Off to the country…

I'm away to the countryside this weekend, to stay with my niece who is an aspiring Urban Farm Girl and who keeps chickens as pets.  So, in fair exchange for a few new laid eggs to bring home with me, I'm taking a medley of our freshly picked garden produce, notably some of our magnificent lettuce (pictured above), giant radishes and parsley - but not the beetroot this time because the radishes are currently winning in those size stakes.

But all the seed harvesting has sparked a few creative memories and I promise that when I get back, I'll make a little downloadable template for making your own seed packets to keep your seeds safe until next year.

Found! Giant Mutant Radishes…

Oooh… look what we've got!  And I promise I haven't messed with this photo, nor is it one of those trick photos that alters perspective!  This really is the size of the radishes we're picking at the moment and I promise you they're very, very tasty indeed. 

Luckily quite a few neighbours have confessed to liking a quick munch of radishes - is that another collective noun, a munch of radishes, do you think? - because we still have rather a lot, having rushed to grow all our seeds at the end of the summer. 

I'll just withdraw a respectful distance while you quietly salivate, shall I?

Gone to seed…

Sweet pea pods - look how they twist round on themselves once split! I'm trying to be creative about how to use the empty pods; any thoughts?

After my recent thoughts on collecting seed from various plants, a quick walk around reveals how bountiful the harvest could be:  sweet pea pods, poppy heads, sunflower seeds, aliums, hollyhocks, wallflowers and runner beans - with courgettes, cucumber, tomatoes, pumpkin and peppers waiting in the wings.

I'm absolutely stunned because free seeds is something I'd never really thought about until now.  But the success of our little patch is inspiring very exciting thoughts of what's possible for next year - and not just in the veg patch but throughout all the gardens here.

Gardens and allotments are still (just) really beautiful and it's worthwhile going to take some photos while they're still flowering, fruiting, or otherwise good to eat.  Or why not, on a sunny afternoon (or a rainy one… it  happens), give the kids some paper and crayons and get them to draw the plant that they've collected seeds from.  And treat yourself to a big mug of tea, and five minutes peace.

Wallflower seed pods, splitting on the plant. Take a bag to collect these - the tiny seeds will get lost in your pockets!

Just a thought…

"Green fingers are the extension of a verdant heart."

~Russell Page, Landscape Architect and professional garden designer, 1906-1985

What do you think?  Do you enjoy gardening - or do you prefer just to eat the veg?

---

Last of the Summer Vine…

 

These little greenhouse beauties are just coming to the end of their fruiting season and in the spirit of learning about running a proper Veg Patch, I've been reading up about gathering seeds.  Yes, I know I could just pop over to the garden centre next year and buy some more (in fact, lots more as the choice is so great) but then we'd miss a valuable opportunity to teach the children about that whole 'cycle-of-life' thing.

The British Broadcasting Corporation, purveyors of Gardener's World and the Chelsea Flower Show (bless 'em), have this to say about gathering seed:

• Choose a dry, windless day. Select a healthy, pest- and disease-free plant, whose seedpods look as if they're about to split. Cut off the entire seedhead.
• Invert entire seedhead upside-down into a paper bag. Close bag without crushing seedhead and label. Place bag in a dry place for the seeds to ripen. (ooh, I like this one -  nice and neat.)
  
• Check the seeds' progress regularly. When most of the seedpods have opened, tip out the contents onto a dry surface and separate seeds from any bits of seedhead still attached.
• Store the cleaned seed in a small dry envelope, seal and label carefully. Keep in a cool, dry, airy place until ready to be used.

I'm not sure how this method would work for, say, tomatoes.  I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm picturing bags of soggy tomatoes slowly rotting - not good.  The answer would appear to be found in this month's Garden Illustrated, in an article called Saving Seeds (pg 24).  (I hope they won't mind if I just let you in on their tips for tomatoes. Maybe you'll go and buy the magazine, like I did.)

They say that tomato seeds need to be fermented in their own juice because the seeds have a gelatinous coating.  What you have to do (apparently) is scoop out the seeds, pop them in a jar with a little water and leave to ferment. A mouldy layer appears on the top of the liquid; it will have fermented once it smells slightly (3 to 4 days later). (O-kaaay. Not tempting me so far.) At this point, clean the seeds in a fine sieve under running water and dry on a porcelain plate (it's a very posh gardening mag). And this they call fun.

On the other hand, the Edible Playground recommends laying tomato seeds out on a sheet of kitchen paper and leave to dry. Might not work, but at least there's no smell!

---

If you have the time, why not find out more on these links:

BBC - collecting seeds
RHS - collecting and storing seed
The Edible Playground - Autumn in the Garden 
and, since I have your attention, please vote for us at The Little Blog Awards!