When walnut trees go bad, or, that explains the rubbish tomatoes

I was fairly baffled by how poor my tomato crop was this year- I put it down to multiple heat waves, not pruning the tomatoes enough and possibly choosing the wrong varieties for the location…last year I had x2 tomato plants in pots next to the front door that didn’t receive much attention and they …

Autumnal assessment

And voila- summer over, equinox blew by and here we are in autumn!  Right now that means a freezer full of goat, a potager that just won’t stop producing chard and courgettes, and now a nice little pile of pumpkins.  I still can’t find the secret chicken nest- so only 1-2 eggs a day.  Aaaaand …

Potager year one: hmmmmm

Harvest time! Sort of. Not the most abundant potager harvest this season- and that isn't just because I am being greedy, which I probably am, but a couple other reasons as well: Unusually hot dry summer (most people we know with a veg patch are grumbling)Hey – it is the first year…we are bound to …

A summer taste of home: bread and butter pickles

A number of people have asked for my recipe for Bread and Butter Pickles so I thought I would share – it was given to me by an American friend who lives in Clun which is a village on the Welsh border in Shropshire (thank you Linda!).  Apart from a little bit of patience it …