Beautiful blackcurrants, deep rosy red fleshed apples, delicious patio tomatoes, and a ginger rosemary cocktail that will blow you away - all on offer at Hampton Court this week in the Edible Eden Garden, designed by Chris Smith of Pennard Plants... Edible Eden combines a formal vegetable area, unusual edibles in the forest garden and … Continue reading Fruity New Ideas in the Edible Eden Garden at RHS Hampton Court
In January I banished grey days by reading The Secret Lives of Colour by Kassia St Clair. It took me on a vivid journey through the history of colour, to explore the unknown corners of sepia, fallow, orchil, Isabelline and vantablack. As I read, I noticed how many of the terms are derived from plants like madder, … Continue reading 25 Colourful Crops for a Vibrant Vegetable Garden
This will be my fifth year growing cucamelons and the first year I've successfully overwintered them. Heralded as an exciting addition to cocktails by James Wong in 2012, I've spoken to many people who have grown cucamelons only to be disappointed with either the taste or harvest of these diminutive fruits. I am prepared to accept that for some (misguided!) individuals the … Continue reading Do My Cucamelons Look Big In This?
We've been having festive fungal fun all through December in our house, thanks to the Oyster Mushroom Kit sent by the nice people at the Espresso Mushroom Company. This week it's been the highlight of the process - harvest, cooking and scoffing them in waves of warm garlicky goodness. On Day 16 they were ready … Continue reading Oyster Mushroom Advent Calendar: A Christmas Harvest
Meet GOB (Guild of Oca Breeders) 1356, harvested in early December. It's a cheeky little number with attractively flushed red/pink skin and creamy white eyes. My chief tasters were pleasantly surprised by its sweet taste and refreshingly delicate, yet acidic endnote. They were also impressed with the soft, buttery texture and bite-sized proportions of these … Continue reading Confessions of an Ocaholic
On the first day of Advent the postman gave to me, some mushrooms to grow in coffee... My children (aged 4 and 7) were exploding with excitement this morning as they opened the first door in their Lego advent calendar - a special treat this year from Grandma and Grandpa. We also have the atmospheric beauty of … Continue reading Oyster Mushroom Advent Calendar: Part One
A cosy window seat has to be the best place to curl up with a cup of tea and a good book. As a child, I preferred to read near the top of our tall Scots Pine, with a Famous Five and an apple from the garden. Now I favour the cushion-strewn window seat in the lounge which … Continue reading Book Review: RHS Plants From Pips and The Little Book of Hygge
Earlier this year I brought my overwintered chillies out of the spare room and sowed a range of new seeds in the hope that I would be knee-deep in chillies by the end of the summer. I've been pleased with the results of what has ended up as a collection of 39 plants with 17 different varieties. … Continue reading Chilli Harvest 2016
These days I spend much of my time in private and community gardens (and sometimes even my own) working with plants and I've learnt a great deal over the past few years about where garden plants will thrive, how they will combine with their fellows and when they will steal the limelight. But my knowledge … Continue reading Exploring wild flowers: 5 coastal plants with interesting edible histories
Ten years ago I went on the allotment waiting list. Local sites are heavily oversubscribed and I was expecting a substantial wait. Five years later, with one small child and another on the way I decided to come off the list as allotmenteering seemed unfeasible in the blur of family life. Instead we worked on … Continue reading Allotment Beginnings