Smart Feeder - Light sensor values

[Lesley]

I’ve been asking Carl to pick the courgettes for me while my back was bad – just found out that he’s been picking ones the right size and leaving the big ones to grow even bigger!! – he didn’t think he should pick them as they weren’t any good! I grew mostly pale varieties this year to prevent us having to cope with 'marrows' which had grown unseen

This is what I picked this morning........

 

 

Ten of the twelve plants..... butternut plants behind them....

 

 

The garlic crop wasn't too bad - I have bulbs for keeping (Provence) and some which will only keep a short time as it had started to make flower spikes and a few which are only fit to use straight away. We lost a few bulbs as just as it was ready to lift we had a lot of rain and some rotted.

 

 

[Cinnamon]

Super garlic - it the pink one in the last picture the 'Provence' variety?

[Lesley]

I think so Sarah - I did use labels but the writing had disappeared by the time I harvested

 

I ordered from the same place as you - Isle of Wight - and had Lautrec and Provence. I think it is the Lautrec which grew flower stalks and won't keep - they were all in the same bed and same conditions.

[Cinnamon]

Odd,isn't it?

Mine were all in the same bed too,& some did much better than others.

 

The one that did very well for me is a hardneck variety (apparently) & that is supposed to grow a flower stalk.

Wish I had known that before - I was fretting that it had all gone wrong

[Lesley]

That's interesting - the one which grew best for me is the soft-neck Provence.

 

I've just been and checked the site and Lautrec is a hard-necked variety and luckily I did the right thing and snapped off the stalk. The bulbs are quite small though. They are the white bulbs to the left of the blue crate in the photo.

 

Also, apparently I should have dried them with the leaves on - hey-ho! We were forecast rain all day Monday......overnight....and all day today ....... so I lifted it and got rid of the leaves, I'm sure it will dry and be fine.

 

We haven't had any of the promised rain

[chickencam]

Great courgettes and garlic. Your courgette mountain makes mine look like a mole hill I only have 4 plants, one I bought as a plant from the garden centre early on and the others were from the BBC Dig In free seeds and the variety name was Black Beauty so I expected them to be dark skinned but they are light skinned

 

My courgette plants are growing great guns, but only one of my butternuts is growing the others are sitting looking limp despite watering. I think they needed better conditions when they were planted. Your butternuts look great.

 

I have a huge pumpkin plant which has loads of little yellow pumpkins on it, I bought this as a plant too and it is much healthier than my mini pumpkin plants that I grew from seed.

 

What do you use most of your courgettes for, do you freeze them in any form? Not sure why I am asking because my freezer is full and I have a carrier bag full of French beans to find room for today

[Daphne]

extremely impressive

 

As an aside I've just come back from hols visiting a place I used to live in in France. Lautrec is a beautiful hilltop village nearby and I expect you know their garlic is famed far and wide and sold around Aug/Sept mostly. It is small even over there, but it is always tinged pinky/purple.

[Lesley]

Yes, mine is very pale pink - I thought it might be a bit more obvious than it is.

 

Chickencam - I'm struggling with the courgette mountain - I hadn't planned for the plants to do as well as they have - I'll be grating some to keep in bags in the freezer to make courgette cake, I have Mrs. Frugal's recipe for Sweet Courgette Relish, we have courgettes every night no matter what is on the menu

Carl took eggs for the regulars today and they got free courgettes

 

If they continue to do so well then I'm sure the pigs will help out - and at least we'll be eating them in a roundabout way!

[chickencam]

Aah pigs, that's what I need

 

We took some into OH's office on friday and 2 went to Cornwall with B & SIL for their holidays.

 

We also have a French bean glut, we went out for lunch yesterday with B & SIL they had vouchers for Cafe Rouge and nearly everything on the menu had French Beans with it, we chose meals without them and even them OH still ended up with some that weren't listed with his dish.

[Lesley]

 

Our french beans are just starting..........

 

We had a visitor ask for duck eggs yesterday - I had to tell her they came with compulsory, free, courgettes!

[Alis girls]

I pulled up what I thought was an old onion left over and up came a huge fist sized garlic. In garage drying. Chickens dont like garlic plants so baccaded my toms in with them

[Alis girls]

Very envious Lesley - my courgettes, pumpkins and useless this yr. My hairdresser gave me some her mum had grown - about 8 -I got impression she was fed up of them - made souffle and a choc and courgette cake and still have 4 left. I gave her some eggs in return

[Valkyrie]

Yummmmm, Lesley.

[Tiggy]

your veg plot is very impressive, I got back from holiday and mine is totally overgrown with tomatoe plants, I got some council compost & it must have been full of seeds, there is a forest out there

[Lesley]

That sounds like our previous garden - we moved here but still owned the house for 15 months and when we went back to tend the garden we found the chicken run full of tomatoes and sunflowers