I managed a rare trip to the lottie this week ! Mainly because I'm getting worried about frost and the weather changing. The weather was gorgeous on Saturday - the sunshine makes such a difference doesn't it.
Not surprisingly the weeds have had a party while I've been otherwise occupied, but I think once I put my mind to it, they'll soon be got rid of. I've decided to dig out the ox eye daisies - they get too big and strangle everything and then fall over and look a state.
I had a quick walk around the plot to see what's changed and was amazed to see a huge butternut squash and some smaller ones hiding in the foliage. Some of them have split, I assume that's because of the recent rain we've had. I brought them all home with me, as the foliage has already been burnt by frost.
The plot finally seems to have shrugged off the slugs and the courgettes looked brilliant - tonight for tea, we had Nigella Lawson's courgette & chick pea filo pie - it was flipping amazing, for anyone with a glut, I'd definitely recommend it.
I also dug some Pink Fur Apple & some Arron Pilots ... I'm slowly working my way across the potato bed - still got to start on the Charlottes. They went into Nigella's Cheese & Potato Pies ... ooo, they were good. It's hard work you know trying to be a Domestic Goddess.
The greenhouse gave me another large bowl of beautiful tomatoes ... and I've even got a couple of my treasured Roma's. I think they will be made into tomato soup - I've made this recipe a few times now and it's always been good. Another lovely surprise were the two very small baby aubergines hiding in the corner.
A bit further down the plot and the raspberry canes were dripping with ripe fruit. I made some raspberry jelly tonight and popped some fresh rapsberries into the moulds (that's lunch this week sorted) and then we had some with rice pudding .. still got half a bowl full left. They are beautifully sweet. I'm debating cutting down all the raspberries to a foot high over winter - might see what Nick next door thinks to that plan before I do it though.
The rubarb looks to have succumed to frost - it has all fallen over and the stems are very floppy. I was hoping to make ginger & rubarb jam, but I forgot to bring the stems home with me (doh!)
The apple tree has 5 apples on it, oh yes, 5 whole apples. A couple of them are almost bigger than walnuts :) They are obviously not ready yet, as they didn't pass the 'twist' test. If they've fallen off when I go again, I'll be so cross !
I've brought home some leeks - not sure what they'll become yet. I had a quick dig over that area of the plot and it looks so much better already.
The purple beans that we love so much are still going strong, but we've let them grow a bit big I think. I'll definitely be growing those next season. Finally my Borlotti beans are ready ... yeay ... I think they are my favourite thing from the lottie. Some of my weeds are as high as the beans - eek!
Once the potatoes are all up and I've cleared the beds, I want to take up all the paths and then smother the plot with manure (my muscles are aching at even the mention of that plan). I'm thinking that the paths will then go down the plot, echoing the central path, instead of cutting across as they do curently. I think it might work better for me next year. My mum gave me some red onions last week and I must must must put some garlic in. I think next weekend, I'll choose a bed and plant them to get them going. In November I'm planning to sow some broadbeans and sweetpeas. I'm determined next season is going to be so much better than this.
Good to see you back. I'm in the same position with onions & garlic - must get them in this weekend!!
ReplyDeleteYour cunning plan with the raspberries will either be 'not quite enough' or a total disaster, depending on what variety they are. If you're still picking them now (as I am too) they're probably an autumn fruiting variety; they are traditionally cut to just above ground level in February, because they fruit on the current year's growth.
But if they are summer fruiters if you cut them down you'll lose all the canes on which they will fruit next year. Disaster!! They fruit on the canes which grew the previous year and then you prune them after fruiting. So in 2010 they'll fruit on the canes they've grown this year
Hope that makes sense & I don't sound like some boffy old codger.
hey Woody, well my big problem is that SOME of them are summer ones ... but I don't know which ones !! Maybe I can come up with a cunning plan to mark the ones currently in fruit ... hmmm!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on your grandson ... young apprentice maybe :)
I'd guess I'll be in on that manure spreading ;>)
ReplyDeleteYou should be able to tell which raspberries are which, even if the are all mixed up. The summer one should have died off by now, so you can cut them down now. If in doubt with the others just leave them, you'll find out next year. Which is better than cutting them all down and getting none!