Summer meal from the garden

Having wandered down to the veg patch to do some much needed weeding and watering, I actually ended up picking things for my tea - I couldn't resist the rumbling tummy any further. (I did a little bit of half-hearted weeding, the rest will have to wait until tomorrow now)

There were a range of things ready for the picking - purple podded peas, french beans ( cosse violeto, north eastern and norwegian dry varieties), tomatoes (small cherry varieties inc sungold), baby courgettes ( yellow zucchini and patty pan) various leaves (wild carrot, lambs lettuce, purple and green orache, baby chard, mixed lettuce, nasturtium leaves, comfrey), a small whole garlic bulb and a lemon balm plant - pulled up by accident with poor weeding technique.

From left to right: fresh garlic, nasturtium flower, cherry tomatoes, purple podded peas, baby courgettes, wild carrot leaf,  cosse violetto beans, lambs lettuce,  nasturtium leaves, norwegian dry beans, mixed lettuce, purple and green orache, northeastern beans, lemon balm

As the hens have been laying well recently, and one of my favourite ways to use our eggs is home-made pasta, I decided to make some goats cheese tortellini and have them with the veg.

From LHS: tomatoes, baby courgettes and peas, mixed salad, goat cheese and lemon balm tortellini and frazzled garlicky beans

Goats cheese and lemon balm tortellini
This was just a standard pasta mix which I stuffed with a mix of goats cheese and chopped comfrey - but I laid a lemon balm leaf onto each piece of pasta before I put the cheese stuffing in. The lemon balm was stronger in flavour than I expected, but to get a really strong lemony -goat cheese filling  I'd put an extra leaf in each tortellini. I tossed the coooked tortellini in butter, pepper and some torn tarragon leaves before serving.

Frazzled garlicky beans
Having sliced the beans diagonally into bite-sized pieces, I quickly boiled them then tossed them into melted butter with some of the fresh garlic and freshly ground black pepper and 'frazzled' them a bit.

Baby courgettes, tomatoes and peas
The courgettes and tomatoes were sliced in half and lightly cooked in olive oil for a few minutes. Towards the end of the cooking time as the tomatoes were softening slightly, I threw in the peas that had been boiled for about a minute, and some of the chopped fresh garlic.

Salad
I used the various salad leaves (not the comfrey which was used in the goat cheese and lemon balm tortellini) and added some olive oil and balsamic vinegar and mixed together to make a vinaigrette

Enjoy!

All paths lead to... the greenhouse

As the sun is so rare at the moment, I spent as much of the day out in the veg garden as possible to make the most of it - I thought this weekend was supposed to be cold and wet so the warm sun all day has been an unexpected bonus (however wallpaper stripping has taken a serious nosedive).

As there are still so many slabs around the garden I decided to use them to make some more paths between beds - really useful when the soil has been so wet and sticky.  I found another 5 slabs winding their way down the garden behind the old pond - and a frog too when I was digging them up.  I put them down to finish the main path  running from the entrance to the veg garden up to the greenhouse and then started on another path between beds 1 and 2.

Plan of the kitchen garden (not everything is in place yet but this is where it is planned for now)

I laid all of the path between beds 1 and 2 with broken slabs thinking there were no more intact ones -  and did it properly with sand and mixed hardcore that had been left lying around in the garden so its fairly level and stable compared to some of the other paths put down so far.  While clearing soil off a carpet under where bed 5 is due to go I discovered yet another buried path. This was after yesterday's discovery of a path under bed 3 which was jarringly painful when I enthusiastically plunged the fork into it and it stopped dead. Anyway, this most recent path is made up of two very large slabs running perpendicular to the greenhouse and on top of them some more running parallel to the greenhouse. We've already moved about 6 slabs from this area to make the path on the north side of bed 3. Its all a bit like an archaeological dig; digging down through the layers to find older and older paths underneath - I think that this might have been the bottom-most path though.

The new path between beds 1 and 2

While there is an ever increasing pile of rubbish forming in one place in the garden - all along where bed 4 will be eventually (and I stand here to take all the photos so no-one can see it!) - the garden is now starting to look a lot clearer in other places and I've managed to clear a lot of the dumped rubbish from bed 1. Underneath the apple tree in bed 1 is another of the strange mounds of soil that are abundant in the garden. I'm not sure where in the garden it has come from, or why, but as it is all on top of an old cream carpet, it has clearly been put there on purpose. Having found no body under it as I excavated I've started to redistribute it elsewhere - bed 1 is starting to look more level, and the remainder of the soil will eventually move to the bed 5 area. Because of the carpet this soil was on, the bottom of the mound is very clay-ey and filled with some of the biggest worms I've ever seen - the soil at the top of the mound however is lovely and crumbly.

There are a number of plants around the garden (and in the soil mounds) that I am fairly certain are Aquilegia -  I'm really happy about this as I love these flowers and had loads self-seeding in the old garden, but  when we moved I wasn't able to find and dig them out and bring them like I did with the comfrey, meadow cranesbill, oregano, mint, lemon balm, thyme and Monkey puzzle tree.  I've moved these aquilegia plants to bed 1 as some are clearly very happy growing under the apple tree already - apparently they like dappled shade as well as full sun.

Finally, I sprinkled a load of sweet rocket and poppy seeds (collected from the old garden) along the cracked path - this will probably drive me mad in the summer if they germinate well, but it all looks so sterile at the moment and I want to start this garden being as bee-friendly as possible straight away.

Sunny day in the garden

Yay! the sun came out so I was able to get out in to the garden and feel like I might be making some kind of progress out there. While, it still feels far too cold to be planting a lot of my seeds, I can't bear that the year is getting away from me - especially as the clocks change tonight. Despite the fact that I am sure that anything I plant in two or three weeks time will easily catch up with anything I planted today, I still wanted to feel like I might be on the way to some produce from the garden this summer.

I moved about a tonne of soil from a strange and rather random mound, where the small greenhouse is due to go, over to the raised beds in front of the big greenhouse. There are about four such mounds of soil in various places round the garden - its unclear why they are there or what they came from - but the ground needs to be flattened, and the beds need to be raised.

Into the bed on the left I've planted Sutherland Kale, San Marzano Turnip Broccoli, Touchstone Gold Beetroot, Dragon Purple Carrot, Triple Purple Orach, Red Flowered  Broad Bean and Martock Broad Beans.

I started to put up the pea netting on the bed on the right, and couldn't manage to get the canes into the ground beyond four inches - I found yet another set of paving slabs - what on earth were the previous owners doing? Fortunately there were only four of them and I was able to get them out very quickly.  Once the pea netting was in I planted Purple Podded Peas in the bed. This is a variety that grows to about 2 metres in height and I've had heavy yields in previous years so I've put tall poles in to try to maximise the yield.

I also planted more in the greenhouse - its so large I have a horrible feeling I am getting carried away planting things and won't have enough space in the garden when things have to be moved outside - but I'll deal with that when it arises. I've planted Asparagus Peas, Black Forest and Genovese Courgettes,  Mixed Squash Jaune de Poitou and Bleu de Solaise Leeks, Kailaan Chinese Stem Broccoli  and Giant Prague Celeriac.

Of the things I have planted in the greenhouse so far, only the peas have germinated - I don't blame the rest, its still far too cold for any plant to want to even venture out of the soil. Even the hop has not put up any shoots yet.

When clearing out the small greenhouse (moved from the old house and in the process of being erected) I found quite a few seed packets with a few seeds left over and some home-saved seeds as well. Rather than compost them I thought it would be worth seeing if any of them would germinate - so I've also planted a load of home-saved sunflowers and beans (dwarf, runner and french varieties) from 2011,  and some courgettes (lebanese, de nice, scallop, patty pan, black forest and golden zucchini), and dwarf purple and yellow climbing beans. I doubt any of them will grow but its worth a try - especially as the beans are all good tasting varieties.

Until then however I have to content myself with feeling that I am making progress, so a comparison between the garden when we first got started, and now is in order:

23rd February 2013

30th March 2013

Plant plans for 2013

For the veg garden this year I am sowing a mix of my long-standing favourite varieties from previous years, but also trying out a few new ones (marked with *). I haven't decided on everything yet, but am getting there having just sent off two orders this morning (to The Real Seed Company who I have never heard of before but the fact they are powered by the lovely Good Energy who also supply us makes them alright, and Robinson's Mammoth Onion Seed)

A mix of garden produce from 2011, (from bottom LHS going clockwise: Cosse violetto beans, Peaches, Patty pans and courgettes, cardoons, yellow french beans, Sungold F1 tomatoes)

Aubergine - F1 Galine*
Artichokes (globe) - Violetto di romagno*
Artichokes (Jerusalem)
Beans (broad) - Martoc, Crimson flowered
Beans (dwarf) - Norweigan Dry, Yin Yang
Beans (french climbing) - Pea bean, Cosse Violetto

Cosse Violetto beans (2011)

Beetroot - Touchstone yellow*
Brussels sprouts - Red ball*, Bedford
Carrots - Dragon purple*
Chard - Bright lights
Chilli peppers - Fresno*, Red cherry* Jalapeno*
Courgettes - Black Forest (not a new variety to me, but might this be the year I actually manage to germinate these seeds?), Genovese, Bennings Green*

Courgettes (2011) - Genovese variety is at the bottom of picture and on very right hand side, the others are One Ball variety

Broccoli - Kailaan*, Rapini*
Celeriac - Giant prague*
Cucumbers - (anything I can buy in the garden centre)
Kale - Sunderland kale*

Leaves (varieties for salad and for cooking) - Red veined sorrell (brought from old house), comfrey (brought from old house), Mesclun, Purple orach* (I've previously only grown green varieties), Salsola*
Leeks - Jaune de Poitou*, Bleu de solaise*,
Lettuce -
Marrows -
Onions -
Peas - Calibra, Asparagus peas (not really a pea though...), Purple podded (finally returning to these after struggling last year to find all the peas growing on the plants - purple pods are so much easier to spot!)
Spinach -Spinach beet
Squash  - Mixed varieties (who knows what will be in the packet)
Sweetcorn - Supersweet (by far the best variety I have ever grown, the sweetest and most reliable, I hope to have a decent crop this year without weather or chicken destruction problems)

Supersweet variety of sweetcorn (August 2008)

Sweet peppers - Sweet banana, Corno di torro rosso, Purple beauty
Tomatoes - Sungold F1, San Marzano


One of my aims this year is to supply a local pub, The Royal Oak in Bishopstone, with veg in exchange for bar vouchers. This was an aim last year too but I was scuppered by the horrible weather and a lack of time, but in 2010 I had a free birthday meal there in exchange for Patty Pans!

Patty Pans from the garden (2010)

Spring seed planting

As the garden is still in need of so much work, I've started seeds in the greenhouse in a desparate attempt to feel like I'm making progress on the garden - maybe I'm trying to keep things moving by forcing myself to have to have beds ready for the plants in the near future. I've planted a number of things over the past few weeks - mainly these are veg that I love to grow or can't seem to function without.
If I was only allowed to grow five types of veg I would have to have tomatoes, sweetcorn, courgettes, sprouts and globe artichokes - all of these seem to be infinately better freshly picked from the garden and eaten within 5 minutes (especially the sweetcorn). Fortunately I can grow more, this is what I have grown so far:

 

Sunday 3rd March

Sungold F1 tomato - cherry tomatoes that taste fabulous and seem to keep cropping heavily  forever - I've been picking them in Christmas week some years. Last year I didn't grow these and regretted it daily throughout the summer while the the tomatoes I was growing yielded little and poor tasting fruit.
Spinach beet
Bright lights chard - mainly for the variety of stalk colours, but if left to go to seed, the whole plant can be uprooted and chickens love to strip the stalks bare
Peppers (chilli and sweet) - Sweet banana, Corno di torro rosso, Purple beauty, Freso, Red cherry and Jalapeno - these are all new varieties to me
Calibra peas - a petit pois variety I've not tried before

Saturday 9th March

Red ball and Bedford brussels sprouts - one red and one green variety that I've not tried before but promise a long cropping season from August to March between them
[Sweet peas: Lilac ripple, Erewhon, Old times - all grown for the fact they are meant to have a really heavy strong frangrance]
Yellow hop roots from the old house put into compost as they have started putting out shoots now

Sungold F1 tomatoes - 2 weeks after planting

Sunday 17th March

Mesclun - to go into a bed in the greenhouse for early spring salads
Nasturtiums: Alaska mixed, Peach melba, Golden jewel, Tall mixed, Mahogany gleam, Tom thumb mixed
Artichoke - Violetto di Romagna - I normally grow Green globe, this is a smaller variety
San marzano tomato (very old seed so will probably not work)
Calibra peas ( yes more!)

My new kitchen garden

Finally, after an unbelievable sale/purchase process, we are in the new house and I have a new kitchen garden - complete with a 14 x 8 foot greenhouse. I freely admit to feeling very overwhelmed by the garden as it's pretty neglected - but I also relish a challenge.

The first task has been to remove many years worth of rubbish dumped in the garden - its unclear quite why, but the previous owners kept absolutely everything. The scrap metal man has done very well out of it and the cast iron bath, four old lawnmowers, slide set, numerous metal fence posts and a random and varied assortment of other things filled half his van one weekend.  There is much still to remove.

23rd February - 8 days after moving in

There is also an abundance of glass panes all over the place - probably about 30 in all, none of which seem to be the right size to replace broken panes on the greenhouse but might make some nice coldframes?

3rd March - a developing path to the greenhouse

The plethora of paving stones in all sorts of random places around the garden has been highly beneficial - new paths are under development around the greenhouse - none have been put down properly yet, but they are keeping me off what will be the beds for now.  There are also some nice chunky pieces of wood abandoned here so I'm using them to mark the edges of beds

4th March - one clear veg bed emerging

One thing the previous owners seem to have been obsessed with is water - there are hoses, watering systems, sprinkler heads, watering cans and more hoses everywhere. The greenhouse already has two metal water tanks running off it - annoyingly they are to the side of the greenhouse taking up valuable space. Clearing the overgrown ivy behind the greenhouse added 4 foot to the end of garden and has provided space for the water tanks to be moved to. I've plumbed in two water butts onto the front of the greenhouse.

10th March -in the background is a mammoth heap of ivy that Rod pulled

 off fences and trees to double the available garden space

Other useful things that have emerged from the overgrowth include a plastic coldframe, gazebo frame (the cover was totally knackered), huge quantities of pots and tubs, two nice metal watering cans, numerous apple picking loppers and about 100 empty bags of compost.

17th March - water butt already totally full!

There is plenty more to do with the beds, but I'm trying to concentrate on getting seedlings underway in the completely rearranged greenhouse. I'm going to dry a no-dig system on some of the beds - as the garden has been previously worked I think this may work nicely - or am I just trying to avoid some hard work?