Back in August I made my first attempts at making chutney. At the time I was trying to use up ripe fruit as I knew I'd be away for several days on a business trip. Fast forward to now and I've essentially ended up with shelves and boxes covered in jars of various chutneys and vegetable based jams. So what happened? Well the tomato crop was good. It was way better … [Read more...] about So Much Chutney and Other Preserves
gardening
Preserving Fruit as Chutney
I've always liked chutney. When I was a child my mother used to make a "no cook" apple chutney from the apples in the orchard. We always had way more apples than we knew what to do with, so she'd make lots of different things with them during the season. The "no cook" chutney was a big hit, though, as it was just so simple. Unfortunately she's misplaced the recipe. I've … [Read more...] about Preserving Fruit as Chutney
Fresh Produce From the Garden!
It's the beginning of August, so it's a real bumper time in the garden. I'm already onto my 3rd round of carrots, which I'm hoping will be ready in the next couple of weeks. The lettuce, which I planted in one of the raised beds, have gone a little wild, but are still edible. At the moment the tomatoes are ripening, as are the peppers and chillis. So in practical … [Read more...] about Fresh Produce From the Garden!
Keeping the Greenhouse Under Control is an Uphill Struggle!
I was away for a week up in Donegal. While the weather in Donegal might not have been that nice it seems like the weather in Carlow was a lot more pleasant. So when I came back yesterday evening I found that the greenhouse had been more or less taken over by my tomato plants (again!) . It's a great big verdant mess: Some of the tomato plants are now so tall that … [Read more...] about Keeping the Greenhouse Under Control is an Uphill Struggle!
A Glut of Cucumbers
So far this year my greenhouse is going fairly well. I've got two raised beds down one side of it which hold tomato plants, some strawberries and my cucumber plant. The tomato plants are relatively well supported this year and though I did let them get out of control I've hopefully been able to tame them in time. I'll know for sure if and when they start producing any … [Read more...] about A Glut of Cucumbers