The Veggie Patch

Beautiful Chives, happy in their tyres.

Yesterday I finally remembered to take the camera over to the veggie patch to take some pictures.  it looks really good now that we have managed to get all the wood chippings down, although they are sharp on the old knees if you forget your kneeling mat.  Everything seems to be growing well in this wonderful sunshine. I love my little patch.

An overview of the patch.

Strawberries in the bed closest to us.  Lettuce, Mixed Leaves and Radish in the wooden bed to the left with Salad potatoes at the far end of it.

Mange Tout Peas with their twiggy supports, and under the net tunnel my Spring Cabbage.  Closest to the camera Main Crop potatoes.

Beetroot, inter planted with Radish at one end and Turnip at the other.

In the foreground - French Beans with Mixed Leaves and Spring Onions in the bed just seen.

A bed of Carrots.

Lots of planting done and just about enough space left to plant out what's ready in the greenhouse.  I am intending to fill any spaces with radishes and other quick growing crops.  This year I want to plant along the lines of filling all the soil to deter space for weeds, a la Alys Fowler and everything she spoke about when we went HERE for the day.  Better more food for our tummies and for storage than having to spend time weeding every day.

Off to potter in the greenhouse for a while, I'll show you what I've been up to in there tomorrow.

Sue xx

Plans and Giveaways

I did a plan of my Veggie Patch, simply A4 and pencil scribble ......

...... Lovely Hubby took it away to work with him one day and made it all posh.  Now it's A3 and proper printed.

So now I have a posh plan of my Veggie Patch, the only thing is he didn't ask me which way up it was supposed to be, so I have an upside down posh plan of my Veggie Patch, luckily he gave me some blanks too, so I have written on them the right way up and now I can make sense of the whole thing.  It's also way too big, so I have to do a little pencilly scribbly one each day to take out with me.

He's very good to me ...... in his own way!!

So I thought I would be very good to you. 

You have by now probably noticed that I am currently dieting (well healthy eating) the Harcombe way and I treated myself to the new set of Harcombe books, which leaves me with a spare copy of my original book.  I'm offering it as a Giveaway over on my other Blog - nip over and leave a comment if you would be interested in a chance of winning it, the draw will be on Saturday morning. You can be a Follower of either blog to enter, however, the comments should be left over there on the Giveaway post.

Sue xx

What I Be Up To !

Although I was working in the Veggie Patch for quite a while yesterday I forgot completely to take my camera over with me, so I have no pictures for you yet, instead here are a couple of photos showing what we bought on Saturday when we went to the Berkshire Country Fayre.

We really splashed out and treated ourselves to a gorgeous Burr Oak Cheese/Bread board, lovingly hand made by a local chap.  Chatting to him about his wares was wonderful, you could feel the love of the wood shining through in every word, you just need objects made with so much love and care in your home don't you...well we did.  He wrapped it lovingly in new bubblewrap and slid it ever so gently into a brand new glossy red carrier bag and then gave us explicit instructions on how to care for it, it was as if he were handing over a new born kitten.  Simply wonderful.

And at the other extreme I picked up for a couple of pounds this sweet little jug and bowl from a little 'pop up' antiques stall, quickly wrapped in manky old newpaper and stuffed into a dirty carrier bag before I even had time to say I would use the bag I already had.  It's destined to be filled with many strawberries and much cream as soon as my little plants give up their fruit.  It's there the fruit, on each plant the delightful clusters of tiny strawberries, we just need a couple more weeks of sunshine and a bit of rain to bring on the true taste of an English Summer.

Back off to the Veggie Patch now, and today I be mainly planting Courgettes (said with a nice Devon accent or as close as I come to doing one).  And I'll take the camera - promise!!

Sue xx

I'm over on the other Blog today!!

Sooooo true!!

No Blog post here today, I've just done a long one over at The How Low Can You Go Food Diary about our Harcombe Diet Phase 1 results and now it's time to go and plant my carrots outside before it gets too hot....sorry.

Find the Blog post HERE.

.... to those of you who have been encouraging us and following our progress, and now it's onwards and upwards into Phase 2.

Sue xx

Hot in the House

Yes it's hot in the house, the greenhouse that is.  I've painted out the windows to dilute the heat of the sun and give my seedlings a fighting chance.

It makes it look messy, but I don't mind, nor do the occupants.

The tomato plants due to be potted into their grow-pots this week...

... the Courgettes, strong and healthy (my favourite plant, so sturdy and strong)...

...the little Cape Gooseberry plants.  We discovered how much we love these last year.  They start off so tiny and yet yield such wonderful fruit.

The Carrots, ready for transplanting to the raised beds this week.

My compost, made in it's entirety by my Lovely Hubby and that's why......

You get such lovely foods to eat, all for a lot of effort and a bit of love.

Sue xx

Time Off

This morning we're having the morning off.  There's a local Show of some kind we don't know what it is, we just saw it advertised by the side of the road.  We're guessing some kind of village fete type thing but on a larger scale. We like to support local things, so if we want to know what it's like we have to go, so we are!!

When we get back I may do a bit of the above but if the sun continues to shine, I may just sit on the patio under the parasol and have the afternoon off as well.

The beauty of being your own boss is taking time off to smell the roses.....or drink the ice cold sparkling water whilst reading a good book on a hot day.

Have a good day everyone....what are you up too?

It turned out to be The Berkshire Country Fayre, lots of big marquees with competitions for the Young Farmers, Wellie Wanging, Hawk Flying, a good sized fairground, Helicopter Flights for the brave, and lots and lots of food, in the tents, in vans, food everywhere, but we resisted temptation, luckily we had set off straight after our lovely big cooked breakfast, so it wasn't too difficult.  We were drooling at the icecreams that kept being wafted past us by everyone, so we caved, nope not a big icecream with a chocolate flake that would have broke our Phase 1 of the diet, we settled for an orange ice lolly each, and felt very refreshed and virtuous after eating it.  A good couple of hours, in good company and lovely sunshine.

Sue xx

Nature claims back.....

Nature claims back what was her own ... and it doesn't take her long to do it.

We went back to Jointers Farm today towing our large trailer, to pick up the last load of our homemade compost, what we found when we got there was proof of the statement above.  The gravel car parking area at the front was more weed than gravel.

Our always mown grass at the side of the house, came over the top of my wellies.

The Paddock where the pigs used to roam and play.....

... was overgrown and abandoned.

The Kitchen Garden that kept us fed for most of the three years we were there ....

....was a desolate place, with weeds forcing up the poythene, recycled from the polytunnel that we had left to warm the soil, hoping that a new tenant would continue our good work.

In the Orchard, where the adolescent piglets played chase around the strawbales ...

... only weeds swaying in the breeze broke the silence.  I wanted to go in to photograph the old pig pens, but the nettles were to high and my path completely blocked.

Chicken World always so alive with the sound of the girls (and their men) going about their daily business...

..is now thigh high with grass, tall weeds surround the old apple tree and the raised beds that should be at the front of this shot are completely hidden from view and full of weeds.

Nature is truly wonderful at claiming back her own ....

... and as we drove for the final time down the 2 mile long track to reach the village, we knew that we were going back to our new home.  Where we are claiming tenancy and nature will be kept in check

..... just for a little while!

Sue xx