Strawberries and Wine

We’ve reached the Summer Solstice so Summer has officially begun. The heat some days is intense. Too hot by day to work in the garden but the evenings are pleasant. So much going on now with flowers, fruit and vegetables.

I harvested my little crop of garlic which I planted in Autumn. The bulbs are small but will taste really good and last for a few months. I lifted them and left them in the greenhouse for a couple of days to dry off the skins. Then I rubbed away the dirt and trimmed the leaves and roots.

My tomato plants seem on the small side this year so far. I think the earlier cold nights set them back. Even though the greenhouse was hot by day the temperature plummeted on several nights. Tomatoes are appearing though so all is not lost. I’m feeding them with liquid seaweed and I spread comfrey leaves on the bed as a nutritious mulch. I think they’re picking up at last.

We’ve enjoyed the first of this year’s peas and very nice they were too. Podding peas is a pleasant chore and of course several have to be tasted in the process. A perk of the job.

The strawberries have been abundant again. From my two small raised beds I’ve harvested about five kilos already and there are more to come. The freezer is packed for winter jam making and desserts.

It’s important to protect strawberries from the birds. Blackbirds love soft fruit. The nets should be pulled taut and not just draped or birds become tangled in it and are harmed. My husband made me two netted canopies that just sit on top of the beds. They’re lightweight and I can just lift them off and replace them easily.

Other fruits are developing for later in the year. Apples, pears and plums.

Small and delicious new potatoes are ready. I just scrape away a bit of soil to find a few and try not to disturb the plant. Any tiny potatoes can keep on growing. Love these with my home-made mint sauce and broad beans. No blackfly on the beans yet. My fingers are crossed!

So many lovely flowers this month but changing by the week. The peonies are over now but have been so wonderful to see for a while. I have two in pots and each had only four flowers but such a delight to the eye.

Other pretty flowers are giving pleasure too.

The garden has several separate areas which are pleasing in their own ways.

I found a beautiful Cinnabar moth on the rhubarb. They have lovely orange and black stripey caterpillars which feed on ragwort. So if a ragwort springs up in your garden don’t be too hasty in removing it because you might help these lovely creatures to survive.

Indoors, we’ve enjoyed the last of my bottled parsnip wine. I have another demijohn waiting to be bottled but I didn’t make any last winter. It’s well worth the effort but it is a lot of work preparing the parsnips. Good thing it tastes so good. It’s very potent so we only have small amounts. It’s the pleasure of the taste and feel in the mouth that matters to us. We have no desire to overdo it.

My method, adapted from Ian Ball’s book “Winemaking the Natural Way” produces perfectly clear wine without the addition of chemicals. It’s very simple and only uses good natural ingredients. I keep the wine for a year before I bottle it. It’s superb! Fully detailed instructions are in my “Earthy Homemaker’s Cookbook”. You can find it with this link:

https://geni.us/eANQu

We liked the Banana and Orange Buns I invented so much that I bought extra bananas and made more. This time I doubled my recipe and cooked the mixture in my big roaster so that I could cut it into squares. Simpler than filling bun cases.

The recipe for the buns is on my last post. Available if you scroll back. I hadn’t thought of these when I compiled my little cookbook so it’s not available in there. Plenty of other cakes to enjoy though and easy to make.

With you again in two weeks time. Stay cool and refreshed while you enjoy the flowers and delicious food that the Summer garden offers. Bye for now.