19 Apr 2018

New for 2018: The Ascot Spring Garden Show



I nearly didn't go. The weather has been so poor recently that I found myself questioning the sanity of anyone staging a garden show in mid April. At the eleventh hour though, my own sanity prevailed and I contacted the organisers for a pass which they produced with lightning speed.

14 Apr 2018

Six on Saturday: In a very happy place

The past week seems to have sped past, and this morning I'm definitely in my happy place having woken up to clear blue skies. Those have now turned to the promised 'light cloud' - weatherspeak for grey with a hint of occasional sun - but it's dry, bright, and I have a free day ahead - perfect! Six things that have contributed to happiness this week ...


~ looks very crowded at ground level but I can see lots of gaps for annuals from above 😊 ~

11 Apr 2018

Book(let) Review: Ten Poems about Sheds (Instead of a card)

Poems about sheds? What's not to love!

But at the risk of sounding like a complete Philistine, I admit that I've always preferred prose to poems.  I like to get stuck into the narrative and subtleties of a good book and all but a handful of poems leave me either baffled or indifferent. A Romantic, I am not.

So when Candlestick Press asked recently if I would like to review their latest publication 'Ten Poems about Sheds', I was initially reluctant but I took a look anyway.  The title alone is enough to pique the interest of any gardener - don't we all have a bit of a thing about sheds?




4 Apr 2018

The Real End of Month View for March, in April

At the weekend I wrote about spring flowers that are currently blooming around and in the veg patch but didn't look at the wider view of what else is happening. It's easier to focus in on the detail when skies are grey!  So, for a proper end of month view, I took another wander around the various little patches that I manage here - the veg patch, the shady border, the washing line border and the middle garden. (Yes, my patch has spread outwards over the years!)

The Veg Patch


Urban Veg Patch - Urban food garden
~ After the tidy up ~
Urban Veg Patch - fruit and veg in early spring
~ Spring growth - rhubarb and ransoms, tulips and fruit buds ~
Spring weather has been challenging for us gardeners - a bit of in/out, in/out, but don't shake it all about (seeds, that is!).  I resisted the urge to sow during March - mainly because my balcony is off limits at the moment, and it's too dark inside for seedlings. That worked in my favour as the weather was brutal at times. I risked sowing a few broad beans and sweet peas back in January. The broad bean plants have been sitting in the veg patch for a week now waiting for me to plant them during a break in the rain (and not being distracted by other jobs) while the sweet peas grow ever taller on my balcony in the shade of the scaffolding boards above.

1 Apr 2018

Six on Saturday: End of March in the garden



Goodness isn't weather fickle! Was that typical for March? It seemed winter would never end. We never know what the weather's going to do from one year to the next and this past month garden plants must have wondered whether winter was coming or going. Here in the UK, we've had snow, we've had sun, we've had rain, chill winds and then we've had more sun, and now to round off the month, it seems we're in for a week of rain. And I've got a hedge to plant. A new waterproof gardening coat has been ordered.

Despite the weather, there are several #sixonsaturday things happening in the garden today:

6 plants flowering now, showing that spring is well under way:


UrbanVegPatch: first tulip flower end of March

1. Tulips - yes really! starting to open in March. A big shout out to Morrison's supermarket for these as this is the third spring they've flowered. Planted into a raised bed with nothing-fancy multi-purpose compost. Five minutes to plant the bulbs, no maintenance, big return on the floral front but I don't pick them. I think they cost me £3 for 50 bulbs; a bargain. Look out for the bulbs from August onwards.


2. Forget-me-nots - the gift that keeps on giving.  I had a few plants from a friend's garden the year before last as they look so pretty in spring. Oh boy. Who knew they could self seed so far and wide! I still think they brighten up the early months but am confused. Some have opened pink; surely they should all be blue, or will they turn colour? Anyone?


3. Pulmonaria.  More commonly known as Lungwort due to its spotty leaves. Such an unattractive name for a beautiful little plant.  Also known as Soldiers and Sailors or Spotted Dog. I thought that was a pudding ... no, that's Spotted Dick. I digress. The buds have threatened to flower for weeks and have finally started to open. Hurrah!


4. Daffodils - yellow daffs have been going strong for weeks through snow and ice but the white ones, my favourites, have only just opened. I have no idea of the exact name as, again, these were Morrison's specials, £3 for 50 mixed white bulbs. The white tulips are lovely but I've been digging up the tiny alliums ever since.


5. Violets. I pictured a bank of wild thyme, oxlips, nodding violets, woodbine and eglantine - a throwback to studying Shakespeare at school. The reality is a few solitary flowers that become slug fodder every spring. They're seeding themselves around though so I'll pot a few up for the middle garden where I'm about to plant some eglantine (Sweet Briar Rose) and the woodbine (honeysuckle) is constantly striving for garden domination but forgiven for its lovely scent.



6. Primulas.  These were the first 'wildflowers' I planted in the veg patch for early colour and early food for bees. They're still my favourites. I have cowslips (Primula veris), primroses (Primula vulgaris), drumstick primroses (Primula denticulata) and all reliably flower throughout March and beyond, being some of the earliest spring flowers. As oxlips are only found growing in ancient woodland, and often mistaken for cowslips, I think I'm there on that one.

(A bonus to the list - the wood anemones and muscari have also flowered this weekend. So 8 plants, but why spoil a good meme!)



6 jobs completed in March:

1 - Dug out literally hundreds of foxglove seedlings
2 - Moved self seeded Cavolo Nero seedlings to this year's spot.
3 - Tidied up garden debris - swept up leaves, weeded, washed and tidied pots, disposed of litter ... yes, quite; it's a community garden so visitors/strangers/tenants and their families wander through. I'm still appalled that people will chuck plastic bottles, cigarette packets, beer bottles, plastic containers and food wrappers into a garden!! I also currently get scaffolders' debris. 😠
4 - Ordered new netting to fence off the garden against cats and foxes.
5 - Continuously picked up the 'calling cards' from said pesky critters. 😠
6 - Pruned gooseberry bushes, redcurrant, and quince, pear and apple trees - just in time!

6 jobs still to be done:

Make lots of paper pots. Then sow hundreds of seeds ...
Pot up spuds that are still chitting on the windowsill because I need more planters.
Repair fence and remesh (see 'Jobs completed')
Plant hedge - I'm going to grow an edible hedge! Excited? Oh yeah.
Finish new layout and herb bed in middle garden.
Move herbs from veg patch to other garden.
Buy cover for balcony staging to turn it into a mini greenhouse.
... Oh, and heaps more but let's not get overwhelmed too early in the season.


Linking to:
#sixonsaturday hosted by The Propagator blog 



30 Mar 2018

Mr Fothergill's 'Get Growing with David Domoney' and Dalefoot compost

Urban Veg Patch: Sowing seed tapes from Mr Fothergill's range


I woke up to sunshine this Friday morning and, in an optimistic mood, headed down to the veg patch to do some sowing. Mr Fothergill's, a UK seed company, had sent me a selection from their new Get Growing and Optigrow ranges to trial this year including Nantes carrot seeds and seed tapes of Spinach 'Samish' - both can be direct sown in March so I thought "let's get on with it!"

Mr Fothergill's David Domoney Get Growing range is new for this year and has been created to encourage anyone who is new to growing veg from seed. That might sound odd to seasoned gardeners but I've met many people who don't know where to begin, which seeds to choose or what to do with them. With clear printed instructions on the packet for sowing, growing and harvesting, plus advice and a QR code which links to more tips from David Domoney, anyone can hope for success.

Sunshine turned to rain very quickly and four hours later I was back indoors, soaked through from the rain but feeling good from having had such a productive time in the garden. It was only after the rain started to come down quite heavily that I thought it best to call it a day.

First job of the day was, as usual, to remove any tiny weeds from the beds - it really is the only way to keep on top of the problem, little and often - and then my thoughts turned to topping up the raised beds.  I have to do this every year, it's amazing how quickly the soil levels sink with all those worms munching and pooping away.

The plan today was to plant the spinach seed tapes, and intersperse with garlic (planted much too late but let's see what happens) and, in another bed, plant onion sets and intersperse those with rows of carrot seeds.  In my experience, the onions mask the carrot scent and deter carrot root fly, a nasty pest that burrows into the young root to lay its eggs. Eeuww.  Doesn't always work but has done for me. You can also put a 2ft/50cm high fine mesh barrier around the carrots as protection against these low flying beasties.  I topped up the carrot/onion bed with ordinary multi-purpose compost. Not too rich, just enough nutrients for a month or so and deep enough for Nantes carrots which are a short early type.


Urban Veg Patch: Improving soil with Dalefoot Double Strength compost


I've not used seed tapes before so I was keen to get the spinach tapes planted! In this bed, I used a light mulch of Dalefoot's Double Strength Wool Compost to supplement last year's soil.  Spinach likes soil to be nutrient dense and moist for a healthy crop and this particular compost from Dalefoot's comprehensive range will improve water retention as well as giving the soil a boost. The Strulch mulch from last year hadn't quite decomposed so I tickled the two mulches together before planting. No need to water as it had started to rain quite noticeably!

Urban Veg Patch: Planting out Mr Fothergill Get Growing seed tapes


The seed tapes were a revelation! The last thing I wanted to do with wet hands was to try and trickle a row of spinach seeds into a drill. With the tapes, all I had to do was anchor one end of the tape, roll it out into the little trench I'd made and cover it over. Job done! So quick and the instructions were very clear on spacing, depth, timings and how to do it.  The advice is to harvest every other plant to allow the remaining plants room to grow; or cut and come again up to four cuts for baby leaves.

I wondered whether it's the most economical way of growing spinach. The pack contained 6 metres of seeds across two 3 metre tapes; seeds are spaced roughly 1 inch apart on the tape, ie approximately 230 seeds for £2.99. This is slightly above the average cost but I imagine less seeds are wasted as they're pre-spaced for you.  I planted three one metre rows today which should give me around 115 plants. That sounds a lot! Maybe two rows would have been enough. Germination should be in one to two weeks with first pickings in May so I'll plant another row of tape towards the end of April.

I have to say I love the ease and speed of the seed tapes - with everything else that needs to be done at this time of year, it gets one box ticked off the list very efficiently.  Other seeds from the Get Growing range that I've been sent are parsnip seed tapes which I'm thrilled about as I've never been able to grow parsnips before, some cherry tomato seeds that are for growing in pots and seed mats for 5 varieties of herbs to grow year round indoors.  As a very keen herb grower, I'm excited about the seed mats and will be trialling those in pots on the balcony.

All round, I feel this is a good range for newbie growers but let's see how the plants perform. I'll report back as and when but do give them a whirl if you're not sure where to start with veg growing ... even if you just have a windowsill or front door step; where the seeds can be grown - pots or direct sow outdoors - is clearly marked on the packet!
🌱😀🌿


27 Mar 2018

Purple, Prince of fruit and veg

UrbanVegPatch Red Bull brussels sprouts
~ Purple reigns! Red Bull Purple Brussels Sprouts growing in the veg patch ~


Did anyone notice the purple cauliflower purée on the latest series of UK Masterchef?  It was more creamy mauve than purple and judge John Torode said straightaway that he wasn't a fan of the colour; I have to agree, it did not look appealing, but I've read time and again recently that purple veg has been creeping up to the top of the superfood trend for the past year. I even had purple sweet potato patties at a vegetarian supper club recently which I thought was a novel concept but, blow me down, if I didn't find purple sweet potatoes at the supermarket at the weekend.

So what is it with these so-called superfoods? Personally, I believe that eating any organically grown and freshly harvested food helps to maintain good health but, apparently, the deeper the colour of the food, the greater the nutrients within. Scientists say that purple food contains very high levels of anthocyanins. These powerful anti-oxidants are known to combat free radicals in our bodies thereby boosting our immune systems and, in turn, reducing inflammation, keeping our hearts healthy and helping to fight the ageing process.  It's also been found that regularly eating these foods can reduce the risk of getting high blood pressure and maintain good cholesterol levels.  So far, so fabulous.

However, it has to be said that eating a bowl of purple potatoes is not going balance out any unhealthy eating (hello, cheesy biscuits) but as I already grow - and eat - a rainbow of veg, I thought I'd take a look at which purple veg I've grown in the veg patch, enjoyed, and will grow again.

1. Purple kale. Redbor* is a deep red curly kale in the purple spectrum, grown when I trialled several varieties to see which I liked best. I've also grown a Russian kale 'Red Ursa' which is pale green with beautiful purple ribs. Both were very tasty, slightly sweeter and milder than green kale. (Although my must-have kale will always be Cavolo Nero which, btw, is also a superfood.)

2. Purple carrots. I grew these a few years ago as a fun experiment and they were very tasty. Those had an orange core; this year I'm growing Purple Sun* which keeps its colour through to the core. All carrots were originally purple like this; orange carrots are a 16th century innovation.

3. As Purple Sprouting Broccoli turns green when cooked, I'm not sure that it counts, same for the purple beans I've grown (Blue Lake, Cosse Violette). I've got seeds for several varieties this year that will, in theory at least, give me a staggered crop from October to April next year.

4. Then there was my all time favourite for both looks and taste, purple brussels sprouts.  (See top photo. Gorgeous.) These were a red ball sprout, the flavour is reckoned to be superior to green sprouts. And if you don't like sprouts, try stir frying them with bacon - you might change your mind.

5. Purple Pacific* asparagus, turns green on steaming. Pops up every year and is very delicious but doesn't seem to have multiplied at all - and I think one of the crowns may now be deceased. Last year I had a total of 15 stems over the entire season! Still, mustn't complain, they were very tasty with a poached egg.

6.  Aubergine. So delicious in so many recipes; it's only the skin that's purple but it still counts. Baba Ganoush, anyone?  Last year I grew baby aubergines, this year I have seeds for a compact aubergine 'Pinstripe' which can be container grown on my balcony. The velvety leaves and purple flowers don't look amiss in the flower border either.

7.  Purple Potatoes.  In 2013 I grew a purple skinned, purple fleshed potato called Vitelotte. What I failed to realise was that when you're choosing from over 80 varieties of heritage potato, it pays to make a note of the recommended use. Vitellote was deemed excellent for chips; not realising this, I boiled mine for mash with disastrously sloppy pale mauve results. Five years on and UK seed company Dobies are offering a purple potato that claims to be "ideal for mashing, baking, roasting, microwaving, crisps and chips".  I'm still not entirely sold on the idea of purple mash on my cottage pie, or purple chips, although it would certainly be a talking point.

8.  Beetroot. Sometimes it's red, sometimes almost purple. It was a root vegetable that I couldn't stand until I grew some at the start of the veg patch years, then I learned to appreciate it and now I love it. I just wish I could find the recipe for those little chilli flavoured beets that can be bought in the supermarket! Meantime, there's always beetroot chocolate cake. (Link to my recipe.)

There are two more purple veg that I haven't grown before but I'm intrigued to try this year:

9. Purple Kohl Rabi - hadn't crossed my horticultural horizon until last summer. I now know it's a brassica, similar to a turnip or broccoli stem in flavour, but crunchy, mild and sweet. Apparently the purple is slower to grow than the green but I've ordered seeds and let's see!

10. Purple 'Shiraz'* snow peas.  I always have mangetout growing in the veg patch as I use them a lot in cooking but have never grown purple ones before. I expect they taste the same, but with added nutrients, and there's a bonus of lovely bi-coloured flowers!  Plus I can't resist eating the young pods raw.

But the one thing that I haven't grown - and won't be anytime soon - is a purple cauliflower.

So, anyone plumping for purple veg this year?  



* Note: Reading back through this post, I noticed that a lot of the veg I've mentioned (Redbor kale, Purple Sun carrots, Purple Pacific asparagus, Shiraz peas) can be sourced from one supplier - Dobies. One way to save on post and packing fees.