tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44616352817241746022024-02-07T05:44:36.588+00:00The Linear LegumeZazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.comBlogger242125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-85314742574984745632019-11-09T12:08:00.001+00:002019-11-09T12:18:51.847+00:00Who are you? Where are you?<div style="text-align: center;">
I've had the blog for years and although the offers of monetising it always come it doesn't sit well with me. </div>
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But what does interest me is who on earth reads this?</div>
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We get stats that we can look at to see who is reading this, and who has read this, but who are you, really?</div>
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If you read this, I'd be interested to know why, what are you interested in and how you even got here. </div>
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I'll allow all comments apart from the usual influx of spam or porn. </div>
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It has always intrigued me, who is reading this blog. </div>
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Is there even anyone there? Please comment if you are... </div>
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Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-16298148809489314392019-11-09T11:06:00.000+00:002019-11-09T11:08:00.716+00:00Winter 2019<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Howdy. </div>
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Been a while. </div>
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I've added the blogger app to my phone so that i can access my photos as switching accounts on the Mac and sharing across accounts is to much like hard work. </div>
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So, we have flooding. At the allotment for now...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOnnxGcxdwD8FlRqlwIkLyeWrlSmCrFGX5lc4LyIl9ZGJAqhcXqJ_LVonjBoPMuPvwPjDv9fO_nq13hrQ0BbORTskF-ElH8KP3JZpk2GJl7GPStXJ04z3fIoid04xY0GU5Zuvc96uytGhF/s1600/1573296116078958-4.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOnnxGcxdwD8FlRqlwIkLyeWrlSmCrFGX5lc4LyIl9ZGJAqhcXqJ_LVonjBoPMuPvwPjDv9fO_nq13hrQ0BbORTskF-ElH8KP3JZpk2GJl7GPStXJ04z3fIoid04xY0GU5Zuvc96uytGhF/s400/1573296116078958-4.png" width="400" /> </a></div>
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Not as bad as our allotment neighbours' though. Wowsers...it has never been this bad. </div>
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This is the 'field' behind our plot... yes I know, it currently looks like a lake...but it isn't. Behind that is the River Derwent. It is flooding all over the shop, literally as it has even shut down Derby City Centre, which is a pretty rare occurrence. </div>
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However bad the plot gets though, this is the field to worry about at home. </div>
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If this field floods, we are done for. </div>
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In the back garden, we have the Trent and Mersey canal, which to the top right feeds into the River Trent. They closed off the flood gates to avoid water from the Trent running back up the canal [and onto our gardens and houses]...and to the bottom right is a lock which is right now literally on lock down; to prevent any water coming down the canal. So fingers crossed it stays that way until the water recedes. </div>
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In our garden, we have some nice things still...A Japanese Blood Grass Imperita cylindrica which was on its last legs this time last year, so I dug it up and nursed it back to health and it has been stunning this summer. The mulched section is where we dug out a twisty hazel Corylus avellana, as it was getting too big, and the shape had completely gone, and it was in the wrong place to start with. We will replace it with another, probably a red variety. </div>
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These Peacock orchids, Acidenthera murielae...we try and put fresh bulbs in each year as they rarely last and these flowered late and when they did, they faced the neighbour's garden not us so I gave them a rollocking and what do you know, they have have turned themselves around and are still flowering mid November. </div>
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Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-47404342508987118632019-09-07T18:29:00.001+01:002019-09-08T10:46:27.340+01:00Autumn 2019, preparation for the winter. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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So, now that we are starting to get shorter cooler days, as the beds are cleared of the tender crops, I am filling them with the winter veg.<br />
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This bed was a potato bed, which was cleared mid August. It was technically cleared much earlier, but I wanted to sieve the potato beds after harvesting to both mix in fresh compost, and to sieve out any remaining potatoes to avoid volunteers, and to remove any bits of non-organic matter that was brought in with the topsoil we bought.</div>
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So on the 19th of August I sowed Spinach, two types, Butterflay and Early Prickly. I also sowed coriander which i will transplant to the greenhouse once the tomatoes are all out. And I did a cheeky sowing of one variety of Dwarf French Beans and one of Runner Beans. I mainly did the beans because I like to take a chance on warm weather in the late autumn, I don't routinely sow beans this late. I got the seeds from <a href="https://seedcooperative.org.uk/">Seed Co-operative.</a></div>
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These took no time at all to start kicking into action, and I am already cropping the spinach [second picking on the 7th September]. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi38jGEs8JCLVge0FjfrOejbCTV-Dlx1Epr9xLYCKtArP3eeLokfeJa-3S2M1Sa3Z17zKyM7bdEoUMiPeEYeuuVBWySBhKikwLuB5zKk_4hfMXjY4BJ8T_82js1QvEOmKzA6gGRNhrEecPd/s1600/IMG_20190819_192344083.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi38jGEs8JCLVge0FjfrOejbCTV-Dlx1Epr9xLYCKtArP3eeLokfeJa-3S2M1Sa3Z17zKyM7bdEoUMiPeEYeuuVBWySBhKikwLuB5zKk_4hfMXjY4BJ8T_82js1QvEOmKzA6gGRNhrEecPd/s320/IMG_20190819_192344083.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Bed on 7th September. </div>
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I've also sown the three other sieved potato beds with a mixed bag of seeds; mainly consisting of whatever half used packets of anything from carrots to dill, to Chinese cabbages, to kales, lettuces, radishes etc.</div>
These get started and seem to grow better in the beds than in seed trays, so it makes sense to start them off there and then transplant them to their final positions as other beds are emptied. So I've put the more tender stuff into the greenhouse beds [Pak Choi and Chinese Cabbages], and moved the more hardy stuff to the beds that the huge carrots were in. <br />
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I'm also doing a winter tomato trial. I've sown some Maskotka tomatoes, around mid July, and transplanted into deep pots. I've put the first two into the greenhouse beds; where I took other tomatoes out. They already have their first flowers on, and the idea is to keep them low to the ground, bending them over if necessary so that the stems root and get as much nutrition as possible, and then see how late I can get them to crop. I did these last night and by the time I got to the allotment today they had already lifted their heads up to the sun. </div>
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I used Maskotka as they are a bush tomato, and they seem much happier in colder temperatures and they also taste lovely. </div>
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<br />Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-24145248137054759402019-09-07T18:12:00.001+01:002019-09-07T18:12:21.731+01:00Summer 2019 - The AllotmentJust as a refresher:<br />
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We got the allotment 10 years ago. It looked like this. <br />
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We spent years, and years, trying different things. The council had rotavated it before we got it, which chopped up all the weeds, and we struggled to overcome the clay, which sucked up any and all organic matter that we added to it.<br />
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After about 8 years, we tried woodchip. Thick woodchip mulches, but this didn't work. It probably would have had we just left it to rot down but we wanted to get some growing out of it and it was allowing weeds and pests to overwinter and nothing really grew properly. <br />
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So just over a year ago we were going to give it up. And put a little polytunnel in at home for tomatoes. When I had a thought - what would I do if I inherited this plot at a school...and I would cover it with weed fabric, and bring in raised beds.<br />
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And then I discovered Pallet Collars.<br />
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We took a week off work.<br />
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Flattened the whole allotment, by raking out all the woodchip.<br />
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Then laid weed fabric [30m x 8m plot, £99 for the fabric].<br />
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I bought pallet collars. 27 at first. <br />
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I grew over the winter of 2018; I had overwintering onions, spinach, lettuce, coriander and to be honest, we were eating very well through the whole of last winter.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtLYuj3c16tz1Q5hv3ImdM4Jc3DbMLlFI0n2oZe6bOnQJruuU6Zdx3KwHOKfsAp7BP5AEHt7WL4vL5Ck46jNDY-jxOn2aZUbpPEYqZZOsKBEmqjaq50AGQU-_uFsg3lP51g0WMr4fzGBb1/s1600/IMG_20190803_181425190.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtLYuj3c16tz1Q5hv3ImdM4Jc3DbMLlFI0n2oZe6bOnQJruuU6Zdx3KwHOKfsAp7BP5AEHt7WL4vL5Ck46jNDY-jxOn2aZUbpPEYqZZOsKBEmqjaq50AGQU-_uFsg3lP51g0WMr4fzGBb1/s320/IMG_20190803_181425190.jpg" width="240" /></a>This spring and summer has been bountiful. We've had the best potatoes ever, no slug damage. We've had salads, radishes, tomatoes, more carrots, squashes, garlic, broad beans, french beans - dwarf and climbing, onions, Kohl Rabi, kale [so much kale that I was bunching loads each week like a bunch of flowers, and leaving it at the end of the plot for the chickens down the road], I've got Yard Long Beans to grow, I've got parsnips growing now for winter, we've had strawberries, black, red and white currants, i've put tomatos from armpits into a one collar deep bed and they have gone mad, I've got amazing beetroot and even the later beetroot that was sown is bulking up, so much so that the last batch I sowed, Dobbie's Purple has grown so fast that i can use the best specimens for seed saving for next year.<br />
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We've had more crops out of these beds, since last September, then we have probably had out of the ground in the last 5 years.<br />
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So, I bought some more, and more and now i am probably at capacity for what we can eat.<br />
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So now I feel I am back on an even keel, I am going to try and go back to blogging about growing in these raised beds. They are awesome. Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-46585391447727710542019-09-07T17:14:00.000+01:002019-09-07T17:29:26.161+01:00Late summer 2019. Carrots. <span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I have no regrets about changing the way we grow on the plot. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I sowed Oxheart Carrots using <a href="https://www.rareseeds.com/">Baker Creek</a> seeds [from Missouri], which in the greater scheme of things was yes, quite expensive but has already washed its face as they say. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I sowed them in March, in between the Garlics that I had put in during last October, which I had left over from a teaching session. They germinated quite quickly, and steamed ahead. I was thrilled when they started getting some girth but I never expected this. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Now, I've been saving seeds of plants for years, and I know I shouldn't save from plants that flower early. But, I'm going to let the 3 that are flowering, flower and save the seeds and see if I get decent carrots next year. If so, I'll save from the slowest to flower. It's worth the risk. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">These carrots are sweet, don't go woody and have had absolutely no issues whatsoever. </span>Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-73883418026956452252018-12-16T17:05:00.001+00:002018-12-16T17:05:13.486+00:00It's been 2 whole years, really. Wow.<br />
<br />
How time flies.<br />
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I always said I'd blog if and only if there was something to say.<br />
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The last 2 years on the plot have been trying to say the least.<br />
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We tried and tried with the allotment. Our neighbours seem to have a random approach to weeds; they let them all grow up to 3ft tall, and set seed, and then they blow onto our plot and<br />
of course they germinate like crazy.<br />
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The soil is clay. such thick clay. We have done loads to improve it. Green manures that hardly germinated. Composted for England. Bought local manure that turned out to be contaminated with Aminopyralid. In 2016 we decided that we would cover all the beds with thick layers of woodchip, and let that rot down. We got two huge deliveries, and put the woodchip down over thick cardboard and newspaper layers, but the bindweed and couch grass grew through and when trying to dig that out, you had to shift the woodchip over, dig and then shift it back over again.<br />
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And still the clay battled on. It sucks any and all organic material in, consumes it and you wouldn't know to look at it, that any organic material had ever been added.<br />
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So we decided we had to do things another way. Or give it up.<br />
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First we moved the greenhouse from the space in our courtyard to the allotment. We did this in the spring. Loving this, even though it took a few months for the council to 'approve' us moving our greenhouse when there are loads of other, mostly bigger, greenhouses there. But anyway.<br />
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This was good, but this summer was not the best summer to move it. We hadn't collected nearly enough water and i had to go every day without fail to keep the tomatoes watered. Also, they suffered because it was just too hot to absorb nutrients from the clay, even though I added organic material in the soil, and mulched over the soil and there was weed fabric down around the plants. I ended up having to put cut down plant pots in a ring culture style, and fill with compost, to get some extra nutrients to them. And yes, comfrey and nettle was in the water.<br />
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I also had to keep moving water in containers in the boot, to refil the waterbutts. I did this twice a week all summer. It really didn't work well. <br />
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I have since then, put two raised beds in, filled with bought top soil, and will put another bed in along the back and then install three removeable shelves and will grow in these now.<br />
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They seem to be working well so far, filled with greenery and we are harvesting weekly from them. <br />
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I have bought two of the 1000l containers to store next year's water in, and am slowly filling them over the winter. The first one is nearly half full already. I've put a solar pump to pump the water that is collected from the roof, to the storage but having to do it by hand as it isn't charging enough to get going at the moment. <br />
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During September, we decided to cover the whole lot with proper weed fabric, and put in raised beds made from pallet collars. I got a fantastic deal on ebay, and went and picked them up in 2 loads, 27 of them for £2 each.<br />
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We levelled the ground, and then put the fabric down.Then put the pallet collars up and filled with locally bought topsoil.<br />
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i then set to, sowing seeds for the winter.<br />
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This is it during December 2018.<br />
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We are cropping regularly and I have my next year's plan already sketched out.<br />
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The difference is that the varieties might be different, and you sow mainly in the beds, transplanting very little; and you think out rather than try and grow every seed.<br />
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A mix of winter spinach, just bog standard spinach with some Kyoto Market bunching onions in there for good measure. I had sowed the Coriander in between but I transplanted the whole lot into the greenhouse beds in October and they are growing well still. <br />
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These are Long Red Florence onions, that were doing very little in the courtyard beds so I transplanted them. They seem to be doing ok though. <br />
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Leeks, can't remember that variety, but under Enviromesh due to Leek Moth. Growing well. <br />
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Cabbages from seedlings bought at Meynell Lanyley nursery. Just bought to fill the bed really. <br />
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Ditto, these are actually bulking up so that's good. <br />
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Ditto; the kales have a bit of white fly but the new leaves are ok. <br />
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Lettuces, Red Chinese Cabbage and Fennel with some random Salsola.<br />
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I am thinning the fennel out and using in the kitchen, and lo and behold, the others are thickening up. <br />
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Peas. Sown for the pea shoots, these got frosted in November so are now all out. <br />
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Overwintering onion sets, all looking good. <br />
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These are the sorts of pickings I am getting every few days. More veg out of these beds since September that i've had in a few seasons. <br />
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<br />Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-16641919140328650242017-05-14T09:25:00.003+01:002017-05-14T09:25:45.119+01:00Spring 2017So it is spring again. At long last.<br />
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My peas that were hidden by critters at the allotment, have turned out to be sweet peas. I picked the first two last night after planting them in the garden last week. They smell divine. </div>
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I've started picking all the smelly herbs and using for cooking, so I pick and pop them in a vase until I lunch or dinner time. Meanwhile they are there on the windowsill looking and smelling lovely. Currently we have Tashkent Mint which I am pulling by the roots as it is spreading [I did want it to spread so am pulling it out where I don't want it], Fennel and Lovage. I find using lovage in cooking replaces celery for the taste and is such a breeze to grow it needs no looking after at all. </div>
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Out for a wander the other evening so took a few photos of the garden - I am in the middle of digging out all the self seeded Oregano [hundreds of plants] and so we are replacing the spaces with new purchases. Our smoke bush is finally recovering after moving it a few feet 2 years ago...so happy that it will smoke this year</div>
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I put Walking Onions in the front garden last year, the first batch did indeed walk a few inches and both are now starting to form the top sets. </div>
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We've been and harvested these from the allotment, which were in a bed that needed a good weeding. A nice little bonus. </div>
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We have a new wall, previously it was an old knackered block work wall, 3 ft high and we had to have a trellis for privacy but new neighbours moved in and suggested a new wall and we agreed that would be fab if they wanted to build it. SO am hoping to put a nice smelly climber, espalier something I have grown from seed [possibly my Asian Pear from the seeds from windfalls at Ryton], and a wisteria in. More plants to buy - yay!</div>
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<br />Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-62045615047213087662016-12-18T09:58:00.001+00:002016-12-18T10:26:38.561+00:00A new way of doing things. <div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Well, it's been ages since I posted on here. I suppose that's the flow - the days become weeks and before you know it, blogging doesn't become part of the routine as other routines take over. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">However. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I have recently changed careers. I am no longer doing the thing that the blogging originally led me to do. Which means I can enjoy gardening and particularly food growing for the pleasure again. Rather than it and the associated complications being a burden. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Whilst we were sorting out the first community garden that we took over, in year 1 all we did was garden - clearing, digging, shredding, knocking stuff down, making the ground safe and removing unsafe structures. The next year however, once we started to have students on site, we ended up doing just 5 days of actual gardening. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So onwards and upwards. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"> I like many of my organic gardening friends, take it as read that the year's gardening starts with this. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Heritage Seed Library catalogue dropping through the door. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Last year, one of my images was used for the cover which was a great honour. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">If you are not a member, then you unfortunately do not have access to these wonderful seeds, which have been grown and saved by the staff at the Heritage Seed Library, and by Seed Guardians for many years. The difference with HSL seeds, is that they are not grown and saved in a seedbank, but they are grown across the UK and the best examples - ones which survive our weather patterns, pests, diseases - are the ones that are saved and so the seed is evolving each year and thus more likely to give you a fantastic harvest on your plot. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">If you want to join in with this you can join <a href="http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/">Garden Organic</a> with an option to add the Heritage Seed Library. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So this year I'm growing for me, and have picked the following: </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Avon Early Beetroot</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Bossingham Long Pod Broad Bean</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">London Market Carrot</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Armenian cucumber</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Guernsey Parsnip</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">White Serpent Squash</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I've chosen crops that I know grow well on my plot, apart from the carrots which I am determined to get a harvest from this year by growing in a sandy raised bed with lots of coriander to disguise the smell. This variety has some Carrot Fly resistance so am trying to hedge my bets with it. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The last lot of White Serpent Squash germinated blind, that is with only the two seed leaves and never grew a centre stem. It was very disappointing but I am hoping that a new batch of seeds may be from a difference source. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I have been an Seed Guardian for HSL for a while, but have found in the very recent past that the harvests have been poor so am going to just save from one crop as a Seed Guardian at the most for a while. I have some Sim Segur leek seeds that have come good this year, but whilst they were drying out a mouse has eaten most of them. which is a little annoying as it took me about 4 years to get a good harvest off them. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">To be a Seed Guardian you need patience. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I have some fantastic yellow beetroots at my allotment. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">These are Burpees Golden - I love yellow beetroots for roasting, and also because they do not incriminate you should a visitor knock on the door whilst preparing them. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So I will leave 3 over winter. Then in the spring when they start growing again, I'll dig them up and move them the back of a bed in the corner, and replant them in a triangle with three large canes around them and leave them to flower. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The flower stems can grow up to 8 feet high so they need quite good staking. I'll also tie twine around them at intervals to try and contain their long dreadlock-type stems which droop as the seeds ripen. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">They are biennials which flower in their second year. I find that because I do not clear my plot during the winter, I am quite good at biennial seed saving. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">This year, because of the clay soil at our allotment, we have decided to really go for it in attempting to improve the soil quality. I managed to get a huge load of woodchip delivered for free [thank you Dave at <a href="http://www.ecotreecompany.co.uk/">Eco Tree Company</a>] and spent many a happy evening moving woodchip around the plot as a mulch and getting bitten to shreds which I will talk about in a minute]. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz4W5ZX0aAwq9ZShXyjla8gVsG-Ls9HUTbRhLMwjdqIMsPvcHN_Q1gduoFC5Nm-sVhWpWSBG8xSeRJ8ZY_p1nDucGVpQ7vF32k_jLU9qCbGImp8RN4k94Ar42fAAMpTFp-VOrlknY7b7Ej/s1600/IMG_20160831_193429854.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz4W5ZX0aAwq9ZShXyjla8gVsG-Ls9HUTbRhLMwjdqIMsPvcHN_Q1gduoFC5Nm-sVhWpWSBG8xSeRJ8ZY_p1nDucGVpQ7vF32k_jLU9qCbGImp8RN4k94Ar42fAAMpTFp-VOrlknY7b7Ej/s320/IMG_20160831_193429854.jpg" width="180" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">This has now been put onto as many beds as it will fill, to do the rest I am looking for another load so will contact the local tree surgeons again after Christmas. I have tried to give a good 12 inch mulch on top of the soil. As it breaks down over the next 18 months or so, the worms take down some of the woodchip into the soil, it transforms clay into loam and creates a network of mycelium in the soil which plants use to extract more nutrients from the soil. Basically, how forests work. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Which for a plot that is so clayey is a wonderful prospect. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">However, 2 months later I found two of these...</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">These are pea seeds that have been hidden by some critter and because of the warm weather have germinated. Bearing in mind this woodchip only went down at the end of August and during September, they have been hidden in September and October in order to be germinating by the end of October. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Where some critter got the seeds from, is anyone's guess as I thought i had collected all mine!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So I have taken one batch of these and replanted in a mushroom container in my greenhouse for early peas [thank you critter] and this one above I am leaving to see what happens. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Before I sign off for 2016, ready for a fresh new 2017 growing year, I just want to put a note about my new shed. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We had a shed when we moved here, 10 years ago. It was pretty rum back then so I decided that this year I wanted a new one. I also wanted it to be bigger so that I could do woodwork in it. This was met with a wry smile, as Mark suspected I'd never use it for woodwork at all. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So I bought a shed and we got the delivery and installation date. And then we both promptly went down with the flu. And we had to go out, in the bitter cold, and dismantle the old one, and help a couple from Freecycle to load it into their van, dig and level the extra footprint with no feelings in our fingers and completely fogged up heads, and lay two new strips of slabs after a very late cold trip to buy the slabs. We were very ill. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">But the new shed is fab. I spent a while fitting it out and painting it [once I was recovered], and it is now our tool shed but my woodwork shed. And as we redid our garden last year I have the most amazing view from it. I do woodwork, with my Solar DAB radio playing 6 music, and looking at this. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">At the end of the garden is the canal, and boats pootle up and down all summer long. The garden is full of lovely wildlife, and the trees we planted are growing strong. It is glorious. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">And in my little woodwork shed I make things like this: </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Seed flats for my greenhouse made out of old pallets. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">What is not to like? This first one is already being used for cut and come again salad. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Just need those seeds now, to get sowing in 2017. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Happy Christmas everyone, and hope you have a cool yule and a marvellous new year. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">And remember, drink responsibly. </span></div>
Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-85016799016950289572015-04-26T17:38:00.000+01:002015-04-26T17:38:11.465+01:00Vertical potato bed<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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At the community gardens, we had some spare potatoes so we have decided to try a vertical bed.<br />
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We weeded the ground underneath, and put one of our wire compost bins on top of the soil. On that, we put a chimney of compost and soil, with a surround of hay. We then put about 3 levels of 3-4 potatoes, finishing off with around 8 in the top layer.<br />
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We watered it well, and will start to put kitchen scraps in and will tip the grey water into the middle to keep it watered.<br />
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Will update later in the season.<br />
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<br />Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-9574266226128164282015-04-26T17:33:00.001+01:002016-02-13T10:30:30.710+00:00Leek/garlic grass?So - I am only blogging new or interesting stuff, you don't want the same old nonsense each year right?<br />
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So - new developments.<br />
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My Leek/garlic grass. I seem to have bred a new thing. It has come from a bunching onion, which I think may have crossed with something else and the resulting well, result - is garlic grass.<br />
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I thought it WAS grass, and went to pull it out last year. To find it smelt of garlic. As it gets bigger, it grows to what we would call over here 'baby leek' size, and it looks like a baby leek. But it tastes of garlic. It grows bulbils on the stems and once it flowers it set seeds and grows new bunches like chives would. Some pics above. It is marvellously mild, delicious raw in salads and potato dishes and I love it! In the pics it is growing in amongst one of my garden beds, with nigella, Szechuan pepper, strawberries, parsley and poppies. Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-87203605256412571182015-01-10T13:55:00.002+00:002015-01-10T13:55:35.356+00:00Summing things up and new to grow!Well, what a busy year. I make no apologies, when things are busy you just have to knuckle down. So last year I only made a few significant posts on here.<br />
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I finished my teacher training in February, and almost a whole week later, was signed up to do another qualification - it came with a virtually guaranteed bursary and was a new qualification so it was hard to walk away from. I started off at one uni, doing the diploma and when I realised that the tutor was [to say the least] hard work, I thought I'd pull out. But when the notification came that the bursary was approved, and a list of other providers came straight after, I set about to find a new provider. After a few weeks, I found one, who was doing the qualification internally but was willing to accept me on their course. And now, I have finished that, and the bonus was - they weren't doing the diploma, but a degree. So that's nice.<br />
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I'll put it on here once I have been awarded the qualification but for now, lets just say I'm looking forward to having some spare time again. I've been doing some supply work and spreading the word about food growing in schools. <br />
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And to the future - my Heritage Seed Library seeds turned up yesterday. I have got Jordanian cucumber, Kelper gigantic swede, Paddy cabbage, Shishigatani squash, Cantalun melon, Relon Broad Bean, Cantalun melon [donated originally by one of the Nottingham Organic gardeners], and some Snake Bean as a lucky dip. I can't wait to try these, some are new to HSL and if they grow well for me I'll try and save some seeds for my seedy friends and share them out. Pic below. <br />
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If you haven't joined Garden Organic and the Heritage Seed Library then the link is <a href="http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/">here</a> - there is still time to join and to choose your HSl seeds for 2015. If you already grow and save seeds, and have a bit of space to become a Seed Guardian and grow some seeds to give back to HSl members, then find out about Seed Guardians <a href="http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/seed-guardians">here</a>. And if you are in the UK and want to be part of our seed circle, you have a couple of weeks to send me your 2014 saved seeds, so contact me through this blog and I'll let you know what you have to do.<br />
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And if you don't want to do any of those, but just want to sit and watch TV - then please watch Rob, another Seed Guardian for HSL, who won best in show for his Boothby Blonde Cucumbers this week, on The Big Allotment Challenge on BBC1. Come on Rob, we are all rooting for you!<br />
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And Happy New 2015 to all my readers, here's to a healthy and hearty year of growing scrummy food. <br />
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Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-76712757319618465812014-07-14T22:01:00.001+01:002014-07-14T22:01:23.441+01:00Egyptian Walking Onions, Topsetting OnionsI've been growing these for about 8 years now - I just leave them to grow and harvest the bulbils for giving away, or for selling etc; and I've not encountered this before.<br />
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The tops are usually quite small, a few mm in diameter, sometimes a cm but this year, they are the size of shallots. <br />
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From this:</div>
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To this: </div>
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And this is also the year that I got garlic that did not split:</div>
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I usually note if something strange happens and this is it. </div>
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We didn't have much frost last winter; can it be something as simple as frost that makes such a huge difference to our perennial crops? </div>
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I shall eat some of the Walking Onions, I mean it's a bonus as usually they are not worth peeling let alone eating; and I'll sow one large and one small and see what happens. But I am liking this new style Walking Onion alot. </div>
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Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-24160620110456503852014-05-31T09:17:00.000+01:002014-09-21T09:22:54.715+01:00Garden Organic Members experiments 2014<div style="text-align: center;">
This year, I thought I would have more time as I am not employed full time, but only now teach 2 1/2 days a week; but it seems I am busier than ever as running a business, getting new funding and designing and delivering new courses is a very time consuming job! </div>
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I had signed up to do the members experiments and wanted to document them on here to remind myself to make the necessary records as much as anything. </div>
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Firstly; the Biochar experiment. </div>
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We received a bag of biochar - enough to cover one square meter of soil. <br />
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I duly measured and marked out the area and spread the biochar over one half of the two square meter trial area. </div>
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I then dug the bio char in and marked out the rows, and sowed the seeds. I didn't have time to sow the cabbages and replant so I had to sow those half in each side, just like the carrots and beetroot that were also provided. The sowing date was 5 May 2014. </div>
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I will update herewith photos as the trial progresses - with the biochar side always on the left.<br />
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Update:<br />
20 June 2014...I have counted 15 beetroot on the non-biochar side and 9 on the biochar side. I have harvested 2 of the non bio chat beets as they are at eating size.<br />
27 June - harvested one carrot from biochar side. Notable comment - loads of weeds on the non biochar side but very few on the biochar side. <br />
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Harvests to date:<br />
Biochar <br />
2 Carrot 124 g <br />
1 beetroot - 339g <br />
1 beetroot - 180 g<br />
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Non Biochar<br />
3 beetroot, 220, 200, 251g<br />
2 beetroot total 194 g <br />
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Secondly - Oca. I have grown Oca several times and already have tubers but I'll follow this through properly this time. Again, sown on the 5th May 2014. <br />
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Thirdly - I have Bronze Arrow lettuce that I will be sowing but I'm not going to sow until after 22nd June as I have so much lettuce already and I want to see if the trial also works on lettuce not bolting if sown after mid summer's day and it grows quickly enough to get a crop in before the autumn so it's win-win. </div>
Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-84494786129825165822014-05-31T09:04:00.002+01:002014-05-31T09:04:31.021+01:00Organic gardeners do not use peat...<div style="text-align: center;">
And in any normal context I wouldn't even consider it. </div>
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However at college, in one of the compost bins that we 'manage' [even though other people put things like whole trees in there and we have to regularly take them out again] I found someone had emptied around 10 very large pots into it. They had obviously bought the pots, filled with peat and mixed shedloads of slow release fertiliser in, planted them up and then forgotten to water them. So the plants died and instead of r-eusing the pots, they had been tipped straight into our [until then] organic compost bin. </div>
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A dilemma then ensued. </div>
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As a group, we have no funds to buy compost so we make our own. And this peat is in fine condition, barely used. Seriously a complete waste of resources. What to do..leave it, where the fertiliser [not needed] will continue to rot down and infest our lovely compost....bin it as it is not organic or take it out, remove the remaining roots and fertiliser pellets and just bin the pellets and reuse the compost in our own pots. </div>
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Of course, the cornerstone of organic gardening is that if you try to spend no money...you would be pretty much organic even if you don't know much about organic gardening...and on that note I decided that there was no way I could let this precious resource slip through the net. </div>
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So we have been sieving and picking out all the balls of fertiliser...and all the roots...and mixing it with our own leaf mould to bulk it up and using it for our potting <span style="color: #0000ee;">mix</span>. </div>
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I would never buy peat, I find that my own compost and leaf mould mix is more than adequate and our dalek compost added to worm compost is wonderful for the more greedy cucumbers, peppers and tomatoes grown in pots; whilst everything else is fine in the ground...but I just can't see this resource thrown away and added to a general compost mix that won't get used until after I have left the college. </div>
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So for the first year in many, I have used peat. Weird. </div>
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<br />Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-6826027158864637262014-02-23T21:43:00.001+00:002014-02-23T21:43:16.741+00:00And more sowingToday it was chilli peppers, tomatoes, quinces from the fruits off the quince tree they gave me when I left Ryton, and some grape seeds. Pic of the seed circles ones sown to follow. Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-60334429462971071492014-02-22T23:34:00.001+00:002014-02-22T23:34:34.282+00:00Sowing and growingIt is starting to look nice and green in the aptly named greenhouse now. <div><br></div><div>I have some of my favourite things germinating, agastache, beetroot, kale. </div><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYwsGCkcOpM8FfG3Ft7sWCr4T1ozz2nCH20J4ODVy2AuA_92LRKowXeI7Xb-N1MyKznfw3qfOA7tmcm3Z3tBik_OK4Btm0v-yRng0PjRLp3XqgA1e8FC1kDTf4p_LdaDW_rVgMWwaOe4rY/s640/blogger-image-1750163027.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYwsGCkcOpM8FfG3Ft7sWCr4T1ozz2nCH20J4ODVy2AuA_92LRKowXeI7Xb-N1MyKznfw3qfOA7tmcm3Z3tBik_OK4Btm0v-yRng0PjRLp3XqgA1e8FC1kDTf4p_LdaDW_rVgMWwaOe4rY/s640/blogger-image-1750163027.jpg"></a></div><div><br></div>Chioggia from own saved sweet, and the first little agastache from home saved seed. </div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>And I am sowing seeds from the latest seed circle, today's were peppers, along with a few varieties from my own box. And peas, namely Kent Blue, and my own golden sweet mange tout are already on their way up. </div><div>All seed circle seeds are being photographed upon sowing so that I can track their progress this year. </div><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhHTEl8-1UnnvtaZbmw5-rzVyxZ4_umHGOYZ1PO6PQ50VNdDwcSQb6Ptl4iFSLvWQD_iN4h1iZoPE1D8E3YSbyVmryMONPeg_p3K7FDFQljjyWrzrKJBZml5YwNgz2DcBmN5gTLdkyhsWe/s640/blogger-image-1739800528.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhHTEl8-1UnnvtaZbmw5-rzVyxZ4_umHGOYZ1PO6PQ50VNdDwcSQb6Ptl4iFSLvWQD_iN4h1iZoPE1D8E3YSbyVmryMONPeg_p3K7FDFQljjyWrzrKJBZml5YwNgz2DcBmN5gTLdkyhsWe/s640/blogger-image-1739800528.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixuZ6irdHiCHxCIS58ZCmNsw_fEP0DxEOorfteGQrzjzoLCpB2YIJ0gq2U2tPbfakfiB4d1ao3UE3DrbInzBzp3I1S9u1FaIBVbbqIrIPNcTOzX-kupm2KdqJiX_6s8GhDyA3LKsOLJNE9/s640/blogger-image--1451735642.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixuZ6irdHiCHxCIS58ZCmNsw_fEP0DxEOorfteGQrzjzoLCpB2YIJ0gq2U2tPbfakfiB4d1ao3UE3DrbInzBzp3I1S9u1FaIBVbbqIrIPNcTOzX-kupm2KdqJiX_6s8GhDyA3LKsOLJNE9/s640/blogger-image--1451735642.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF2RXgdAO4WHNNdDFkjJb_Z8ofHikxoYGZiNFEDEF96Q9kgy_V7uG5NYUGF5fs1Os8qXxLdwg2VrxNUDPKV1WndchloBc89Qo0UVsp4i9alKMq6dWd2oZXRORmysq1ccPloOtF5siv1wus/s640/blogger-image-400014467.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF2RXgdAO4WHNNdDFkjJb_Z8ofHikxoYGZiNFEDEF96Q9kgy_V7uG5NYUGF5fs1Os8qXxLdwg2VrxNUDPKV1WndchloBc89Qo0UVsp4i9alKMq6dWd2oZXRORmysq1ccPloOtF5siv1wus/s640/blogger-image-400014467.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3_nCfX0W6gbMFdSIgNlsI1hDVZMHjCqtugkDrEfUQaBGPww43jaO4hHMW-RU7JWp9xP3pcT0Q7qu_SCWWDiTCbMFYKg71_iKd14ICGBT1Y5IepjRx6__RbPOhXbZ7uwmMonE-s24YsL0C/s640/blogger-image--1913233911.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3_nCfX0W6gbMFdSIgNlsI1hDVZMHjCqtugkDrEfUQaBGPww43jaO4hHMW-RU7JWp9xP3pcT0Q7qu_SCWWDiTCbMFYKg71_iKd14ICGBT1Y5IepjRx6__RbPOhXbZ7uwmMonE-s24YsL0C/s640/blogger-image--1913233911.jpg"></a></div><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3ClC1rJDE7bxnmd5b0TZDLdZcTvwjk2zSlQzAPOsCAb4FAHoS9piRHoOQCqgyXGhW7YXdpQFV7t8vkLdBvpQ9y__4paMzCpn5EEW5RqmewcEkRtHQmnH1lEsRLsnQcL25m9zkGU5eUeQ8/s640/blogger-image--590732613.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3ClC1rJDE7bxnmd5b0TZDLdZcTvwjk2zSlQzAPOsCAb4FAHoS9piRHoOQCqgyXGhW7YXdpQFV7t8vkLdBvpQ9y__4paMzCpn5EEW5RqmewcEkRtHQmnH1lEsRLsnQcL25m9zkGU5eUeQ8/s640/blogger-image--590732613.jpg"></a></div></div><div><br></div><div>Golden sweet mange tout. First of them up...and yes the compost is wet as I had just watered it. </div><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMRFwljQXBo3TZrIjU4-At1ZbG-XIAz2MKD8omvfIXt9T3NHv_5EqEc27rT50UPdeTPKC6HOWJ4-UsYcH6IOqHm2y6kQUo6WGBWb_t5f07L9oln2wY_fUJL1dcNTsKUtkofi-_2ZVQHM8h/s640/blogger-image-1485555568.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMRFwljQXBo3TZrIjU4-At1ZbG-XIAz2MKD8omvfIXt9T3NHv_5EqEc27rT50UPdeTPKC6HOWJ4-UsYcH6IOqHm2y6kQUo6WGBWb_t5f07L9oln2wY_fUJL1dcNTsKUtkofi-_2ZVQHM8h/s640/blogger-image-1485555568.jpg"></a></div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEize-mJOpXUdbkKw4_L_ESkB4yuttc427MDM2ZYO30rltNkLLSSMDqrZU-sb3BNP0o07I8Q9MR4-fpg0Zw3Y187vzgr32Ekse0Ite9Eq7iE6W91P2K-K5ZNYe9gwisWeBoYiD4ztZugynHs/s640/blogger-image-1825120550.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEize-mJOpXUdbkKw4_L_ESkB4yuttc427MDM2ZYO30rltNkLLSSMDqrZU-sb3BNP0o07I8Q9MR4-fpg0Zw3Y187vzgr32Ekse0Ite9Eq7iE6W91P2K-K5ZNYe9gwisWeBoYiD4ztZugynHs/s640/blogger-image-1825120550.jpg"></a></div><br></div><div>Kent blue </div>Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-48427824253003959972014-01-26T14:55:00.002+00:002014-01-26T14:55:39.658+00:00New courses for 2014<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I've been asked to run some courses for Garden Organic, at their flagship gardens Ryton Gardens this year.<br />
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True to form, they will ALL be activity based hands on learning experiences very much driven by the needs of the delegates.<br />
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The first one is on March 13th, it is called Veg Growing for Beginners. Seeing as I spent alot of my time teaching people new to gardening how to do it [and to do it without breaking the bank or your back] this is one that I am enjoying planning as much as we will enjoy the day.<br />
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I've just sown some trays of seeds for this, for the delegates to get some practice on the day in transplanting and identifying seedlings. If you are coming along, I hope that you enjoy the mix of seeds that I've just sown, all for you to take home with you.<br />
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Can't wait!<br />
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The course should be on the Garden Organic website in the next few days. It was only booked last week so get it whilst its hot - as they say. <br />
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http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/events/courses/index.php<br />
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<br />Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-66935227446739016242014-01-05T15:30:00.001+00:002014-01-05T15:30:08.839+00:00Sorting out the seeds<div style="text-align: center;">
I have accumulated and collected and swapped and basically, have so many varieties of seeds that it's beginning to get silly. </div>
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So...time to have a clear out. </div>
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I will be saving just 10 seeds of all the peas and beans and tomatoes that I have, and all the rest will be put to one side for swaps, the community garden, for students or to be included in the Random approach which I will be continuing in 2014. </div>
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Just to show - these are just the beans...there are about 130 different varieties in here. </div>
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Time to let them fly and let other people grow them. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxVlpdpY71XG6FznaUSQmCh6pXggYoH54JttCYm_-iXTN8Jo6PEjSBjhr9wL2xp0illKw5tSxpZa_58ON__RjqdyaeIY4B7avfiYhEUJXk9l6KMZSzAymqzlA8T4MtaHTRNfzTe5KjStFg/s1600/beans.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxVlpdpY71XG6FznaUSQmCh6pXggYoH54JttCYm_-iXTN8Jo6PEjSBjhr9wL2xp0illKw5tSxpZa_58ON__RjqdyaeIY4B7avfiYhEUJXk9l6KMZSzAymqzlA8T4MtaHTRNfzTe5KjStFg/s320/beans.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<br />Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-70921554817112007522014-01-05T14:29:00.000+00:002014-01-05T18:35:09.921+00:00Maria Zeller<div style="text-align: center;">
This is a post about a lovely success story with one of the beans I had a few years back. It refers to this bean: </div>
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<a href="http://linearlegume.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Mariazeller">http://linearlegume.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Mariazeller</a></div>
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I had a few beans from a swap here in the UK. I tried to grow these and they failed and I had 2 left.</div>
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I was contacted about a swap with Russ Crow in the USA late 2011 and we swapped some beans. </div>
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I sent him the 2 Maria Zellers and after growing those two, he had 80 beans. He grew those and ended up with 1208 seeds. Which is totally brilliant and amazing and WOW!</div>
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Some pics are below.</div>
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He has sent some back to me, and hopefully will be swapping and sharing his batch in the USA as I will be doing here.</div>
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It's so good to resurrect a relatively rare bean and be able to share it out for growing.</div>
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Thanks Russ, and look forward to some more swapping in future years.</div>
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Russ's website showing the bean can be found <a href="http://www.abeancollectorswindow.com/beanpage4.html">here</a></div>
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Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-27876655863507392622014-01-05T13:29:00.003+00:002014-01-05T13:48:54.935+00:00Seeds saved in 2013Well, hello 2014.<br />
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It was a busy year, 2013 - a new garden to manage, a new business with my lovely business partner, a DTLLS qualification to finish, a new job, and new students, new processes and procedures and teaching new people at the community gardens.<br />
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So, it would be understandable if I'd not managed to save any seeds but lo and behold - in amongst the chaos - I did. Both at home and at the community gardens. So to make myself feel better today I thought I'd list them as I am doing my usual yearly seed sift to see what can be grown, sown, swapped, given to students to grow and what to sell or give away.<br />
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Seeds saved in 2013:<br />
Seed Guardian seeds:<br />
Val's Bean - DFB<br />
Rognon D'Loise - DFB<br />
Bird's Egg - CFB<br />
Bonne Bouche - CFB<br />
Bountiful - DFB * I have saved these but they are somewhere in the house<br />
Imur Prior Beta tomato<br />
Yellow Perfection tomato<br />
Peacevine Cherry Tomato<br />
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All the above I will be growing in 2014 [at home, at the allotment and at the community gardens] and 90% of the collected seeds will be going to the Heritage Seed Library.<br />
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I will also be hosting some plants for Real Seeds - we have agreed to have around 6-10 Gelbe Kirschen Cherry Chilli plants and save from all of them for Real Seeds, plus a brassica which they are thinking about. So that will be amazing. <br />
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Other saved seeds for growing and local swapping:<br />
Tarbais CFB<br />
Corona De Spagna CFB<br />
Bridgewater CFB<br />
Berner Landfrouen CFB<br />
Blue and White CFB<br />
Reade Krobbe DFB<br />
Brightstone DFB<br />
Inca Pea CFB<br />
Marfax DFB<br />
Hutterite Soup DFB<br />
Zuni Bush bean<br />
Trionfo Violette CFB<br />
Succotash DFB<br />
True Red Cranberry DFB<br />
A mystery lupino bean [no idea the variety]<br />
A mystery black bush bean <br />
Croatian bean<br />
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Butterbean - Soya Bean<br />
Blackpod Runner Bean [at allotment, may not come true]<br />
White Lady Runner Bean [isolated in polytunnel] <br />
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Goldensweet Mangetout Pea<br />
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Kyoto Market Bunching Onion<br />
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Piglet Willie's French Black tomato<br />
Dark Purple Beefsteak tomato<br />
Salt Spring Surprise tomato<br />
Stonor's No 2 tomato <br />
Sugar Plum tomato<br />
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Mini White Cucumber<br />
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Look - a pic of all the seeds all packed up<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO8xjeV_nTUa7cgqpPz4oArYvf6_c-Z0_lIrXDIZprDgn8Wlrj2lmsiuRi6l0dE0iLezN-lFOLp0dad0I4o_dVwCPHb04jI7WrHtfXboGtt7pX1iG1l_4GqQA683MiBTubTjFUtO4AOoG8/s1600/2013+saved+seeds.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO8xjeV_nTUa7cgqpPz4oArYvf6_c-Z0_lIrXDIZprDgn8Wlrj2lmsiuRi6l0dE0iLezN-lFOLp0dad0I4o_dVwCPHb04jI7WrHtfXboGtt7pX1iG1l_4GqQA683MiBTubTjFUtO4AOoG8/s320/2013+saved+seeds.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I also have: <br />
Yacon<br />
Potato Onions<br />
Egyptian Walking Onion<br />
Oca [to dig up in the next week] <br />
Load of herbs - Dill, parsley, Chioggia Beetroot, Swiss chard etc etc. <br />
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And more that I can't remember as they are being housed at the Community Gardens.<br />
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Not a bad haul for a busy year. <br />
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Bring on 2014. Happy new year to all of you growers and seed savers. Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-517355705946982902013-07-21T22:14:00.001+01:002013-07-21T22:19:22.231+01:00A change is as good as a rest<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
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So, you will have to excuse my lack of blogging. I have been quite busy over the last few months transforming a community garden, starting a business, finishing off my DTLLS [nearly there] and tying up the loose ends in my job. </div>
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We had a strange spring but now it's glorious summer and with it comes, a distinct lack of water. But things are growing. </div>
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My Long Red Florence onions came out today - the first few got roasted for dinner but here's the biggest, which will be eaten for tea tomorrow. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeSw4JKAKTC0vI9_XxR-4Z8-6pB_ZeipcPV8o9R9bkDJbunuevppjbt1acps7hIrMtou2DOqMSP_yImZVto-g2DYS1f2o8blTRNiNGyHy1Re-qOXOS0WK7fr_mB1dCnQ8iTEd-uWuLfJFH/s640/blogger-image-1174715691.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVeQvpCCP548Yiab3NwEE7KLaZa8TMSzHNbxo9w0FkutoxvxrAXDRkXKNTnNb1Y-xC1tA70WoZdMkSxI5jNQh1YhQJe8sNaRcrNy9hGvHgRlyDAl1hlxfHIsllSgmXPDnuMC78uD0EkViv/s640/blogger-image--1735703454.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVeQvpCCP548Yiab3NwEE7KLaZa8TMSzHNbxo9w0FkutoxvxrAXDRkXKNTnNb1Y-xC1tA70WoZdMkSxI5jNQh1YhQJe8sNaRcrNy9hGvHgRlyDAl1hlxfHIsllSgmXPDnuMC78uD0EkViv/s320/blogger-image--1735703454.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Mark harvested the rest of the gooseberries - we grow one Gooseberry Pax and this lot is the harvest - I will be making Gooseberry Jelly tomorrow, and with the stuff left in the muslin after straining, some gooseberry wine. Some are frozen [last week's harvest] and the rest are lovely juicy and fresh off the plant tonight. <br />
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And another huge batch of raspberries; the autumn ones are just flowering and the main summer ones are ripening every day. This little lot is being frozen and I'll make some sort of desserts with them. The rest - wine! </div>
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Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-21832522153528281322013-04-29T09:40:00.002+01:002013-04-29T09:40:37.000+01:00The Random Approach - 16 week review. Well, this is great!<br />
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Honestly - the best decision I made so far. I've got loads of seedlings ready to go into the Gert bed; loads to go into the gardens, and loads spare to go to the schools. I did start off pricking them out into trays but to be honest, once a majority are up, they get taken out with me to go into whichever plot I am working on net. Blimmin' marvelous.<br />
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No good for seed saving as they aren't named varieties - but good for growing and eating. And no faffing through loads of seed packets.<br />
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I might end up doing this more often!<br />
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A pic of the various trays: <br />
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Some in seed blocks - a review of this tool to follow another day<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFC3eRxuw53Cj7UudhfoxTyQ_oU9G8uYFooNDyLYEDEs3DynuFimNXCwSiDroVK7XrEZlkHs2HcUaICDR4hyphenhyphenPHGnSkzHhPRZfq4MvDnZ_it9D97307FcBBEc8TkuGIy7h7aNt5J6AdNUkF/s1600/IMG_0676.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFC3eRxuw53Cj7UudhfoxTyQ_oU9G8uYFooNDyLYEDEs3DynuFimNXCwSiDroVK7XrEZlkHs2HcUaICDR4hyphenhyphenPHGnSkzHhPRZfq4MvDnZ_it9D97307FcBBEc8TkuGIy7h7aNt5J6AdNUkF/s320/IMG_0676.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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A pic of some in the Gert bed - put in a couple of weeks ago and are still there. Even with all the winds. <br />
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<br />Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-81519414080294660632013-04-29T08:58:00.001+01:002013-04-29T09:40:56.999+01:00Comfrey and Nettle Gunk Pipes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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These give you a liquid that drains out the bottom, and which can be diluted directly with no smell and no fuss. </div>
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Just empty once a year and pop the solids into a dalek or compost bin. </div>
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<br />Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-22665628464758346722013-04-25T19:32:00.001+01:002013-04-29T09:41:16.471+01:00Why I love Heritage seeds and why the EU is letting us down. Hi <br />
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My name is Andrea and I love seeds.<br />
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There - I've said it. <br />
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Some of you may have guessed, but I love growing Heritage and Heirloom varieties. I do love the odd F1 hybrid but usually, the cost is prohibitive and you can get just as good results if you sow a range of old Heritage varieties at probably half the price [or for free]. <br />
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I love the fact that they evolve and you can select the qualities that you want and in just a few years, you can have your own stable variety that grows well on your patch.<br />
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I love that their history is held within their names. Lazy Housewife bean, for lazy housewives everywhere - called so because the bean pods are easy to spot. So slovens of all shapes and sizes can race home after a day sipping coffee and gossiping, tear into the garden, pick a handful for tea and nobody will ever know that she hasn't been spending hours tending her plot. <br />
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I love growing and saving and bagging them up for swapping and giving away to other people.Trays of strange and beautiful French Beans all drying in the airing cupboard renders it useless for about 2 months each year but it's worth it. <br />
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I love that some varieties are the same ones as have been growing in people's gardens for decades, sometimes over 100 years and they have just evolved along with the humans that have grown them and the weather that supports them.<br />
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And I love the strange shapes, sizes, colours and tastes that come with them - so different from the tastes of fruit and veg that you get in the shops. And such beauty held by a multicoloured corn cob or a striped tomato that you can't get anywhere else. And on top - you can eat it! <br />
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So - to hear that the EU are not only trying to ban seed companies from selling unregistered seeds; but from people like me from growing them - and sharing with like-minded people - is completely and utterly tragic. It would be funny if it wasn't true.<br />
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The news was brought to us by <a href="http://www.realseeds.co.uk/seedlaw.html">Real Seeds</a> yesterday <br />
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<a href="http://www.avaaz.org/en/petition/We_dont_accept_this_Let_us_keep_our_seeds_EU/?pv=3">Avaaz have a campaign</a> Please sign and share with your networks.<br />
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The other way to register your disaproval is to <a href="http://ec.europa.eu/commission_2010-2014/index_en.htm">email your representative</a> and ask them to vote 'NO'. <br />
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In the UK - the person to email is Catherine Ashton on catherine.ashton@ec.europa.eu<br />
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If you love seeds please join in to stop this going through - no matter where in the world you are. <br />
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If you don't love seeds, what are you doing on my blog?<br />
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<br />Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4461635281724174602.post-26133410231162221852013-04-24T08:08:00.002+01:002013-04-29T09:41:28.533+01:00New Shoots in Leeds UKWebsite<br />
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http://newshoots.weebly.com/<br />
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This is a post about my chum's project, which is a community group who are involved in growing fruit and veg at Bracken Edge Primary School in Chapletown, Leeds.<br />
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Please do have a look at their <a href="http://newshoots.weebly.com/">website</a> and<a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/New-Shoots/492719780785438?fref=ts"> facebook</a> page and if you are nearby - they are always looking for new people to get involved in a whole range of activities.<br />
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I know if I were nearer I'd be there! <br />
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<br />Zazen999http://www.blogger.com/profile/15109767086515908438noreply@blogger.com0