This and That

Latest post from MARKSVEGPLOT – a blog about food and gardening in England”

There’s not much to report upon from my garden just now, just a few odds and ends…

These are Hellebore seedlings.

As you can see, they are still very tiny – some of the seedlings are only just emerging from the soil – but I’m pleased that so many have germinated. These ones were sown on 25th June. I had expected them to take another three months or so to germinate, because I thought they needed vernalization. Maybe they just think it is Spring already (which would be easy to understand).

The Rhubarb also evidently thinks it is Spring:

Last Winter I moved my (2) Rhubarb plants to new quarters in that big deep container, and I didn’t harvest a crop from it during 2015, so it has had a bit of time to get itself settled. This coming year I plan to take a few stems from it, though probably not a lot, so that it has the opportunity to build up its strength in time for a big harvest in 2017. Being a gardener requires a lot of patience, you know!

Elsewhere, my potted Hydrangea has also recently produced a lot of new leaf buds. I have left the old flower-heads on the plant in order to give the new growth some protection. This last year a lot of the new growth was damaged by frost and cold wind.

The weather here today is definitely not good gardening weather, though I’m conscious that we are getting off lightly compared with many folk who are being battered by storm Frank. I’m spending the day baking a Sourdough loaf and cooking a Mexican meal, about which I shall probably write tomorrow. Jane has been cooking Bread Sauce, Cranberry Sauce and Sage-and-onion Stuffing, in preparation for our New Year’s Day meal.

Having spent Christmas with one daughter in France, we are hosting the other daughter and her family here for a special meal on Jan 1. It will be what we would normally have on Christmas Day – in other words, Turkey, Brussels Sprouts, Potatoes roasted in Goose fat, etc, etc.

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