Little helpers and Offa's Dyke
Enlli was fab, and we finished our mini time out with a bit of a run (14 or so miles?) along Offa's Dyke - what a stunning bit of countryside, we're so lucky - and we're feeling well rested and ready (I think?) for what May has to throw at us!!
In the field:
Everyone was put to work to make up for a few days off last week! Little hands are getting more helpful each growing season :)
It's all hotting up in the field...in more particular order, we've planted out 3 beds of kale that have been hardening off for the last 2 weeks, pricked out another bed of leeks (boring and fiddly - Chris's words!), planted out a bed of chard, potted on cucumber and courgettes, pricked out a bed of spring greens, weeded 5 or 6 brassica beds then flail mowed the flowering brassicas and covered with tarps, put compost on to 3 or 4 beds. Pinched out the tops of 50 feetof broad beans and sown some red carlin peas (first time!). And, of course, weeding and daily watering. Harvested 12kg chard, 2.5kg spinach, and 3.5kg salad.
In the boxes:
Small - purple sprouting broccoli, sweet potato, celery, oranges, Prion salad or spinach
Regular - Prion chard, leeks, spring greens, oranges, cherry tomatoes, palermo peppers, asparagus (just one bunch left over and we had to play scissors, paper, stone for it with the brilliant Sarah who helps us on a Tuesday).
Just a reminder, the potatoes, carrots, onions have all seen better days, onions v small, carrots bit slimy, potatoes growing eyes. The time will come for the lovely new ones, we just need to be patient! We're putting extra potatoes in at the moment to make up for any dodgy ones, but fewer carrots (we've had to throw away about 10kg so just don't have that many).
In the shop:
Plenty of: potatoes, onions, leeks, mushrooms, sweet potatoes, parsnips, beetroot, fresh garlic / ginger / turmeric
Limited: carrots, red peppers, spring greens, cherry vine tomatoes,. celery, Prion salad / spinach / chard, local lettuces, rhubarb
Fruit: Lemons, oranges, bananas, satsumas,
+ Eggs, bread from Nant Y Felin, other organic pantry bits.
Next week some heirloom tomatoes from Isle of Wight (whoop whoop) and likely one of the last week's for purple sprouting broccoli.
Recipe inspiration:
Here's what Riverford tells you to do with asparagus.
And if you've got celery and need some ideas here's a few.
have a lovely week
#enjoy that tasty veg