully transplant them into the ground now that they have rooted, this will give them a good start, and the birds will find it more difficult to pull them out. The onion greens have been cut several times and have grown well, these will remain in this container for further use throughout the year. The garlic withstood the bad weather well without protection and the shoots are about a foot high now. If you remember in a previous post here I decided to experiment with my leeks by not digging them up, instead I decided to slice them off at ground level to see if they would re-grow. As you can see from the picture, bottom right, the experiment has worked and new leeks have formed. I have cut them off twice now and still they come back. I will have to wait and see if they go to seed this year - but nevertheless I have so far had three lots of leeks from the one crop - so that can't be bad.

salad leaves

In the greenhouse there are just a few overwintered salad leaves left now, but they are beginning to look weak and spindly and some are going to seed. I have just sown the first batch of new seeds for this year to keep the momentum going.

Potted up strawberry plants

In the greenhouse the strawberry plantlets that I potted up are showing signs of new growth, slowly, but it has been pretty cold in there - I prefer growing strawberries in pots as it keeps the slugs off and you get earlier crops, outside I grow them as ground cover under the raspberries.

purple sprouting broccoli

I only have half a dozen psb plants - two at home and the rest at the allotment. The ones at the allotment are really looking in a sorry state after the snow etc. but this one pictured at home seems to have fared better, although there is no sign of any flowering shoots yet.

The next job for the month is to get the ground prepared for the onions, potatoes and peas - which, if the weatherman is right about the weather warming up towards the end of the week - I may be able to get done, with a bit of luck and a following wind.

Not long now before it could all be looking like this (click)

Pleasures of the Kitchen Garden

2012-02-15T12:06:00.000Z

What are the the things that bring you pleasure in your vegetable garden?

plaiting onions into strings
in the garden shed
with the rain pattering on the roof above

the first thin green line
of seedlings
down the dark soil

white flowers on early peas

gaudy orange flowers
opening in the early morning sun
on courgettes and marrows

beads of dew resting on the
crinkled inner leaves
of cabbages, like
crystal drops

the sweetness of stolen peas
eaten raw

scarlet flowers
climbing up wigwams
and
tents of runner beans in high summer

leeks in orderly rows

the earthiness of new potatoes
just dug up

baskets piled high
with a glut of produce

frozen fingers tingling back to life
around a mug of hot soup
after winter digging

Extract from

'Through the Garden Gate'

Susan Hill

Container Gardening

2012-02-08T14:01:00.000Z

As well as my allotment kitchen garden and the Rosebank ornamental salad garden I also grow vegetables in containers every year, hoping to utilise as much of my space as possible. The containers vary from old metal buckets and washtubs to hanging baskets, flowerpots and crates.

smallorganicgardens.com
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Pinterest

Container gardening opens up lots of opportunities for growing virtually anything, anywhere with very little extra work.

bhg,com
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I like to keep the containers all together in one area, if possible, for ease of watering and to make more of a colourful display.

containergardening.com
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llhdesignsblog.com
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The containers I use vary in size depending on what I am going to plant. Small for lettuce, onions, garlic and annual herbs. Medium for peppers, aubergine, bush beans. Large for tomatoes, cucumber, squash, runner beans and peas.

tastefulgarden.com
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They are all placed in the sunniest part of the garden and have to be watered daily and fed regularly. The plants do need a lot more looking after, than those planted out in open ground. As in the picture above, you can container garden at all levels and heights to make the best use of the space available.

The advantage is that when one crop has finished you can replace the potting compost and re-sow with something different which gives you a good succession of crops.

How successful have you been with your container gardening, and if you haven't tried it before, do you think you will give it a go this year?

Tomato Heaven

2012-02-01T07:33:00.001Z

My veggie growing season always starts with Tomatoes. Some years I can't be bothered with sowing seed and buy plug plants later in the season, this means I am restricted to only a small selection of the more popular varieties, but when I can be bothered I start them off in pots on a heated tray and put them on the sunniest windowsill I can find.

I am growing eight different types this year, some tried and tested, and one or two new varieties to see whether they will be added to my list next year. I have ditched two types this year 'Tigerella', not because there was anything wrong with it, in fact, it performed very well, and tastes pretty good - the other, a beefsteak type 'Consteluto Fiorentino' which didn't behave itself, and turned brown at the earliest opportunity.

The ones I grew last year that performed well, included Gardeners Delight and Sungold, both indoors and out.

Piccolo cherry tomato

I saved these Piccolo seeds from some supermarket tomatoes together with Pomodoro

Pomodorro small plum tomato

Both of which I found very tasty, hopefully they will come true to type - but if not, well I am sure they will produce tomatoes anyway.

Alicante

Alicante are a good old-fashioned regular size tomato that produce good crops of medium size fruit, with a fairly good taste, and can be grown in the greenhouse or outdoors, and are a reliable heavy cropper.

Marmande

Marmande are a favourite tomato of Provence, the heavy-ribbed fruits are very 'meaty' and perfect for slicing.

Gardeners Delight cherry tomato

One of the most reliable tomatoes is Gardeners Delight producing masses of large cherry sized fruit with a fantastic flavour on long trusses.

Tumbling Tom

I have tried quite a few different types of tumbling tomatoes that are suitable for hanging baskets, but to my mind Tumbling Tom, is far and away the best variety so far. It is usually the first tomato to ripen even though it is outdoors, and the more you pick the quicker they ripen. A definite winner for me.

Sungold cherry tomatoes

Finally, my absolute favourite for flavour - the Sungold tomato. I first came across these a few years ago when I was 'greenhouse sitting' for a friend, watering whilst he was away on holiday. This is the only variety he grows and I can understand why. They produce masses of fruit, and can be a bit of a thug, if not carefully controlled by nipping out any unwanted growth. But the flavour of the tomatoes makes up for an trouble they may cause with their unruliness. I was still picking tomatoes in November from my outdoor plants.

Black Russian

My last choice, which I know nothing about, is the Black Russian - a heritage variety - which is winging its way in the post to me right now. I bought this on impulse so I don't know what its taste is like, but I'm willing to give it a go - and if I don't think it is worth it I won't bother next year. All photos courtesy of Google Images

I usually grow a mix of six plants in the greenhouse and the rest are grown outside - a few in a trough in the 'Rosebank' garden, the rest at the allotment. In the book One Straw Revolution the author suggests that if you don't support your tomatoes, they will lie on the ground and root wherever the stem touches the soil, which means you will get more trusses developing. So, as ever, I intend to experiment, and do just that ,to see what happens.

I can feel a tomato glut coming on already - most years I freeze tomatoes whole, then just take the amount I am going to need out of the freezer bag - the skin comes off the frozen tomato dead easy if you hold it under a warm tap.

Of course any tomato plants planted in open ground are more susceptible to blight, so the cherry types are a better bet as they ripen faster. The mistake people make is overwatering outdoor tomatoes which leads to more leaf than fruit - once they have been planted out at the end of May, they can be left to their own devices till the first flowers arrive. In their native countries, places such as Equador, Peru and Bolivia they grow in poor ground that is dry - and from experience I can say that outdoor toms develop a better flavour than those grown indoors. Bush tomatoes would be an even better bet as they don't need staking.

The Garden Larder

2012-01-25T10:57:00.002Z

At this time of year, finding something to eat from the garden, is not easy. So in the gloom of early morning I had a good look around to see how many edibles were left. As well as a dozen cabbages I found a small patch or two of self-seeded leeks, the leeks that I planted proper haven't done too well - they are still quite small and one or two have already gone to seed. Instead of pulling them up I have been slicing them off at the base, and there is a fair amount of re-growth, which I am hoping will mature into proper leeks.

Self-sown Leeks

Curly Kale

There is still a fair amount of curly kale, both scarlet and the ordinary green type, and although they stand well in the winter, I find it surprisingly tasteless - but, it does provide a bit of vibrant green on the plate once cooked. I rip it into small pieces, steam lightly, then stir fry it in butter and nutmeg for a couple of minutes, to try and inject a bit of flavour.

Carrots

I still have a few carrots in the ground, leftover from a late sowing, I doubt whether they will amount to much when I pull them, but I still have some in store in dry earth - not enough to see us through till the next harvest though. This September I will make sure I sow enough to last the winter.

Sage Parsley Thyme

Rosemary Oregano Thyme Chocolate Mint and Spearmint

I have herbs in several locations in the garden, some in containers which are in the greenhouse for safekeeping. Thyme, Oregano, Curly Parsley, Chocolate Mint and Spearmint as it turns out I needn't have bothered, with this mild winter. The mints are just pushing through new shoots, but there isn't enough left on the old plants for a picking. There is also a large container outdoors containing several varieties of thyme, sadly one or two are now very woody, regardless of my chopping them well back, so they will be dug out and replaced this year. Further up the garden I have a sunken sink full of herbs as well and sage cuttings in the raised bed plus a pot of flat-leaf parsley that has rooted through the pot and is firmly anchored into the soil on which it sits.

Only one of the Purple Sprouting Broc plants is producing florets at the moment which means that there isn't really enough for a serving, so I pick them and mix them in with whatever else I can find.

Rainbow chard is still doing its thing but it very tough and motheaten and not really worth eating, it still provides a nice splash of colour though.

Finally there is the Garlic growing well in amongst the spring onions and self-seeded California Poppies. I have been using the same method with the spring onions as I have with the leeks, slicing them off at ground level, so that they keep on growing.

I am pleased with the amount of winter crops that I have managed to grow - all the above plus the parsnips below ground, should last us for another month or so - then will come the notorious 'hungry-gap' when I will have to rely on the supermarket once more. Maybe this year I will be able to rectify this shortfall with a bit of careful planning.

Finally, the first signs of buds on the blackcurrant bush - there's hope yet! Do you have much left in your winter garden larder?

Versatile Blogger Award

2012-01-21T14:44:00.000Z

Bridget at Arigna Gardener has passed on the Versatile Blogger Award to me and I am delighted to accept.

It is very gratifying to think that someone enjoys your blog enough to give you an award. The rules are that you should pass it on to 15 recently discovered blogs and let the bloggers know they have been nominated. Then you have to share 7 things about yourself. Finally thank the award giver and link back to them.

The dictionary definition of 'versatile' is turning easily from one subject to another - so I have chosen recently discovered blogs that cover a variety of subjects.

Seven things about myself - FAVOURITES

Favourite food - Cake (any shape, size or flavour)
Favourite colour - Fuschia
Favourite book - (the one I have re-read the most) Blackberry Wine by Joanne Harris
Favourite movie - (so many to choose from) The Notebook
Favourite record - (again, so many to choose from) Heartbreak Hotel by Elvis Presley
Favourite television adaptation - Jane Austens' Persuasion
Favourite TV Chef (cook) Nigel Slater

Phew! That has taken an age to compile both lists - I would quite understand if any of those bloggers I have chosen refused to accept the Award - it is very time consuming fulfilling all the obligations that come with it.
Now all I have to do is inform them.

An Edible Hedge

2012-01-17T13:46:00.000Z

The home garden backs on to open fields and the wind rushes through the garden at an alarming rate with nothing to stop it. The gales, a couple of weeks ago, have finally prompted me to take action. I don't want to block out the view completely, but I think an edible hedgerow might be the answer.

As winter is the best time to plant bare-rooted fruit and berry trees I have decided to place an order for 3 Hazel , 1 Crab apple, 5 Sloes and 1 Cherry plum this should be enough for a 4 metre hedge.

Cherry Plum

A deciduous hedging plant which blooms in February and forms fruits from late summer onwards. This should be a nectar source for bees and attract other beneficial insects.

Sloe

A British native form of wild plum which bears blue-black fruits and white blossom in late winter

crab apple

White, pink-tinged blossom in spring and small, sharp-tasting fruits in late summer.

hazel

A fast-growing deciduous hedging plant, covered in yellow catkins from January to March and producing nuts which ripen in September and October.

My hedging plants arrived today, I am not sure what I was expecting, but they do seem rather spindly. I think they are called 'whips'. They should be planted in a double staggered row which should produce a thick hedge than can be easily maintained

This is my hedge - doesn't look much does it. The crab apple will take approx. 5 years to produce fruit, the others a little less - so this is really a long-term venture, but with a little luck and a following wind, I should have a viable windbreak - eventually!

What a Difference a Day Makes

2012-01-14T09:18:00.000Z

Friday - January King Cabbage

The weather over the last few days has been glorious giving me an opportunity to get outside and do a bit of tidying, pulling dead leaves off the cabbages, cutting back dead stems and a little bit of weeding. The cabbages with the lovely colours, are ready to eat, but they look far too nice to harvest. Sadly one will be picked on Sunday for lunch, but that is what they are there for, how can I get sentimental about a cabbage?

The difference in the weather is a shock to the system - mild and reasonably warm for most of the week - then the temperature dropped rapidly and heavy frosts prevail.

Brussel Sprout Tops

This picture was taken on Friday morning - the picture below taken this morning.

Green Kale

Spring isn't as near as we thought - it is still winter and who knows what is yet to come?

Winter Wonders

2012-01-10T15:45:00.000Z

At the end of last season I sowed two pots of carrots with the last of the seeds in the packets. Amsterdam Forcing and Autumn King. I brought them into the greenhouse when it got too cold and more or less forgot about them. Here are the results. As you can see from the pictures, the Amsterdam Forcing produced better carrots, nevertheless, I was pleased with the results. I will definitely grow end of season carrots again to provide little sweet treats throughout the winter.

My four containers of salad leaves are still going strong, enough for one or two salads a week, but soon I will start sowing new batches, a little at a time, for continuous crops right through the spring and summer. These have overwintered well - I haven't watered them too much, as those that I planted in the grow bags started to go mouldy. It's hard to get the ventilation in the greenhouse right over winter, I don't think the mildish weather helped.

These onions in a container in the greenhouse have sprouted beautifully. I won't be using them as onions, as such, just using the greentops as you would chives. The theory is that they will just keep growing and producing tops for cutting, and live permanently in the pot.

Just had to show you again the beautiful scarlet Kale, as it has matured the colour has got better and better. Most of it is lying flat after the heavy winds but the colour certainly livens up the garden.

The picture top right is the purple sprouting broc which managed to stay upright. One of the plants is producing spears, and I have just harvested a second meal from it. It is one of my favourite greens and even though it takes room up for several months - I believe it is worth it and gives you something to harvest when there is little else in the veg plot.

The Cavolo Nero, bottom right, is a bit pathetic this year due to insect infestation earlier in the year, it never really recovered, but it is showing new leaves so I may well get a few meals from it yet.

Finally, you know I keep banging on about the Calabrese that has been shooting non-stop since March - well, I checked the plants over this morning, and managed to pull another few tenderstems from it. Will these plants ever stop producing - hope not!

New Beginnings

2012-01-04T08:47:00.000Z

Well, that's it then. The Christmas season is over. The tree has been taken down and the fragile ornaments carefully packed away for another year. Cards that were suitable have been made into present tags for next year. The foliage brought it to decorate the house has dried up and berries fall to the floor, they too will be removed shortly. The house is back to normal, another Christmas season swept away leaving only a few uneaten chocolates behind.

Now it is time to start planning for the next highlight of the year - the beginning of the new gardening season. Seed catalogues to be pondered over, choosing what we will be eating from the veg garden over the next year - wondering how we are going to fit everything in - wishing for more space - until, that is, weeding needs to be done -- then feeling a smaller garden would be better.

Preparing the soil, mulching, manuring, fertilising - making it ready to take the vulnerable seedlings and plants that will be soon filling every available space.

Flower pots and seed trays washed and waiting , new packets of labels standing by, waiting to be written with the new varieties we will be trying this year.

There are still a few weeks to go before the soil warms up enough to be able to plant anything, but there should still be enough veg left to pick for the odd meal.

There were a few florets on one of the Purple Sprouting Broc plants at the weekend, that I picked for Sunday lunch, together with a Savoy Cabbage. I still have a few Leeks and Parsnips still in the ground, and of course, the inevitable cabbages.

Will this year be more successful that last - will mistakes made last year be rectified in this. Who knows? For me, personally, the end result isn't always important - it is all that goes before that I enjoy, the sowing and pricking out - the transplanting and potting-on. Watching the seedlings come through and the anticipation of whether or not they will all survive, is all part of the gardening pleasure. And being able to blog about it. BRING IT ON!

Wishing you a successful gardening New Year

2011-12-31T09:00:00.000Z

Potato Chitting

2011-12-28T19:49:00.000Z

The Charlotte potatoes that I ordered arrived just before Christmas, a little earlier than I would have expected. The first thing I did was to take them out of their delivery box and stand them upright in a tray, with the sprouting end upwards. Egg cartons are a good container for chitting potatoes, but I didn't have any to hand, but this tray will do just as well. Some people cut the potatoes wherever there is an eye (this is where the sprouts form) , this way you can get possibly three times as many plants from just one potato. Also if you cover the chitting potatoes with a little compost, roots will begin to form , making the plants stronger before they are planted out.

Charlotte

Chitting is a way of encouraging the potato to sprout before planting - they produce small dark sprouts. It is said that chitted potatoes grow faster and you benefit from an earlier crop. Start chitting your potatoes 4-6 weeks before you need them, probably the beginning of February as the soil begins to warm up - and keep them in a light, frost-free place till they are ready for planting out.

This year I am going to try a different method of planting, with a bulb planter, rather than digging a trench out, in line with my new policy of not disturbing the soil too much. As the plants grow, instead of earthing them up I intend covering them with straw, grass clippings etc. to keep the light out. This is purely an experiment to see if it is possible to get a good crop this way. If not, I will go back to the old method.

I have noticed that when there has been a potato left in the ground after harvesting I have had a really good crop from it. Possibly because it had grown deeper and that was why I didn't find it the first time round. These odd potatoes seem to do very well on their own without me fussing over them. So when my potatoes are ready this year I will try not to be as thorough as I would normally be in trying to find every one, then it should turn into a perennial crop, without my having to buy seed potatoes every year.

End of the Year Review

2011-12-21T08:27:00.000Z

Plums - Victoria, Damsons and Greengages

As the year is coming to an end, I thought I would look back and refresh my memory as to what has been successful this year. 2011, for me, should be called 'The Year of the Soft Fruits'.

Redcurrant bush

Redcurrants

Raspberries

Blackcurrant

Without exception, this year has been the best ever, for all the soft fruits - everything performed very well and I had more fruit than I knew what to do with - I think the previous hard winter helped, and although most of the year was very dry, it doesn't seem to have affected the output of the plants.

James Grieve

The eating apple trees were overladen with fruit, most of which were undersized, they ripened before they had a chance to mature into a decent size, but there were hundreds of them, and the plum trees were dripping, to the point of breaking the branches.

On the vegetable side, my two disappointments were the potatoes and squashes, yields were low, due in part to the low rainfall and colder temperatures than we would normally have. But the carrots and onions made up for the shortfall.

In the greenhouse I had successes and failures too. The tomatoes romped away, ripened quickly and kept on coming right through to October.

But the cucumbers and peppers were dismal. So my summary of the year - on the whole crops didn't do too bad considering the weather conditions.

It has been great looking back at the photographs throughout the year and has me fired up ready to begin all over again next year. I have my tomato seed at the ready to sow in January and I can't wait to get cracking.

As this will be my last post for the year on A Woman of the Soil - I will take this opportunity of thanking everyone who has visited and commented and I wish you all a very Happy Christmas and a Successful Gardening New Year.

Three grumpy Christmas dogs via Pinterest

Liebster Award

2011-12-14T08:32:00.000Z

I have just received a Liebster Award from Jo at The Good Life and would like to thank her, it has boosted my morale no end. In the spirit of the award you have to pass it on to five of your favourite blogs. I have quite a few favourites (not just gardening blogs) and it has been hard to choose. The ones I have chosen are just as much for liking the people as well as the blogs.

Colin @ The Recycled Gardener who describes himself as a creaky old veg grower, and produces amazing amounts of veg under difficult weather conditions in Cumbria, he writes with wit and a dry sense of humour.
David @ The Anxious Gardener who is a gardener of six acres at The Priory on the Sussex Weald. He has a great sense of humour and never fails to make me chuckle with his quirky blog.
Janet @ Plantaliscious is passionate about plants, both ornamental and edible, and bread, her brilliant blogging narrative draws you into her gardening world.
Janet @ Planticru Notes - the same goes for this Janet too, she has a lovely garden in Montrose and includes some beautiful photography.
Last but not least Mike (or Flighty as we all know him) @ Flighty's Plot - for his plot adventures and wide knowledge of birds and wildlife which he writes about in such an engaging way.

Once more, thanks to Jo for enabling me to highlight some wonderful blogs and bloggers.

Just copy and paste the award on to your own blog and let your five choices know by leaving a comment on their blog. It should be given to bloggers with less than 200 followers.

The Veggie Garden in December

2011-12-07T09:01:00.001Z

Except for the empty pumpkin patch at the bottom of the allotment garden the rest is still pretty much full of produce. I have started harvesting sprouts even though they are still small, I doubt they are going to get any bigger now, let's just call them sweet bites, mini sprouts, if you like.

I also harvested another handful of tenderstems from the Calabrese on Sunday, shown with the sprouts, these plants just keep on giving - I expect they will eventually exhaust themselves, but when?

The January King cabbages are hearting up nicely, and will probably be ready to eat, in January!

But, in the bottom left hand corner of the allotment, all is not well. This is my soft fruit area - raspberries underplanted with strawberries, blackcurrants, gooseberries, rhubarb and redcurrants.

The pictures aren't very good as I took them this morning at 7.30 and it was only just getting light, but it will give you an idea of the area. Everything needs pruning back and all the bushes are starting to intermingle and overcrowd one another. Plus, right in the middle of the blackcurrant, an elder has decided to seed itself.

The bottom right picture shows a self-seeded perpetual spinach plant that has gone to seed and takes up a huge area. This part of the garden has gone a little wild with nettles, long grass and mint that has escaped and now grows in profusion. It looks a little unsightly, but I don't mind too much as my philosophy is that, as long as there is a some control so that it doesn't get too out of hand, a wild area can be beneficial to the rest of the garden. I think the abundance of this area is because it was once my compost heap. Along the fence at the back of the garden is a mound where I threw my weeds, which have now rotted down, so I will make use of this next year for planting a courgette and squash. I intend laying a big branch along the top for the squash plant to grow along, giving the tendrils something to attach too, and hopefully keep the fruit off the soil. That is the plan anyway.

Finally, the above pictures show the making of cherry chocolate, these cherries are the end result of the cherry vodka that was started earlier in the year. The beloved decided to use the vodka-soaked cherries instead of throwing them away. Once it had set, we both has a taste - I quite liked it but he didn't, so I have a feeling it is going to sit in the fridge until we find some willing victim to take it off our hands.

Stormy Weather

2011-11-30T12:09:00.000Z

The weather has been horrendous over the last couple of days. Strong winds have reeked havoc in the garden and I haven't been able to go out and rectify the damage as the rain has lashed down.

My small plastic greenhouse is laying on its side - luckily there was nothing in it. The purple sprouting broc plants at the top of the garden have felt the full force of the wind and are laying flat, despite the fact, that they were staked.

My metal archway was hit by an acrylic cloche, that came away from its moorings, and bent it so that it snapped and lay drunkenly across the raised bed.

There is no point trying to fix anything until the wind stops, so the garden looks like a disaster zone.

On the positive side I was able to dig up some parsnips for lunch on Sunday and a good sized Savoy cabbage.

These are the last five courgettes that I had stored since early October, and although the skins will be tough, I should be able to convert them into a winter-warming soup which can be frozen.

In the greenhouse the pickling onions in a container are now sprouting well, although one or two look a little mildewed. The shallots that I put individually into pots are showing no signs of life as yet, maybe it is a little early to see any shoots on them but they have rooted - I was going to plant them out, but they will just have to wait now until the weather clears up a bit.

I have had to dispose of a few lettuce plants from the greenhouse as well, as they had also succumbed to mildew, but there are still plenty of salad leaves which are still growing healthily. The chillis have finished as have the sweet pepper plants. So, what is left - well I have three containers of carrots that seem to have stopped growing , but they may be okay to use as baby carrots, I'll pull a few out to check a bit later. I do have some carrots in store though plus a few parsnips.

Eating something from the veggie plot every day, is still going to plan, and I still have several cabbages and leeks left - whether they will see us right through the winter, is another thing, but I feel I have made a pretty good stab at it this year. The garden isn't large enough for me to be completely self-sufficient, but I've enjoyed trying.

I can't post any photos at the moment as the fitting that goes into the camera seems to have gone a bit wonky so I will have to do a catch-up if we manage to fix it.

Seed Order for Next Year

2011-11-23T16:30:00.000Z

I have been giving some serious thought as to what I will be planting in the veg garden next year. I like to experiment with new varieties as well as growing those that I know do well for me. So, seed catalogue in front of me, I drool over all the different variations that you can now grow.

Pink Broad Beans - Karmazyn

Turks Turban Squash

Italian Romanesco type cauliflowers

Spaghetti Squash

I am considering planting a couple more small fruit trees as part of my Edible Forest Garden experiment - maybe a Quince

Quince

and a Kentish Cobnut

Cobnut

There are so many different types I want to try but doubt if I will have room for them all - it does get a little boring keeping to the ones you have always grown - so next year I am definitely going to be a bit more adventurous.

The Veggie Garden in November

2011-11-16T08:35:00.000Z

As you can see from the picture there is still plenty going on in the allotment garden including the flowers in the cutting patch. I have been completing some jobs whilst the weather is still fine, like strawing down the paths inbetween the veg to make it cleaner to walk on when harvesting cabbage, kale etc.

In the foreground you can see the Calabrese that I have been harvesting since early summer. After the initial crop I chopped the plants down to about 6in. high and left them to it. They threw up new shoots and I am still collecting tenderstems once a week. How long will this go on - I have no idea, but it surely is an added bonus that I wish I had tried years ago.

As we have still not had a frost the Mint is still green and flourishing (although I have brought some in to the greenhouse just in case) and the green manure on the left of the picture is just coming into flower.

A few of the companion plants, Marigolds and Nasturtiums, are starting to get a bit mildewy, but on the whole they have lasted well - and, as you well know, once you have them you have them always.

The Scarlet Kale has recovered from the caterpillar attacks earlier in the year and looks very impressive and a beautiful scarlet colour when the sun hits it. Hopefully this should stand the winter well for regular pickings.

Things are not so good in the greenhouse - what with the damp weather - I have had a few things go mouldy on me, even though I keep it ventilated during the day. The salad leaves are doing okay but I have lost the pea shoots.

I had some picklings onions that I never got round to pickling, so I planted them in a container and can use the onion greens as they shoot.

The sweet peppers are on their last legs with one or two left to ripen , but I shall just leave them on the plant till I need them before getting disposing of the plants altogether.

One of the books that has inspired me most this year is 'How to Grow Winter Vegetables' by Charles Dowding - it has given me lots of ideas on how to improve and increase veggie production
with very little extra work. There are still plenty of different methods, that I have read about that I want to experiment with, and I can't wait to get cracking on these next year. Meanwhile I am continuing with my winter preparations of mulching, covering and cloching against a hard winter, that is if it ever comes!

For those of you who are interested in sustainable living, there are one or two good articles at
http://eartheasy.com/ this month.

Boris Parsnip and Boring Brussels

2011-11-09T09:00:00.000Z

Did you know that the Russian word for Parsnip is pasternak. - no neither did I - it wouldn't sound the same if Dr. Zhivago was written by Boris Parsnip rather than Boris Pasternak, would it? I dug up a few Parsnips last week and have stored them in a container in dried earth. I thought it would be handy to have a few available, just in case we had a hard frost and I wouldn't be able to dig any out. It turns out we haven't had a single frost yet - perhaps I am tempting fate - anyway parsnips store well overwinter, and we are bound to have a frost eventually.

I have never been very successful with growing Brussels Sprouts. No matter what I try, be it liming the ground first, or firming the soil - they still wont firm up into decent sized sprouts. So I gave up and for the last few years I just haven't bothered. This year I decided to have one more go. This is what they should look like:-

Google

and this is what mine look like:-

by now the sprouts should have filled the stem, but no, they are small and a little bit blowsy. I have no idea why they won't grow properly for me - heaven knows I have tried. They will still be edible of course, but it doesn't make up for the fact that I am a failure as far as they are concerned.

Whereas, my Purple Sprouting Broc, of which I am very proud, is doing marvellously. Mark Willis at http://marksvegplot.blogspot.com/ said yesterday that his PSB was already forming a head, which was unusual for this time of year. So I went to investigate my own - and 'lo and behold:-

one of the plants has already formed a head. They don't normally do this till the following year, it must be the mild weather that has encouraged it to flower ahead of time. So it looks like we'll be having supplies sooner than expected.

The mild weather is also helping in the cutting patch where the Zinnia are still flowering with plenty of buds to come, as are:-

the Cosmos, although they are beginning to look a little worse for wear.

But the Rudbeckia have just about had it - they have had a wonderfully long season, and I have had many bunches of flowers from them - but it is time to cut them back now and hope the plants survive the winter to do just as well next year.

Let the Soup Season Begin

2011-11-04T16:24:00.001Z

A bowl of soup with a hunk of crusty wholemeal bread is almost a meal in itself, and once you have become 'soup-minded' you will find that no usable leftovers are wasted (pea pods, turnip tops and even weeds can be used). So long as you have some vegetables and herbs - you can rustle up a light, nourishing meal.
Elizabeth West

Now, is the time to start using up all the veg that has been frozen. Yes - it is Soup Season. I turn practically anything into soup in a variety of different ways.

I have started already - taking the cubed courgettes out of the freezer for Courgette soup, last week I made Lentil soup with grated carrot, onion and potato. Today I made Curried Lentil and Carrot soup which was nice and spicy, and I intend to try all sorts of different recipes

Roasted Tomato

Pumpkin with grilled cheese croutons

Sweetcorn and potato chowder

My personal favourite Leek and Potato

The list is endless

and this one Riboletta

where I can use up some of my Cavolo Nero

As you can guess, I am a bit of a soup fanatic - I can think of nothing better in winter than a warming bowl of soup and some lovely fresh bread for dipping.

If anyone can recommend a soup which is their favourite I will gladly give it a go

For research purposes you understand!

Photo source: Pinterest

I have also installed some beautiful music

for you to listen to

whilst you read this post

(just click on any picture in the video bar)

Everlasting Alliums

2011-11-02T10:57:00.001Z

I have been experimenting with the Allium family this year, trying to produce everlasting crops. I am not too sure how successful it will be, but it can do no harm in trying.

Instead of digging my Leeks up I have been cutting them off at the base to see if they will re-grow.
As you can see from the photo it is sort of working. The green part of the Leek is pushing up again. Whether or not the white part of the Leek will come back is a matter of wait and see.

The same can be done with Spring Onions, or if you dig them up, you can then re-plant the base bit that you cut off.

As for normal Onions, well, as I have been using them I have cored out the root end of the Onion and soaked it in water to re-vitalise the roots, then planted it in a pot, to see if it sends new shoots out.

It is all a bit speculative and a case of waste not want not - I will keep you posted as to whether it has been successful. I have been wondering also about Garlic and whether that too would become a perennial if it was handled the same way.

Time will tell.

The late planting of Broad Beans I made in an old crate has been successful so far, but even though they are at the flowering stage, I doubt if they will start to form pods now, with the weather turning colder. Maybe, if I protect them against the weather, they will continue growing throughout the winter, to give me an early crop next Spring.

Again, we shall have to wait and see.

This is my pathetic grape harvest - just half a dozen small bunches - hardly going to set the world alight is it. It is the first crop I have had for a number of years - I don't think I prune it back correctly, so last year I left it to its own devices and bingo - grapes. I think there is a lesson to be learned here.

These are some of the French Beans that I left to dry on the plants - a few of which I will save for planting next year - the rest I can soak overnight and use in cassoulets and the like. I still have a few late sown plants in the garden which have podded up nicely, but I think by now they will be too tough to eat, so I will leave the beans on the plant for a while, then bring them in for drying as well.
You can never have too many beans - that's what I say!

Roll on Next Spring

2011-10-31T08:42:00.000Z

Well, thats it then, summertime is officially over - the clocks have been put back - and we head on in to a world of darkness for a few months - not so much time to spend in the garden, no popping to the allotment to do a few jobs in the evening - waiting for it to get light in the mornings - roll on next spring that's what I say

I have just finished reading a book called 'The One-Straw Revolution by Masanobu Fukuoka. It is about going against the face of conventional farming and vegetable gardening by growing things in a semi-wild state.
Most of the book is about Mr. Fukuoka's experiments with rice-growing in Japan in a non-traditional way, but it is his philosophy about simple living that interested me most, and his ideas about the random growing of vegetables using, what we would call 'permaculture' methods. Using green manures, weeds and straw as mulches, randomly sowing seeds and letting the plants do their own thing - fascinating stuff, I will certainly be using quite a few of his ideas during the next growing season. One of his theories is that insects walk in straight lines, so if you plant a straight row of veg, they will just walk along the row and munch the lot, whereas, if you sow haphazardly they will have trouble finding the next plant. Simple idea, but effective, I would think.

As you can see, we haven't had any frosts yet, so the allotment garden is still going strong, and I am loathe to get rid of anything that is still showing plenty of colour.

And for a final picture I just had to show you my monster Purple Sprouting Broc plant

Come next spring there should be plenty of dinners to come out of this plant - if it survives through the winter, that is!

No smoke without fire

2011-10-26T08:52:00.000+01:00

Had a good work-out in the allotment garden on Monday shifting loads of horse manure and compost to mulch the raspberry plants. The compost was very wet and slightly slimey, rather than the dry and crumbly texture I expected it to be, but I used it anyway. It was very windy but sunny so I enjoyed being out - and decided to have a little bonfire to get rid of all the stalky stuff that had accumulated. I love a good bonfire. That is something I miss now that everyone gets rid of their rubbish in wheelie bins, the smell of smoke drifting in the autumn air and tending the fire, pushing all the end bits in and trying to keep it going.

I once set the fence on fire, oops, as the wind changed direction and for the same reason, the wind that is, I once set my hair on fire - it must have been the hairspray I was wearing - the smell of singed hair, eyelashes and eyebrows was awful. So guess what - I stopped having bonfires. But on Monday I thought I would treat myself, just a little one - pyromaniac, me, nah!

My outdoor Sungold tomatoes are still fruiting - they have been woefully neglected - but keep soldiering on.

And, do you remember I told you about some self-seeded tomatoes that I had found, well, I took the pot into the greenhouse - and look - flowers. Fingers crossed, maybe some fruit - if the weather doesn't get too cold. I may have to pollinate them myself as there aren't many bees about now, but who cares, it will be worth it.

This is the stage the garlic is at in the greenhouse, doing well I think, and ready for planting outside. Maybe I'll give it a little protection till it hardens off a bit.

And finally, the last two lettuce plants outside - the leaves look a little tough now, but considering the lack of rain and me not watering them either, I think they are survivors.

Top of the Crops

2011-10-24T08:45:00.000+01:00

I thought I would do a little bit of a progress report on the allotment garden to keep you up to date on how certain plants are faring.

The Ruby Chard which provides a good splash of colour amongst all the greens has slowed down considerably, but will stand the winter well before going to seed next spring.

Do you remember that I said that I had left the stump of the Calabrese in the ground, not pulling it out as I normally do - well, this is what it looks like now - the plant has re-grown, and I am just wondering if it will be viable next year. It has already given two sets of heads and numerous tenderstem spears. I will mulch it with garden compost to replenish the soil a bit and see how it does.

This is one of my Purple Sprouting Broc plants, and it stands waist high. I have put a cane in for support, as I am sure it will get a bit battered during the winter. I think perhaps I will find something stronger just in case, but this particular row of plants are double the size they normally are.

The Savoy Cabbages are hearting up nicely and have no caterpillar damage at all - but the leaves are jolly tough, so perhaps that is in their favour.

This is January King which has a long way to go before it is ready to eat, but they do stand the winter well, so there is no hurry.

Earlier in the year I dug up all the Leeks that were left over from last year and moved them to a corner of the garden and promptly forgot about them. And what has happened is that they have re-grown. You can see the old stalks with the new plants growing inbetween. So that's another success story that happened all on its own without any help from me.

I wonder what would happen in the garden if I just left it alone, which I seem to be doing more and more, would it all just regenerate itself eventually. I like to think it would.

Golden Harvest

2011-10-17T09:05:00.000+01:00

I have a huge Golden Delicious apple tree at the allotment in what used to be the area where I kept my hens. It has grown well beyond the fruits being reachable, so this weekend, as the weather has been so lovely, I decided to get the ladders out and harvest as much fruit as I could. There are literally hundreds of apples, far more than we could ever get through, the best year ever. The tree had an unfortunate beginning, alas, the sheep broke through into the orchard where I had seven different young fruit trees. They stripped all the bark off the trees and killed all but two - a Victoria plum and the Golden Delicious apple. They were saved by the fact that the stakes were close to the trunk and the sheep couldn't completely strip it.

Since then both trees have gone from strength to strength and now really need to be chopped back to a more reachable level. Last year I made a start pruning the top out of the tree, but more work needs to be done. It won't really matter if I don't get as much fruit and I think the quality of it will be better.

Last year, as the winter was so hard, I fed a lot of the apples to the blackbirds, who I am sure really appreciated it, we had a regular half dozen birds on the lawn hollowing out the halved fruit, so none of them will go to waste and the blackbirds don't mind if the skins are wrinkly.

The Golden Delicious you buy from the supermarket are usually quite a bland taste, but the home grown ones are definitely superior, and when fully ripe, taste almost like pears. Now I just have to find space to store them all.

Sunrise at the Allotment.

2011-10-15T08:56:00.001+01:00

This morning, when I went to the allotment, at 7.30 the sun was just coming up over the hedgerow and there was a heavy dew on the grass. It was freezing cold and my hands were like ice, so much so that I had trouble picking the raspberries that are still fruiting profusely. I noticed that one or two leeks have bolted, but I will leave them to flower and set seed. The Sweet Williams in the cutting patch have re-seeded themselves so I should have a nice patch next year without me having to do anything.

The foliage on the parsnips is now dying back, I had better put a marker on where the row is, just so I can find them when I want to start digging them up. I may bring a few in for storage as it is so difficult to get them out of the ground if we have a hard frost. The perennial spinach has also gone to seed but there are still a few leaves to pick on the outside edges, so I think I will put the mesh cloches back on to protect the plants from frost, then I can keep picking a little longer.

There is quite a bit of mulching and tidying to do and as the weather forecast is good for the weekend, you never know, it might all get done.

Baby Broads and Petit Pois

2011-10-12T08:47:00.000+01:00

Just half an hour or so in the mornings is enough to get a few jobs done on the allotment garden. This mornings job was to dismantle the bean poles and store them in the shed for winter. They have stood up to lots of high winds this year and remained standing through it all. It's always a sad day when a crop is finished, but the beans have done well and I have plenty in the shed drying out for next years seed.

Back at home in the greenhouse, the Broad beans that I planted in the potato sack have now come through and the Peas are making good growth

I shall be nipping out the tops soon to add to salads and helping the peas to bush out. But the surprise of the day was the Garlic that I planted at the weekend -

they are already sprouting, after three days. It just goes to prove that a little warmth can work wonders.

A little tray of sunshine - these are Calendula petals which are going into the airing cupboard for drying - don't the colours just make you want to smile.

Preparing for Winter

2011-10-11T08:56:00.000+01:00

I only grew one Chilli plant this year as there seems to be more than enough fruits on one plant for me to use. There are still green ones on the plant but I brought the rest indoors to dry out for use during the winter. I don't know what the variety is but they are quite mild. Once they have dried out I store them in jars, and to be honest, they keep perfectly for years, so I really have no need to grow any more for quite a while, I just like to see them growing in the greenhouse as they are so colourful.

The Spring Onions have been really successful this year, I sowed the seed in quite deep fruit punnets in the greenhouse and kept them there till they were well-established before planting out in a block in the garden. I have sown them in succession and have four blocks growing at different stages. As it gets colder I will put a cloche over the top to protect them from the worst of the weather

The outdoor lettuce are still doing well and they will also get a bit of winter protection to keep them going. Lettuce are a lot hardier than they look and stand out well during the colder weather.

Final Harvest

2011-10-10T08:45:00.001+01:00

I have finally pulled the last of the summer squashes and courgettes before they start to rot with the advent of wetter weather. Goodness knows what I am going to do with them all. The summer squashes have been really good value, each of the three plants has given at least 50 fruits, so I will definitely grow them again next year but maybe cut down to two plants instead.

The bush-type courgettes didn't stay as a bush but trailed just like the other types, nevertheless they have cropped well even with the dry summer. Then there is the Gold Rush courgette which out-performs itself every year - I am not as keen on the yellow courgettes, they don't have much taste, but they just look so stunning and crop far more heavily than the green types. Again, next year, two plants instead of three.

The only ones from this family that haven't done very well for me are the Butternut squashes - I have only had four or five squashes develop and they aren't anywhere near as big as they were last year - you can't win 'em all.

Crops for Winter

2011-10-06T08:38:00.000+01:00

As the wind was atrocious again yesterday - I spent a couple of happy hours in my greenhouse, doing what I love best - having a bit of a potter.

Although it is earlier than I would normally do it - I planted up these Banana Shallots to give them a chance to develop good roots before planting them out in the garden. This years Shallots all went to seed, probably because of the dry weather, so I am keeping my fingers crossed for this lot.

I also planted my Garlic in pots

On the way home from holiday we stopped in at Norfolk Lavender and they were selling these huge garlic bulbs (nearly the size of a tennis ball) for only 30p ea. so I am hoping for an equally large crop.

In the bags that I planted Potatoes previously I sowed some Meteor Peas at the weekend - I couldn't believe it when I checked yesterday - they are already through, so I brought the bag in to the greenhouse, as I knew the weather was going to get colder (which it is today) together with the carrots sown in the other bag

So the greenhouse is gradually filling up with crops for the winter where I can nurture and protect to my hearts content.

I also sowed three troughs of salad leaves so I can still have my daily lettuce fix through the winter.

All in all, a good afternoons' work. Now - what's next on the list?

A Tale of Two Tomatoes

2011-10-05T10:36:00.000+01:00

This is a picture which makes me sad - it is the last of the tomatoes picked from the tumblers before the plants were discarded - no more fresh tomatoes till next year - or so I thought ....

I made a late sowing of French beans in this container and added some compost from the heap to jhush the soil up a bit - the beans haven't done very well, but the tomato seeds in the compost have thrived. I have now brought the container into the greenhouse - do you think the plants will survive the winter, should I separate all the plants out and pot them up individually or should I just forget the whole thing and bin them?
Maybe I could be eating tomatoes off the vine at Christmas - dream on!

Jars full of Delight

2011-10-04T08:11:00.000+01:00

My store cupboard of preserves, pickles and chutneys isn't as full as it should be - why? Because I haven't made any jam this year - why? Because I still have jam in the cupboard from 2006! It is obvious that we don't eat as much jam as we used to, so I can't see the point of making it - anyway, I have been given some crab apple jelly and damson jam which will be enough to keep us going. The trouble is that I feel a little guilty not preserving all the lovely fruit that we have had this year - but there is still plenty of it in the freezer, which I am sure will all get used eventually.

On the other hand, I have pickled some onions and beetroot and made picallili and one or two different chutneys. but in general I do make a lot less of everything, it just doesn't get used - and I'm not going to make stuff for the sake of it, and the produce seems to get used in other ways.

One thing I do like making though is windfall marmalade which is made from apples but looks and tastes just like the real thing.

To make 4 - 1lb jars
1lb windfall apples, 1 grapefruit, 2 lemons, 2.1/2 pints water and 2.1/2 lb sugar

peel core and chop apples reserving the cores and peel
pare rinds from grapefruit and lemons as thinly as possible and shred finely
remove pith from fruits and chop flesh removing pips
tie citrus pith pips and apple peel and cores in muslin
put all fruit in preserving pan with shredded rind water and muslin bag
bring to boil
simmer for 2.1/2 hours until reduced by half
remove bag and add sugar then boil rapidly for 15-20 mins.
leave to stand for 15 mins
then stir to distribute the peel before potting and covering the usual way

Enjoy!

Re-birth and Rejuvenation

2011-10-01T08:54:00.001+01:00

The allotment garden in the early morning sun

One of the advantages of being a lazy gardener, which I freely admit to, is that it gives the plants a chance to do what comes naturally to them. If I was a perfectionist, I would have dug out plants that have finished cropping, consigned them to the compost bin, dug over the soil and re-planted, which I have done in some cases. But, with the Calabrese, I have left the plants to do their own thing, and this is the result:-

We have had many servings of Calabrese in different forms from these plants - firstly, the main head, then all the tender stem broccoli that came after - this basically left just a stump, which I never got round to removing, as I didn't really need the space for anything else. This morning I noticed that a whole new plant has formed at the base of the stump, which looks as though it will produce even more tender stems. How good is that. So my advice is, don't be too hasty to clear the ground - you never know what will happen next.

I have mentioned before that I have been gradually clearing out the squash and courgette patch, as you can see it's looking pretty awful with rotting leaves and thistles growing - but even though the plants look terrible they are still pushing out baby squashes, and even the courgettes are producing new leaves and baby fruits:-

You can just see a small courgette at the side of the new flower. So although the plants may not be very nice to look at - don't be too hasty to clear them away. Sometimes a little laziness goes a long way.

Down To Earth

2011-09-29T14:00:00.001+01:00

From this photo of my allotment garden you would think that everything was ship-shape. Veg in straight rows, green manure in vacant soil, hardly any weeds. Well you would be wrong, but I'm not going to show you the bad bits.

The squash patch is a right old mess, I have cut back a lot of leaves that suffered from mildew, there are loads of weeds that have grown underneath that I couldn't get to when they were in full swing. My raspberries are all bowed down with the weight of raspberries - I don't have them growing attached to wires like you are supposed to - mine are more free spirits. The sweet pea patch has all gone brown and crisp and the sunflowers are all leaning dangerously because they haven't been staked.

I never said I was a perfect gardener and at this time of year I was right. Resolutions for next year - none, because I know me - I am what I am and there's no changing me now.

Greenhouse Blues

2011-09-28T11:33:00.000+01:00

Motto - leaving the greenhouse door open all day is an invitation for butterflies to devastate your Pak Choi.

Not a pretty site - and not much use any more!

How can this Cucumber plant

which is going mouldy

and completely dead at the bottom

keep on producing cucumbers

On the bright side

the container carrots are doing well

and so are the dwarf Runner Beans

but the tumbler toms have had their day

these are definitely finished

but on the bright side the lettuce in the old tomato growbags

are doing just fine

so there you have it

the good and the bad in my greenhouse

no wonder I have the

greenhouse blues

How are your greenhouse crops faring?

Autumn Veggie Round Up

2011-09-26T17:01:00.003+01:00

It wont be long now before all the courgettes and squashes are harvested - the foliage is dying back or getting mildewed - whilst we were away we visited the local allotments to have a nosey. (Talk about coals to Newcastle) I love allotment sites don't you? There were even sheep kept on one allotment! Anyway, one plot had all the pumpkins lying on bare soil with no greenery left whatsoever, I presume the allotment holder had done that so as to ripen them - I think they were still attached to the root. So I have started to cut away all the surplus foliage - I am surprised at how many weeds were lurking beneath

There are still plenty of Gold Rush Courgettes to harvest on three plants -

And the Patty Pan Squash are still producing (sorry about the blurred photo but I didn't have my reading glasses with me, so I can't judge the distance very well - blind old bat).

The early morning sun was lovely and shone on the Purple Sprouting Broccoli, highlighting is beautifully

The Savoy Cabbage is beginning to heart up blurrily

And the January King Cabbage even more blurrily - oh dear - note to self - take your glasses with you next time!

This is a bit clearer picture of the Red Cabbage which has been given a good seeing-to by caterpillars, but the heart is okay and slowly getting bigger - I'm sure it should have been ready by now, but the weather has held it back - I found a good recipe for Braised Red Cabbage on another website but can't remember which - so I am looking forward to eating it - eventually.

The Curly Kale has been left alone by the caterpillars -

as has the Scarlet Kale (looks more like purple to me - oh well)

and finally, we have Leeks - I have been pulling them small, but there are plenty left to see me through the winter. All in all, I am reasonably chuffed with the progress of everything, and as long as there are no major disasters, we should have cabbage coming out of our ears!

A Happy Homecoming

2011-09-24T19:41:00.000+01:00

After a week of being away I was a little apprehensive about what I would find at the allotment. To my amazement everything was tickety-boo, if not a little scruffy looking. The runner beans have finished now, there are still a few courgettes and squash growing away, but the courgette leaves have mildew, and don't look very attractive. But, other than that, the brassicas are still going strong, and the cutting patch still has zinnias and rudbeckia, cosmos and marigolds for picking.

The sunflowers are still standing, despite no staking during the gales, and no water for weeks. The biggest surprise was the raspberries

there weren't that many when I left but the branches were bowed down with them on my return. So all is not gloom and doom as I expected. The raised beds at home, however, are not in such a good state. The soil is very free draining and doesn't hold water that well, and the plants seem to have suffered from it, sadly.

Since I have been home I have given everything a good soaking, trying to keep it all going a little longer. The squash I grew in a pot has a tiny 'ping-pong' sized fruit on it, so I may as well give up on that, the french beans that I planted in a container, for a late crop, has dozens of tomato plants growing in it (I used some of my compost mixed in with the soil, so I presume that is where the tomato plants have come from). The swede plants have been attacked by something or other and the leaves are practically non-existant. The only plants that are thriving are the spring onions.

So, on reflection, it hasn't necessarily been a happy homecoming after all. So I offer myself a piece of advice - don't go on holiday, you never know what you will find on your return.

Second Sowings - Seeds of Doubt

2011-09-16T11:11:00.001+01:00

A few weeks ago I did a little bit of succession sowing - a small row of spinach beet - a few french beans, dwarf runner beans in pots and sweet peppers (the carrots were demolished as soon as they popped through the soil).

If you look at the bottom of the picture (just at the side of my welly) you can see small beans forming - the question is - will they grow to full size before the frosts hit.

The dwarf runner beans are growing well (I brought them into the greenhouse when the gales hit us) and they are thriving. The beans are a bit curlier than normal runners but as long as they are edible I don't mind, So they have extended the bean season quite nicely

The late sowing of sweet peppers has been more successful than those grown earlier in the year - I am really pleased with the results. And finally,

The notorious Butternut Squash (I have never grown one that is the same shape as the ones on the seed packet) - it is starting to ripen, but I think I will now have to cut the foliage away a bit and raise it, so it can catch any of the meagre sunshine we may get during the next month.

How are your late sowings doing?

All in all, my late sowings have been reasonably successful.

A Cracking Courgette

2011-09-15T08:40:00.000+01:00

At last the wind has finally dropped and all is back to normal. It is a beautiful autumn morning and I was able to get my bicycle out once more for my morning ride to the allotment.

The garden has surived the hurricane quite well, although things are leaning and flattened, especially in the squash and courgette patch.

It is practically impossible to see what is growing in there or to pull the weeds that have grown under the plants, they will just have to wait till I clear the patch. But I did find this huge(ish) courgette that I will turn into soup, as it is just about the right weight. This is Pru Leith's recipe which I have used for years, and it is delicious. The secret to its unique taste is the juice of a lemon right at the end which lifts it out of the ordinary.

Courgette soup with parmesan and crisp proscuitto
olive oil, 1 clove crushed garlic, 750g courgettes, 1 litre chicken stock, 1tbsp fresh thyme, 6 slices proscuitto, 55g parmesan, shaved, juice of 2 lemons, and seasoning.

heat the olive oil, add the garlic and sweat for a minute, add courgettes and sweat for 10 mins.
Add chicken stock and thyme bring to boil and simmer for 5 minutes until courgettes soft. Season
Liquidise soup and return to pan
Grill proscuitto until crisp and chop into small pieces
Reheat soup and stir in lemon juice. Serve with proscuitto and parmesan sprinkled on top

(I use streaky bacon mainly as proscuitto is not usually on my shopping list).

In winter I have soup for my lunch most days, made from vegetables from the garden. In the late 70's I found a little book which cost 40p, which has every conceivable soup recipe ever thought of. The book is now falling to bits, the pages are yellow and food stained, but it is indispensable in my 'soup kitchen'.

(check out my latest post on http://elaineintheslowlane.blogspot.com/)

The Fruits of My Labour

2011-09-13T18:12:00.000+01:00

I love it when a plan comes together - Ratatouille on a plate (well almost). As the summer season draws to a close these are the veggies that have almost finished - farewell till next year. On the other hand I still have leeks, carrots, cabbages, kale, sprouts and purple sprouting broc to look forward to. Is there no end to the delights in store - be still my beating heart.

Crunchy Cabbages and Crispy Apples

2011-09-12T10:22:00.000+01:00

The Apples on my two small trees are slowly ripening and hanging grimly on through these gales we are having, they are nameless - I sent for them from a newspaper advert - and originally started growing them in containers, keeping the roots trimmed back every year. But I got fed up of watering them, so planted them out in the garden. This is the first year I have really had fruit of any quantity so I am dead chuffed. The top one looks as if it may be a 'Braeburn' type and the other a 'Golden Delicious' - I really ought to get an apple identification book - but I'm not too fussed, as long as they taste alright.

I have another apple tree in the orchard part of the allotment which definitely is a 'Golden Delicious'. The tree has become huge and pruning it only seems to make it grow huger (is that a word). So this year, after the leaves have fallen I am going to go armed with a saw and take it down to a reachable level. The apples suffer from 'bitter pit' which leaves brown marks on the skin - I think that this was due to my chickens droppings giving the roots too much neat nitrogen (that's just my theory), but now I don't keep chickens, hopefully they will improve (I feed them to the blackbirds in winter and they don't mind what they look like).

As for the Cabbages, well, they are doing splendidly, with not much caterpillar/slug damage and the nets have kept the birds off. But yesterday, when I was slicing one for Sunday lunch, a whole host of earwigs trotted out from between the leaves. That is the worst thing about fresh veg - you never know what is lurking beneath.

Tasty Tomatoes

2011-09-10T11:32:00.000+01:00

I am relishing the fact that my outdoor Sungold Tomatoes are still pushing out fruit. They aren't in a sheltered spot and the foliage is looking pretty tatty now but there are plenty of tomatoes to keep picking which is quite remarkable, due to the fact that I keep forgetting to water them. Three plants are growing in a trough and two are in the ground. They have the most delicious taste, very different to ordinary toms, very sweet. If I had to grow only one type, then this would be the one.

The Runner Beans are Still Standing

2011-09-08T08:45:00.000+01:00

I am pleased to report that the Runner Beans have survived the gales and are still upright. They were listing to port the day before but managed to hang on. I know other gardeners have had trouble with toppling wigwams and burnt foliage, but as you can see, because mine are sheltered by a hedgerow, they don't look too bad. There aren't many beans left to pick now, but it has been a good season, after a slow start.

The Brussel Sprouts have also survived and are standing tall. I never do very well with them usually, but this year there has hardly been any caterpillar damage, and so far the sprouts are firm but small. I have had problems with the sprouts bursting in previous years and becoming soft and loose, so we shall have to see how they progress through the winter.

Courgettes and Raspberries Just Keep On Coming

2011-09-07T14:14:00.000+01:00

The recent bout of showery weather has meant the Courgettes have been revitalised and they are sending out plenty more fruits. They had slowed to a standstill, which was fine by me, as it meant I could catch up with the excess that had accumulated.

The Gold Rush variety always produce much more fruit than the green varieties and them seem slower to mature, never reaching the proportions of a whale if left on the plant. Alas, I find them a little tasteless, which is a shame, as they look so colourful when cooked and mixed in a Ratatouille or something. The original packet of seeds I have been using for a number of years, is now empty, so I am wondering whether it is worth just sticking to the green ones in future.

The Raspberries have begun fruiting again. They are the same plants that produced in early summer. I cut back the old stems after fruiting and they begin the cycle again. Two crops from the same plant - a bargain - does this happen for anyone else, or is it my plants that have this particular habit.

The fruits that are forming are quite large and a little sweeter than the earlier ones. I never water them even in dry spells but always mulch them with manure over the winter. Perhaps that is the secret.

The View From The Roof of The Shed

2011-09-06T08:27:00.000+01:00

The other day I decided to finish picking the last of the Damsons from the top of the tree, but this meant climbing on to the garden shed roof. With this blog in mind I took the camera up with me, together with baskets to hold the fruit and secateurs, to do a bit of pruning at the same time.

Because I have my allotment for all the veg that takes up a lot of room, I use these beds for the produce that needs a bit more attention, lettuce, radish, garlic, spring onions etc. The rest of the space is used for spares, the odd cabbage, chives, beetroot and any spare corner for flowers; California poppies and Pinks, plus herbs. It is astonishing just how much can be grown in such a small space with a bit of planning and squeezing in. The compost bins are on the left next to the dahlia cutting patch and the old hen run is on the right, where I store my bicycle and a few cloches and canes. Beyond that is the cold frame where I harden off tender veg.

Apple and plum trees, plus soft fruit and strawberries are also planted randomly in this area. So you see, you don't need a large garden to keep yourself in fresh produce, this small area plus a few containers of potatoes, manages to feed the two of us almost all year round.

This is the view from the roof of the shed facing west, looking towards my raised beds, not quite as full of veggies as they were, but still productive. The beds are just the right size to take small greenhouse cloches in early spring to protect the new seedlings from 'cat attack'.

Magic Mushrooms

2011-09-05T08:31:00.000+01:00

I had a feeling that yesterday would be a good day to go mushroom hunting. We have had a few showers and a lot of sunshine, perfect conditions for emerging mushrooms. Basket in hand I had a wander around the field that backs on to my garden. And there they were, a patch of Horse Mushrooms. I can't tell you what a thrill it is to find them. I shall make mushroom soup with some (I have given some to my friend), slice and freeze others, and the rest:-

These are Field Mushrooms

I had on toast for lunch. The taste of mushrooms on toast is my absolute, absolute, favourite. Between one year and the next I forget just how much I love the taste. Shop bought mushrooms just do not compare, I make oohing and aahing noises between every mouthful. If you have never eaten fresh mushrooms from the field, then you just do not know what you are missing.

I suggest you put your wellies on right now and go foraging. There are Chanterelle to be found in woodland right until November, and Ceps or Edible Boletus predominantly found in Beech woods, around the margins, Giant Puffballs in meadows and pastures, Field Mushrooms in all grassy places and, of course, Horse Mushrooms. Care should be taken with these, if you cut the stem and it turns yellow, they should not be eaten.

Of course, care must be taken with any mushroom - positive identification is a must. Oh I forgot to mention Blewitts these are also edible, they are sort of rubbery in appearance with a blue tinge. All of the above are absolutely delicious, and I look forward to the season every year. My heart beats that little bit faster when I find them - and as for eating, well, you know how I feel about that. Ecstatic that's what.

Somewhere Over The Rainbow

2011-09-04T08:44:00.000+01:00

The season for perpetual Spinach and Chard is almost over and the plants are starting to go to seed. The picture above shows Rainbow Chard, which comes in at least half a dozen colours, from pale pink through to yellow, orange, and deep red. I often plant it in the flower borders as it gives a real shot of colour and is very decorative. If you cut the seed heads off you will still get small amounts of leaves throughout the winter, but when spring comes it sends up more seeds heads and the plants should be pulled and new seed sown.

This, and Spinach, are important leaf crops in the cottage garden, and have been in use since the 16th century, but with Chard you have the added benefit of being able to use the stems separately as a vegetable, as well as the leaf.

Greenhouse Versatility

2011-09-03T15:03:00.000+01:00

I love my greenhouse. I use it for all sorts of things, not just for growing tomatoes. It is my refuge. When the weather is too bad to be out of doors, I can spend a few hours sowing seeds, transplanting, tidying up, watering. I even used to have a rattan armchair in there, for reading the Sunday papers. It is my equivalent of having a garden hideaway. In fact, the only reason I wanted to buy this house was because the greenhouse was already there. The previous occupants hadn't exactly placed it in the best position in the garden, but I was blowed if I was going to move it for aesthetic reasons, so it stayed where it was. We have never lost a pane of glass in gale force winds, mainly because it is sheltered by a huge Willow tree, which incidentally, brushes all the 'Cool Glass' off the greenhouse roof, with its long branches.

I use it for storage of winter vegetables and tender plants and grow winter lettuce in grow bags, which withstand everything that winter can throw at them. So you see my greenhouse is vital to my gardening operation, I couldn't manage without it.

I have plenty of space in there now the Tomato plants have been taken down. Let me take you for a tour:-

At ground level I have containers of Rocket, Pak Choi and Salad Leaves, then Carrots and Dwarf beans in pots.

On the shelves I have Coriander and Flat Leaf Pasrsley, Geraniums and Chilli Peppers

Beans drying, Beetroot awaiting attention, Onions and Apples

Tomatoes ripening, courgettes and Sage cuttings taking root - all confirming that it is a hive of activity, all year round.

What goes on in your greenhouse - could you live without it?

Preserving The Flavour

2011-09-02T13:50:00.000+01:00

Beetroot Chutney (photo courtesy of Country Living)

This is a good way to use up a glut of Beetroot if you have too much at the height of the season. There are various other ways you could use it perhaps in a Beetroot and Cheese Bake where you layer cooked beetroot, potatoes and onions with parsley and cover with a cheese sauce. Or chopped onion, shredded beetroot with a mild vinegar and a bit of sugar or diced with orange rind and orange juice seasoned with paprika and sugar or simply pickled.

If you are interested, here is the recipe for Beetroot Chutney.
3lb raw beetroot, peeled and grated, 2lb cooking apples, peeled, cored and chopped, 1lb onions skinned and chopped, 1lb seedless raisins, 2.1/2 pints malt vinegar, 2.1/2lb sugar, 2 tsp ground ginger and the juice of 1 lemon.
Place all ingredients in a preserving pan and bring to boil. Simmer gently for about 2.1/2 hours, stirring occasionally, until no excess liquid remains and the mixture is thick. Spoon chutney into pre-heated jars and cover with vinegar proof tops.

Just out of interest - after my Fruit Vinegar post the other day I found these two bottles in a charity shop which I thought would be ideal for decanting the vinegar in to.

Perfect - don't you think!

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

2011-09-01T08:36:00.000+01:00

THE GOOD
The Strawberries have decided to start fruiting again

THE BAD
Snails have been having a field day on my Beetroot leaves

THE UGLY
Any apple which falls from the tree is immediately set upon by a horde of wasps.

A picture of the more unpleasant side of the garden.

Granma Doris's Blackberry Vinegar

2011-08-31T13:12:00.000+01:00

Talking to my old friend Jude the other day she mentioned my Gran's delicious Yorkshire Puddings which in turn led her to remembering her Gran, Doris's (aka 'Blossom') Blackberry Vinegar which, as children, they used to sprinkle over Yorkshire Puddings with a little sugar.
I had never heard of this, so checked in my Good Housekeeping 'Complete Book of Home Preserving', and there it was Fruit Vinegars. It doesn't mention the Yorkshire Pudding bit, but says it can be used to replace wine vinegar in salad dressings.

Place washed fruit in a bowl and break it up slightly with the back of a wooden spoon. For each 500g of fruit, pour in 600ml. of malt vinegar. Cover and leave to stand for 3-4 days, stirring occasionally. Strain and add 500g of sugar to each 600ml. Boil for 10minutes then cool, strain again and pour into bottles, and seal with vinegar-proof tops. Add a few whole pieces of fruit to each bottle, if liked. Sounds alright doesn't it.

You can also make Herb Vinegars by filling bottles with sprigs of leaves from freshly gathered herbs such as rosemary, tarragon, mint, thyme. Fill with red or white wine vinegar then cover and leave in a cool, dry place for about 6 weeks. Strain, taste and add more vinegar if the flavour is too strong. Pour into bottles and seal. Again this can be used to make salad dressings. (photo courtesy of Good Housekeeping)

Piddling Little Pumpkins

2011-08-30T13:59:00.000+01:00

This morning at the allotment I decided to go exploring in the jungle of my Butternut Squash to try and find some fruit. Up until recently all the flowers were male, and I despaired of having any squash to store for winter. Here is what I found - two piddling little squashes about three inches long, and this one:-

about six inches long. And that's it, literally, that's all there is, amongst about twenty feet of rambling stems that seem to cover most of the garden - three piddly little squashes. What can I say!

Late Summer Seed Sowing

2011-08-29T14:41:00.000+01:00

Broad beans can be sown as a green manure in September or the tops can be taken out and used in salads or lightly steamed instead of cabbage.

Pak Choi produce some tasty leaves in winter. Sow in early September, and leave in clumps for salad leaves, or thin them out for larger leaves. Pick them from November to February, they will keep producing if you pick off flowering stems (these can be eaten as well).

Salad leaves can be planted in stages for an ongoing supply right through the winter. They are pretty hardy if covered with fleece or a cloche.

Other things to consider sowing are Spring Cabbage, Spring Onions and other Oriental leaves. I always think it best not to leave the ground empty of crops, so I use green manures such as Phaecalia, which covers the ground, excludes weeds and it nice to look at too, with its pretty blue flowers. This can be either dug in or hoed off and left to cover the soil.
At the moment I have my seedlings in containers which I will be bringing in to the greenhouse at some stage, once the greenhouse crops are cleared, but they can be left outside and given some protection.

Triumphs and Failures part 2

2011-08-28T19:04:00.000+01:00

Definitely a triumph.
This year I started my onion sets off in modules so as to get a good root system before I planted them, as last year the birds pulled them out as soon as I put them in. The sets spent more time on top of the soil than in it. It seems to have worked and I am pleased with the results, the onions are three times the size they were last year.

Spring onions have done well also, but the Shallots were a disaster, they all went to seed very quickly and I had nothing to harvest.

The Beetroot harvest has been mixed, neither a triumph, nor a failure. They have remained fairly static, not going to seed but not growing much either.

Sweet peppers are another disaster, hardly any flowers on the plants and only one or two peppers on each. One plant had nothing on it at all. They were a new variety that I tried, mixed colours, which looked very pretty but weren't very productive. I don't think I will be trying them again. I usually grow peppers from saved seed and they do very well, so I think I'll revert back to the 'tried and tested'.

Whereas, the Chilli Peppers have done extremely well, there are dozens of peppers on the plant with plenty more to come. They are ripening well and I will begin picking and drying them for use all through the next year.

So, what conclusions have I come to. Well, I have mixed feelings - in the greenhouse the tomatoes did well, but the cucumbers and peppers not so well. In the garden lack of rain was the main culprit, and no matter how much you water, there is no comparison with a good downpour of rain that really soaks into the ground. I am not making excuses for the failures - some years are good, some years are bad - as gardeners we have to take the rough with the smooth.

Triumphs and Failures - Part 1

2011-08-27T19:41:00.000+01:00

I think we have all suffered from mixed fortunes with our veggie growing this year, so as it is the end of the summer growing season, I thought I would look back and record what has done well and what has done not so well in my kitchen garden.

Radishes

The first crop to be harvested and the last. Every batch I sowed after this picture was taken, bolted, due to the dry weather, I expect.

Courgettes haven't done too bad, after a good start they slowed down a bit, lack of water again, I suspect, but I still had more than I could handle. Patty pan squashes have been very prolific, I put three plants in, if I grow them again next year it will be only one plant. Butternut squashes are rubbish this year, the fruits are only just starting to form, so I am sure they won't be ready before the first frosts. Very disappointed, as last year I had a bumper crop.

Tomatoes in side and out have been excellent. Unfortunately, the indoor tomatoes have now finished, but the Sungold outdoors are still fruiting well and don't seem to have been affected by the colder weather, although the winds we had earlier in the summer battered the leaves a bit.

The runner beans have been excellent, after a slow start, but they too are nearly over. But the French beans have been very disappointing, running to seed very quickly. I shall use them as dried beans over the winter.

I have struggled with lettuce this year, the dry weather has a lot to answer for. I have been picking leaves every day, but as the picture shows, most of the lettuce bolted fairly quickly. I have lots more seedlings in the greenhouse, coming on nicely, hopefully to see me over winter.

These are just a few of my triumphs and failures. I shall post part 2 next time.

Potatoes - As Neat as a Clutch of Hens Eggs

2011-08-26T15:11:00.000+01:00

Kestrel Potato

I pushed my gloved hands deep into the potting compost of the container that held my potatoes, scraped back the soil, and behold, these little golden beauties.

Admittedly, there aren't a lot of them, but when I think of them bubbling in the pan, then crushed, with a fillet of smoked haddock perched jauntily on top and a buttery chive sauce, I can forgive them anything.

Plum Crazy

2011-08-22T08:30:00.000+01:00

Plums - Victoria, Damsons and Greengages

Although the plum trees looked wonderful with all the fruits hanging in profusion, they were starting to drop onto the ground and they were attracting wasps, so I decided to harvest them all in one fell swoop. I have been up and down the street giving them away to neighbours, but as you can see, there are still gazillions left.
So, what to do with them all? As a young girl my Mum just used to serve them stewed with custard, or as a crumble or pie. I prefer them fresh, but obviously they won't last long, now they have been picked. If I keep them in a cool place they should be alright for a while, but still, there are an awful lot. Bottling, freezing and pulping seems to be the only answer. The problem is - I have no room left in the freezer. Oh dear!

Record Breaker - I Think Not!

2011-08-21T10:27:00.000+01:00

Runner Bean

As I have posted before, it has been a great year for runner beans for me. I usually pick the beans when they are half this size, but this one got away. The longest, straightest bean I have managed and it is only 12" long. Can anyone beat it - I expect you all can - oh well!

2011-08-21T10:02:00.000+01:00

'Hestia' dwarf runner bean flowers

I have planted three beans to a large container in the hope of getting some late crops, and am really pleased with their progress. They are full of flower, which I hope the bees will kindly pollinate for me. The containers are raised to try and fool the slugs. I gave some seed to a friend and her pots, on the ground, have been decimated. Fingers crossed - so far so good.

Out with the Old - In with the New

2011-08-20T10:55:00.000+01:00

Bolted lettuce

The time comes when you have to concede defeat. Most of my lettuce have now bolted. I have been picking leaves from them for most of the summer, but the dry weather has finally done its worst and the lettuce have given up. But don't they look pretty. I shall leave them for a while as I don't need the space yet. I have new lettuce seedlings in the greenhouse, but I will wait a little longer before planting them out. Hopefully, if they aren't attacked by 'you know what' then I should have a good supply for the winter months.

Tempting Tomatoes

2011-08-19T08:31:00.000+01:00

Tomato - Consteluto Fiorentino

For me the tomato season is nearly over. I sowed four different types; Gardeners' Delight, Tigerella, Consteluto Fiorentino and Sungold. The Sungold were planted outside and are a vigorous cherry type, and in my mind, the best-tasting tomato of all. They are still going strong, despite the cold and windy weather. The Gardeners' Delight ripened very quickly in the greenhouse and have now finished. Can't quite believe I won't be picking any more. I have frozen a good few kilos ready to make sauces and soups for the winter. The Tigerella which are a medium sized tomato with paler stripes are just about hanging on with a few more to ripen and the Consteluto, which are a beefsteak type have finished completely. I know other people who are still waiting for their tomatoes to ripen, so I can't quite understand why mine have come and gone so quickly. I shall miss going into the greenhouse and picking fruit warm from the vine and feasting on them straightaway. Guess I will just have to wait till next year now.

Pots of Potatoes

2011-08-18T08:47:00.000+01:00

Charlotte Potatoes

As well as growing five rows of potatoes at the allotment, I planted the spares in green potato sack in my garden at home. I tried this for the first time last year, and the results were a bit disappointing, producing perhaps enough for a couple of meals. But I thought I would give it another go and emptied the first of three containers. The crop was a bit better than last year, but after all the care and attention and frequent watering, I am really not sure it is worth it.

As an aside - this morning I picked a handful of runner beans and gave my two sheep one or two to eat as they love them. I picked a few courgettes and put everything in a bag to take home. One of the sheep knowing there were beans in the bag, thought it would be great fun to chase me round the field headbutting the bag trying to get to the beans, which ended up with all the courgettes being smashed to pieces, me being cornered (and, if I am honest, a little scared - he does have horns) with the bag raised above my head, yelling to frighten him off. Good job we don't have neighbours,they would have thought I was a mad woman.

Caterpillar Squishing

2011-08-17T08:54:00.000+01:00

Scarlet Kale

There hasn't been as much Cabbage White caterpillar damage on the Brassicas this year, I think the weather may have something to do with it, but the last few evenings, I have been squishing caterpillars that have taken a liking to my scarlet kale. The lay on the central rib mainly, but don't seem to do much damage, possibly because kale has such a tough leaf. I like to grow this coloured kale, exactly because it is coloured and very ornamental, I have underplanted it with a frilly red-tipped lettuce which the slugs don't seem to touch. So the whole patch is very colourful, I just wish I didn't have to spend any spare time I have in getting rid of those destructive little blighters.

Capsicums - Some like 'em sweet/Some like 'em hot

2011-08-16T17:25:00.000+01:00

Capsicum annuum

For a cook there are two types of peppers; sweet and hot, but the botanical divisions are more complex. Capsicum annuum is an annual or short-lived perennial with one flower in each leaf axil and includes sweet and hot peppers. Capsicum frutescens is a perennial with up to three flowers per leaf-joint and has smaller pungent chillies.

Sweet peppers are rich in vitamin C and a digestive stimulant - can be chopped in salads, cooked and pickled. Hot or chilli peppers enliven bland foods and give heat to curries. The pungent capsaicin of chillies stimulates circulation and sensory nerves, disinfects food and eases sore throats. The infused oil gives a warming massage for rheumatism. Crushed chillies make cayenne pepper and flavour Tabasco sauce, dried paprika is popular in Hungarian cooking and helps prevent seasickness.

When harvesting cut them off with an inch of stem on each fruit. If you have more than you can eat fresh, hang the vines up in a dry windy place to dry. You may have to finish the drying process by hanging over a mild heat indoors. The they can be stored until you want them for winter.

Beautiful Beans

2011-08-15T10:50:00.000+01:00

Runner Beans

After a slow start the Runner Beans are a triumph. I didn't sow as many seeds this year, keeping my fingers crossed that the few that I did sow, would survive any onslaughts from slugs, snails and weather. Thankfully they all survived. I did put a pop bottle collar round them when they were planted to deter slug damage, but raising strong plants in the greenhouse helps. In the wild runner beans grow in the Mexican mountains together with dahlias, begonias and lobelias which help bring the bees in to pollinate. Fortunately, bees have learned the trick of opening up the petals to provide an efficient pod-setting service. Unfortunately, pollen beetles also like them which discourages the bees as they sit in the keel of the flower which will then be left unpollinated. The more you pick the more beans will come, but leaving beans on the plant will result in stringy beans and production will stop.

I have sown a late crop of 'Hestia' in pots, they are a dwarf variety, I haven't tried these before, so it will be interesting to see if they produce beans before the frosts, and how many the plants will produce.

Cute Curcurbits

2011-08-14T09:02:00.000+01:00

Green Bush Courgettes
Gold Rush Courgettes
Patty Pan Squash

Don't you just love this family of veg. They give of their best all through the growing season, and the patty pan squash, a new one for me, is a little beauty. They are all prolific fruiters and of course anyone who grows them knows this, and I am sure we all have similar 'glut' problems of what to do with it all. The vegetable marrow came from the Americas to Europe probably in the sixteenth century, but didn't reach Britain until the eighteenth. Later cottage gardeners enthusiastically adopted it, not just to eat but to show off their gardening skills by growing huge specimens. The courgette is a very recent introduction and it is simply a small marrow. Trailing types can be grown over an archway or pergola or even an arbour in small gardens. The cucumber which is part of this family was grown and introduced by the Romans, the Emperor Tiberius ordered that he should have one every day. They were originally called 'Cowcumbers' and that if bowls of water were put under the fruit they would stretch and straighten to reach the water.
My butternut squash haven't done as well this year, on having a 'furtle' amongst the leaves this morning I found two tiny squashes about 2in long, so I doubt they will get to any size before the first frosts.

Plenty of Plums

2011-08-13T15:30:00.000+01:00

Victoria Damsons Greengage

The Plums in my garden are coming into their own just now. The trees are heavily laden with ripening fruit, just begging to be harvested. It has been a really good year for fruit so far, heaps better than last year, the trouble is - what to do with it all. I prefer to eat Plums fresh from the tree, but even I couldn't possibly get through this lot. A few of my neighbours will benefit, then there is plum jam to make, perhaps Damson Gin or Vodka, then I suppose I could stew a batch and freeze them. But in the end I expect the wasps will have their fill and spoil a lot of them. Nevertheless, it is a wonderful sight to see the branches dripping with goodness and signalling the beginning of autumn.

In the beginning ...

2011-08-12T22:59:00.000+01:00

I have decided to start another blog that just features the vegetable growing side of my garden. Although the garden has mixed plantings of flowers, veg, herbs and fruit in the traditional cottage garden style my heart has always been with the edibles ever since I took on my first allotment many years ago. There have been several gardens since then but the one I have now is the culmination of all the experience I have gained over the years. I spend many hours a week tending my plots throughout the year and find time passing quickly when I am absorbed in the many and varied tasks. Of course, however much time I spend, it is never enough, the list of jobs to do is endless. Sometimes I long for the winter where I can look out of the window and know that gardening year is over and I have a little breathing space to make plans for the next year. Then as the year turns I begin to look forward to Spring arriving and the whole cycle beginning again.

This blog will be the story of providing food for the table, season by season, the triumphs and failures; sowing, growing, harvesting and preserving - a journey that I hope you will take with me.