Tag: gardening
-
I’ve been upgraded!
This week I was offered a larger plot at the allotments: a half size plot. Mine is a microplot and they’re meant to be only temporary. Microplots are 50m2 while a half plot is 150m2. I was very pleased to get the offer because my plot isn’t getting much sun now. I also think a half…
-
Alien eggs in the backyard
Recently I spotted what had to be an alien’s eggs incubating in our backyard. So naturally, I decided not to disturb them. A little while later I went back and they’d “hatched’ but there was nothing to see other than a tiny slug. I’m pretty sure that’s a slug and not alien spawn. Today I…
-
Is this a scene from a horror film?
In keeping with my earlier proclamation about not giving a rat’s arse about what anyone else thinks, behold the uninhibited Rachel looking like a dork and wearing pyjamas. I ate all that green stuff just after the photo was taken. It’s produce from my plot at the allotment which is where I went in the…
-
Cauliflower cheese without cheese
I’m not that into cooking however I like eating and I know I need to eat more fresh vegetables and fewer processed vegan meals. Last night I made a vegan version of cauliflower cheese that tasted wonderful and was very easy to make so I thought I’d share it. Someone at the allotments gave me…
-
A harvest of four carrots
I was horrified last week when one of the other plotters at the allotments told me the growing season is almost over. We really haven’t got very much food from our plot. Today I harvested our carrots. All four of them đ You may be wondering why we only got four carrots and I’m embarrassed…
-
Rocket seeds and stick insects
I’ve been waiting for my rocket to produce seeds for months and months and months and finally some seed pods have emerged. I’m not sure how or why it took so long because it has been flowering for ages now and I just assumed the seeds would be in the flowers but they weren’t. Today…
-
Frank Spencer at the allotments
I went to the allotment today to assemble a small cage I purchased to keep the pigeons off the vegetables. I bought what I thought was an easy click-together frame but when I pulled it out I discovered screws and I hadn’t taken a screwdriver with me. Who carries a screwdriver around with them? I…
-
Our allotment two months later
I spent several hours at the allotment this morning. Our plot still needs a lot of work but when I compare the now photo with the before photo I realise we have come a long way. Here’s how it looked in April: Here’s how it looks today: Now I just need to turn it into…
-
On being smug, blaming Pepper Pig for cavities in teeth, and three solutions to all the world’s problems
I was planning to be all smug in this post and write about how vegans can make their own milk from a packet of soy beans while non-vegans have to find a cow to milk. Unfortunately my first attempt at making soy milk created a watery and slightly gritty mess. I tipped it down the sink. I milked a…
-
The Trojan Slug
It’s frustrating to watch seeds germinate and then grow only to see them eaten by slugs a week later. In an attempt to outwit the slugs, yesterday I moved two trays of seedlings inside overnight and put them on our dining table. When I woke up this morning I saw telltale signs of slug dining: there were…
-
Inside my greenhouse
It’s a lovely drizzly day today. I cycled to Newton Dee thinking I’d have the bike path all to myself but there were lots of people there – dog walkers, cyclists, and joggers. I love it when it’s overcast and I don’t have to squint. Squinting is annoying because it gives me wrinkles and somehow…
-
We’ve got an allotment!
About a year ago I applied for an allotment and just this week got the call to say there’s one available. Allotments are a very British thing. They have been around for hundreds of years, since Anglo-Saxon times, according to The National Allotment Society. In Victorian times they were handed over to poor people as a…
-
Inside my greenhouse
I’m so excited by all the things growing in my greenhouse. I’ve never had a greenhouse before but I can see what useful things they are. It’s much easier to grow from seed because the greenhouse offers some protection from birds and pests. You can also control the amount of water they get. I planted…
-
Not a true Australian
Recently one of the dads at school was telling me how he’d played professional rugby as a teenager. He said he got to play against some really great players and then listed off a few names. I could tell by his tone that I was supposed to be impressed by this and that these were people I…
-
Turkey neck and gardening
I’m trying to reduce the amount of sugar I eat, partly for health reasons and partly for vanity. I’m starting to notice the wrinkles more and more and – dare I admit it, a turkey neck! – and sugar ages you. I’ll never be able to give up chocolate but sugar sneaks into things that don’t…
-
A prickly thistle
Last August I planted an apple tree in the school garden. Since then I’ve watched with dismay as all the branches have slowly been ripped off. I don’t think the children are doing this to deliberately destroy the tree. It’s just that they’re playing there and it gets knocked about and they grab onto it as…
-
Accessorising with snow
It was snowing when I dropped the kids at school today. I love it when it snows. Snow is not wet like rain and this morning I discovered it makes a nice hair accessory. As you can see I’m holding a Doctor Who magazine – there’s a story behind this. We gifted Daniel a subscription…
-
Ice-cream or kale, anyone?
On three separate occasions in the past month, pedestrians have called out to me asking for an ice-cream as I cycle by. Does Harald look like an ice-cream bike? Harald: Pashley Classic No. 33: Oh dear! So much for looking cool and trendy. Pak Choi. What a wonderful vegetable. I’ve been craving leafy greens recently and so…
-
A hedgehog house
We got a hedgehog house for our garden. I hope a hedgehog finds it suitable and moves in. I think it looks very inviting. That old pot next to it has been dragged with us all over the world, from city to city and country to country. I think we got it in Christchurch. My war…
-
Doctor Who, Sherlock, and drowning in beer
We introduced the kids to the 2005 Series of Doctor Who last weekend and it was an instant hit. They haven’t seen any Doctor Who before and now they’re fans for life. I wouldn’t be surprised if Daniel gets himself a Tardis one day. The special effects haven’t changed much in 40 years and some of…
rachel.blog 