I've loved having a shed full of vegetables this autumn. That has pleased me even more than all the fresh stuff that was available all summer. So to cheer myself up I've sat down with the seed catalogues and ordered the following:
Potatoes: Sarpo Mira as my main crop again, to resist blight, plus smaller amounts of a couple of other fun looking early varieties to try out.
Onions: Red and brown. My autumn planted onions are doing very well but I've heard they don't keep as long as proper spring planted sets.
Garlic: My autumn-planted garlic is looking very sorry for itself, the soil is so heavy I think some cloves have rotted off in the ground, so I've ordered some more for spring planting ,just in case. I saw a good technique on Gardener's World for planting them: Mix in plenty of sand to the soil for drainage, then plant the cloves on ridges in the soil, so they don't sit in water. Shame I didn't think of that sooner.
Now just got to sit back and wait for it all to arrive!
Wednesday 24 December 2008
Christmas Harvest
I've now been to the plot and harvested most of my Christmas dinner, something I've been looking forward to for ages!
First on the list was a big bag of parsnips. There were plenty of these in good condition, good news as I love parsnips! The cold should have sweetened them up nicely. If they didn't take so long to germinate, parsnips would be the perfect vegetable, as no pests eat them, not even the tops, and they can withstand frost and snow. They were absolutely covered in thick mud, though, as the plot was very damp. I will grow more of these next year.
Second, carrots, out of their sand storage boxes. Thankfully they were still in there, and had not been stolen by the person who forced the lock off my shed. Not quite as good as I'd hoped, but still OK. The ones I stored in compost from a grow-bag are in better condition than the ones in sand. That is good news as I can re-use the grow-bag compost for improving my soil. I now know you can leave carrots in the ground until quite late, too, so I'll try that next time.
Third stop at the plot was plenty of fresh rosemary for the lamb. All the herbs in the supermarket had sold out this week (although they had no shortage of sprouts), so I may put some herbs in pots next year and try to keep them through winter.
Finally, I've still got plenty of spuds in the shed for Christmas dinner, plus garlic and onions if I need them. The Sarpo Mira potatoes I grew avoided all blight and keep really well, but they don't make the best roast potatoes which is a shame. I reckon they'd be nicer if I used goose fat or beef dripping to roast them, but we've got a vegetarian coming for Christmas! Curses!
Unfortunately I've had to buy leeks, as my diminutive specimens have now started to receive the attention of the plot rabbits.. but there's always next year. I can't wait.
First on the list was a big bag of parsnips. There were plenty of these in good condition, good news as I love parsnips! The cold should have sweetened them up nicely. If they didn't take so long to germinate, parsnips would be the perfect vegetable, as no pests eat them, not even the tops, and they can withstand frost and snow. They were absolutely covered in thick mud, though, as the plot was very damp. I will grow more of these next year.
Second, carrots, out of their sand storage boxes. Thankfully they were still in there, and had not been stolen by the person who forced the lock off my shed. Not quite as good as I'd hoped, but still OK. The ones I stored in compost from a grow-bag are in better condition than the ones in sand. That is good news as I can re-use the grow-bag compost for improving my soil. I now know you can leave carrots in the ground until quite late, too, so I'll try that next time.
Third stop at the plot was plenty of fresh rosemary for the lamb. All the herbs in the supermarket had sold out this week (although they had no shortage of sprouts), so I may put some herbs in pots next year and try to keep them through winter.
Finally, I've still got plenty of spuds in the shed for Christmas dinner, plus garlic and onions if I need them. The Sarpo Mira potatoes I grew avoided all blight and keep really well, but they don't make the best roast potatoes which is a shame. I reckon they'd be nicer if I used goose fat or beef dripping to roast them, but we've got a vegetarian coming for Christmas! Curses!
Unfortunately I've had to buy leeks, as my diminutive specimens have now started to receive the attention of the plot rabbits.. but there's always next year. I can't wait.
Tuesday 9 December 2008
Britain in Bloom
Here are the promised pictures of my garden, winner of Best Small Garden in Wolverton 2008. Having seen these again, I'm glad I uploaded them in the depths of winter. It's warming to have a reminder of what things are like at the opposite end of the year. Enjoy.
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