Over-rated useless git !

England 2 Croatia 3

Twats!

Safety first

I'm all for safety in the garden so this website is worth a mention:

http://www.safegardening.co.uk/

Showing onions (part 3)

Further to my posting of the other day here is a pic I found where the grower has bent the tops over and tied the double thickness with raffia. It's just a personal thing and I know a few top growers prefer this method but I just don't think it looks as neat as cutting above the tie and leaving it at that.

Herbal cures not so wacky?

At our horticultural society the other night we had a talk from Lynne Tann-Watson on 'Herbs through History'. Now, she turned up dressed in black and with a shock of aubern hair and proceeded to lay out a load of pamphlets entitled ' The Witch's Garden' and I though 'Oh shit here we go' as I'm not shy at admitting I think herbal cures and the like are a load of mumbo jumbo but I must say she gave a very entertaining talk that almost had me believing that a tincture of lemon balm and spearmint can cure my upset stomach (or was it piles?). Anyway, she has a website:

http://www.witchsgarden.i12.com/

And she has some very interesting looking recipe books that I was almost tempted to buy. It seems our ancestors ate just about anything that they found growing underfoot and the Romans introduced all sorts of goodies when they invaded our shores......especially rosemary which is about the most fantastic herb I can think of, but only when used in conjunction with a lovely slab of dead Larry the lamb! Anyway, as I said she was very entertaining and I'll certainly be looking at planting more herbs in the garden with a view to using more in the kitchen.......when I say 'I', I mean Leesa as I don't 'do' kitchen.

Black devils!

They may look cute but don't be fooled. If I catch either of them poo-ing in my carrot beds again they're pig feed!

Still mild

Such mild weather we're having........here in Leicestershire we still haven't had a proper frost and my dahlias are still flowering. However, I think I'll dig them up this weekend come what may and start the storage process. I'll take some pics and post them over the weekend.



I've sourced a good supply of well-rotted cow muck and need to get that collected in the next few weeks. I'd like to get it spread on the plot by the end of the month so the worms can start to do their stuff. I'll also put a sackful to one side to soak in a barrel of water in the spring for a liquid feed for the celery, beans and peas.



All the seed catalogues have come and I've more or less decided what varieties I want to grow next year. As I said before I'm drastically reducing the selection so I don't get too bogged down growing what I term 'non-essentials' in the show world...........radish/chard/okra/turnips etc. I only grew them last year to make up a different take on the trug and basket classes.



Between now and Christmas I need to have a damned good tidy in my garage and greenhouse. I have pots/compost/tools/old seed packets etc all over the place and need to get things back to a level of normality and good organisation ready for the next season. What tends to happen as I'm running around at show time preparing different veg and loading the car is that things get thrown down where I last used them, despite my best intentions. I have a load of old Beano and Dandy books that could go on Ebay......the proceeds can go towards my seed purchases!

Dressing and displaying shallots

Treat shallots like little onions with one or two slight exceptions. After lifting cut off the tops and roots and store them in a dry place for a few days. If you do this in your greenhouse make sure you cover with some fleece otherwise they'll dry out too much and wrinkle.

After a few days sort them out and grade them into different sizes. Rub off any loose skins and trim the roots right back and cut back any hard pads on the base plate. The neck can also be trimmed to about 1.5". They are now stored in boxes of sawdust and left until just before showday.....as shallots are usually lifted during June this means they'll be in store for up to 2 months depending on your show dates.

Before the show, select your bulbs matching up for size and shape. If entering the pickling class make sure they pass through a 30mm ring easily (some shows still insist on 25mm). Rub off the outer skin........a forceful twist between thumb and forefinger is best....practice on a reject or two to get the hang of it. You will find the next skin should be a nice, even nut-brown colour. Tie the tops carefully and trim the neck to just above the tie.

The pic shows the winning set from this years National at Malvern