It’s been a very dry April so far. Normally we have April showers. The garden is suffering a bit and some watering has had to be done. Still some lovely things to see though.
The apple blossom is wonderful. Pale pink and fragrant with the prettiest clusters of petals.
Forget-me-nots with their dainty blue flowers and citrus yellow, or orange, Welsh poppies are springing up here and there. The poppy petals are like crumpled silk. So lovely. The seeds blow around in the Summer and I let them flower where they choose. Nature has a big part to play in this garden.
In a small bed we grow wildflowers and a few annuals and it’s interesting to see what appears each Spring. This year some lovely pink Campion have popped up. The flowers are pretty and good for bees and other insects, so they are welcome.
Other lovely flowers are sprinkled here and there.
We have a tiny purple Rhododendron and a bigger, deep pink, one. They’re both in pots. They struggle a bit but are lovely at this time of year. If only the flowers would last a bit longer! Of course, that brief pleasure makes it all the more special each time it happens.
Talking of struggling – I have one cauliflower forming a lovely white head but everyday I find little slugs on it! No matter how many times I remove them I find more have taken their place. This is inside a polytunnel, well protected, you would think. I might have to give up on cauliflower!
My stored garlic from last year’s crop is on its last legs. I just have two bulbs left and they’re sprouting and losing their juicyness. This year’s look promising but won’t be ready for a few more weeks. I might have to dig one up before harvest time.
I’m nursing little seedlings now for this year’s vegetables. It’s important to keep them sheltered and moist but not over-watered or they will rot. That’s known as “damping off”.
I enjoy watching them appear and grow. The novelty never wears off, even though I’ve been doing this for a very long time. I still love that miracle of new life.
Some of my readers might remember I have a thermal cooker. It’s basically a large thermal flask with an inner pan which enables me to cook with a minimum of power. I use it to cook meat and soups mainly but I remembered I had a cake tin which sits on a trivet inside. I only made one cake and didn’t like it. It was soggy and solid. But, I began thinking that with the ridiculous cost of electricity perhaps I could use it to cook other things.
So I harvested a lovely cabbage for an experiment. I made cabbage parcels. These are cabbage leaves wrapped around a filling. I popped them inside the cake tin, which stands in boiling water in the pan, simmered the water for ten minutes, then transferred the pan to the thermal container and left it for three hours. No electricity required at this stage. It would have taken at least forty-five minutes in the oven with a surrounding sauce or stock or much longer by steaming on the hob.
It worked perfectly! The filling was cooked to perfection and it was really nice.
I also did stuffed mushrooms in the same way and was pleased with the result. A thermal cooker is definitely something to be recommended with the price of fuel.
I had four small, very ripe, bananas to use up, so I baked my banana and cranberry loaves. Really nice, sliced with a spread of butter.A firm favourite of ours.
The recipe can be found on a earlier post with the title, “Banana Loaf and Apple Blossom” , April 21st 2021, or in my Earthy Homemaker’s Cookbook which can be found by clicking this link:
My knitting needles have been clicking again. I’m making small teddies. One is finished and he’s now smartly dressed in trousers and jumper. Another is on the way and will probably have a dress. A pleasant way to spend a little time and fun to see the end result.
I hope some little person will love to have one and treasure it.
Another week gone. The time flies by. April almost over. Time to sow more seeds for hot weather plants like runner beans, cucumbers, squashes and courgettes. Must get on with that but keeping an eye on the temperature because they are susceptible to frost damage.
I hope you’re enjoying Spring and finding lots of things to do. Bye for now. With you again next week.
Living a contented creative life. 