As summer came to an end there were a few things left in the ground. At the plot, I had some beautiful purple kale which seemed to be perfectly happy despite being abandoned. Back at the garden, I had a whole range of tomatoes which seemed revitalised now there was sun, rain and someone toContinue reading “The last bits and pieces of 2023”
Author Archives: Elaine Batiste
The begrudged harvest 2023
Cucumbers: I tried two types of cucumbers; gherkin and crystal lemon. None of the gherkins made it but one of my crystal lemon plants managed to survive somehow. I found it nestled in amongst the weeds at the edge of my plot. This straggler delivered 6 perfect golf ball-shaped fruits, which looked like tiny melons.Continue reading “The begrudged harvest 2023”
June/July 2023 Allotment post mortem
I do experience extreme optimism at times, it can be a blessing and a curse. Sometimes it pays off – some of the best things I’ve done in life were the result of taking an optimistic risk. This time it was a bit of a crash-and-burn scenario. Things like the squash and brassicas will beContinue reading “June/July 2023 Allotment post mortem”
Acorn Squash Ravioli
Last year I grew “Mashed Potato” Squash aka Acorn Squash for the first time and it resulted in a delicious surprise. These green ones that I grew actually tasted more like a sweet potato which I definitely wasn’t mad about. I’m gutted that after the hard work of preparing this meal, I forgot to takeContinue reading “Acorn Squash Ravioli”
Can you even call yourself an allotmenteer?
Like so many, my route to starting an allotment was driven by the Pandemic. Restrictions due to the health crisis have, pretty much, all been lifted. However, the changes to our status in Europe have meant that we do have some limits on where and when we can go to the mainland. As a 3rdContinue reading “Can you even call yourself an allotmenteer?”
Autumn 2022: Final Harvests
I’m back and miraculously my little plot is still alive! It seems that the drought broke not long after we left and there has been a fair bit of rainfall. I was fully expecting most of my crops to have perished through neglect but it seems Nature had other ideas. I couldn’t quite believe howContinue reading “Autumn 2022: Final Harvests”
August 2022: Parting is such sweet sorrow
4th of August I just visited the plot for the last time before we were about to go to Italy for 5 weeks, leaving the allotment in the hands of my plot partner. I still managed to plant a last few things before I went as there were some things in the little grow houseContinue reading “August 2022: Parting is such sweet sorrow”
July/August 2022: Everything’s coming up
The first lesson I learned about container planting is that watering can be so deceptive. I’ve been happily watering my containers thinking I’m doing well. then I began to wonder why my 2nd set of carrots wasn’t appearing. Even though I thought I’d really saturated it, I tucked my finger into the soil and justContinue reading “July/August 2022: Everything’s coming up”
Early 2022 – New Year New … Nah!
I’m not very good at new year’s resolutions, so I’m just saying that in 2022, I simply intended to try more. More time at the allotment, more different crops, more learning. That’s about all you can do. In the winter, I don’t yet know what to do with the allotment. It’s obviously mostly maintenance –Continue reading “Early 2022 – New Year New … Nah!”
White bean stew with allotment leeks and carrots
The sample posts that came with this theme featured recipes and they gave me the idea to start an occasional series to show some of the dishes I’ve made using my allotment produce as mini blogs. One of my first year’s harvests was leeks which I used in a delicious vegetable stew. This stew isContinue reading “White bean stew with allotment leeks and carrots”
To the roots of it 