Author Archives: james

Winter salads

Posted on November 6, 2026 by james

On 21st October I got seeds for winter salad leaves sown and under the grow light. A tray each of mustards (Golden Streaks, Red Frills and Pizzo), Land Cress, Corn Salad and various non-hearting lettuces including Reine des Glaces, Rouge … Continue reading →

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Into the dehydrator they go!

Posted on November 6, 2026 by james

The pepper halves certainly smell nicely smoked now, so they just need drying out. Unsmoked ones I dry in the airing cupboard, but if I try that with the smoked ones, “words” may be said ?

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Any connection?

Posted on November 6, 2026 by james

Apparently DPD were one of the businesses affected by the power(?) issue at Google on 20th October. We had a parcel delivered by them that day, three weeks earlier than expected 😀

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Phwoooaaaar!

Posted on November 6, 2026 by james

Will you get a load of the cayennes on that?! Some time in September I try to sow lots of lettuces, mustards and other salad leaves that I then plant out in the polytunnel, ideally the day after I remove … Continue reading →

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Smoking peppers

Posted on November 6, 2026 by james

These are Zitava sweet peppers, apparently perfectly edible as is though they’re not very fleshy, but I’ve grown them specifically to make paprika, and in today’s case, smoked paprika. I’ve never done this before so I’m quite excited to see … Continue reading →

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Stop! Thief!

Posted on November 6, 2026 by james

We had our own sweet chestnuts for the first time ever this year. Or rather, “we” didn’t. The bloody squirrels did ?

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Saving cucumber seeds

Posted on November 6, 2026 by james

I’ll be saving the seeds from this cucumber for next year 😀

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More apple pressing

Posted on November 6, 2026 by james

I spent a few days in mid-October pressing more apples, including one batch of around quarter of a tonne that I had to split over two days. Last year that would have been easy in a single day ? Even … Continue reading →

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101 uses for old honey jars, #37

Posted on November 5, 2026 by james

Saving tomato seeds. Non-F1 varieties, obviously. Tomatoes don’t generally cross-pollinate, so it’s possible to just pick a ripe fruit and keep the seeds. Given that lots of tomato seeds have become quite expensive and that I might grow as many … Continue reading →

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Yesterday’s tomato harvest

Posted on October 12, 2026 by james

They’ve done so well this year and there are still plenty more to come. The cherry tomatoes in the middle are Garnet. I’ve eaten a decent handful almost every lunchtime since July. They’ve been so sweet this year. Makes all … Continue reading →

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