I like to grow my autumn plantings of the brassica family from seed rather than just buy generic seedlings. There are so many beautiful heirlooms to choose from: ‘Violet Sicilian’ cauliflower; ‘Red Winter’, ‘Cavolo Nero’ or ‘Blue Curled Scotch’ kale; vibrant red cabbage or ruffled savoy cabbage, indispensable broccoli, leaf mustards or Asian greens. The […]
Tags: pricking out, seed propagation, vegetables
Posted in Organic Gardening | 2 Comments »
As the words of the song suggest, when I moved to the Country, eating a lot of peaches was on my to-do list. Peaches are one of those things that you have to enjoy while you can as the window can be small. Three weeks ago, I was picking the first early fruit and now […]
Tags: cooking, fruit, preserves, recipe
Posted in Kitchen, Organic Gardening | 3 Comments »
It feels like it’s raining ticks at my place! I don’t know if it is a bad season for ticks generally or just in our garden. Every time we go into the garden my partner and I end up with not one but many ticks on us. Even our dog, Ebbie has had several removed […]
Tags: pest control, wildlife
Posted in Organic Gardening | 2 Comments »
Fennel is one of those vegetables that shouts Mediterranean cuisine to me. If you like aniseed flavour as I do, add some finely chopped to dishes such as ratatouille, or minestrone and you will find it improves the depth and richness of flavour. It’s a vegetable well worth growing yourself as it really should be […]
Tags: cooking, fennel, seeds, vegetables
Posted in Kitchen, Organic Gardening | 1 Comment »
You might find the name of this flower a bit confusing as it is also called Pot Marigold or English Marigold, without actually being a marigold at all. I like to grow calendula in my vegetable garden; it adds a nice splash of colour and seems to readily self-sow. Calendula petals make a great addition […]
Tags: cooking, flowers, health, recipe, salad
Posted in Kitchen, Organic Gardening, Sustainability | No Comments »
I’ve just recently returned from a wonderful trip to Spain. My partner and I decided that the main aim of the trip was to eat and drink our way around this wonderful country. We even deliberately lost weight in preparation for the holiday! Well, we achieved what we set out to do – tasting some […]
Tags: asparagus, vegetables
Posted in Organic Gardening | 1 Comment »
With the last of the glorious, sweet summer tomatoes gracing our salad bowls, it’s time to save the seeds of our favourite types. If possible, save seed from the best-looking fruit on the healthiest plant. There are two simple methods for saving the seeds: the simplest “if I don’t do it now I won’t get […]
Tags: seed propagation, tomatoes, vegetables
Posted in Organic Gardening, Sustainability | 1 Comment »
Remember the soggy sandwich made of white bread, coloured by mum’s tinned beetroot, sitting in plastic wrap at the bottom of your lunchbox? That lunch box ‘treat’ almost succeeded in putting me off beetroot for life… however I’ve re-established my relationship with beetroot over the past few years, knowing that fresh is best and trying […]
Tags: beetroot, cooking, microgreens, roots, salad, vegetables
Posted in Kitchen, Organic Gardening | 3 Comments »
It’s a very satisfying sight –you’ve just planted out a bed full of healthy, vital seedlings, beautiful and full of potential. You can already taste the delicious, crunchy salad greens! Then, after one hot and sunny day, you discover your young plants sick, wilted, dehydrated or just plain dead. I don’t think I’m alone in […]
Tags: seed propagation, transplanting, vegetables
Posted in Organic Gardening | 2 Comments »
When is a mummy not a mummy? When it’s a daddy or a dried up piece of fruit! In this case it’s mummified fruit on a very sick nectarine tree somewhere in a backyard in Sydney. Oriental Fruit Moth, rust. Brown Rot causes the mummified fruit to stay on the tree rather than dropping. fungal. […]
Tags: fruit, fungi, organic, pest control
Posted in Organic Gardening | 1 Comment »