Sunday 24 January 2016

Happy New Year 2016

So, here we are again at the start of another gardening year.

Lots of seed catalogues to look at, things to order and planning what to grow, to eat and to cut.

My current fave is the Sarah Raven website
https://www.sarahraven.com/

mostly because last year this was the only convenient place for me to obtain Ratte potatoes which are totally our favourites.


Small main crop potatoes with a great buttery and slightly nutty taste these are definitely the pick of the crop.
As usual, planted too many but came in useful to trade with fellow allotmenteers for their surplus goodies. 
Just yummy.

Plus, not wanting to pay further postage costs I wanted to order some annual flower seeds for a cutting garden in the allotment.

These especially were brilliant.

Ammi majus

White Scabiosa
Centaurea cyanus

Cosmos sonata


All of these grew brilliantly.

Have spent some time again looking at heritage and heirloom seed sites. The range and names always bedazzle me and I get totally carried away.


This is one of the more quirky heritage ones, which needless to say appeals to me greatly but it's also extremely informative.


How can anyone not want to grow Spignel Meum?


A member of the carrot family, both roots and leaves can be eaten.

And who could refuse Good King Henry seeds from





Think the leaves give this one away - similiar to spinach, can do everything spinach can but with the added bonus of the young shoots, tied in bundles when cooked and eaten taste like asparagus. You can even saute the flower buds in butter.

Must stop now.......getting totally carried away!