Month: March 2019

Book Review – 10-a-day, the easy way

/ karen / 9 Comments

JAMES WONG

Published by Mitchell Beazley

Hardback £20

ISBN 978-178472-476-4

I’m always looking for new ways to add more fruit and vegetables into our cooking. We grow much of our own veg in the summer, but often run out of ideas, especially when there’s masses of kale or courgettes, for example. I enjoyed James Wong’s How to Eat Better book, so when I saw his new title, 10-a-day the easy way, I had to try the recipes.

I tried the Haddock with Ratatouille recipe which is easy to follow and quick to make- very important after a busy day at work. I cooked diced onions, aubergines, courgettes, red pepper in 2 tbpsn olive oil. Then added a can of tomato passata and a tin of chickpeas. 2tbspn soy sauce, 2 tbsp herbs de Provence, and 4 garlic cloves (crushed) added flavour. I wouldn’t have thought of adding finely-grated zest and juice of half a lemon, but it’s the twist the recipe needs to make it different from anything I’ve made before. I didn’t have any bay leaves, but 2 were mentioned in the recipe. The pan was covered and simmered for 15 minutes while I baked the fish in the oven and added boiling water to a pan of couscous. It was delicious! A nice speedy weekday dinner, incorporating lots of veg, with the minimum of fuss. Sorry there are no photos of the finished meal. It was so tempting- we ate it straight away!

Here are a few sample pages from the book. First there’s an explanation on the science behind 10- a day. There’s no doubt that eating more fruit and veg is good for us. The book is split into sections on breakfast, lunch, dinner, deserts, snacks, sauces, cakes and bakes.

I am going to make the peanut butter cookies next. They sound delicious.

I could see us starting the day with these light and fluffy banana and peanut butter pancakes. Breakfast can be quite boring in our house as we just grab a box of cereal each day.

Fruit crepes with cottage cheese, blueberries and kiwi fruit. Looks and tastes amazing.

Triple Berry Hotcakes- using frozen berries. I have a freezer full of home-grown blueberries and raspberries . Frozen fruit is just as nutritious as fresh, and sometimes cheaper to buy. Incorporated into batter for a pancake – genius idea. Breakfasts will never be the same again!

So, what is a portion? James says it’s 80g of whole fruit or veg or 30g dried fruit or veg. I am surprised to see 30g of tomato purée is 1 portion. I’m now adding it to soups and stews and topping up pasta dishes. Easy. James says people tend to misjudge how small an 80g portion is. When it comes to apples, pears, peaches and avocados, a single fruit is actually 2 portions. Even dried foods count. So you could snack on raisins or add dried mushrooms to a risotto to boost your intake.

I’ve enjoyed working my way through the 80 recipes in James’ new book. His message is clear- eating more fruit and veg is good for your health. But he’s never preachy. He says, if you can’t manage 10 a day, that’s ok. Just eat more than you do at the moment. And that’s what I’m aiming for. The recipes are certainly tasty, and quick to make.

The publishers have one free copy to give away in a prize draw. Please leave a comment below and let me know if you’d like to be included in the prize draw. It’s ok if you don’t wish to be included as well. The publishers will pull a name out of a hat to randomly select a winner. There’s no cash alternative and the publisher’s decision is final. The book can be sent to international addresses as well as UK.

Six on Saturday – 30 March 2019

/ karen / 42 Comments

Suddenly, there’s blossom and flowers everywhere. Sunny 17C days. Cold 1C nights. In the cut flower patch, there’s rows of double narcissi Bridal Crown and Winston Churchill. Single daffodil Geranium is a favourite. Wonderful in a vase. Highly scented. They seem to shout “spring is here.”

Tulips are a few weeks early. I hope there’s some to come for Easter. This one’s new to me. Exotic Emperor. Double creamy white with green feathering. A glorious sight at dawn, all covered in tiny beads of dew.

Above the cut flower beds, a plum tree spreads it’s branches. Such a wonderful sight on a beautiful sunny morning.

My plot is edged by a bank of wild cherry trees. There’s Tenby daffodils at their feet. Small and simple. They look “right” in their semi-wild setting.

Looking up, I can hear the bees working the pollen. There will be plenty of cherries this year.

I hope you’ve enjoyed a walk around my garden today. What flowers and trees are you seeing today?

Links : six on Saturday https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/2019/03/30/six-on-saturday-30-03-2019/#comments

Narcissi bridal crown https://www.gee-tee.co.uk/bulbs/daffodils-narcissus/double-narcissi/narcissus-bridal-crown

Narcissi geranium https://www.gee-tee.co.uk/bulbs/daffodils-narcissus/special-mixtures-of-daffodils-narcissi/mixed-daffodils-narcissi

Wild Cherry https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/visiting-woods/trees-woods-and-wildlife/british-trees/a-z-of-uk-native-trees/wild-cherry/

Plum https://www.chrisbowers.co.uk/category/plums/

Karen on twitter @kgimson

On instagram at karengimson1

Join us also for In a Vase on Monday : https://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com/2019/03/25/in-a-vase-on-monday-goodbye-to-all-that/

Death in the Garden – Book Review

/ karen / 33 Comments

Poisonous Plants & Their Use Throughout History

Michael Brown

Pen and Sword Books. Paperback £16.99

ISBN 1526708388

I once turned up at a client’s garden to find foxgloves growing amongst the cut-and- come-again lettuce. Horrified, I carefully weeded them out, but decided I couldn’t be sure I’d found them all. The whole plot had to be dug up and replanted. Growing flowers in the veg plot has become fashionable. But mixing flowers with salads and veg can be deadly. We know foxgloves or digitalis has links with modern medicine to treat heart disorders. All parts of the plant are, however, highly poisonous. Michael Brown, in his book Death in the Garden, says on a toxicity scale of 1 to 20, with 1 being the most lethal, foxgloves are at number 3. The difference between a beneficial and lethal dose being minute.

Foxgloves are just one of the plants listed in Brown’s fascinating book. I’ve grown up knowing about the dangers of deadly and woody nightshade, and giant hogweed. But who knew that aquilegia could be poisonous.

Brown describes how powdered aquilegia seeds were used historically as medicine for jaundice and liver problems right up until the early nineteenth century. The plant, apparently high in vitamin C, was also rather dubiously used to treat scurvy. Luckily, modern medicine has moved on and the plant has reverted back to being used just to decorate our gardens.

Other plants I’ll look at in a different light in future include autumn crocus, bindweed, broom, cherry laurel, daffodils, morning glory and celandine, to name but a few.

And as for basil, I’ll not be able to eat it again without thinking of Brown’s rather bizarre and gory murder story involving a severed head and a pot of herbs! His book is a mixture of fact and fiction – all revolving around plants and poisons. Highly entertaining as well as informative. But you might not be able to sleep at night after reading it.

The book cover says :” Mankind has always had a morbid fascination with poisonous plants; how their poisonous properties were discovered and developed will most likely be left unknown. Over the centuries poisonous plants have been used to remove garden pests, unwanted rivals, and deceitful partners. They have also been used for their medicinal qualities, as rather dangerous cosmetics, even to help seduce a lover, when perceived as an aphrodisiac.

“Death in the Garden is based on Michael Brown’s most popular talk, popular as this subject holds a strange interest, for many will enjoy learning about these treacherous and peculiar plants, their defensive and deadly traits as well as the folklore that has grown around them. ”

Michael Brown has been a head gardener, a college lecturer and designed the medieval gardens at Prebendal Manor, Nassington. He now gives talks and demonstrations on historical gardening .

The publishers have one copy to give away. Please leave a comment below to be included. Comments without wishing to be in the draw are also fine.

Please do not try any of the “recipes” or remedies mentioned in the book.

DISCLAIMER: All the plants mentioned in this blog piece and the above book can cause death or injury. The contents of the review and book are for interest only and the author and publisher accept no liability for any injury caused by the use of the plants.

Links : kindle https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/Death-in-the-Garden-Kindle/p/14944

Amazon https://www.amazon.co.uk/Death-Garden-Poisonous-Throughout-History/dp/1526708388

Prize Draw Winner -Slot Planter

/ karen / 7 Comments

Last week I wrote about Slot Planters as an alternative to plastic. Company owners Kay and Colin kindly offered a planter for a prize draw. Names were put into a cheese dome, apparently. Kay and Colin didn’t have a hat! I couldn’t stop laughing, to be honest. Anyway, a name was randomly pulled out of the cheese dome and Creoscribe won the draw.

I am delighted with my planter and I wish Colin and Kay all the best with their new product. They are a lovely couple with lots of enthusiasm, and a sense of humour – which always helps! I like to support British companies, and although I’m not giving up my plastic trays, I’m trying not to buy any more if I can help it. The plastic I have here will be carefully used, washed and reused. But if I can think of alternatives I’ll try them out and report back on the blog. I’ll be buying several more planters in different sizes for the coming growing season.

I’m just about to transplant my edible peas into the veg plot. Peas are hardy, but it’s best to start them off indoors as they are a tasty treat for mice and pigeons. I’m going to use the Slot Planter for sweet peas now. Here’s what the cut flower patch looked like last summer. Gladioli came from Tee Gee Bulbs.

Sweet pea Wiltshire Ripple is a favourite. Flowers over a long period and is very pretty. Lasts well in a vase.

Thank you everyone who read the review, commented and took part in the prize draw. Please let me know if you have tried anything new in your garden. It’s good to share ideas.

Links: I wrote the review here : https://bramblegarden.com/2019/03/14/slot-planter-seed-tray-on-trial/

Slot Planter :https://slotplanter.co.uk/wooden-planter.html

Sweet peas : https://www.mr-fothergills.co.uk/Flower-Seed/Sweet-Pea-Seed/

Gee Tee Bulbs: https://www.gee-tee.co.uk/bulbs/gladioli

Slot Planter Seed Tray- On Trial

/ karen / 32 Comments

Searching for alternatives to plastic, I’ve come across a new product called a Slot Planter. And if you’d like to try it, there’s one available in my prize draw this week.

The Slot Planter is made from interlocking panels and comes flat packed through the post.

It’s well packaged with recyclable cardboard materials.

Opening the parcel, I find four panels that simply slot together. No screws, glue or fixings are needed.

Drainage holes are already drilled.

I filled mine with good quality compost. I use Dalefoot salad and vegetable peat-free compost made from sheeps wool and bracken. I sowed some Twinkle seeds from Suttons. These produce tasty pea shoots, and after three harvests, can be planted outside and allowed to grow on.

Grown in a greenhouse with the heater set at 5C, the pea shoots looked like this after three weeks. I’ve only watered the compost once.

After another couple of weeks, the pea shoots are ready to harvest. Just pinch out the top two or three inches, and the peas will branch out and grow back.

The Slot Planter has proved sturdy enough to be moved about from potting shed to greenhouse and outdoors for the photos to be taken. I’m delighted with it so far. It could also be used for sweet peas or broad beans. I’m going to try sweet corn and salads too.

It’s made from Medite Tricoya Extreme. The blurb that comes with the planter says this is a durable, sustainable, environmentally-friendly wood panel product with a 25 year guarantee against rot and decay. Planters are available in various sizes. The seed tray size above costs £12.99, or £35.99 for three. £3.50 postage per order.

I have one seed tray, as shown above, worth £12.99, to give away in a prize draw. Please leave a comment and let me know if you would like to be included in the draw. The owners Colin and Kay Thompson will pull a name out of hat. Winners are randomly selected and our decision is final. There’s no cash alternative. No purchase is necessary to take part. A winner will be selected on Sunday 17th March.

What products have you found, as alternatives to buying plastic for the garden? Let me know. We are all trying our hardest to recycle and reuse what plastic pots we have. It’s interesting to see alternative materials and products come on to the market, specially designed for gardeners.

Links for more information: slotplanter.co.uk Order online or telephone 01728 684433

https://slotplanter.co.uk/

Colin and Kay Thompson, from Tuddenham, Suffolk, also make beautiful wooden garden obelisks. https://woodengardenobelisk.co.uk/slot-planter-wooden-plant-pot.htm

Dalefoot compost https://www.dalefootcomposts.co.uk/

Sutton’s seeds https://www.suttons.co.uk/

In a Vase on Monday.

/ karen / 26 Comments

I dashed home from work – and it was still light. Hurray! These photos were taken at 5.52 pm. This week I found some delicate apricot blossom. Four stems, displayed in my mother-in-law Joan’s cut glass vase. Such beautiful flowers. They seem to need no other companions.

These flowers will be a fleeting beauty. The weather has turned cold and windy. Snow fell yesterday but didn’t settle. I expect there’s more to come. Meanwhile, I’ll bring my vase indoors. Such pretty flowers will cheer up my kitchen table- and me.

Links:

IAVOM https://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com/

Apricot trees https://www.chrisbowers.co.uk/category/apricots/

Six on Saturday – 9th March 2019

/ karen / 48 Comments

Flashes of light in the wild garden. Anemone blanda White Splendour. It’s full of bees today. White Stands out well against a leafmould carpet. I love the golden stamens.

Wild primroses escape from the hedgerow and colonise the lawn. We will mow around them.

Wild violets all along the hedgerow. Fabulous scent. More bees.

Talking of scent, these hyacinths, Carnegie White and Delft Blue, are still going strong on the greenhouse trolley. I’m enjoying shuffling the plant pots around for my “potted garden” display. Must admit, I got the idea from Monty Don. His “little pots of delight” always caught my attention. Last autumn, I threw lots of bulbs unceremoniously into shallow pans and Sankey pots, and stuffed them under the greenhouse benches. Corkscrew hazel twigs are holding the hyacinths up. ( Thank you Mary for dropping two sacks of twigs on the grass verge for me. 🙂)

From little terracotta pans – to this giant Italian pot, bulbs look great in any container. This is packed full with 50 white tulips. After I’d planted them, I thought I’d layer up with other bulbs to extend the flowering season. There’s white crocus Joan of Arc, anemone blanda, blue hyacinths, and blue violas, topped off with narcissi February Gold.

It’s really worth buying top-size bulbs. These crocus have three flower stems per bulb. It prolongs the crocus season. So cheerful now the weather has turned cold and windy. We need all the cheer we can get. It’s currently sleeting here, and snow is said to be on the way. Enjoy your gardening weekend, and try to keep warm. I will be in the greenhouse- with the heating switched on!

Links:

Six on Saturday https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/2019/03/09/six-on-saturday-09-03-2019/

Anemone blanda https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/90635/i-Anemone-blanda-i-White-Splendour/Details

Bulbs : https://www.gee-tee.co.uk/

Bulb compost : https://www.dalefootcomposts.co.uk/products/bulb-compost.p.aspx

Six on Saturday- My Garden view March 2 2019

/ karen / 30 Comments

Snowdrops are fading fast. We’ve had the warmest February on record, which means they flowered early. But late-flowering varieties came into flower and withered within days.

Warm weather means an early start for daffodils. I’ve planted wild-type varieties here. Amongst the trees. Fancy doubles would look out of place.

Pots of Paperwhite Narcissi have been successionally flowering since November. For very little work, staggering the planting, a steady stream of flowers are produced for container and cut flowers. The scent is so welcome when it’s cold and dark.

New variety Snow Baby was an experiment this year. They are perfect for hanging baskets, window boxes and containers. Long flowering- whatever the weather. A little beauty. It’s earned its place on my order list for next spring.

Terracotta pots of white primroses and polyanthus are all around the garden today. Such a fabulous scent – and much loved by bees.

Pale yellow wild primroses are popping up all along the grass verge and our front garden. I haven’t used weed killer or feed on the lawns for years. Nature’s reward is a blanket of wild flowers starting with primroses, then wild violets, blue self heal, and in the damper areas, lady’s smock, cardamine pratensis, or cuckoo flower. I wonder if we’ll hear the cuckoo this year. We only heard it once last spring. Sad to think that in my Grandfather Ted Fould’s day, cuckoos were a common sound in the woods around his home. Now we are lucky to hear just one.

We have lost half of our cuckoo population over the past 20 years. I’m anxiously watching the BTO’s satellite tracking survey showing the position of tagged birds in the Congo rainforest. Soon they will set off for the long flight back to Britain, via the West African coast.

Climate change is causing the timings of the spring season to fluctuate. Evidence shows that migrant species are not advancing their arrival times sufficiently to keep pace with the change. One thing we can do is not spray our gardens so the cuckoo and other migrant birds find insects to eat when they get here. And I’ll leave our surrounding hedgerows tall and wild, to encourage all types of nesting birds.

You can learn more and watch the satellite tracking here https://www.bto.org/science/migration/tracking-studies/cuckoo-tracking

I’m joining the Propagator with his Six on Saturday meme. You can see more here :https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/2019/03/02/six-on-saturday-02-03-2019/