NaBloPoMo, success, Taking stock

#NABLOPOMO: Preserving with the plot

April 9, 2015 horticultural 'Obbit 2 Comments

It’s lovely to reduce the air miles, and have homegrown produce. However, you do get to a point, where if you have another courgette, you might get a bit twitchy. Plus people start to avoid you as you are likelyt to foist squashes on them and they don’t want to see another courgette either.

Preserving presents you with an opportunity to do something else with your crops when you have an excess. A glut can be rather frustrating, when you have all this beautiful produce and you don’t want it here and now. It did take me a while to get into preserving. I just didn’t think that there was anything else to be done, bar my mum cooking with things that grew on the allotment. It was only when I stumbled across a recipe for a courgette chutney recipe that had Indian undertones, that the penny dropped. I had courgettes, Ma’s pantry, and spices. The three could go together. I had already tried to pickle garlic and shallots. Got it wrong, and the things are stil in ma’s pantry. Edible, but forgotten.

The point being, that you didn’t have to wander around trying to give your crops away. You can keep them, just change the form that they take.

Just like growing, I have found the process of preserving to be experimental. There are lots recipes out there to help, from jams, jellies, chutneys and relishes. You only have to take a quick look into a search engine, and also share with other allotment neighbours and folks who GYO. Recipes are good starting points, and open to a spot of deviation when you work out what you do and don’t like.

It is wonderfully rewarding, if and when the jams set, and you don’t burn the bottom of your pan. Then there is the jam thermometre that you might bash a little too much.

There there is cordials and homebrews. I have yet to embark of wine making. But infusions are rather interesting to do. Relatively low maintenance too, once you put all the ingredients in, the jars of alcohol and fruit can be left and you come back later to check.

aubergine Analogue study 2014, Dorset and Bengle Naga, Experimental Chillies and be;;s

#NABLOPOMO: Another chilli post

April 7, 2015 horticultural 'Obbit

Yet another chilli post, yes. Today, I made the decision to pot up some of the taller chillies.The purple haze and cayenne peppers have even started to develop flowers, suggesting that they are actually quite happy. However, there was a spot of drama with the cayennes, when I left them in a very warm conservatory, and they nearly keeled over and died. I had to promptly re-hydrate them and pray to the chilli Gods.

When I say taller chillies, this means the likes of aji limo and hungarian hot wax. These are also the earlier sown chillies, compared to the smaller, slower growing habaneros. Given how comfortable these are, I need to consider how and when the next pot up stage will be. Today, the plants were moved from 7cm pots to 12 cm pots, and are easily 5 inches tall. Suggesting, that there might be one final pot up or they will go straight into tall morrison flower buckets and into the poly tunnel. The smaller habaneros, are still in 7cm pots, and I am loath to transfer them straight into the the large flower buckets. These I think, will need a larger pot soon, but not yet the big roomy ones.Just need to work what I am going to do next with them. I don’t want them to become too rootbound, and to be fair, they aren’t go upward as much as I would like.

Psychology Sunflower Challenge, Soft fruit

#NABLOPOMO: Strawbs and Sunflowers

April 7, 2015 horticultural 'Obbit

Have spent the best part of today, pottering around, potting up chillies. Some of them even have flowers. Sunflowers were also potted up as some of them were starting to keel over. As were the last of the tomatoes.

I did take a wander down to the plot, Ma wanted to dig for England again so I had to keep her company whilst nursing a thermo mug of tea. Was really quite bright, and I thought I looked a bit cool with the sunglasses. I had just planned to supervise ma, but then I got a call from a plot neighbour who was actually working hard.

A lovely plot neighbour had an excess of strawberries, and I had already re-homed some their donations. I’ve taken in another half a dozen or so additional plants. Quite healthy looking too. These were then plugged in around autumnal raspberry canes. I have hoping that these will grow, send out runners and cover the ground. Also means I get two types of soft foot from one bed.

tomatoes

#NABLOPOMO: Tomatos in the 4TB

April 6, 2015 horticultural 'Obbit 1 Comment

Today has been a rather sunny Easter Monday Bank Holiday. As it was rather warm, I had a check of the tomatoes. As you can see, there is fleece, black trays and recycled milk bottles filled with water. The tomatoes are still there, looking a bit purple stemmed, but still there. Whilst it was lovely and warm during the day, there sun has disappeared and there is a chill with thee being no clouds. I think I have another half a dozen tomatoes sat inside that would benefit from being potted up. Then I will have a full complement of tomatoes to be pampered in the 4TB, They are going to be in there a while, I don’t plant to stick them in the poly tunnel any time soon. Even then, the chillies and tomatoes are likely to be sent out together. That’s if they both survive. There was a spot of chilli drama today, with the cayennes nearly dying through intense heat. These had to retrieved and hydrated pretty quickly. I think they are still soaking as there was very near crispiness for a couple of plants.

aubergine analogue 2015, Preparation

#NABLOPOMO: My Aubergine is your Eggplant 2015

April 6, 2015 horticultural 'Obbit

Aubergine varieties: Dancer, Diamond,Tres Hative de barbentane, Black Beauty

I wasn’t going to sow aubergines this year. After last years mixed results, I was feeling a little put off, However, I am going to use my previous growing experience, as a learning experience and take away the key findings and conclusions. This year, rather than putting them directly them into the ground, I will keep them in pots in the same way as the chillies. They will once more be in the poly tunnel.

The varieties:

Diamond
Dancer
Tres Hative De Barbentane
Black Beauty

Last year, there were some mixed results. All of the varieties were planted into the ground. Some of these grew into lovely luscious plants, with rather pretty purple flowers. There were also some rescued aubergine plants, from a garden centre, that did actually manage to produce some rather interesting fruit. The plants grew well, they were tall, and rather robust. I think the key however, was the restriction of the roots. So this is what I will be doing this year. I know it’s a little late, I should have perhaps sown them about a month ago. There are four varieties, and about four of each have been sown. I’m hoping that they will germinate, and then we shall see exactly how many we get. I don’t expect to be keeping all 16 would be plants. That would be a lot of aubergines, I might have to share the seedlings if they manage to grow.

Soft fruit

#NABLOPOMO: Blueberries and gooseberries on the plot

April 5, 2015 horticultural 'Obbit 1 Comment

There was a lot of soft fruit planted on the plot over autumn. Uptil now, it has all largely been dormant. Hopefully, during this down time, the plants have been setting down root systems in preparation for the growing season. The blueberries are starting to get a wiggle on, and the variety named darrow is still in the lead with buds forming. Blue jay is not too far behind.

In the second picture, and a little harder to see, are the gooseberries. These are three of the hinnonmaki, I think, and all of the hinnonmaki are starting wake up and form little green leaves amongst the spiky thorns. it looks neat and tidy as ma has been ruthless in pulling out grass.

I am trying ye again with rhubarb, this was donated by my aunty. This time, I am putting the crown somewhere it might actually have a chance and not get rained on. Mine must be one of the few that doesn’t have any rhubarb on it. I might even search for a rhubarb and ginger recipe, as I was given a jelly bag by Father Christmas and have yet to use it.

herbs

#NABLOPOMO: Herb Planting on the plot

April 5, 2015 horticultural 'Obbit

Did try to plant and cultivate herbs once before. But the plants were small, and I didn’t take perhaps the best care of them. So we are trying again. In the last week, Ma and I have planted rosemary, silver and common Thyme, oregano, spear mint and sage. Ma did try and dissuade me from not planting silver thyme as it looked sad compared to the common one. We have both.

At home, the Rosemary seems to thrive in the clay, so that is my rationale for sinking it on the plot. I don’t particularly mind i if any of the plants spread out, even with the mint. That at least means the ground is cultivated.

NaBloPoMo, Preparation

#NABLOPOMO: Compost clear out

April 5, 2015 horticultural 'Obbit 1 Comment

I’m not very good at composting. I have two daleks on the plot, they have been in the same position for the last four years, they get filled and pretty much left to their own devices. I do add all the green waste that I can get my hands on, it is layered as well. Rather than put in, in an ad hoc fashion. I even have organic activator that gets added from time to time.

It is predominantly green garden waste and the occasional set of veggie peelings that gets parcelled up and put in. No food, very few onion skids and nothing cooked or citric. These can not only invite unwelcome guests, acidity can rather upset the worms that end up living in the compost bin.

Ma and I went today, the bells of the local church was tolling for Easter services. Ma wanted to pull up grass and weed, I probably should have had a job in mine too. The plot varies in level all over. Yet there are very obvious dips, where at times the soil is liable to flood and very little grows there. In emptying the daleks, I could actually start build up one bed on the top part of the plot that is always soggy, and doesn’t facilitate an awful lot of cultivation. And I also manage to put some into a 1mx1m raised bed that will also have some MPC put into it.

I was rather pleasantly surprised by the contents of the two compost bins. Firstly, by the fact that things have actually decomposed, and produced rather full bodied, fine tilth in places, compost. Secondly, the volume. I had easily six or seven full wheelbarrows full of compost that were trundled across to whether the plot dips. This dip, incidentally, is where ma has put her rescued spinach. I don’t want the plants to be dead before long, so this area would benefit from the extra support. Hopefully these will now start to be filled and the cycle will start again. I have chose to move the daleks, to where they can easily by unloaded. This means the dips and areas not yet cultivated. I am also thinking, of how easy it might be to use a compost bin to grow squashes. If the contents of the bin were covered with a mound of MPC and a squash plant stuck on top. Apparently this can be done!

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Hobbit trug: #loldeantimber

April 4, 2015 horticultural 'Obbit 1 Comment

Since it’s the start of the season

horticultural 'obbit

It’s here! This seasons must have accessory. Courtesy of @loldeantimber; a personalised trug for trips to the plot. As you can see it has already been put to good use. Very very happy!

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Planting out

#NABLOPOMO: Spinach and Chard

April 4, 2015 horticultural 'Obbit 1 Comment

Ma rather likes rescuing spinach and chard, and here we have it. The Spinach is rescued, and we have found some chard for her to plug in. It’s a bit hard to resist, when she waves the tray at you, says your name and does that wide eyed thing that only mums do. She has been somewhat worried over the last few days, that the rain might bring the slugs and slimers out to kill the new plugs. For the moment, they are still there. My on concern, is that she planted them into open ground and this is going to make them very vulnerable on a plot where open ground isn’t necessarily a good place to be if you are a new plant.

I don’t mind spinach and chard myself, it’s a reliable crop that makes for interesting onion bhajis and pasta bakes. Along with cauliflowers and cabbages, spinach and chard make their way into the ‘Indian’ Food that ma cooks. The spinach that she has rescued, she tells me that it’s perpetual spinach. In her eyes, this is proper spinach. Mainly because it has large, broad leaves with quite a thin spine. This makes for me leaf, and less stalk. The other time of spinach that Ma is hoping to get onto the plot, is Mustard Greens. I need to look into getting the seeds what ma calls proper, proper indian saag. What she really wants, is that yellow flowered stuff that farmers sow on an industrial scale on their fields as a green manure.

Chard is a good substitute, and seems to also do well when left to it’s own devices. Not sure what variety we have here, but I do remember having both Vulcan Chard and also bright lights chard. The former, has lovely bright red stalks, with the latter having stalks that can be bright yellow at times. What I don’t have at the moment is Kale, but there are a few cabbages knocking around.

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'obbitry of the horticultural kind