Tag Archive for: gardening

How to build a hotbox for propagation, early seed sowing and growing

/0 Comments/in , , , /by
Hot box propagation

Hotbox propagation

Making a hotbox may well be the answer if are you chomping at the bit to get the growing season started, It’s still February and last week we had snow. However, the sun started shining this week after a long Winter. We are still in Lockdown due to the pandemic and goodness knows we are longing to get growing again. Last year’s lockdown seemed so much easier to bear, with veggies to grow and gardens to tend, but we must remember it is still Winter!

Hotbox propagation. for early seed sowing and growing

Hotbox propagation. for early seed sowing and growing

Last year Tim built a hot box for the greenhouse, and it’s brilliant! We can set seeds away and grow then on without fear of the frost getting to them. I know some of you who have seen pictures of this on the Bridge Cottage Way Facebook page have asked how he made it, so here you go.

It’s quite simple. We got the idea and all the help we needed from Jungle Seeds.

You will need a greenhouse or cold frame and a source of electricity. We have run an outdoor extension lead from the garage into the greenhouse. We have taken care to cover any electrical parts with a bucket so avoid accidents when watering!

The heat comes from Bio Green Soil Warming cables.  available from Jungle Seeds.

 

Building a hotbox for early seed sowing a propagation

Building a hotbox for early seed sowing a propagation

We started by building a wooden box. The bottom was taken from an old dining room table, and the sides, off-cuts of plywood. You may want to build something smaller, a tray for example. In this first picture, you can see it has been covered on the outside by insulation. We used this insulation as we had it hanging around after building the sauna. You might want to use polystyrene, or Kingspan. Use what you have!

Building a hotbox for early seed sowing and propagation

Building a hotbox for early seed sowing and propagation

Next, add a layer of sand, and then lay the cables on top of that. We got the Bio Green Warming Cables from Jungle Seeds, and you’ll see that they give basic instructions too for building a hotbox.

The cable is normally laid in runs 3″ to 4″ apart. This layout will allow you to raise the soil temperature by 11-13 C, above the greenhouse ambient. Higher temperatures can be achieved by laying the cable runs as close together as 5cm. In this case, a thermostat should be used to precisely control the soil temperature to avoid overheating.

After laying the cables, cover again with another layer of sand. Water all this well. It needs to be kept moist to give good heat transference.

building hot box propagation, early seed sowing and growing

building a hot box for propagation, early seed sowing and growing

 

 

building a hot box for propagation, early seed sowing and growing

building a hot box for propagation, early seed sowing and growing

A top tip is to cover the plug socket and thermostat with an upturned bucket. This prevents any water from getting in the electrics when watering the greenhouse!

At night, a layer of bubble wrap can go over the top to tuck your baby plants in.

 

 

 

 

 

 

building a hot box for propagation, early seed sowing and growing

building a hot box for propagation, early seed sowing and growing

That’s all there is to it! We’ve set leeks, board beans, chillies, lettuce and tomatoes away already and they are growing well in the hot box. You can see I’ve used sawn-off juice bottles as seed pots – waste not, want not!

Do get in touch if you have any questions!

Wishing you a very happy growing season.

As ever, we’d love you to share your thoughts, either by leaving a comment here or on our social media pages, where this article will be shared.

You can find the Bridge Cottage Way on Facebook Twitter and Instagram.

You might enjoy some of the writing and ideas in other sections of this website, as we look towards leading more sustainable lives by growing our own food and creating dishes in line with seasonal eating, or head to our handy ‘Month by Month’ guides to find out what we have been doing here at Bridge Cottage as the months go by:

 

Many thanks for reading.

With Facebook and Instagram algorithms being fickle friends at times, be sure to get all new posts from The Bridge Cottage Way by signing up for the mailing list here. This will go our four times a year, with the seasons in Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. We, of course, will not share your details with third parties, and you have the right to unsubscribe at any time.

Tim & Sue in the Bridge Cottage Way garden

Looking at Leeks: Growing and Eating.

/0 Comments/in , /by
Looking at Leeks: Growing and Eating

Looking at Leeks: Growing and Eating

Do you grow leeks? Would you like to grow leeks? They are a hardy crop, standing with patience and fortitude in the ground, month in, month out, waiting to be plucked. Tolerant of the cold and ice, they are a welcome treat in the depths of winter or as tender young things in the summer. I thought I’d share some tips I’ve learnt along the way, plus some tried and tested family recipes.

Looking at Leeks: Growing and Eating

Looking at Leeks: Growing and Eating

It is February and thoughts are turning to this year’s growing season. My granddaughter and I have been sowing leeks this week. One of the earliest crops to get underway. They will grow in pots indoors or a propagator and then go into the greenhouse to grow on during early Spring.  

Sow your leeks early in the season, Feb – April. Then sow again later in the year, to allow for a succession of crops. Read more about planting in succession here:
Looking at Leeks: Growing and Eating

Looking at Leeks: Growing and Eating

Start your leeks off in a deep pot – they like to send their roots deep down. This will help strong plants to grow. Just sprinkle on top of seed compost, and then cover with a fine layer. Pop somewhere fairly warm: a propagator, warm windowsill or sunny greenhouse once winter’s chill is over.

Looking at Leeks: Growing and Eating

Looking at Leeks: Growing and Eating

Don’t be tempted to put too many in the seed tray, or you’ll end up with far too many and they’ll be all choked up. We’ve been a bit heavy-handed with our seed sprinkling – you might want to give them a bit more breathing room than we have here!

 

 

 
Looking at Leeks: Growing and Eating

Looking at Leeks: Growing and Eating

Once your seedlings are large enough to handle – you need a good bit of growth at the top, tease them gently apart, and plant out in the veggie plot using a dibber or stick to make deep holes (about 15-20 cm deep). Don’t you just love that word, dibber. It instantly conjures up memories of helping my grandad in his garden. I have my lovely son to thank for making me my dibber. If you don’t have a dibber, find a stout stick! Pop your seedling in the hole and fill with water from a watering can. Plant with enough space so you can get a hoe in between rows to keep the weeds down later on That’s all there is to it!

You will be rewarded with delicious, nutritious leeks to feed yourselves and your families.

Here are some tried and tested recipes the family have loved here at Bridge Cottage. They all serve a family of four, so scale down for smaller portions. We are meat eaters, so have included bacon in the Leek and Bacon pudding, but feel free to leave it out.

Top tip – when washing leeks, slit the tops with a deep cross and hold upside down under running water, teasing out layer to get all the soil out. Nowt worse than a crunch of grit when you munch!

Looking at Leeks: Growing and Eating

Looking at Leeks: Growing and Eating

Cheesy Leek Gratin

Ingredients

4 large leeks

25g butter

½  tbsp plain flour

Approx. 1 pt milk

100g cheddar cheese

2 handfuls breadcrumbs*

Fresh parsley, finely chopped (optional)

*(whizz up some stale crusts in a food processor – top tip: keep a bag in the freezer so you never have to throw away stale bread)

Method

Wash the leeks well, and chop into chunks. Sauté in the butter for a couple of mins until just tender. Stir in the flour, and then add milk a little at a time until you have the consistency of double cream. Add grated cheddar and season with salt and pepper. Pour into an overproof dish.

Mix the breadcrumbs with chopped parsley, season and place on top of the leeks. Bake in a medium over for 10 minutes, or until breadcrumbs brown.

Leek & Bacon Pudding

Ingredients

125g / 5 oz wholewheat flour

1 ½ tsp baking powder

50g / 20z shredded suet

2 chopped leeks

3-4 rashers streaky bacon, chopped

1 tsp mixed fresh herbs or ½ tsp dried

I medium egg

Method

Mix together flour, baking powder, suet, leeks, bacon, herbs and season with salt and pepper.

Mix with egg, adding a little milk if necessary, to make a soft dropping consistency (so mixture drops off spoon when held aloft)

Grease a 600ml/1 pint pudding basin and put in a piece of greaseproof or parchment paper to just cover the bottom.

Put pudding mixture in basin. Cover with greaseproof paper and foil and tie with string.

Steam for 1 ½ hours. If you don’t have a steamer, place a saucer in the bottom of a large pan, and cover with boiling water. Place pudding on saucer and put lid on pan, topping up water when necessary.

Serve with parsley sauce.

Sue Reed writes for the Bridge Cottage Way

Sue Reed writes for the Bridge Cottage Way

There are, of course, lots of other recipes for leeks – we love a leek risotto, or that old favourite, leek and potato soup. 

As ever, we’d love you to share your thoughts, either by leaving a comment here or on our social media pages, where this article will be shared.

You can find the Bridge Cottage Way on Facebook Twitter and Instagram.

 

 

 

 

 

 

You might enjoy some of the writing and ideas in other sections of this website, as we look towards leading more sustainable lives by growing our own food and creating dishes in line with seasonal eating, or head to our handy ‘Month by Month’ guides to find out what we have been doing here at Bridge Cottage as the months go by:

Many thanks for reading.

With Facebook and Instagram algorithms being fickle friends at times, be sure to get all new posts from The Bridge Cottage Way by signing up for the mailing list here. This will go our four times a year, with the seasons in Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. We, of course, will not share your details with third parties, and you have the right to unsubscribe at any time.

Tim & Sue in the Bridge Cottage Way garden

Late Summer Sowing for Autumn & Winter Veg

/0 Comments/in /by

Autumn at Bridge Cottage

Autumn at Bridge Cottage

It is late Summer here, and Autumn is knocking on the garden gate. I have noticed the conker tree on the corner of the lane by the nature reserve is starting to change colour. The nights are drawing in, and last night we noticed it getting dark around nine. However, it is not time to give up sowing seeds! There is still plenty of warmth in the air and light in the skies to get some late summer seed sowing done.

July and August are the times to sow seeds for winter veg that can be harvested around Christmas, or overwintered when it will spring into life again once the warmer weather comes. If, along with the tardiness of this post, setting seeds away feels too late, then opt for buying plugs of seedlings. Good choices for sowing now are broccoli, both calabrese and purple or white sprouting, all the brassicas, ie cabbages, kale, cauliflower, sprouts, kohlrabi and oriental salads like mizuna, and rocket. Spinach and chard will get a good bit of growing done now, and then continue in Spring giving several early pickings in the new year.

Bridge Cottage Greenhouse

Bridge Cottage Greenhouse

If you have a greenhouse, then as soon as early crops and tomatoes have finished, get some spinach and chard in the ground. Lettuces and radishes are quick to grow, and pak choi, mizuna and rocket will love the cooler temperatures and not be so inclined to bolt. We are experimenting this year with growing a late summer sowing of French beans. I have made a note, however, in my garden journal, to set the seed away earlier next year. If we are too late, then all we will have lost are a few seeds. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. There is also time to sow some more soft herbs in the greenhouse, such as parsley and coriander. Plant your parsley out once the seedlings are bit enough to handle, and it will overwinter well, giving an abundance of vitamin C rich herbage in Spring.

Lifting onions in August

Lifting onions in August

We have just lifted our onions, and space there will be for my patiently waiting red cabbage, kohlrabi, Tuscan and red kale. ‘all year round’ cauliflower and sprouting broccoli. the slugs are doing their darndest to munch their way through them, and so a generous handful of wool pellets has been deployed.

Wool slug pellets on brassica plants

Wool slug pellets on brassica plants

The brassicas are also waiting patiently for us to build another structure for netting. There is nothing more soul-destroying than nursing your seedlings, keeping slugs and rabbits off them, only to find the cabbage whites have had a party on them, and caterpillars are making lace from the leaves. Net all brassicas as soon as they are planted and be aware that the cabbage white butterflies will still lay their eggs on the leaves if they so much as touch the outside. We have found out the hard way this year, which goes to show that there is always something new to learn. How my friend Julia, who is new to gardening, escaped with this unscathed and un-netted broccoli, I do not know how she has managed this. It is beautiful though, and I’m thrilled to hear of so many who have started growing their own veg this year, during the coronavirus pandemic. We will need our homegrown food more than ever in the years to come.

Did you read the article I shared on our social media pages this week? It was about community initiatives to grow food and support food banks and those in the community for whom fresh food is beyond their budget. We’re hoping at Hexham Fresh Food Bank to keep supplying our local food bank, West Northumberland Food Bank, with homegrown produce through the winter months. The challenge is on, so I’d better go and get some late summer sowing and planting done.

Guardian article: How coronavirus has led to a UK boom in community food growing

Thanks for reading, and happy gardening.

As ever, we’d love you to share your thoughts, either by leaving a comment here or on our social media pages, where this article will be shared.

You can find the Bridge Cottage Way on Facebook Twitter and Instagram.

You might enjoy some of the writing and ideas in other sections of this website, as we look towards leading more sustainable lives by growing our own food and creating dishes in line with seasonal eating, or head to our handy ‘Month by Month’ guides to find out what we have been doing here at Bridge Cottage as the months go by:

Many thanks for reading.

With Facebook and Instagram algorithms being fickle friends at times, be sure to get all new posts from The Bridge Cottage Way by signing up for the mailing list here. This will go our four times a year, with the seasons in Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. We, of course, will not share your details with third parties, and you have the right to unsubscribe at any time.

Tim & Sue in the Bridge Cottage Way garden

 

Growing Raspberries from the Bridge Cottage Garden

/0 Comments/in /by

Growing Raspberries

Growing Raspberries

As I write, it is July and raspberry season is in full swing. Every day I go out into the garden, and come back with a big bowlful, eating them for breakfast with our homemade yoghurt, or freezing to use later. It’s a very busy time in the garden, and we make the most of sunny days outside, but rainy days are busy making jams, jellies, vinegars and puddings. Raspberries are so easy to grow and seem to love these Northern climes. I remember well the summer job I had as an eighteen-year-old, up in Inverness at a raspberry picking farm, but I’ll leave those tales for the memoir!

Let’s take a look at growing raspberries. Firstly, where to get raspberry canes from? Any fellow gardeners or allotment holders who grow raspberries will be sure to have a few spare canes they can pull up for you. Don’t be shy, ask! Here in Hexham, we have a Facebook group, Hexham Plant Swop, and it’s a great place to source plants such as raspberry canes. Do you have one in your area, or could you set one up?

Growing Raspberries

Growing Raspberries

The ’cheap shops’ – Aldi, Lidl etc are also great places for soft fruit and can be relatively inexpensive. We’ve brought some great fruit trees and fruit bushes from Aldi.

Then of course, there are your garden centres, which will have a variety of summer and autumn fruiting varieties when the season is right.

If you grow a variety of summer and autumn raspberries, you will have this delicious soft fruit all summer long, extending into autumn. What a treat!

How to plant, grow and prune raspberries

Plant raspberry canes about 45 cm apart, in rows about 1.8 m apart. We grow them along the fence to the chicken field. Give the roots a good soak before they are planted. Raspberries like an open, sunny position, and will need to be tied in as they grow.

You may like to grow them in a clump or in a large container if space in the ground is short. You can use a central support for this.

Some people net their raspberries, to keep the birds away, but we have so many, I don’t mind sharing them with the blackbirds, who sit cheekily on top of the fence as I pick, or fly out from underneath the canes with pieces of ripe, red, juicy fruit in their beaks. They are welcome to a few, as long as they don’t take the piddle!

Mulching raspberries with grass cuttings

Mulching raspberries with grass cuttings

Give your raspberries some organic feed in the Spring, and mulch around the roots to prevent weeds and to keep the moisture in. We use grass cuttings for this.

Raspberries like to wander, and you’ll soon find canes popping up where they are not welcome. Just pull them up, donate to a friend, or consider establishing a new patch. It’s a good idea to move your raspberry patch every few years. You can let a new one grow where the suckers have popped up or dig up and transplant. This keeps them free or tolerant of virus diseases. If you do keep them in the same place indefinitely, the canes will become weaker, and the fruits smaller.

Are your raspberries summer fruiting or autumn fruiting?

 

 

 

Summer Fruiting Raspberries

Tie summer fruiting raspberry canes to a fence or stake

Tie summer fruiting raspberry canes to a fence or stake

July is the month when the summer fruiting raspberries are at their best here at Bridge Cottage, though further south this may well be June. Summer fruiting raspberries produce fruit on last year’s growth. You need to tie in your raspberry canes, either by using string to tie to a fence, as we have done in the photo here, of by providing a fence or stakes for support. As the fruits appear on the stems you have tied up, new shoots will appear in front, with green, young stems. These will bear the fruit next year.

When you have finished harvesting, which for us will be in August sometime, cut the fruited canes at ground level, and tie in the new, green canes. This can be done in winter, although I like to get it done as soon as the fruited canes have finished preventing the new ones becoming too battered by the wind.

 

Autumn Fruiting Raspberries

Autumn fruiting raspberries start to produce fruit for us at the end of August and will go through to the end of September. The canes with autumn raspberries tend to be shorter, and as such don’t need as much staking as the summer ones. Mine don’t have any staking at all. These will need pruning after they have fruited. Cut right down to the ground. This can be left to do in the winter.

growing raspberries

growing raspberries

Considering how expensive raspberries are in the shops, growing raspberries yourself makes great sense, especially considering how easy they are to grow. You’ll be reducing your single plastic use, by not buying fruit in plastic punnets, and reducing your carbon footprint by reducing the transport miles of your food. You will be able to enjoy fresh, organic food, at a fraction of the cost.

Raspberries and homemade yogurt

Raspberries and homemade yoghurt

There are so many ways to use raspberries, and I’d love to hear from you of some of your favourite ways of eating this delicious fruit.

We make our own yoghurt, so this is a simple but favourite way to enjoy raspberries for breakfast.

  • Make Your Own Yoghurt

 

Here are some of ours, and if you hop over to the Bridge Cottage Kitchen, you’ll find recipes for:

As ever, we’d love you to share your thoughts, either by leaving a comment here or on our social media pages, where this article will be shared.

You can find the Bridge Cottage Way on Facebook Twitter and Instagram.

You might enjoy some of the writing and ideas in other section of this website, as we look towards leading more sustainable lives by growing our own food and creating dishes in line with seasonal eating, or head to our handy ‘Month by Month’ guides to find out what is seasonal and on topic:

Many thanks for reading.

With Facebook and Instagram algorithms being fickle friends at times, be sure to get all new posts from The Bridge Cottage Way by signing up for the mailing list here. This will go our four times a year, around the Summer and Winter Solstices, and the Spring and Autumn Equinox. We, of course, will not share your details with third parties, and you have the right to unsubscribe at any time.

Tim & Sue in the Bridge Cottage Way garden

Thanks for reading. Best wishes, Tim and Sue Reed

 

Grow Better Veg with Companion Planting

/1 Comment/in , /by

Companion Planting - Courgette growing with calendula and borage.

Companion Planting – Courgette growing with calendula and borage.

Companion planting. Like us, plants have friends, and like us, they have are some they like more than others. For example, my potatoes love hanging out with horseradish but put the squashes right off their game.

Companion planting

Companion planting

We’ve known about companion planting for a while, and in the greenhouse, we take care to grow French Marigolds alongside the tomatoes. As well as looking very pretty, these attract the hoverflies, which much on aphids and other pests. Basil likes to be there too, but at a distance and prefers to stay in its pots.

Tomatoes and Marigolds. Companion Planting in the Greenhouse

Tomatoes and Marigolds. Companion Planting in the Greenhouse

We find it useful to start a few trays of calendulas, French marigold and nasturtiums off in the early spring, to pop in alongside beans, or in pots. Our courgettes are loving the companionship of borage and nasturtiums and are just coming into that prolific stage where you are scratching your head in the kitchen for some new inspiration with courgette recipes. The borage self-seeds from the year before – although strictly an annual, once you have borage in the garden, it won’t leave you.

 

 

 

Herb Society UK Companion Planting Poster

Herb Society UK Companion Planting Poster

We follow the Herb Society UK on both Facebook and Instagram, and this year bought a very useful poster from them, which is pinned to the back of the potting shed door. It gives a long list of plants, their companions, and antagonists.

I’d been wondering why, out of six squashes planted, two had yellowing leaves and were failing to thrive….the answer may well be that potatoes are antagonists to squashes. It will be interesting to see if they pick up once the potatoes have been dug up. We could move them, but where to? The garden is full to bursting. We may well pop a borage plant in there, as I see from my poster that borage is a good companion plant to squash – goodness knows, the borage is doing really well, providing masses of edible blue flowers as well as material to go in the dustbin for making organic comfrey feed. 

The onions are about to be lifted, and I see from our chart that carrots and beetroot both like onions, so it seems a good idea to pop in a few rows of late carrots and beetroot once they’ve been dug up. Although I’ll have to sneak in the beetroot – Tim thinks it’s the food of the devil – I disagree!

Next year, I’m looking forward to trialling the Three Sisters method of planting squash, beans and sweetcorn together – though whether there will be enough sun for sweetcorn in Northumberland remains to be seen.

I had a quick look on the internet for useful links and companion planting charts and have found a few, which I hope will be helpful to you.

Here are the links:

 

As ever, we’d love you to share your thoughts, either by leaving a comment here or on our social media pages, where this article will be shared.

You can find the Bridge Cottage Way on Facebook Twitter and Instagram.

You might enjoy some of the writing and ideas in other section of this website, as we look towards leading more sustainable lives by growing our own food and creating dishes in line with seasonal eating, or head to our handy ‘Month by Month’ guides to find out what is seasonal and on topic:

Many thanks for reading.

With Facebook and Instagram algorithms being fickle friends at times, be sure to get all new posts from The Bridge Cottage Way by signing up for the mailing list here. This will go our four times a year, around the Summer and Winter Solstices, and the Spring and Autumn Equinox. We, of course, will not share your details with third parties, and you have the right to unsubscribe at any time.

Tim & Sue in the Bridge Cottage Way garden

Thanks for reading. Best wishes, Tim and Sue Reed

Tying up Unruly Peas, Mangetout & Broad Beans

/0 Comments/in , /by

Mangetout in the Bridge Cottage Garden

Mangetout in the Bridge Cottage Garden

It’s June, and the crops are growing well in the Bridge Cottage garden, but I have unruly beds of broad beans and mangetout that have grown to be taller than me in places and are starting to waft and wave. If we get a windy day, they will snap, so I thought I’d better get them fettled.

First, the tops were nipped out. This will stop them getting any taller, help them to bush out, and the tips, lightly steamed are delicious to eat.

 

Pinch out the tips of broad beans and mangetout

Pinch out the tips of broad beans and mangetout

 

 

 

 

 

If growing broad beans, pinching out the tips will also help to deter blackfly. These are very tasty, lightly steamed.

Broad Bean tips

Broad Bean tips

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sharpening the ends of hazel poles to make stakes

Sharpening hazel poles for stakes

We coppiced a hazel tree in the winter, and so have these beautiful hazel poles to use. You could also use garden canes, but I like the rustic feel of the hazel, and am not a fan of going to garden centres unless I have to! Tim used an axe the sharpen the ends to make them easier to drive into the ground.

Beds of mangetout, peas and broad beans in the Bridge Cottage Garden

Beds of mangetout, peas and broad beans in the Bridge Cottage Garden

Placing the supports around the crops, I used natural twine, and wound it around the poles, skirting the broad beans and mangetout at three different height levels.

 

A job well done! Now my broad beans and peas can continue to grow without the risk of falling over or getting too tall.

 

 

 

 

Mmm, mangetout are delicious

Mmm, mangetout are delicious

We had a little visitor to Nanny and Grandad’s garden today, and she thought that her first taste of mangetout, freshly picked was ‘delicious’ 🙂

 

Are you growing peas, beans or mangetout?

 

Have you had your first harvest yet?

 

As ever, we’d love you to share your thoughts, either by leaving a comment here or on any of our social media pages, where this article will be shared.

You can find the Bridge Cottage Way on Facebook Twitter and Instagram.

You might enjoy some of the writing and ideas in other section of this website, as we look towards leading more sustainable lives by growing our own food and creating dishes in line with seasonal eating, or head to our handy ‘Month by Month’ guides to find out what is seasonal and on topic:

Many thanks for reading.

With Facebook and Instagram algorithms being fickle friends at times, be sure to get all new posts from The Bridge Cottage Way by signing up for the mailing list here. This will go our four times a year, around the Summer and Winter Solstices, and the Spring and Autumn Equinox. We of course will not share your details with third parties, and you have the right to unsubscribe at any time.

Welcome to the Bridge Cottage Kitchen & Seasonal Eating.

/0 Comments/in /by

Welcome to the Bridge Cottage Kitchen and our introduction to Seasonal Eating. 🙂

Welcome Bridge Cottage kitchen

Welcome Bridge Cottage kitchen

In this section of the website, we will look at seasonal eating to help you understand when different fruit and vegetables are ripe and ready. It is offered as a complement to the page, The Bridge Cottage garden, where we hold your hand as you plant and grow your crops. We will offer tried and tested recipes to enjoy home-cooked food when it is at its best, fresh and locally produced.  We will also look at pickling and preserving to help your precious produce last into the winter months.

There is much food to be gathered from the hedgerows, foraged for free. We will discuss the ethics behind foraging, and how to gather food from the wild without impacting on wildlife.

Tomatoes ripening on the vine

Tomatoes ripening on the vine

Supermarkets with their year-round array of fruit and vegetables have taken seasonal eating out of many folks’ consciousness, and with it, the taste. I don’t want to eat tomatoes in January that have been ground under plastic in Almeria in Spain, neither do I want to eat asparagus that has come from Peru. I want to eat English asparagus in the small window that it is available in June, and will wait for my tomatoes to be ripe and ready before I eat them. I guarantee they will taste like a different vegetable to the one that has sat on the supermarket shelf, wrapped in plastic, after having been shipping halfway around the world.

homemade jam

homemade jam

Do you have memories of your grandparents pickling and preserving fruit and vegetables? Both my grandmothers made jam, one with a shelf in the fridge door of strawberry jam, and the other who filled tiny paste posts with homemade raspberry jam. Mine were from the wartime generation who had to learn to make the most of what they had, and I believe we need to take a leaf out of their books and go back to those days. I wrote over in the Sustainable Living section of this website about how the bubble had burst. I strongly believe we need to reduce our spending, reduce plastic waste, and for the sake of the planet, reduce our carbon footprints. If I can keep out of the supermarkets I will. Never has it been more important to try and grow and cook as much of our own food as we can, and eat seasonally.

Gooseberry and elderflower ice cream

Gooseberry and elderflower ice cream

Over the year we will be making jam, jellies and chutneys together, drying herbs and making herbal teas, freezing summer fruit, churning ice-cream and making out own cheese and yoghurt. When Christmas comes, we’ll look at ways to keep it simple and homemade. So get saving your jam jars, don’t throw any containers or bags away. You’ll be needing them for in the coming months.

As ever, we’d love you to share your thoughts, either by leaving a comment here or one our social media pages, where this article will be shared.

You can find the Bridge Cottage Way on Facebook Twitter and Instagram.

You might enjoy some of the writing and ideas in other section of this website, as we look towards leading more sustainable lives by growing our own food and creating dishes in line with seasonal eating, or head to our handy ‘Month by Month’ guides to find out what is seasonal and on topic:

Many thanks for reading.

With Facebook and Instagram algorithms being fickle friends at times, be sure to get all new posts from The Bridge Cottage Way by signing up for the mailing list here. This will go our four times a year, around the Summer and Winter Solstices, and the Spring and Autumn Equinox. We of course will not share your details with third parties, and you have the right to unsubscribe at any time.

 

Why Bother? Gardening & Growing Food.

/0 Comments/in , , /by

Growing Food in The Bridge Cottage Garden

Growing Food in The Bridge Cottage Garden

Why do we go to all the bother of gardening and growing food? Indeed, a friend walked around our garden not so long ago and remarked, ‘this is my worst nightmare’. We have a large plot here, but whether you have a large or small garden, allotment or a few pots and a window box, growing food is, in our opinion not only rewarding and enjoyable but vital for the survival of the planet.

The taste of vegetables plucked fresh from the garden is incredible, not to mention the extra vitamins and minerals you’ll take on board compared to food that has sat on a supermarket shelf after making a journey halfway around the world. You will also be safe in the knowledge that your crops are free from pesticides, have not travelled for miles by boat or plane, and are not wrapped in plastic.  you will also get outside, for fresh air and exercise. Studies have shown that gardening and getting our hands in soil is very good for both our mental and physical health.  These should be reasons enough for all your hard work.

 

Growing Food in The Bridge Cottage Garden

Growing Food in The Bridge Cottage Garden

You will learn to eat seasonally, in tune with the growing calendar, enjoying the excitement of crops as they become ready, and then just as you sicken of them, another crop will pop up its head up and off you go in the enjoyment of that. Through the Bridge Cottage Way, we will hold your hand as you plant your first crops, telling you when it is time to plant, and guiding you through the whole growing process.

In the section, The Bridge Cottage Kitchen, we will take our fruit and vegetables indoors and explore recipes for tasty meals as well as ways to pickle and preserve to help us through the winter months. As well as food from the garden, we will also be writing about foraging and collecting food for free.

We live and garden in Northumberland, which is at the centre of Britain. Haltwhistle, just a few miles down the road from us claims to be the actual centre of Britain. There is one heck of a lot of Scotland above us. We will be writing about what we are growing and when we are growing it. However, if you are down south or in warmer climes, then you may well want to do everything just a little bit earlier. You will be able to sow and grow without the risk of snow in June! The same applies if you are reading this further north – you may need to wait a while.

Growing Food in The Bridge Cottage Garden

Growing Food in The Bridge Cottage Garden

We will write about all aspects of the garden, but with a particular focus on growing food. During lockdown there has been a surge in people beginning to grow fruit and vegetables for the first time. You might be visiting this site as a newbie, or like us, as old-timers who have grown food for decades. You are all very welcome.

You can visit the month by month section to find out what jobs need doing when, or use the search box on the home page if you are looking for a particular subject.

It’s time to pop out into the garden and pick some courgettes for dinner tonight, so we’ll say cheerio for now.

Happy gardening

Growing Food in The Bridge Cottage Garden

Growing Food in The Bridge Cottage Garden

 

 

As ever, we’d love you to share your thoughts, either by leaving a comment here or one our social media pages, where this article will be shared.

You can find the Bridge Cottage Way on Facebook Twitter and Instagram.

You might enjoy some of the writing and ideas in other section of this website, as we look towards leading more sustainable lives by growing our own food and creating dishes in line with seasonal eating, or head to our handy ‘Month by Month’ guides to find out what is seasonal and on topic:

Many thanks for reading.

With Facebook and Instagram algorithms being fickle friends at times, be sure to get all new posts from The Bridge Cottage Way by signing up for the mailing list here. This will go our four times a year, around the Summer and Winter Solstices, and the Spring and Autumn Equinox. We of course will not share your details with third parties, and you have the right to unsubscribe at any time.