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/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.
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/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
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.
blog/featured/homesteading/No Dig Organic Home and Garden/recipes/seasonal cooking/summer/The Creative Kitchen
Two Summer Salads – Virgin Mojito Cucumbers and Roast Fennel with Beetroot
The vegetable gardens are filling up with gorgeous summer abundance, almost every day it seems we are welcoming back another seasonal delight.
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?
A flying visit to Beechgrove
We celebrated the first day of May by flying from Bristol to Aberdeen, to visit Beechgrove Gardens.
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!
allotment/autumn/blog/Bruton/countryside/featured/gardening/homesteading/kitchen garden/mulching/nature/no dig gardening/No Dig Home/organic/permaculture
No Dig Allotment November Update
My allotment has been quite neglected recently. All of my travels (Yorkshire for a wedding, then Thailand and Laos, with a work trip to Ireland just 2 days after returning), my work and autumnal weather suddenly arriving after a mild sunny spell – quite a shock after Thailand for me! – has meant that I am not quite where I would like to be for November 22nd. Nevermind though, it will all get done and I have had a lovely time.
allotment/autumn/back garden/blog/featured/front garden/gardening/homesteading/kitchen garden/nature/no dig gardening/No Dig Home/no hungry gap/organic/permaculture/polytunnel/winter
(Almost!) last plantings of the year
This is the eighth in my series of blog posts, explaining how to grow vegetables and herbs which can be sown now to see you through the winter and spring – no hungry gap in 2018!
I have added the category No Hungry Gap, so you can find all of the blogs easily using the search facility.
Roasted beetroot, carrot and onion hummus recipe
Beetroot grows in my garden from April right through to the end of autumn, some in the polytunnel over winter too. This tasty root vegetable stores so well that I can make this hummus at any time of year, but there’s something especially autumnal and satisfying about the combination of roasted beetroot, carrot and onion.
blog/featured/homesteading/No Dig Home/No Dig Organic Home and Garden/organic/recipes/seasonal cooking/summer
Thai influenced golden raw summer vegetable salad
This gorgeous bright seasonal salad is almost a meal in itself and can easily be adapted to include other summer vegetables in your garden (and winter root veg later in the year). It is a zingy, delicious, colourful way to use up gluts.
Crunchy Courgette Gardener’s Muffins
I’ve been trying out a few variations of this seasonal muffin, using our course people as guinea pigs! Low in processed sugar, these satisfying baked treats are great to nibble on for an extra boost of energy when gardening. They also make a great breakfast muffin.
blog/featured/homesteading/No Dig Home/No Dig Organic Home and Garden/recipes/seasonal cooking/summer
Seasonal summer frugal feasting
Regular readers of my blog will know that one of passions, and fortunately work, is harvesting seasonal homegrown vegetables, fruit and herbs and delicious food. For our no dig gardening day course at Homeacres on Saturday, I made lunch for 17 (including Charles and myself) using Charles’ gorgeous vegetables (plus some bought ingredients, things we can’t grow easily which I’ll explain later) for around £1 a head, including muffins.
back garden/blog/Bruton/featured/kitchen garden/no dig gardening/No Dig Home/No Dig Organic Home and Garden/organic/permaculture/potions/preserving/recipes/seasonal cooking/summer
A cornucopia of summer soft fruit … with recipes for homemade cassis and blackcurrant wine
Perennial fruit bushes play a key role in my garden, producing an abundance of delicious berries during summer months. These I preserve, to enjoy year round: jewel coloured jams, cordials, liqueurs, chutneys and other delicious additions to my homegrown larder.
blog/interviews/no dig gardening/No Dig Home/No Dig Organic Home and Garden/organic/permaculture/You tube
You Tube No Dig Interview
On Monday 3rd July, I was interviewed by Jen Gale about my work, in particular about the ethical aspects of it. This was the first interview for her new series entitled “Meet the Changemaker”. All of these interviews will be uploaded so anyone can view for free onto Jen’s You Tube channel Jen Gale – Ethical Business Coach,
Somerset Garden Day
Somerset Garden Day is happening today! I think this is a brilliant idea – of course I don’t need much encouragement to spend time in my garden, but this day is a bit different.