Tuesday, 23 March 2010
starting.........now!
I finally got round to getting my seeds and started today with some sowing. I hadn't been to the plot for 2 weeks due to weather and stuff, last time i managed alot of tidying and digging with my son, and i need to soon plant the spuds. They are nicely chitting in the shed, along with the onions waiting to go in.
So today i sowed in pots some swiss chard 'galaxy' , kale 'dwarf green curled' and put in 20 cloves of garlic 'white' which i have never started in pots before but was reading is possible for those times when your unable to get out into the ground straight away.
I'm also going to use the rotovator that been sitting in my shed for a few years, as i am happy i have removed enough weed for it not to be a huge shredding and spreading fest! You'll never get rid of every weed, but i'm going to risk it for some areas this year to aid the potato planting and other root veg.
So today i sowed in pots some swiss chard 'galaxy' , kale 'dwarf green curled' and put in 20 cloves of garlic 'white' which i have never started in pots before but was reading is possible for those times when your unable to get out into the ground straight away.
I'm also going to use the rotovator that been sitting in my shed for a few years, as i am happy i have removed enough weed for it not to be a huge shredding and spreading fest! You'll never get rid of every weed, but i'm going to risk it for some areas this year to aid the potato planting and other root veg.
Tuesday, 2 March 2010
sun 28th feb
The kids and myself went to see the allotment just to see what state it was in, just to remind myself of the work i need to do over the next month to get it up to speed. In the end it was quite mild with the sun shinning and the kids seemed happy digging for worms so i managed to start digging in the green manure at the top of the plot.
At the bottom end of the plot it looks a little untidy but i dont think it will be too much work. The swiss chard, celery and parsnips roots still in the ground need removing, a little weeding.
I also went with my son to the garden center and picked up my seed potatoes and onions, i'll list varieties soon.
At the bottom end of the plot it looks a little untidy but i dont think it will be too much work. The swiss chard, celery and parsnips roots still in the ground need removing, a little weeding.
I also went with my son to the garden center and picked up my seed potatoes and onions, i'll list varieties soon.
Thursday, 28 January 2010
first dig of the year
On tuesday i managed to get my first dig of the year in, did about 2 hours in the cold, soil a but sticky and still with some ice crystals on top from the frost! But i removed the few beetroot that were left in the ground, and the spinach beet all into the bean trench.
I then dug over the area which had had the green manure mustard seed in. The strip in the middle of the photo is the strawberry plants which needs a bit of weeding at some point.
IMG_3287
Originally uploaded by oubykh30
I then dug over the area which had had the green manure mustard seed in. The strip in the middle of the photo is the strawberry plants which needs a bit of weeding at some point.
IMG_3287
Originally uploaded by oubykh30
Tuesday, 26 January 2010
Tuesday, 5 January 2010
pre xmas photos
These photos were taken about 3 to 4 weeks ago, before the hard frosts and snow we have today, the green manure has died down a bit since and needs to be dug in some time. Otherwise it is a bit of tidying up that needs to be done when i get the chance and the weather improves.
Sunday, 15 November 2009
Tuesday, 20 October 2009
Pickling time!
its that time again, the whole house smells but its worth it when you open that jar in a few months time. Or a week if you cannot wait that long.
one i did this week was the nigel slater recipe in the guardian a few weeks ago, with the remaining tomatoes in the greenhouse. It made only a couple of jars but looks promising.
Last night it was the beetroot relish which is firm favorite in this household.
900g raw beetroot grated
450g onions
675g cooking apples
450g raisins
1 litre white wine vinegar
900g granulated sugar
2 tbsp ginger
basically throw it all in a large pan and bring to boil and simmer then for a few hours. I use the grater on my processor with the onion, beetroot and apple so they are all the same size/texture which seems to work really well with the finished product.
I am going to do another 2 batches over the next week or so, if i have enough jars!!
A couple of weeks ago i also made 'red pepper, tomato, chilli and courgette chutney'
I did two versions, one which had a heavier spices element, a curryish flavour, and one without. Both are very good if i do say so though.
The 'without' version was
5 red peppers, chopped
1.4kg tomatoes chopped
8000g onions
1.6 kg courgettes, diced and salted to remove water, then rinsed
5 large garlic clovers
7 red chillies, hot, leave seeds in if you wish.
60g ginger finely chopped
225g light brown sugar
500mls white wine vinegar.
simmer for a few hours and bottle, will make a good few jars.
one i did this week was the nigel slater recipe in the guardian a few weeks ago, with the remaining tomatoes in the greenhouse. It made only a couple of jars but looks promising.
Last night it was the beetroot relish which is firm favorite in this household.
900g raw beetroot grated
450g onions
675g cooking apples
450g raisins
1 litre white wine vinegar
900g granulated sugar
2 tbsp ginger
basically throw it all in a large pan and bring to boil and simmer then for a few hours. I use the grater on my processor with the onion, beetroot and apple so they are all the same size/texture which seems to work really well with the finished product.
I am going to do another 2 batches over the next week or so, if i have enough jars!!
A couple of weeks ago i also made 'red pepper, tomato, chilli and courgette chutney'
I did two versions, one which had a heavier spices element, a curryish flavour, and one without. Both are very good if i do say so though.
The 'without' version was
5 red peppers, chopped
1.4kg tomatoes chopped
8000g onions
1.6 kg courgettes, diced and salted to remove water, then rinsed
5 large garlic clovers
7 red chillies, hot, leave seeds in if you wish.
60g ginger finely chopped
225g light brown sugar
500mls white wine vinegar.
simmer for a few hours and bottle, will make a good few jars.
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