Ages ago I tried growing Oyster Mushrooms and found it quite easy and satisfying. I do prefer button mushrooms or brown 'flats' though so this year I decided to grow them instead. The kit was from the same company so I was quite surprised to find the process seemingly much more complicated and taking a much longer period of time - there were pages and pages of instructions that were a bit daunting. There are 2 separate incubation stages: firstly to get the mushroom spawn established in the … [Read more...]
Growing and Enjoying Globe Artichokes
Globe artichokes are basically a giant thistle that comes originally from the Mediterranean area. They are one of the oldest cultivated vegetables in the world and were eaten by the early Greeks and Romans - although why you would think to try eating a thistle I don't know. Still they must have been onto a good thing because artichokes have remained part of Mediterranean cuisine for thousands of years. The edible portion of the plant is the young flower buds before they open up to become … [Read more...]
Growing Asparagus at home
Growing asparagus at home has been a long time dream of mine but it needs a fair amount of space in a permanent home so I haven't previously been able to justify allocating precious space for it. However, now that I have expanded my edible garden somewhat, it is such a joy to be able to harvest my own asparagus. I grew mine from seedlings but you can buy dormant crowns in the winter or grow it from seed. It needs a nice sunny, well-drained spot with lots of organic matter like sheep pellets … [Read more...]
Finally Success Growing Eggplants
I have previously posted about my variable success growing eggplants or aubergines, and how some years I throw them out in disgust at the end of the season after only managing to produce one or two eggplants. Each year I plant them again in the seemingly vain hope that I will get a bumper crop. I've tried them in different positions in the garden, in self-watering pots, in my glasshouse, and sometimes achieved a reasonable harvest. This summer though I hit the jackpot! I was later than usual … [Read more...]
My Expanding Edible Garden
Even though I've grumbled a bit over the summer about the amount of effort that has gone into my expanding edible garden, I am extremely grateful now that I have all the fruits of my labour to sustain me through the COVID-19 lockdown period. The pantry and freezer are filled to overflowing and still the harvest continues. My work from home outlook isn't too bad either. I thought I would share with you the changes that have happened since some of my previous posts. When I first started … [Read more...]
Sculpture in the Gardens 2020
The Auckland Regional Botanical Gardens hosts a biennial Sculpture in the Gardens. This free event is a great opportunity to see large-scale artworks from New Zealand's best-known and up-and-coming sculptors on a 2km sculpture trail throughout the Gardens. It is really well planned so that you get to amble around the gardens and appreciate all the new developments that have happened since you last visited whilst you enjoy the sculpture exhibits (20 new ones and many permanent sculptures that … [Read more...]
Growing Bananas at Home – Success!
Back in 2015 I first wrote about growing bananas at home and how I had got some ladyfinger banana suckers from my friend Michele. Three years on I have finally seen success: this year I have 3 bunches of bananas. I had been beginning to wonder whether I would ever see success with my bananas. I had taken care to provide water and nutrients. Soil moisture is apparently one of the most important factors: lack of water at any time may cause a reduction in fruit numbers and size. Even though … [Read more...]
Popadome Pest Protection Covers
This year I discovered the Popadome pest protection covers and they have been amazing! These domed fruit & vegetable net covers are so easy to use, come in a whole range of sizes and are a simple way to protect your fruit and vegetables from garden pests such as slugs, snails, cabbage white butterflies and birds. The green and black colours mean that they blend in well to the garden even if you have got big 'structures' in place. The Popadome covers have an easy to assemble framework … [Read more...]
Trying different tomato varieties
This year I experimented trying different tomato varieties from my usual tried and true varieties. Kings Plant Barn had some Epic Collection tomato varieties that I hadn't seen before so decided to try them out as they seemed to be a good mix of sizes and colours: Molly Jane Oxheart (new generation) Tomato Savour Sugar-gold I got them quite early season and was very pleased to be able to say "I have a greenhouse" when told that it was still to early to plant them outside. I … [Read more...]
How to tell when Rock Melons are ready to pick
This year I decided to try my hand at growing rock melons and faced the challenge of how to tell when rock melons are ready to pick. The descriptions I read were a bit confusing but then I ended up with 3 melons side by side at different stages and once I saw it, it was so obvious. So I thought I would share the pictures with you. I've never grown any melons previously because I didn't have enough space but having expanded my fruit and vegetable growing spaces, I thought it would be a good … [Read more...]
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