Save their souls!

Assortment of dry seed pods and husks

And by souls I mean seeds. Seeds, glorious seeds, those little organic packages bursting with all the intelligence and potential for new plant life. I think my fascination with plants stemmed from my initial learnings about the cleverness of seeds. It amazed me that something so small, delicate and lets be honest a bit feeble looking could sit in the ground throughout the cold winter, biding its time until the warmer months when it somehow knew it was time to pop out and start growing. Ignorant in my young age, I now understand a bit more about the life cycle of plants and how their methods have evolved to enable them to procreate and reappear year after year. I'm not going to get all scientific now about the reproductive tendencies of plants because that would make for a very long blog post. I'm focusing on the aptly named self seeding plants which i have so much respect for. These cunning plants - knowing they are sadly not going to survive the frosts of winter - leave behind hundreds of potential offspring at the end of their flowering lives. Although many of these don't make it because they get eaten, rot away or were not properly fertilized in the first place, some survive and go on to germinate when the soil warms up as Spring approaches.  


Broad beans shelled from dry pods

Even though I have every faith in some of my favourite self-seeding flowers (Calendula, Borage, Poppy....) re-appearing each year I make seed collecting an imperative activity. Saving seeds is also a great idea because it means next year you can also start off some plants earlier indoors before planting them out giving them a head start against their brother and sister seeds left in the ground.  It is also great to have a seed bank as a store for the future and also to have seeds which you can swap with others. In terms of vegetable seeds, you can save a lot of money by collecting your seeds (provided they are not hybrid - as these seeds are not guaranteed to have the same characteristics as the ones you planted). You can also pick and choose, selecting the crops that did really well and if you continue to do this year on year you will have plants that are well adapted to their conditions. Collecting seeds also brings you closer to being self sufficient and means you can spend less on buying new seeds each year. 


Plant maracas, poppy seed heads



There is nothing particularly difficult about seed saving, it all comes down to timing. Its best to wait for seed pods to dry on the plant and then collect them and store in old envelopes/paper bags/packets made from newspapers. If you are saving seeds from fruits like tomatoes, make sure to remove all the goopy bits and let the seeds dry out before storing as damp seeds will just rot.



Calendula seed husks and seeds

As many plants are nearing the end of their seasonal life, it is the best time to start collecting their seeds now, so that you can build up a bit of store for next year. It's not just about planting them, seeds also have a many other beneficial uses. Many veg seeds are great edibles such as toasted sunflower and squash seeds make great nutritious snacks. Leftover dry beans can be soaked and cooked up in winter soups and casseroles. Herbs seeds like coriander are also great for using in cooking. I'm also going to use the poppy seed pods as decorations with other dry flowers. 

So when you next venture out into the garden to pick flowers or harvest your veg spare a thought for those little seeds and start stashing them away to begin your own seed bank. In my opinion, it will be this years safest and most enjoyable investment!

 

  

Would you eat that?

Compost food waste to stop it going to landfill

Yesterdays Countryfile's Sunday show on BBC1 bought to our screens the disgusting truths about food waste in the UK. John Craven explained the shocking figures relating to the mountains of good, often unopened food that we toss nonchalantly into our general household rubbish on a daily basis. One of the main problems it seemed was that people these days don't seem to be able to tell whether the food in their fridges and cupboards is still safe to eat. This is made even more complicated with the myriad of date labels put on by the food producers and retailers. The recommended dates are often overly cautious and should be used with a persons good judgment about the state of the food. While analysing the 'to be chucked' pile of food from one mothers food store, Emma Marsh, from Love Food Hate Waste explained what the food date labels really mean. Display until is used by the retailer to know how long to leave the product on the shop shelf for and can generally be ignored by the consumer. Best before is simply the date after which the food will not be at its best, but is still perfectly safe to eat. Use by is the date you should take notice of especially if the packaging of the food has been opened. However, in my opinion, depending on the food, there are plenty of occasions when it is ok to eat food that has passed its Use by date, even more so if it hasn't been opened. This is where personal consumer judgment needs to be more effective. It's not rocket science, if a food looks alright (no signs of mould or weird colouring), smells ok (not putrid and festering) and tastes ok (not fizzy or too offensive) then it is probably ok to eat. I'm not encouraging people to take risks, just to be a little bit more independent when deciding what is still edible.

A new plot in the East

My new growing plot at Cordwainers Garden, a Capital Growth community urban food growing project in Hackney and a stones throw away from my new home up on Morning Lane. With the heavy lifting stage of constructing the raised bed (from recycled scaffolding planks) and putting in the soil/compost mix complete, it is now time for the seeds to do their thing. This late in the season I stuck to planting a mixture of hardy winter crops and fast maturing crops that will be ready before the colder weather hits us in a few months time. This includes some winter veg (kale, spinach beet), hardy lettuce (trying out Mizuna), beetroot (for young little roots), winter carrots and some radishes. Watch this space!

 New plot complete with recycled wood, re-used wooden cutlery as crop labels, last years jerusalem artichoke stalks to hold up the protective netting and re-used bricks to hold down netting.

 If you go down to the bottom of the garden...

A few little friends already popping us....Good Morning radishes :)

Breading with Gluts

Owing to the fact that we are at the peak of glut season with all the great fruit and veg around here are a few bread recipes I adapted to make use of the abundance of tomatoes and courgettes...

Basic bread recipe
3 cups wholemeal flour
2 cups of white flour
Yeast (usually 1 sachet)
Pinch of salt
1 or 2 tsp sugar
1 tbsp oil (or more if you want a richer bread)

1. Put the sugar and yeast into a glass and add some warm water ( Do this first so it starts activating while you are weighing out dry ingredients)
2. Mix the dry ingredients together and then add the yeast
3. Mix these together, adding a little more water if needed and the oil
4. When you have formed a douch knead the bread well for 15 minutes
5. When you have reached a good elasticity and soft dough leave in a warm place for at least 30mins (1 hour is good if you have the time)
6. When the dough has risen nicely need it again briefly and shape
7. Place on baking tray and leave for 15 mins before baking at 190C for about 30 mins or until the bread has a brown crust (i sometimes turn the bread over towards the end to help it cook right through)

Adaptions for gluts.
- Add in a cup of grated courgettes ( you will need a bit less water beause of the juice from the veg)
- Add is a cup of chopped tomatoes
- Before baking rub some oil onto the bread and roll through fresh herbs like rosemary or oregano

Baking bread is also a great way to use up things reaching their best before dates lurking at the back of kitchen lardars and stock cupboards such as old nuts, dried fruits, olives, chocolate (!), spices (great for adding colour too) or whatever takes your fancy, get creative!

(Camera currently on strike but photos to follow soon!)

Blackberrying 101

In the foragers calendar the blackberry season is one that never fails to excite me. Hedgerows overgrown and exploding with little bundles of juicy goodness, and for FREE! I couldn't believe it when a friend told me she had found some early blackberries whilst out on an evening run and so being the freegan that I am jumped to it and headed out to the fields. In my excitement I had completely forgotten as I often do year after year that along with the sweet pickings of blackberry foraging come the rather hostile environment of painful thorns. On arrival to my first tangle of brambles I began thinking that my chosen outfit of shorts and flip flops (in the heat of the day) had been a slight oversight. Not deterred by my lack of protective clothing I continued with the task at hand and started picking.

I had bought with me a tupperware container which in my opinion is far superior to the plastic bag owing to the fact that a plastic bag offers little protection to fragile berries and also often gets caught on thorns and rips leaving you standing next to a pile of blackberry escapees on the floor and a limp piece of plastic in your hands. However, carrying a container leaves you with only one picking hand which is not the most effective picking method. The best option is to take a basket handily slung over one arm, thus allowing a double hand picking action, maximising you speed and eventual yield.

Many people have their own style when blackberrying and this often depends on the abundance of brambles in your area. I like to move around and cover a big area taking a couple of handfuls of berries from each section thus not depleting a single area and showing some foraging etiquette. This time of year there are also still a lot of unripe fruit on the brambles so make sure you check what you pick is sweet and not too sharp unless you are that way inclined. This brings me on to the eating part of the activity. It is crucial to eat or should i say sample as you go when out picking, you know, just to check they are still good. It is also good to get your fill while out in the field so that you do succumb to eating all your goods on the return journey only to arrive home with red fingers, a mucky face and some squished blackberry dregs at the bottom of your tub ("I thought you were going to make blackberry pie?!").

Another thing to watch out for in addition to all the thorns - although a few scratches are the signs of a dedicated picker - is dog poo, especially if you are picking in an area frequented by dog walkers. This is because it is very easy to move along a row of brambles focusing only on ripe fruit and forget to check that you are not walking into anything unsavoury. Also watch out for thorns, which will go right through thin soled flimsly flip flops (mental note to self).

After about 45 minutes of forage-fueled ambling I was done. With an overflowing container, a satisfied bellyful of berries and an impressive amount of minute scratches I felt satisfied with my hoard and headed home for a much needed cup of tea.

Colourful harvest and squash report

 

Wednesday afternoon harvest. A collection of beets, kohl rabi, radish and carrots along with some runner beans, various salad leaves, chard, herbs and colourful edible flowers. The heavy rain a few days ago and sunny days have helped things along in the garden and the tomatoes are starting to become red finally. My squash plants are also coming on leaps and bounds after a slow start and tricky pollination ( I had to reverted to self pollination for one of them which the bees had obviously turned their noses up to, if bees even have noses to turn up to things that is)

 

Bill the butternut squash produced this lovely specimen which is now nestling amongst some cosy straw to stop it getting blemished by the tiling.

After training herself nicely up some canes (owing to the lack of horizontal floor space) Trinny the Turks turban squash, happily settled in amongst the cabbages and beans is now flowering and producing fruit with her first baby now hanging effortlessly as it ripens. I have never grown TT's before but am excited for them mainly because of the strange nature of their appearance, you'd be pressed to find this rather ugly (obviously beautiful in my eyes) squash down at the local supermarket. I'm keeping my eye on it and will be constructing it a netting hammock if it gets too fat!

Ethical trainers, yes please!

Last Thursday I went to an event at The Hub in Kings Cross, 'The Amazon - Can fashion help saving the rainforest?' The discussion centred around the work of Bia Saldanha, a Brazilian fashion designer turned eco-pioneer who moved from her boutique in Ipanema in 1989 to Acre in the heart of the Amazon. She was heavily involved in the ecological movement in Rio, the Green Party and also worked alongside Chico Mendes the social activist. Mendès, a rubber tapper and trade union leader was another passionate environmentalist in Brazil and was an integral part of the fight to preserve both the rainforest and communities who lived there before he was assassinated by a rancher in 1988.

On moving to the rainforest, Bia’s plan was to create a fair trading system in rubber production by supporting the local rubber tappers whilst also promoting sustainable forestry and preventing deforestation. Her belief that the money from the forest should stay in the forest lead her to help the rubber tappers produce and process products which could be sold on, instead of just exporting the raw material. In her early days she worked with top designers like Hermes to provide Treetap a vegetal leather fabric.

She is now working closely with Veja providing them with rubber soles for their trainers (which are also made of organic cotton). The rubber comes from within the Chico Mendès reserve where the rubber tappers – Amopreab, an association of Seringeiros – use a new technology developed at the University of Brasilia. The benefits of the new FDL (Liquid Smoked Sheet) process is that it enabled the rubber tappers to process the latex into rubber sheets without the need for industrial intermediary processes. This rubber can then be sent directly to the factory where it is ready to be molded. By supporting the communities within the forest, traditional skills are retained, livelihoods are protected and the precious resources of the Amazon are sustainably preserved.