It’s the last day of 2019 …. didn’t that pass quickly? I’m sure there are things on my “to do” list from February that I’m still meaning to get round to!
Sad Sprout Story
Brussels Sprouts are one of my most favourite vegetables. It is a happy day when the first sprouts are ready to pick, I even like to eat them for breakfast! Every year I grow several varieties to extend the sprout harvesting season – but sadly this year, it hasn’t gone according to plan.
Mid October in my veg garden
October is such a busy time in my garden – harvesting, clearing, sowing, planting and getting everything ready for the winter months. Gardening plans have been hindered however by so much rain!
allotment/back garden/blog/events/front garden/Garden visits/gardening/Homeacres/homesteading/no dig gardening/No Dig Organic Home and Garden/organic/permaculture/polytunnel/summer/workshops and courses
No dig abundance in July
Hasn’t the month passed quickly? I can hardly believe that it is August on Thursday. Today I’ve been enjoying more of an indoor kind of day, catching up with things at my desk and general chores, because it has – finally, oh joy! – been raining. I love sunshine and warmth, but it has been very dry for my garden and the polytunnel has become so hot.
back garden/blog/homesteading/no dig gardening/organic/permaculture/polytunnel/preparing the soil/spring/summer
No Dig Polytunnel May Transformation
May: such a magical month in the garden. The growth is incredible and each day the garden reveals new delights! When the first strawberries ripen we know summer is on its way.
allotment/autumn/back garden/blog/Bruton/featured/gardening/homesteading/nature/no dig gardening/No Dig Organic Home and Garden/no hungry gap/organic/permaculture/polytunnel/recipes/seasonal cooking/spring/summer/The Creative Kitchen/winter
Kale – Root to Shoot: leaves, flowers, sprouts and more!
Kale, a nutrient dense vegetable high in vitamins, is well known for its many health benefits. Easy to grow and winter hardy in the UK, it’s a fantastic plant for the hungry home gardener. Kale’s delicious leaves make a tasty addition to all kinds of meals cooked and raw, but did you know that you can also eat other parts of this cruciferous vegetable and that growing it benefits wildlife too?!
Read More “Kale – Root to Shoot: leaves, flowers, sprouts and more!”
allotment/blog/Bruton/Homeacres/mulching/no dig gardening/No Dig Home/no hungry gap/organic/permaculture/preparing the soil/spring/workshops and courses
How to sow no dig parsnips, carrots and other root veg
It’s spring and I am thinking of winter vegetables! Root vegetables are surprisingly easy to grow using no dig methods. Yesterday I sowed parsnips, carrots, radish, Hamburg parsley and scorzonera into a recently applied mulch of compost on top of my heavy clay allotment soil.
Read More “How to sow no dig parsnips, carrots and other root veg”
back garden/blog/Books/exploring/featured/Garden visits/homesteading/kitchen garden/organic/permaculture/polytunnel/preparing the soil/propagation/real life/spring/The Creative Kitchen
Weeding for the Queen… and other gardening news!
The Queen visited “my” work kitchen garden yesterday, so I spent time on Wednesday making sure it was all weeded and spruced up. Ok, so perhaps the purpose of her visit to Bruton wasn’t to gaze upon my herbs and veggies but it’s not every day that one of the most famous people in the world pops down my high street!
It was thirsty work, so I enjoyed a refreshing cup of tea sitting in the sunshine on the wide timbers of the raised beds.
The Queen was in Bruton to open a new music building at The Kings School, a public (ie: private and very expensive for my international readers) and celebrate 500 years since the school received its Royal Charter. HRH also took time to visit Hauser and Wirth Somerset – where I run the kitchen garden for Roth Bar and Grill – and local race horse owner, Paul Nicholls’ stables.
Read More “Weeding for the Queen… and other gardening news!”
blog/front garden/gardening/kitchen garden/magazines/No Dig Home/No Dig Organic Home and Garden/permaculture/polytunnel/spring/winter
Back home
I had a great time on holidays, but it’s nice being home again too, especially now that spring is in the air!
allotment/back garden/blog/Books/Bruton/featured/gardening/homesteading/kitchen garden/magazines/no dig gardening/permaculture/real life/The Creative Kitchen/writing
New Year news!
New allotment plans, magazine articles, writing a new book and other plans for 2019.
allotment/autumn/back garden/blog/Bruton/front garden/gardening/Homeacres/homesteading/kitchen garden/no dig gardening/no hungry gap/organic/permaculture/polytunnel/preparing the soil/propagation/The Creative Kitchen
November in my No Dig Garden
It has been a busy time since my last blog post and how the garden has changed! The weather has been typically British, from unseasonably warm to icy cold (for Somerset) and back again. Mornings are misty, deciduous trees almost entirely without leaves now and anything frost tender has died.
The polytunnel has frozen a few times now, I love the patterns on the frozen polythene, although it is still reaching 30˚C in there some days. I have electronic thermometers in the greenhouse and polytunnel and it’s so interesting to see the extremes of temperatures undercover, compared with outside in the garden.
autumn/back garden/blog/Bruton/exploring/featured/front garden/gardening/Homeacres/homesteading/kitchen garden/mulching/nature/no dig gardening/No Dig Home/No Dig Organic Home and Garden/no hungry gap/one/organic/permaculture/polytunnel/potions/preparing the soil/preserving/propagation/The Creative Kitchen/winter
On this harvest moon…
This week began with the Autumn Equinox, the festival of Mabon, which starts on September 21st
autumn/back garden/blog/Bruton/featured/gardening/Homeacres/homesteading/kitchen garden/no dig gardening/No Dig Home/no hungry gap/organic/permaculture/polytunnel/recipes/seasonal cooking/summer/The Creative Kitchen
September sowing, sweetcorn harvests and recipes
As summer mellows into autumn, the allotment and garden is full of ripening vegetables and fruit.
Read More “September sowing, sweetcorn harvests and recipes”
allotment/back garden/blog/featured/front garden/gardening/homesteading/kitchen garden/nature/no dig gardening/organic/permaculture/polytunnel/real life/summer/two
It shouldn’t happen to a gardener!
The best laid plans do not always come to fruition! Gardening is a great leveller. Whether you are growing on an allotment, in a window box or own a huge private estate, nature always has the upper hand – and that is exactly as it should be.
A dry July update from my no dig garden
Like much of the country, Bruton has been very hot and dry for weeks and weeks. Frustratingly all of the recent rains have missed my small town.
allotment/blog/Bruton/featured/Garden visits/gardening/Homeacres/homesteading/kitchen garden/mulching/no dig gardening/No Dig Home/no hungry gap/organic/permaculture/polytunnel/preparing the soil/recipes/seasonal cooking
A quick update with a deeply chocolatey vegan rhubarb cake recipe
May is always a busy month for gardeners and it feels even more so this year here – is that the same for you?
Read More “A quick update with a deeply chocolatey vegan rhubarb cake recipe”
allotment/back garden/blog/Bruton/experiments/featured/gardening/Homeacres/homesteading/kitchen garden/making a no dig bed/mulching/nature/no dig gardening/No Dig Home/No Dig Organic Home and Garden/no hungry gap/organic/permaculture/polytunnel/preparing the soil/propagation/seasonal cooking/spring
New allotment plan and other experiments.
Every year I mulch my no dig allotment with an inch or two of composted manure or homemade compost, but this year I am trying something different!
allotment/back garden/blog/Bruton/countryside/featured/front garden/homesteading/kitchen garden/nature/no dig gardening/no hungry gap/organic/permaculture/polytunnel/winter
My polytunnel in early March
Usually the end of February and early March heralds a dramatic increase of activity in the greenhouse – but the unusually cold weather means last week was more about snowing than sowing!
blog/featured/gardening/homesteading/no dig gardening/No Dig Home/No Dig Organic Home and Garden/no hungry gap/organic/permaculture/polytunnel/propagation/winter
Sowing aubergines, chillies and sweet peppers for summer and autumn harvests
I absolutely love growing aubergines. Incredibly versatile for so many different recipes, I love all of the different colours and shapes, how some are seriously spiky and of course the delicious taste.
Read More “Sowing aubergines, chillies and sweet peppers for summer and autumn harvests”
blog/Bruton/featured/homesteading/nature/no dig gardening/No Dig Home/No Dig Organic Home and Garden/permaculture/winter
Getting ready for sowing!
I am really looking forward to getting into to the swing of spring sowing, but as this morning’s weather demonstrated in no uncertain terms, it is still very much winter!