Growing
Apple harvest
Sunday 30 September, 2007
We planted our modest orchard 5 years ago now, and this year we've really started to reap the benefits. We got our first ever pears (all three of them!) and the plums are beginning to crop well, but it's the apple trees that are most gratifying.
Our Peasgood Nonsuch and Claygate Pearmain are long gone (bark ravaged by bunnies) but the Sunset, Egremont Russett and Dumelows Seedling are all now well established, and yesterday we harvested their fruit and put them into storage.
Seed catalogues
Saturday 22 September, 2007
Oh, what terrible time wasters these are! And they're starting to arrive already. I dreamed about tomatoes last night, because I was browsing the Thomson and Morgan catalogue in bed. And how they suck you in - during the summer, Dan and I agreed that we woudl be more selective in the species we grew and reduce the number of varieties. We agreed two varieties of potatoes - Red Duke of York and Desiree. Then the catalogues arrive and tempt you with the tastiest, highest yielding, disease resistant varieties, and it's awful hard to resist!
Show Day 2007
Saturday 8 September, 2007
Well, if Dan was up at dawn fixing the fence, I was up too, collecting entries for the local horticultural show. This is the first year I've shown vegetables, although I've entered preserves and home baking before.
I had planned to enter three jams - strawberry, raspberry and blackcurrant, marmalade, a chutney, a fruit loaf, a traybake, muffins and pancakes. In the end, I didn't enter pancakes (no time to make them this morning) or the traybake (the chocolate brownie stuck to the bottom of the tin, much to Dan's delight). In retrospect, I could probably have salvaged four pieces but it won't go to waste.
Beans
Monday 3 September, 2007
I can't believe that I haven't posted anything since 18th August - shocking! The weather's been better since the schools went back on the 20th August - typical. It's kind of autumnal now; some of the trees are changing colour and it's quite cool tonight. Hope it kills the midges. I've always told Dan that I won't live anywhere other than Scotland (Sean Connery take note!) - but the midges are soooo bad just now, I'd be tempted by a midge free zone. Poor Smokey is eaten alive.
Anyway, beans. We have NEVER had a crop of runner beans like we have had this year. The variety is Czar, which has a white flower - whether it is that or the season, but there are loads. It's the Horticultural Society show this weekend, so I'm planning to find six good beans and enter them. And a marrow - in the weight rather than quality class. And rhubarb, in quality class not weight. I don't really know what the criteria are, but we'll give it a go.
Cabbages and cauliflower
Saturday 18 August, 2007
As you will know, I have taken a (comparatively) more active role in the vegetable gardening this year because Dan has had less time than previously. I got terribly tense about the brassicas - not really sure why, except that the plants I grew from seed looked pretty pathetic.
I had a plan involving mini cauliflower, cabbage and three varieties of sprouting broccoli. I managed to mix up the cabbage and cauliflower seedlings - I've planted them out but won't know which is which until the heads form (if they do). I also started the broccoli in trays in the greenhouse. I don't knwo if I used the wrong compost or what but they were just embarrasingly pathetic. In the end, they went in the compost and I sowed the seeds direct. I've now got several rows of healthy looking plants, but I don't know if I sowed too late to get anything useful from them. I'll just have to be patient (not my strong point) and wait and see.
Pickling and stuff
Saturday 18 August, 2007
It's piddling rain here today. The hills have disappeared in a shroud of cloud. On the bright side. it's not cold and it's given me an opportunity to try out the Driza-bone coat that I bought in Australia! Dan and I took the dogs for a long walk this morning and then had a couple of hours in the garden - well, we were wet anyway. Dan was clearing a stoney part of the field so we can level it with topsoil and reseed it. I lifted the rest of the beetroot and weeded the brassica bed.
We've had the best crop of beetroot ever. We sowed two varieties - Boltardy and Forono. Forono is a cylindrical beet which I think is really good for pickling. In fact, I'm pickling both today. The pigs get the leaves, which they love. I've just taken the beetroot out of the oven; once it's cool enought to handle I'll remove the skins, slice and jar then prepare the vinegar, pour over and seal. Easy peasy.
Three sisters' bed
Thursday 9 August, 2007
The three sisters' bed is growing well. The runner beans are cropping well, much to Dan's Mum's delight. The sweetcorn is growing but I think some of it may be too shaded by the beans to ripen, even if cobs form. The marrow, courgette, squash and pumpkin are all growing, but I think it's almost impossible to fail with these plants.
It also seems to be Cassius's preferred spot for hiding rabbit remains. Both dogs were going mad to get in there today - Meg was nearly strangled by the beans - then Tess appreared with a scraggy bit of rabbit skin (Cass doesn't leave much) and shot off down the field with Meg in hot pursuit.
Onions, garlic and shallots
Thursday 9 August, 2007
It's been a lovely day here today, as was yesterday, so I've lifted all the garlic, onions and shallots and put them to dry in the sun. This involves quite a lot of our garden furniture so if you're coming to visit, bring your own chair! Of course, I had the hens helping me to clear the bed, so I wasn't lonely.
A significant number of the onions show white rot, so these have been discarded for burning. However, there's still a reasonable crop. My vegetable book says not to grow onions on that land for eight years, so I'll need to think about that. The shallots and the garlic don't seem to be affected, fortunately.
The fruit garden
Wednesday 8 August, 2007
The fruit garden is now finished for the year. I picked the last of the white currants yesterday and froze them. They look like pearls (or fish eggs, depending on how romantic you're feeling). They're good in summer pudding but I haven't found any other use for them.
We've had good crops this year, especially gooseberries. Dan cut back the raspberry canes last weekend and I tied them in. This is one of my favourite jobs because it makes it nice and tidy! We've mulched the bed with comfrey, of which we have LOADS (both barrels are full). The goosegogs, currants and strawberries will be pruned later on.
Strawberry madness
Tuesday 10 July, 2007
I'm away in London at the moment, and since I was out somewhere nice for lunch I've just grabbed a sandwich from Marks and Spencer for my supper. (As an aside having access to M&S is a luxury, since Alloa doesn't have one and isn't likely to for some time. Their food is quite expensive, but it is pretty darned tasty.)
Anyway, they had strawberries at half price so I bought a punnet, half for after my sarnie and half for breakfast tomorrow. I didn't check where they were produced, totally assuming that they'd be British.
