Well, it's that time of year when food supplies from our 2016 sowings are almost over. I went out last week to cut the last of the cabbage & despite three icy nights, this had stood well ('January King') & I was able to shred, blanch & freeze 5 good-sized bags.
A quick squidge down to the greenhouse this morning revealed that the rocket I sowed in late autumn is pretty much ready for cutting, so that will be a tasty addition to winter salads.....especially as there's a shortage of so much imported salad stuffs at the moment.
This variety is 'Wildfire'. I bought a cheapo trial pack a couple of years ago & it's reliable & with a spicier flavour than some rockets we've grown, so I tend to choose this one now. I always re-use one of my summer grow bags to get a rocket sowing in around late Oct/early Nov & that will do its thing quite happily in an unheated greenhouse....... until now, when I suddenly remember I've got 'free' salad ready to cut.
Another nice saladdy bonus this morning was finding that the watercress has over-wintered.
I've blogged before about how I grow this using an old washing-up bowl method, so I won't go on about that again, but as it was still cropping in November, I didn't tip it into the compost for winter, like I usually do, but brought it into the greenhouse. I'll cut it soon for some watercress soup or salad, then water it well & it will probably shoot again in time for spring.
It's great to discover the garden still providing little treasures, but really, this time of year is all about planning & deciding what to grow for the year ahead. This always begins with a conversation with the Big Hairy Half of the Relationship about what grew well last year, what was rubbish, what we'd like more.....or less of & whether we want to try anything new. Then, it's time for the Annual Sorting of the Seed Box - quite probably one of my most favouritest times of the year!
Parky - remember buying this seed box for me years ago? Well, I still use it absolutely every year. I keep my general seed stash in a large air-tight plastic box, then at this time of year, my seed filing box comes out & I sort them all into their correct sowing months, with additional sections for my seed shopping list & the empty packets of stuff already sown, so I can check back for things like height/cropping time, etc.
And here we are all ready to get started. Can't wait! I only have one 'January' sowing each year, & that's our chillies. I usually grow 2 or 3 varieties but I've had such good crops in 2015 & 2016 that I still have plenty of 'Jalapeno' & 'Heatwave' in the freezer, as well as plenty of dried red 'Superchilli' & home made chilli flakes (which I make by blitzing up all the old dried ones when the new crops come in). This year, I'm just growing 'Tropical Heat' which is a Caribbean scotch bonnet mix. They're as hot as Hades, but have a fab fruity flavour & they make the BEST pineapple chutney. So they're in! I sowed them earlier this week in my little heated propagator. We're off the blocks!!
Cheers for now,
C xx
