Six on Saturday

 As I have the smallest of vegetable areas, I amaze myself regarding the amount of pleasure I get from it.  

1. Of course it would be far easier to cycle to the supermarket and pick up a bunch of spring onions for instance, but as I dig up a small cluster and bring it to the kitchen I know for sure there will be no soil down the hollow leaves, and the whole leaf is used too: the tops going into stir fries etc. I have just dug up the last couple of clumps, prepared them and they are fridge ready to add to salads over the weekend.  Spring Onion Ishikura Bunching  have stood the longest  from when they were first planted out. I shall try sowing the rest of the packet to see if they go over the winter. Starting them off several seeds to each small module has worked exceedingly well, and I shall adopt that method in the future. It makes for a ready made clump, and no need no any elastic band either.

2.The Leeks are planted out.  I just picked up a pot of seedlings from the market a month or so back, and as they were so small seperated them and pricked them out about 12 to a 20cm pot.  I forgot the hard work getting holes into clay.  When I had my allotment it had been double dug initially and was so much easier in comparison. I had planted the first batch using a dibber a week or so ago, and the remainder went it having used a trowel to dig a wider hole, which will slowly get filled in with friable soil and compost.  

3. The lettuce are ready and look strong enough to go out now. These were the ones I pricked out just over two weeks ago.  Only one lost when it was tidy.  There are still far too many as far as Mr S is concerned! I am just dreaming up of all those delicious salads before the soup season kicks in.

 

4. I had a Furtlenthuse over Chinese Garlic Chives: Allium tuberosum.  

This was the clump which was much admired by our WI gardening group and I offered to share the clump as I had done with the chives.  The formation at ground level is more rigid compared to Chives, and a knife was required to
divide them. 

                                                

This is the clump as it came out with its lumps of clay.  After clearing this carefully and washing the roots, I wondered how best to divide them since they were clumped together with a hard woody base.

Maybe at an earlier stage before the flowering stems had hardened up the operation would have been easier.

Within only three days, this morning I am happy to report that divisions are happy and throwing on new leaves. Again one could ask why bother when a small pop could be obtained for £2.  Well its the challenge of learning more about the plant, trying out something new, and getting rid of three pots from my stash as I give divisions away!

5. I had planted out my little coriander seedlings at that very tender stage last week, and the dratted molluscs raised the lot overnight. I might just start a new pot, and only plant them out when the roots fill the pot.  From a clump potted out earlier in the season, which had gone to seed, I harvested these green seeds. They were cleaned and just popped in the freezer.  I find these green coriander seeds used during the winter have just the same zingy fresh leaved flavour without the sliminess of frozen coriander leaves.  I crush a few green seeds in the pestle and mortar and add them to things like carrot soup, stir fries, curries, or pickles. The bees love the flowers in any case. Are there any tips out there on growing this plant well? I would love to hear.

6. From the seeds gleaned from an old chilli which I had grown myself a couple of years ago, and set to germinate earlier this year, the two plants planted in the 'potager' are starting to ripen.  Most of them will be frozen, and some dried, with seed saved to start again next year.

I wonder who else will have shown examples of Furtlenthuse when they share their Six with the Prop?

• Furtlenthuse: a portmanteau made from combining Furtle and Enthuse; eg. I furtlenthused liberally through the herbaceous border. I’m pretty sure it’s going to catch on.

Cobnut and Plum Tart by Dan Lepard

 I had slow roasted some plums yesterday, and was wracking my brains as to what to have for my Thursday treat.  Leafing through Short and Sweet, I came across just the thing: Cobnut and Plum Tart. The recipe is also available on line if you search for it.

Once more a very versatile recipe and technique which in essence is very similar to a crumble topped galette.  I used hazelnuts, and with the roasted plums which helps to concentrate the flavour.  I used 300g of the baked Victoria Plums.  Having eaten it I feel that a little golden demerara added to the topping and maybe some spice to the plums would be an improvement.  

Mr S liked it as it is. He asked if I was getting an extra-sweet tooth!

Sally arrived yesterday with a basket of plums from her garden.  As I have to return the basket tomorrow, the tart will still be lovely and fresh, and I hope that she and Peter will enjoy a couple of slices.  I've already made a few jars of Plum and Red Onion Chutney It will take three months or so to mature and again Sally and Peter are frequent recipients of a jar of my various Chutneys.

In a Vase on Monday - End of August 21

I was gardening yesterday for most of my free time, and will probably be doing the same again today.  We are on heavy clay and I remember from previous years now given a few rainfalls in September, by the time one gets round to doing my editing tasks, the soil is dreadful to work on and not that hospitable for plants to get established before the Winter.  I was going to cut back the Teucrium hircanicum and noticed how attractive the long flowering stems were even though they are mostly at the seed head stage.  They formed the basis for my arrangement today.

Centre is a large head of a mophead Hydrangea with a few stems of  Origanum laevigatum  Herrenhausen at the back, and some pale pink frilly Dianthus superbus. 

It is some time since I posted about the books I am reading.  I've just finished a sensational thriller set in Cambridge and Antarctica.  Some good twists, and great atmosphere. This was our recent WI reading group books.  It has been renewed so that Mr S can read it, and a few pages in, last night he commented on how well it is written.  I've not read any of Sharon Bolton's novel before, and I shall be looking out for more books by this author.

For us in England it is late August Bank Holiday.  Usually we see our family about this time of the year, sadly this is not possible but I had a nice call with my son yesterday.

Bright colours of Zinnias and clever writing as usual feature in Cathy's Blog.  I'm joining her.

Dicentra cucularia scaly rootstock

 They may look like a bowl of grey lace as the leaves emerge in March,

and shortly afterwards the lovely white flowers amaze me each time

they soon die down.  I had two bowls but decided to reduce it to just one for the coming season, and repot into fresh compost.  Here are the scaly rootstock...

There were sufficient for me to try some in the open garden.  I've placed them in the shady border just behind the grouping of dark leaved Ophiopogon planiscapas Nigrescens the Black Mondo grass and am very much looking forward to seeing how well that combination works. I like the challenge of placing existing plants in different ways.  Isn't it strange that gardeners have the hope and vision to care for plants that will only appear more than half a year hence, and then are only above ground for a few weeks?

Six on Saturday - 28 August 2021

A few days of sunshine has revived this gardener and her garden.  The bees are buzzing and birds have returned.  I've found slugs and snails of course and a whole pot of coriander seedlings were munched overnight.  Some of the perennials such as geraniums which were prunned back hard a few weeks ago are giving out a second flush of fresh leaves and flowers, and the roses too are getting ready for another flush.

Can't believe the Prop who is our 'trainer' is running 45Km round Bristol this morning, the least we can do it join in with the pack of other gardeners and follow his example of talking about six things in our garden. I am definitely more plant like and would not be wanted to be weeded away from my Saturday morning slow breakfast prepared by my dearly beloved.

1.  This year the Teucrium hircanium has reached the stage that is probably too large for the space allocated.  I'll be searching out seedlings to plant elsewhere but this one may well be removed. 

 Already that area needs refreshing and this past week I have been doing some editing. Plants have been divided, or cuttings taken.  I sent a list of the plants I had to spare and a friend took them all to grow on for a sale next year.  

2.  The lollipop Bay Tree needed a trim: again my long pruners came out, and I managed not to snip any of the stems of the Clematis Clematis 'Purpurea Plena Elegans'.  This picture is before the trim, and I didn't need to stand on a ladder!

I had noticed the new growth on the top of the bay was a little raggedy, and when the prunnings were dexterously brought down thanks to the grabbers, the culprits were found.

3.  I realised that I ought to have two compost bins, but I only have room for one.  Last year it swallowed nearly all the garden waste, and I stopped adding to it some time ago.  I was on the verge of getting rid of it altogether, when due to the lack of HGV drivers our green bin collection has been suspended.  Therefore this week I 'drew down' the pile, sifting the material.  The coarser stuff was spread under the shrubs and the rest looks and smells so wonderful.  Some inevitably went back to the bottom of the pile, and the fine sifted compost is in covered pots to mix in and around choice plants.  What makes it smell so nice?  A job is not finished till the tools are washed, dried and ready to put away:

It was a very hard job and took me several hours.  I hope the slowworms which were in the heap will return to enjoy a warm and protected space.

4. The runner beans sown a little late, have now been 'overtaken' by the same variety that is on its third summer, growing from the tubers left in the ground and completely unprotected: the variety Moonlight. Each tuber sent up three or four shoots, where as the seedlings only one.

5. Cyclamen time again: 

The special hederifoliums  in pots are starting to flower as is the Cyclamen cilicium in the gravel. I even spied the tiny leaves of Cyclamen graecum which are in their second season grown from seed.  In the conservatory bed a few of the Cyclamen coums too are putting forth a tentative leaf or two

6. Plum Mirabelle de Nancy first harvest might not have had a given much this year, but it may just be spared for another year to see if matters improve. I've given it a bit of a prune removing crossing branches etc, and reducing long growths so it is also looking quite smart.

 

I shall make a mini bottled Mirabelle preserve to celebrate this harvest.