Bohemian Raspberry

Dandelions keep popping up at the allotment! We dug up loads of roots last winter and made a sort-of coffee (see below) and this Spring I have made up some batches of dandelion jam. A joyful plant distantly related to sunflowers.  Scientific name : Taraxacum officinale When to see : year-round (mainly harvested April - September but not exclusively!) Grows : seemingly everywhere Height : up to 35cm How to identify : The English common name comes from the old Norman name ' dent de lion ', or "lion's tooth" referring to the leaves that look like something has taken a good munch from either side. The leaves grow in a round rosette at the ground.  Leaves and the hollow stems grow directly from the rootstock. There is only one flower per stem. Root, leaves and stem all exude a milky white sap (some folk may have allergies so be cautious if you have not touched the sap before).  Further identification help from Wild Food UK . Lookalikes : It has a few lookalik...

I genuinely have no idea whether this will do any good. I'm keen to hear from others who have tried this! Some internet research suggests my efforts may be in vain ; however, I thought I would give this a go. It's an idea from Jen Chillingsworth 's book Live Green. So, banana's contain potassium, calcium and phosphorus, which are all important nutrients for some plants. I am using this mix mainly for the tomatoes. When we eat bananas (organic - i.e. not sprayed with pesticides), we pop the peels into a glass jar and cover with water and leave for 2 - 4 days. I then use this mix to water the tomato plants in the greenhouse, and compost the peels.

We have quite a nettle patch at the allotment. You might be tempted to eradicate it as a weed, but it's a wonderful edible with an important role in our ecosystem. Scientific name : Perennial nettles ( Urtica dioica ) When to see:  Year-round. Best eaten when tender so early to mid spring is when they’re at their seasonal best or new shoots. Grows : Seemingly everywhere. Height : Up to about 1.2m (but can be much taller) How to identify : The green, arrow shaped leaves have a  serrated edges, and the underside is covered in small stinging hairs with some on top. The sting is characteristic. Nettles have tough, erect stems that are very fibrous and covered in small stinging hairs. Green to red/purple in colour.  Further identification help from Wild Food UK Lookalikes : Possibly confused with white deadnettle (does not sting and has white flowers). Ecosystem : If you can leave a patch, they are great for butterflies in particular - especially Red Admirals and Painted La...

We have been hard at work.... Take a look at this wee video:

This wonderful plant is growing by the allotments. It's a fairly common wild plant called garlic mustard (or 'Jack-by-the-hedge'). You might be tempted to eradicate it as a weed, but it's a wonderful edible with an important role in our ecosystem. Scientific name: Alliaria petiolata When to see: year-round Grows: shady places, e.g. the edges of woods and hedgerows and apparently the edge of allotments Height: up to about 1m How to identify: heart-shaped leaves with a jagged edge.  The leaves are smooth and hairless.  When crushed, they smell of garlic. This plant has small, white flowers that have four petals in the shape of a cross, and grow in clusters at the ends of the stems. Further identification help from Wild Food UK Lookalikes: It has a few lookalikes - possibly confused with ground ivy, for example.  However,  the smell of  the crushed leaves is the distinguishing feature (garlic / mustardy).   It isn't related to garlic th...

So, we haven't done. this on. the allotment yet - just the back garden. However, we are creating a compost area and plan to shore it up with pallets eventually, so will create vertical herb walls when we do so. We painted the pallet, put in some wood on the verticals to create the wells for planting.  We then stapled in compost bags to seal the wells. Here, you can see we have planted some parsley, thyme and other herbs. This was from two years ago and it's still going strong! More ideas for using a pallet for vertical planting areas from Houzz

We have so much rhubarb at the moment! So I'm sharing some of my favourite recipes here.... Early rhubarb jam Rhubarb and Ginger Loaf  (I also add a bit of custard to the mix if I have any) A most excellent rhubarb chutney Rhubarb gin And a recipe I am keen to try... Carrot and rhubarb soup Do add any more recipes you like in the comment :)

So, I appreciate some will deride the notion that there would ever be a 'last bit of wine' left in a bottle. But this is a familiar theme in our household and I hate waste. So, one option is to freeze the last bits in an ice-cube tray and use later for cooking. However, our freezer is chock-a-block full of frozen wild garlic pesto and other foraged goodies. So, here is how you can make your own wine vinegar if you have some apple cider vinegar (with mother).  This is rather nice for salads or fancy pickles. In fact, it could be an endless supply with a bit of tlc. You need: Wine Apple cider vinegar with mother (organic vinegars work best) Clean glass jar Muslin or clean cloth Elastic band ACV with mother ("pure" or "live") means that it is unpasteurised and unfiltered, so the vinegar will look cloudy and may well have some clumps floating around in it. Pour the leftover wine into the jar. You can mix wines if you want, but the vinegar does ...

Taps and showerheads I'm doing the taps and showerhead today getting rid of some limescale. Just thought I'd share this. Soak a rags in white vinegar and wrap round your taps, making sure that the area is saturated. Cover with a plastic bag and tie up. After a few hours, you will be able to wash the limescale off. I add some lemon juice to the vinegar for a nice smell. Lemon and thyme cleaner Spray cleaner Just a warning - this isn't good for marble or granite surfaces.  Use a water and soap mix instead for  marble. For granite, take a look  here . What you need: 230ml white vinegar 230ml boiled water left to cool 1 lemon A few sprigs thyme (fresh better but depends what you have in!) or rosemary If you have it: about 10-15 drops of essential oil (e.g. lavender, lemon - optional!) Instructions: Infuse the vinegar in a large jam jar or similar (with lid on) with the thyme and lemon peel (save the juice).  Leave at least overnight but best if left ...