No More White Stuff

Yep, the snow is gone as off the weekend, well there still is the odd lump of ice sitting around but basically the landscape is back to its dreary grey dead looking winter-self.
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I had planned to make it the allotment Sunday gone to plant out some very late and yet to go in garlic bulbs but I got as far the back garden to survey the aftermath of all that snow and ice we had recently.
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There is a lot of mushy foliage to tidy up and I finally got to harvest some of my parsnips (they are on the right hand side of the picture) which as you can see were more top than root. There is a still some carrots in the ground, which tasted very sweet but was badly damaged by carrot root fly grubs, the parsnips which were planted n the same bed also had some root fly damages but not nearly as much. I also pulled for the first time some winter radish called 'Mooli Radish' which grew pretty magnificently but I had not harvested before as I didn't quite know what to do with it. The prolonged icy weather and sitting snow on the ground rendered the first 3" of the radishes inedible as it was obviously damaged by the freezing temps (you can see the damage better in the picture where they have been washed), the part of the root which was in the ground was fine to use though.
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I found this surprise a mushy smelly cauliflower head. Now I did grow some purple head cauliflower this year for the first time but the plats were badly infected with whitefly early last year and as such didn't amount to much. Near the end of summer the plants suddenly seem to catch themselves so I didn't have the heart to rip it out (yes I know I'm a wimpy excuse for a gardener but I'm working on getting more hard nail). I wanted to see if it would have produced a head regardless of how small. Well as you can see it did and though small it would have certainly been a fair amount to add to a dish of mixed sautéed veges. Sadly though I didn't know it was there and so we never got to taste home grown cauliflowers to see if we'd enjoy it (no one in our house cares for cauliflower). I'll try growing it again this year again just a few plants for taste testing before we decide whether it will become a regularly grown vege.
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Last night I chopped my way into another winter squash, now it is suppose to be onion squash but it is like no onion squash I ever saw pictured so I haven't really got a clue as to what its is. As you can see from the picture it is very pretty on the outside and on the inside its flesh is thick and it smelled very sweet iykwim. Its not huge nor is it small, its about the size of a large crown prince squash.
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All ready to go in the oven.

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Well all the root vege and a quarter of the squash was chopped up and roasted in olive oil with a small onion, herbs and seasoning. Everything tasted very nice but the radish was a bit strong and sometimes a bit bitter, I think I will try it next time in a stir-fry but finely sliced. The squash was absolutely lovely it would be a good candidate for an American style pumpkin pie as it is very sweet. It didn't maintain its firmness like butternut after baking and so I think it would melt away in stews, which is ideal if you are making soup. Its seeds were huge and white and will probably lend well to roasting.
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Well that's it for now, hopefully I will find or make some time to go to the allotment to plant out the garlic bulbs I bought on Saturday and hopefully I'll get a nice crop from them. I am still busy making new pieces and items for my blogshop but I'll let you all know when they are ready.

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Thanks for popping by and Ta! Ta! For now.

What a day!!!!!!!

Woke to clear blue sunny skies and evidence of a night's hard frost. The picture on the left was taken by Na'imah while I was outside I thought the composition was pretty good so I have decided to share it.


Friday is my laundry day and has been for years but I was not about to let this beautiful spring day go to waste in the garden, so I endeavoured to do both.

My week's seed sowing had been completed since Wednesday so I took this opportunity to pot on some young plants that were overwintered in my mini greenhouse. Some were freebies from A4A swaps and others were plants I had sown last summer.



The day was going great I was staying on top of my washing schedule and I was also achieving lots outside while Na'imah enjoyed the outdoor playing in the sandpit, then the electricity board decided to throw a spanner in the works and cut the current!!! Washing definitely stopped, Na'imah at this point had just gone inside to watch a little television which would have bought me fifteen more minutes before I needed to give her lunch allowing me to complete a task I was right in the middle of.

All that went to pot with "mummy I'm hungry and the TV isn't working" being shouted to me from the kitchen door and me not hearing her well coming to said door to be told by my neighbour that the power has been cut. So I tell Na'i I'm coming just let me finish this, I get to finish but of course there is no microwave to use so I have to reheat her lunch on the stove and " no mummy I don't want a sandwich, why is it taking so long mummy? I'm hungry". Finally she got her lunch about half and hour later than she would have wanted it, I'm too fed up to warm any for myself by this point so I have a sandwich, then its get dress to go get Nathifa from schhol......

Roll on three plus hours we are back home from music lessons and the daylight is fading fast, mad rush to tidy scattered toys and get dinner on the fire before we have to crack out the candles, news at seven o'clock on the radio says no power to be expected till after nine at night, Nathifa is upset about something that happen at school, she has also twisted her ankle and said the darkness is getting her down as well.

Dinner is ready mummy gives Na'imah a quick important bits only wash as there is no hot water, we eat and Nathifa and her dad plays a few games of dominoes, I fall to sleep on the couch, Na'imah comes to be nursed to sleep Nathifa goes to brush her teeth, Na'imah falls to sleep the light are back on its 9.30pm, Thifa has a bath and is in bed at 9.45pm record time but is complaining she wishes it was still dark and can't she have a candle to sleep with in her room. Washing has recommenced, yes I know its late but Thifa needs her drama uniform for tomorrow.

Any hoo! just a quick update on the germination progress:

Garlic bulbs which I planted on the 11th of Feb, signs of growth were seen yesterday on inspection.

The lettuce, pak choi, mizuna and the turnips which were sown on the 2nd of March have started germinating as of today.

I thought I would also show you a couple pictures of what is growing in the vege beds and would be ready for harvest soon. On the left is early prple sprouting broccoli and on the right is pak choi and chinese cabbage.



I saw lots of wildlife enjoying the days sun rays first one of them was a young frog swiming in the pond (sorry didn't have my camera with me) and we were also visited by a male and female great spotted woodpecker today, I was lucky to get a picture of the female.