Bread and Butter Pickles

I have finally been fit enough to produce my Bread and Butter Pickles. Normally by now I have also done piccallili but I have been unwell since July. However, I hope for a new start in the New Year and will produce this ready for Easter.

Next week I aim to produce an orange fruit cake in place of a Christmas cake as I am having to eat a gluten and lactose free diet. I have gluten free flour and baking powder to make the cake.

I have been eating GF bread which I don't enjoy so I have exchanged it for rice cakes and milk for rice milk.

I will start a new blog around my GF diet next year.

NEW SEASON PLANTING

The time has come to start my container peas, so I have sown them straight into the container. Since January I have been adding kitchen food waste, such as veggies and egg shells to the containers and I have topped them up with home made compost. I have moved the containers into a more sheltered spot as the other container will have runner beans. I have placed the beans on damp kitchen paper to help them to germinate and one they do I will pot them on.

I planted out some of the potatoes I had chitted a few weeks ago and they are just appearing. At the moment I am putting them under cover during the night until it gets a bit warmer.

I have also planted some in the other two containers

and hope to get a good crop this year.

Because it will not be possible to move this container, i have covered it with fleece, which I have anchored down with two bricks. Our garden is high up and open to all the winds, which causes a lot of damage. I have lost my walk in greenhouse and now use a spare set of shelves, which I have covered with the greenhouse cover. Even that has been over and we have had to tie it down.

New Season Planting

Last year was my first attempt at growing potatoes and I used the potatoes I had in the house. I couldn't get seed potatoes as it was too late in the season so I allowed shop bought potatoes to root. I had a very good crop and the potatoes were lovely and sweet.


This year I have bought some Maris Piper seed potatoes and I am going to have a go at growing them. I am also using shop bought potatoes which have rooted really well and I'll see the difference.

I grow all my veg on my patio in containers which I have recycled. My onions & garlic are growing in an old single draw and a cubed piece of furniture. I have also reused old planters to grow other veg.

I aim to grow tomatoes again as I had a very good crop. The majority of my plants were from cuttings and I will aim to do the same this year. In fact I didn't buy a tomato plant as the cuttings were given to me.

I need to dig out the containers that I grow my beans in and add peelings etc to allow the compost to become enriched. I hope that my homemade compost will be ready soon.

I am looking forward to the season and may well add fruit bushes to my

Winter Garden Survivers

This year we have had the worst two winters in the 22 years I have lived here. We had snow in 1982 and then in 2000 and although they were bad they were nothing like the bad snow we have had this year.

In January we were laid off work due to frozen pipes and the roads being too dangerous. In December we had temperatures in excess of -14c and our bathroon drain pipes froze. Luckily enough the water pipes are lagged but the outside pipes have never needed to be. They will be before next winter.

So in the midst of all this bad weather I was worried that I would lose all my veg, whereas I only lost the potatoes for Christmas......

My rhubarb has suprised me as it has survived the ravages. There are new shoots just poking through so shortly I will cover the pot to allow the rhubarb to be forced. I will spend tomorrow weeding and mulching.




My onions have also been a surviver although they look a little ragged. They too will recieve a little first aid and tidy up and then hopefully I will have a good crop of onions later in the year




My garlic has done very well as last year I had a very poor show. I put it down to my inexperience so I have hopefully learnt by my mistakes.





More garlic....you can never have too much garlic. I use a lot but I have friends and neighbours who also enjoy it so, like my runner beans I will share with them. My neighbours are very good as they share with us as well.

2010 - 2011

Well 2010 has passed and I can't say that I am sad.

My health has been bad and my husband has been diagnosed with cancer. To add further to that we lost our beloved Jimmy from cancer. Needless to say I will not miss 2010.

Enter 2011

This year I am going to continue with the veg growing and am looking forward to planting out my potatoes, green beans, carrots and tomatoes. I had a lovely crop last year and want to do that again. I may even try cucumbers and perhaps fruit.

At the moment I have winter onions and garlic in and they seem to have survived the winter snow & frost but not my winter potatoes.

I have learnt from my mistakes and do not intend to make the same mistakes again.

I also intend to get fitter. I have ate too many chocolates this christmas and once they are all gone, the change of eating habits will happen again. I try not to do diets as they are faddy but to portion control what I am eating. I don't deny myself but just whatch what and how much I am eating.

So I look forward to 2011 and will do my best

I hope you all have a great new year and learn to live each day as if it were your last, with enthusiasm and energy .

Veggi Growing

MY VEGGIE GARDEN

I have never grown veggies before but decided to give it a try as my friend was growing them in her garden. Although I have a garden I decided to grow them on my patio in tubs. I had a plastic greenhouse which disintegrated so I used a set of shelves, which I covered in the plastic from the greenhouse. With this I have been able to grow tomatoes.

GORGEOUS TOMS

I have never grown any veggies before but as my friend was doing the self suffiencey bit I thought I'd give it a go. She gave me the cuttings off her tomato plants and we placed them in soil and hoped for the best. I now have 10 plants, with the majority having lovely fruits

I also planted out some runner beans seeds in a tub and strung a net across my purgola. The beans grew really fast and covered the netting in no time. I have had lots of lovely runner beans and I have more growing.

The runner beans were such a success that I decided to grow some more. I went to the recycling centre and found a deep box which I have utilised to grow the beans in. They have not produced fruits yet but they have the flowers on, so I expect to have some fruits soon.

Horrible few months

We have had a torrid few months so I have not had the heart to blog......

In March my OH was diagnosed with prostate cancer, which turned our world upside down. Shortly afterwards we were told that my BIL, Jimmys', cancer was terminal and on Monday 16th August he lost his brave fight against this awful disease. Jimmy was a lovely man and his death has left a big hole in many peoples lives.

My Health has been up and down in the last few months but now I hope to be on the better side so I intend to continue where I left off.

SOME GOOD NEWS

On the 23 May 2010 we had a new grandaughter. Her name is Laura, Susan, Sheila and I am very proud of her and all my grandchildren. We have been blessed.