But hang on a minute, what's this then? Hey, I've got one, says she dancing around all excitedly. I've got a cucumber. It may be only eight inches long and knobbly, but it is a cucumber. Whoopeeeeeee.
Shame that the spuds didn't do so well, but who needs spuds anyway, I don't have to eat them, plenty of other veg to choose from at the supermarket. My tomatoes haven't ripened either, they are still green and no bigger than marbles, but I'm not that bothered. I'm going off tomatoes a bit. The veg that I have had from the garden has saved me money because it has meant I haven't had to go shopping so often, and my bills have been less because I haven't had to buy as much. I've eaten runner beans and courgettes every day for the last few weeks.
I don't do over winter growing, the garden is tidied up and left till the spring to start again, and I will probably do the same again next year. Toodle pip.
PS. The cold has gone completely :o))
I make green tomato chutney from the unripened tomatoes...waste not want not!
ReplyDeleteJane x
Glad to hear you have got ridd of that cold so quickly.
ReplyDeleteGreat that you have had such a swift recovery. Will you be going on your long walk ?
ReplyDeleteBrenda in the Boro
I may have said this before, but I have used green beans that were no larger than a matchstick in a salad. They are scrumptious. That zucchini certainly is a hairy, little caterpillar! You can throw the unripened and tiny green tomatos in a soup.
ReplyDeleteSalad greens grow well in the winter and are no trouble at all. They can be grown indoors in pots. Of course, since you keep your house as cold as mine, the salad greens would have to have an indoor cover to protect them.
I am going to use an aquarium or some such thing for mine. I have a huge picture window that faces South. The angle of the sun in summer bathes the room in sun, unlike in the summer.
Small plants indoor in the fall and winter won't be so overwhelming for me. I have some gallon jugs I may use for cloches over some of the plants not in the aquarium. There won't be the everlasting need to debug and water when the plants are grown this way.
Surplus zucchini can be shredded, fzn for Winter baking. Cube some as well to add to future soups/stews. Zucchini also makes a wonderful relish, my recipe is one that no one can tell that there are no cucumbers in it! Looks and tastes just like "regular" relish. Green beans can also be blanched and fzn in bags or make dilly beans for topping Winter salads.
ReplyDeleteEight inches long and knobbly...... LOL! Can you imagine the visuals passing quickly through my brain when I read that!
ReplyDeleteSo glad that your cold has departed. Are you ready to roll???
OOh that's some impressive gerkhin Ilona LOL Don't mind me, I have a craving for them at the moment :-D
ReplyDeleteHusband is still persevering with his tomatoes and although they have not swollen up much, they turning red at last. They look like mini pumpkins LOL
You might find the 6 incher quite nice too.
ReplyDeleteOOh Kath, I nearly choked on my porridge ha ha.
ReplyDeleteJust starting to pack, Connie and Brenda.
I agree DUYH. not much difference between six and eight inches. Think I'll trim the knobbles off though :o)
Thank you for the green tomato ideas. I usually skin them and freeze in pots to add to stews. I don't have all the ingredients needed for chutney making because I don't like chutney.
You don't have to trim the knobbles off, as you wash the cucumber they will soften and be delicious. You can't beat a homegrown cucumber.
ReplyDeleteSue xx
I don't do winter crops either - far too cold to go ferreting about collecting veg. Keep looking and wiggling your cucumber - sometimes they're very hard to spot and if you miss one and let it grow big then the other little ones won't grow so well. My tomatoes are now ripening but I've had no beans on my runners.
ReplyDeleteLove from Mum
xx
Yay! We didnt get a single cuc on ours before the devil slugs moved in and devoured the plants.
ReplyDeleteWe did get rather a lot of Zucchini though and I have about 17 marrows so we are going to be so fed up with them before they are all eaten. We even made marrow and ginger jam.
wish, you did not broadcast to whole world when you going on holiday, as in my house is empty. please think secure , worry about you. samantha
ReplyDeleteDon't worry yourself samantha, my house is not going to be empty. My cat sitter sleeps here. She only lives round the corner and can easily pop back and forth during the day. Her husband is happy with this arrangement.
ReplyDeleteI tried to grow courgettes last year but whilst the seeds germinated well and grew to lovely healthy looking plants, when the flowers appeared, they just fell off and did not produce courgettes. Am I missing something??? Wish i could have grown more as I love them and should be able to grow a few home growns again next summer.
ReplyDeleteI'm not really sure why that happens Alison. I know some of the flowers are male and some female. 50% of my flowers haven't produced courgettes.
ReplyDeleteYour courgettes look good; the flowers are good in salads too apparently. A gypsy once told my mam to water her plants with tea, helps them to flower, which it most certainly did. Not sure what's in it but it works. Cheers, Christy.
ReplyDeleteGlad the courgettes worked out. Perhaps the flowers just weren't being pollinated? A good shake of the flowers can actually pollinate.
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