Bean experiment

Yes, I know, it is way too early to start growing beans in the UK. I have been testing the viability of seeds in the Reading Food Growing Network's seed swap boxes. It seemed such a shame to waste the bean seeds that germinated so I decided to "pot" them up. And, yes, those are toilet roll cardboard inners. 

I'm not sure where this experiment is going but the main problem that I can see is one of pollination - if I manage to keep them growing indoors. Planting them outside is a non-starter for a few months.

I'll post updates on the progress or failure/death of the experiment!

Update August 2016: Although they started off well and growth was steady, when it came to setting "fruit" the experiment was a disaster. They plants were potted on and kept indoors so there were no insects to pollinate them and my attempts to mimic the process using a tiny paintbrush were a total failure.  

Lunch: an eclectic mix of flavours and ingredients

Today's lunch - usually our main meal when we are working at home - was an interesting mix of flavours and ingredients. Some came straight from the garden, some were dried or preserved garden produce and some shop bought.

So, starting at the top of the plate and moving clockwise, here is what we had.

Injera style sourdough flat breads (rye and spelt flour)

Red cabbage (bought at the local farmers' market) with fennel seeds (garden)

Various beans (some garden) with homemade tomato sauce (made a couple of months ago from garden tomatoes), onions (garden), garlic (garden), dried herbs (garden).

Green and puy lentils, swiss chard (garden), shallots (garden), garlic (garden), ginger and spiced with garam masala.

Home made, oven baked onion bhajis (onions from the garden).

Raita made with home-made yoghurt but shop bought, out of season cucumber [Gasp,  shock, horror!]

Sprinkling of coriander leaves (pot on window sill)

Good crop of hairy bittercress in the garden

With the weather having been so mild this December we have an abundant crop of hairy bittercress (Cardamine hirsuta) in the garden.

As well as providing ground cover this member of the mustard family is also edible and has a peppery taste. Add it to soups, salad, pesto, salsa and use instead of cress in sandwiches.



Further information on this wonderful "weed" at

Forage Wild edibles- Hairy Bittercress Food foraging guide

Hunter-Gathering: wild & fresh food - Hairy Bittercress Pesto

Hairy Bittercress, Cardamine hirsuta

All change as another tree comes down

For most of the 30 plus years we have been in this house we have had trees surrounding the back garden. When we moved in there were four sapling sycamores lining the footpath that runs along the back of the gardens in our terrace. Two of those were directly behind our boundary fence. As they grew they provided some welcome shade in hot summers and their autumn leaves helped add nutrients to our soil. Rather than gather up the fallen leaves and compost them we would leave them in situ, only moving those that were in danger of smothering the vegetables. By January/February they had usually rotted away.

Sycamore tree roots

As the trees grew the council would come and prune them every year and we were able to manage the branches that overhung our garden. About 10 years ago, the council stopped pruning and the trees began to get out of hand. Just over a year ago it was obvious that they were causing serious damage: the trunks were breaking through fences, the roots were damaging paths and the road, and on our side their extensive root system (see the photo on the left) was a barrier to planting anything in the rear third of the garden. Also, the heavy shade when the trees were in leaf meant that it took a long time for the soil in half of the garden to warm up in spring.

Eventually, the council chopped down all four trees. Although welcomed in some respects, we realised that the environment in our garden was going to alter significantly; we spent much of last season trying to get a feel of how the light and temperature had changed and the effect this would have on our vegetable plot. We have already planted two trees - a damson and a cherry plum - but there is another spot that could benefit from the shade of a third fruit tree. The place was soon identified simply by standing in the garden for a short time in the midday sun and getting well and truly sun burnt! (We have not yet decided on which fruit tree to plant). As for planting crops at the back of the garden we have been using grow bags, partly because of the remaining tree roots that are close to the surface but also so that we could move the bags if we got the location wrong and the conditions weren't ideal.

That was the situation until a few days ago. Now, another tree has gone and this is a massive one. It is, or rather was, a sycamore at least 75ft high and in a garden a few doors down from us. The garden belongs to a cottage that has not been lived in for a couple of years but now it is up for sale. There is a possibility that the land might be sold to developers although, as we are on a flood plain, a successful planning application is far from guaranteed. Anyway, we assume that in order to make this desirable plot even more attractive the tree surgeons moved in and the tree is now gone.

Removal of the sycamore begins

Tree surgeon at work

Almost gone

Gone

It is sad to see such a magnificent tree go, although I suspect that the people living either side of the property are probably delighted. It did cast heavy shade over their gardens and houses. We shall miss it, and in particular we shall miss watching and listening to the myriad birds that used it. And, again, the environment in our garden is bound to change. But time to move on, and think of possibly planting some extra trees in our garden to compensate. Our neighbours can be reassured, though, that these will be of a more modest size.

Horseradish!

We don't have turkey for Christmas dinner - we have roast beef. And for me horseradish sauce is an essential accompaniment. We grow horseradish in the garden in an Unwins potato growbag. Plant it uncontained in your garden and you will live to regret it. It will surely and steadily take over.

Christmas is just a week away and it is time to make the horseradish sauce.

Digging, dragging and pulling the stuff out of the bag was the equivalent of an hour workout at a gym, but eventually I managed to get about 500g. 

That was the easy bit. Cleaning the roots and peeling them was not a problem but grating the roots generates fumes far worse than the most pungent onions. My food processor began to fall apart about a year ago after 25 years of use. I had decided to try and manage without one and succeeded, but today I am rethinking my strategy. Grating and shredding the horseradish from the garden by hand required the wearing of industrial eye protection, a face mask and the kitchen door and windows to be fully open. 

Why bother? Because home made horseradish sauce is infinitely superior to the bland stuff that is sold in the shops and supermarkets. Just add a dash of cider vinegar, honey, salt and home made yogurt to the horseradish and you have the perfect sauce.

Now, about that food processor. Dear Father Christmas....

First of the winter brassicas

We picked the first of the winter brassicas today: some cavolo nero and leaves from cabbages, kale and sprouting broccoli. 












For lunch we had some bean casserole left over from yesterday (with onions, garlic, tomatoes, swiss chard stems and herbs from the garden), a small yellow/green acorn squash picked a few weeks ago, the cavolo nero, and brassica leaves and mash.

Bean seeds for next year

The last of the bean pods have been harvested for seeds. I am always loath to leave some of the biggest and best beans on the plants to mature and dry but I know it is worth it for the sake of next year's harvest. This photo shows just some of the varieties I have collected from the garden. The problem is that labels were lost many years ago so I have no idea which varieties they are apart from "runners", "climbing" and "dwarf".

The season is not completely over yet and the weather has been so mild this autumn that I am still harvesting runner beans. I'm not gathering a massive amount bit a handful is enough to add variety to a mix of veg in a risotto or a casserole.