Spade Work : From Plot to Plate

Importing Seeds and Vegetables: The Rules

I've often wondered what rules govern the importing of seeds and vegetables. What can I bring back from holidays; what am I allowed swap with other growers; can I take cuttings abroad and bring them home?

Well DEFRA has now published a useful leaflet to what you can and cannot bring in. Here's the link. We're pretty much unrestricted between EU countries but there are controls on bringing in some vegetables (potatoes in particular) from non EU countries.

As for what is happening in the garden at the moment - not a lot. The courgettes are doing very little, some Golden Sweet tomatoes are ripening despite our lack of heat, some chilli peppers are beginging to redden, the aubergines have stayed an inch or two long for months it seems. But the climbing beans seem to have liked all the rain so I'm expecting a good crop.

Moving Ground

This growing season has a long way to go but I've already started planning next years crops spurred on partly by the fact that I'm moving house in September and will be starting a new vegetable area in somewhat unpromising conditions.

It's going to be a challenge as the plot though fairly large and open (some tree felling planned) is on an east-west axis (though I'm currently gardening on a north-east facing plot surrounded by trees which throw some shade and roots and I'm still having success with vegetables) and the soil is sandy. But as I'm putting in raised beds I should be able to amend this as I go.

I'll be planting the mangetout Norli again. A good cropper, they were stringless, fairly sweet (they get sweeter with hindsight) and early. Can anyone recommend another mangetout or sugarsnap variety that they've had success with?

I'll try the potato Marfona to see if I can get a waxy potato that bulks up well and keeps.

The Franchi mixed lettuce leaves from Seeds of Italy are on the 'to order' list and I'll try to source some new garlic varieties.

There's not a lot I'll be bringing from the old plot to the new one, apart from the seed I've saved but I do have an asparagus bed that's in it's fifth year now and giving a good crop of fat spears. Has anyone ever moved asparagus crowns to new ground; how do I do it and does it work? Otherwise I fear I'm going to have to start over again and wait three more years before I can cut a half way decent crop.

Mr Little's Yetholm Gypsy

You can see better images of this potato, Mr Little's Yetholm Gypsy on Rebsie's site which really shows off the blue/purple pigment to the skin along with the creamy white mottling. They have an appealing Russian doll look to them.

Alan Romans relates in The Potato Book that the Little family of Yetholm obtained tubers of this variety at the first Yetholm Fair (a gypsy fair) after WWII and kept the line going.

I was a little forward in harvesting them now - it's an early maincrop variety - which I'd expect to pull in August but some leaves in the potato patch were showing signs of blight.

Each seed tuber (this variety is generally only available as a microplant in the UK but Rebsie generously swapped a few of her saved tubers) yielded about a pound of potatoes - not huge by the standard my Charlottes have set but ample for two.(Before we were watching our intake this would have been a meagre serving size! Ah, those were the days).

If I'd left them in the ground longer and played a game of risk with blight I expect they would have bulked up a little more. And judging by the number of tiny tubers which were just beginning to form I probably would have got more potatoes as well.

A pretty potato, it retained much of its colour when roasted. But the chewy skin (nice and earthy) didn't crisp up and was too close to being a soggy chip for my liking.

For comparison I boiled up a few tubers to have as a warm potato salad. Served this way it shows itself off better. The purple colour is retained and there is a noticeable waxy texture when boiled so some 'bite' remains - as you slice through it's much like a knife cutting through a large butter patty. If you dress it with the merest hint of honey, vinegar, grain mustard and mint you get a nice balance of sweet and sour.

It's strongest suit is that it looks good on the table; if it stores well then it will make it into the 'probables' for next year.

Vegetable Love

The more love and attention you give 'em the more they give back!

The Flower Cycle

London plays host to the Tour de France this weekend (I know, I know, nothing is as it seems anymore; they've even tried to bring the race to the US once).

Tomorrow the riders compete in a time trial, racing through central London and Hyde Park where this photograph was taken. On Sunday the race leaves London for the first stage to Canterbury and then returns to France.

I'd spotted this bedding display from the top deck of a bus the other day, tucked away along the edge of Rotten Row near Hyde Park Corner. I pedalled by on the way home this evening and I'm fairly sure not many have noticed it.

I'd been getting annoyed with the Royal Parks authorities as they now seem to think it fine to flog off  a public space for any number of events during the summer - so much so that it seems a good portion of Hyde Park was closed to (non) paying visitors for most of June. I must ask tourists what they think when they come to one of the worlds finest parks, perhaps on their way to Speakers' Corner or strolling from Marble Arch to Hyde Park Corner by Park Lane only to find ugly hoarding up, litter from last night's event and site traffic driving about.

But credit where it's due to the gardeners who laid out this floral celebration of the Tour de France.

Rain Stops Play

Here's the view from the allotment early last Saturday morning. Misty, sodden, drippy, just the day for a good book, plenty of tea and cake.

And if it had been a bit colder I'd have laid a log fire as well.

What a difference from last year when we were parched.