January is the quiet month outdoors. The winter crops (garlic, broad beans and onions) are in the pots and beds and waiting for the big frost and snow. Winter salads (chard, pak choy and lettuce) have grown well and should stand through the cold. Now is the time to head indoors and leave the garden …Read More about January: Starting Chilli Peppers
Winter raised bed
With summer crops finished and the raised bed cleared and fed with compost, it is time to organise the winter planting. In this garden rows of onions, garlic and broad beans fill the raised bed over winter for harvesting in late spring. Other crops have been tried but with the damp conditions in the garden …Read More about Winter raised bed
Summer’s end compost
For many gardeners this time of year is actually the start of the annual growing cycle. Clearing away this summer’s crops to the compost bin and digging out the finished compost from last year’s garden waste starts the cycle for next year. With an abundance of green material from the garden (tomatoes, beans, cucumber, courgettes, …Read More about Summer’s end compost
Garden to plate
It has been an excellent summer for the kitchen garden. A good 3 months with all tomatoes, salads, beans, courgettes, cucumbers, basil and chilli peppers coming fresh from the garden each day. However, even with a small garden, it is possible to preserve and save produce from the garden to last the next 6 months. …Read More about Garden to plate
Summer colours (Tomatoes)
It has been an exceptionally good year for tomatoes (so far) and an even better year for trying out new varieties. The Russian and Eastern European varieties were all started before the European and Mediterranean varieties and are now coming into full bloom while the regular European types are still green. It is amazing to …Read More about Summer colours (Tomatoes)
Summer colours (Chilli Peppers)
It is that time of year when fruit in the garden starts the transition from green to finished colour. With chilli peppers this can be a bit confusing with some of the change in colour looking unhealthy. Chilli peppers move through a range of colours as they ripen on the vine. As long as the …Read More about Summer colours (Chilli Peppers)