In the garden.

 ~ Onion chives about to flower ~

~ Newly planted Nasturtiums will hopefully attract good bugs to my summer garden ~ 

 ~ The girls aren't missing a beat ~

 ~ Radishes sprouting alongside the cauliflowers ~

 ~ Through the wire ~

~ My biggest broccoli head yet ~

~ A bath tub of peas ~

Sam xox

Potatoes.

This year for my potatoes I tried out a method I saw Alys Fowler use during her Edible Garden series. She grew potatoes in pots on her patio in an attempt to save on space. Film vision showed Alys tipping out said pots causing a cascade of dark soil and golden tubers. What success she appeared to have! 

I decided to give it a try for myself.

This terribly grainy photo above shows my potato haul around this time last year. I had buried the potatoes in my front garden as there was plenty of space to grow a decent sized crop. And yes the crop did do reasonably well. However, it was evident from the size of the yield that the plants did not get enough sunlight in this position.

This year I planted five potato halves in some good quality compost in the base of a large black plastic pot. I had read that if you plant the potatoes at the base with enough soil to cover, you can then add more and more soil as the plant grows, and this encourages the tubers to be produced all the way up the pot. It appears that I did not do this quickly enough, I allowed the plants to become established before I piled more soil on top of them, with this resulting in potatoes only to be found in the bottom half of the pot.

My dear friend and gardening soul mate Mel did the honours...

I am definitely going to plant my potatoes in pots from now on. Once planted they do not take a lot of work, and if I do the soil addition correctly next time, I should yield a whole lot more delicious potatoes.

Nothing beats a home grow potato! We steamed some last night steamed to have with dinner. They were served with sliced shallots and some salt and pepper.

Sam xox

Perfect weather for ducks.

You know that old saying right? Well, as I sit here and type this it really is the perfect weather for ducks. Freezing winds and heavy rain. Concerned for my flock I checked on them earlier to find the ducks appearing not the slightest bit concerned about the harsh conditions.

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For my first real 'outing' after my operation Jamie took me to our local Bunnings to buy Oxford and Cambridge their very own kiddie shell pool. These plastic blue clam shells are a summer staple for kids in Australia. Tie two together with rope, fill one with sand and the other water. Instant beach in the backyard. As a child I would spend hours collecting small buckets of sand from the sand shell and depositing it carefully into the water shell.

However, my ducks don't need sand. Only water. 

It was a total hit.

By the end of the day the water was brown (gosh ducks are messy creatures!), no concern because the clam shell is far easier to clean out than the in-ground pond. One tip of the clam and the water goes onto the grass (I fill the pond using bore water). The only trouble is now all the ducks want to do is swim in this shell. From their enclosure they verbally harass me whenever I go outside, begging to be let out for more aquatic fun. I'm keeping this as a special treat.

Sam xox

Chocolate chip and pecan muffins.

Ingredients

2 cups plain flour

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup castor sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup milk

2 eggs

125g butter, melted and cooled slightly

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups large chocolate chips (or chunks)

1/2 cup chopped pecans

Chocolate icing to finish (make according to your own recipe)

Method

- Preheat oven to 200oC. Grease muffin tins.

- In large bowl mix together sifted flour, sugars, baking power and salt.

- In separate bowl mix together milk, eggs, butter and vanilla.

- Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and add milk mixture. Stir to combine, then fold in chocolate chips and pecans.

- Spoon batter into prepared muffin tins and bake for 15-20 minutes.

Serve topped with chocolate icing and sprinkle with extra chocolate chips and pecans.

Makes 16 muffins.

Recipe taken from Baking Bible published by Penguin Books.

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Because there is absolutely no way Jamie and I could eat 16 muffins while they are all fresh (unhealthy) I have frozen the muffins, which can then be reheated once in a while for a special treat.

Sam xox

A seaside recovery.

One picnic basket.

Two beaches.

Three days with one family.

Four days with another.

Seven days of winter sunshine. 

Who could ask for a better post-op recovery environment?

Sam xox

A button-sized success.

These tiny button-sized scarlet balls represent a gardening milestone for me. My first ever cherry tomatoes, grown without sprays or chemicals, in the dead of winter!

This time last year I had invested in a small four tiered plastic covered greenhouse with good intentions of using it to raise seeds for that coming summer. Unfortunately my complete lack of understanding about the principles behind greenhouse seed raising lead to a production of crispy brown seedlings (note to self: leaving a greenhouse completely closed in the Australian summer will lead to temps above 50oC).

This winter, having invested in a much larger greenhouse (and some informal education on the matter) I have had success with raising seeds.

This tomato plant grew from seeds dropped after last summers crop. I think the variety was called "Tiny Tom". The fruits small size is due to the plant having to grow in a smaller than ideal pot, as space in my greenhouse is limited.

While two tiny tomatoes really does not even qualify for a salad for one, it is an indicator to me that in gardening, anything is possible.

Thanks everyone for your lovely comments to my last post, they are really appreciated :-)

Sam xox

The marvels of modern medicine.

Nerves got the better of my blog posting this week as I prepared for keyhole heart surgery, which was done on Friday. Fortunately it went smoothly with no complications, much to my relief. I am completely in awe of modern medicine after having the procedure done. I was awake for the entire two hours, as the doctors burned off a bit of misfiring electronics within my heart muscle using wires threaded through my a vein near my hip. I even got to request the music I listened to while it was done. It was a full on experience, and felt pretty much as it sounds. But I am thrilled to bits to have had it done and wait to see that it fixed the problem.

I am couch bound for the coming days, with strict instructions not to do any heavy lifting. So gardening is out for me until the later half of the week, which means Jamie will get the honour of harvesting our first broccoli.

 - source -

In commemoration of my hearty experience this week, I thought I would talk about the tomato "Oxheart". This tomato is an heirloom variety which also runs under the name "Bullock's Heart" and "Coeur de Boeuf" in other countries. It bears a red/pink heart-shaped fruit that has a shiny, almost polished, appearance.

- source -

The perfect tomato for creating rich tomato-based sauces, chopping into thick meaty slices for burgers, or pairing with mozzarella and basil for a light snack.

Sam xox