Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Autumn waning
The garden is dying off rapidly. All the squashes bar two are harvested and are curing. I think it may be the end of the tomatoes, I got about 2 kilos on Sunday. It is starting to get frosty in the mornings, I hope that the last French beans will be ready this weekend, they are Cobras and Saxas, there is plenty of fruit on them but they are too small yet. hang in there guys!
I did a bit of work on Sunday but it is all a bit overrun. Preparing for winter is gonna be a big job. Although it's easier ripping everything out than planting! I trimmed the leeks, weeded them and the Broccoli and spring cabbage and fertilized them a bit. I added more straw and manure to the herb bed, I have cut the last of those now - sage, tarragon, thyme, mint, all dried up for winter.
We are eating the pak choy, the rhubarb chard and the last peppers. And waiting for the Brussel sprouts! I picked the tops off, and steamed them (they had aphids, beurk, but I managed to wipe them off), they taste very sprout-y.
Now I just have to find a big section of time to go down, rip out all the squash, weed it all and spread stable waste and manure, maybe some leaves if I can find a source. And I am still looking for some elusive chicken manure, that I would like to add in the spring. Friday I will pay a visit to the poultry man on the market...
I did a bit of work on Sunday but it is all a bit overrun. Preparing for winter is gonna be a big job. Although it's easier ripping everything out than planting! I trimmed the leeks, weeded them and the Broccoli and spring cabbage and fertilized them a bit. I added more straw and manure to the herb bed, I have cut the last of those now - sage, tarragon, thyme, mint, all dried up for winter.
We are eating the pak choy, the rhubarb chard and the last peppers. And waiting for the Brussel sprouts! I picked the tops off, and steamed them (they had aphids, beurk, but I managed to wipe them off), they taste very sprout-y.
Now I just have to find a big section of time to go down, rip out all the squash, weed it all and spread stable waste and manure, maybe some leaves if I can find a source. And I am still looking for some elusive chicken manure, that I would like to add in the spring. Friday I will pay a visit to the poultry man on the market...
Labels: autumn, beans, dying_off, sprouts, tomatoes
Monday, October 11, 2010
Sorry for this long absence!
Which translates also as an absence from the garden for the most part. After some very late holidays, in Italy for a friend's wedding, and some rotten weather, the autumn work is going to be very hard!
I have been steadily harvesting though - tomatoes, peppers, all the squash bar two that are still growing, Pak Choy cabbage and the beetroot that is small but which I pulled up anyway and pressure cooked yesterday. The Cheltenham greentops are actually excellent and I think they just needed a lot more water than they got during our unusually dry summer. I will try them again next year.
yesterday I went down and pulled up all the remaining spuds, as attested by very sore legs today. I got a whole crate full of Mona Lisa variety, excellent yield, I will grow them again definitely. I finished the Rattes - on the whole disapponting, nice flavour but small potatoes and the last ones were starting to sprout in the ground!! So I daresay they won't last long. I am sure there must be several in the ground still, so pleanty of new potatoes next year from the volunteers!!
Still growing - Brussel Sprouts (they were infested with aphids that have mysteriously disappeared! Has something eaten them??), leeks, pak choy, late beetroot and parsnips, and the last Cobra beans that can be harvested next weekend. Now it's all downhill: Ripping out the old plants, making lots of compost for spring, digging over, weeding, fixing paths... the only thing left to plant is the garlic.
Another season, a bit disappointing, but I know I am getting better all the time!
I have been steadily harvesting though - tomatoes, peppers, all the squash bar two that are still growing, Pak Choy cabbage and the beetroot that is small but which I pulled up anyway and pressure cooked yesterday. The Cheltenham greentops are actually excellent and I think they just needed a lot more water than they got during our unusually dry summer. I will try them again next year.
yesterday I went down and pulled up all the remaining spuds, as attested by very sore legs today. I got a whole crate full of Mona Lisa variety, excellent yield, I will grow them again definitely. I finished the Rattes - on the whole disapponting, nice flavour but small potatoes and the last ones were starting to sprout in the ground!! So I daresay they won't last long. I am sure there must be several in the ground still, so pleanty of new potatoes next year from the volunteers!!
Still growing - Brussel Sprouts (they were infested with aphids that have mysteriously disappeared! Has something eaten them??), leeks, pak choy, late beetroot and parsnips, and the last Cobra beans that can be harvested next weekend. Now it's all downhill: Ripping out the old plants, making lots of compost for spring, digging over, weeding, fixing paths... the only thing left to plant is the garlic.
Another season, a bit disappointing, but I know I am getting better all the time!
Labels: autumn, beetroot, dying_off, potato, squash
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