Harvest Monday and Norwich riverside walk (in the rain)

On Wednesday (my day off) I fitted in a couple of hours on the plot, working on redoing the old raised beds. I'm nearly there on one set and will hopefully start on the next ones soon. Unfortunately the weather was a bit rubbish this weekend so I didn't get down again - rainy on Saturday and REALLY windy on Sunday (so I hunkered down and read 'This book will save your life' by A.M. Homes - a very good fiction book if you're after a good read.)

 

On Wednesday I also sowed my tomato and pepper seeds, ooh.

Because they like a warm temperature to germinate there's a few things you can do easily to help them on their way, including....Bringing some compost into the house a few days before using to get it to room temperature, moistening the compost with room temperature water rather than straight from the tap. I also cover my tray of seeds with bubble wrap.

I tried to be organised by first filling all the modules with compost (using a teaspoon so as not to be too messy in the lounge), then compressed the compost down a bit using a spare set of modules to push on them. Next I could just go through all the seed packets one by one sowing what I wanted without having to stop-start with filling with compost.

Here they are after popping all the seeds in but before sprinkling a thin layer of compost on top. I prefer to sow them in modules rather than a tray so they don't need pricking out (and instead just pinch-out the weaker seedlings). I use cut-up margarine tubs as labels.

It's better to water from below to avoid spoiling the compost structure, so I fill the tray with room temp water, leave it for 10-15 minutes for the compost to absorb the water and next, instead of tipping out the water (and accidentally tipping over your seed modules, which I've done before, ahem) I move the modules into a fresh tray, then put near the window, wrapped in bubble-wrap. It doesn't look very pretty but does the job! Grow little seeds, grow.

 

Harvests this week have included more cress and bean sprouts on the windowsill, lots of corn salad and some rough greens (chard and kale) from the plot. We used the greens for a quick meal, steamed with poached eggs on sourdough toast, yummy.

I also made some lovely roast potatoes, parsnip and beetroot with Rosemary, (the last of the parsnips, ah). But I will be sowing this year's parsnips soon, inbetween the rows of autumn broad beans (which are looking rather sorry for themselves after the windy weather).

 

A quick report on my latest batches of apple cider vinegar, simply made from water, apple cores / peel and a bit of honey. The one on the left is two weeks old and on the right is just-made. Quite a colour difference.

A good ferment on the older one, (which I've since removed all the peel/cores from and which will take a few more weeks to mature. It still tastes nice, just not vinegary). I had to keep an eye on it in the first few days as actual mould was appearing on top and needed removing.

Norwich Riverside Walk

And finally, it was raining on Saturday but we had to pop into the city centre to pick up some groceries. We both felt like we needed to stretch our legs a bit so went the long way in, via the riverside walk....(Photos by Jan)

Pull's Ferry, a medieval gatehouse (now the girl guides' HQ) where a side channel from the river used to lead up to the cathedral for deliveries. The channel has since been filled in and is called Ferry Lane, lined with lovely flint buildings

Norwich (Anglican) Cathedral, viewed from Pull's Ferry. (We have a Roman Catholic cathedral too). Peregrines nest on a platform on the spire, put in by the Hawk and Owl Trust.

Egyptian geese breed in a nearby tree. They're lovely looking birds but apparently are a bit of an invasive species.

Medieval 'Cow Tower', on a big meander in the river. There wasn't a wall needed in this part of the city as the river formed the barrier, but the tower meant that the area could be overseen easily. We've got more medieval heritage than you can shake a stick at in Norwich!

I could go on rambling but will stop there for now.

This week I'll be checking exactly when to plant out my onion sets and when did I sow my parsnips last year? (I didn't write down either in my notebook so will have to look through blog posts, it will be a nice reminder anyway).

 

Thanks for reading....linking in with Harvest Monday hosted by Dave at Our Happy Acres.

 

 

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