Pinewood Pages
Notes from a small garden and the pine woods behind it. Mostly vegetables, some walks, and whatever ends up in jars.
Late tomatoes
The last of the tomatoes came in this week. The cherry ones kept going long after the big ones gave up. Next year they get the sunny corner by the fence again, and fewer plants, more space between them. Read on
Pine needle mulch
Tried pine needles as mulch around the strawberries. They stay loose, let the rain through and the slugs seem to dislike them. No sign of the soil turning sour so far, which is the usual warning, and from what I read it's mostly a myth for needles that are already brown. Read on
Blackcurrant jam, low sugar
The blackcurrant bush finally earned its place this year. About 1,5 kg off one bush, which is a lot of stalks to pick off. Read on
Woodpecker by the old stump
There's a great spotted woodpecker that has been working on the dead pine near the clearing. You hear it long before you see it. Today it let me get within about fifteen metres before it moved round to the other side of the trunk, which they always do, as if that makes them invisible. Read on
Seed potatoes on the windowsill
The seed potatoes are sitting in egg boxes on the kitchen windowsill, chitting. Short green shoots after two weeks, which is what you want: sturdy and dark, not long and pale. Read on
Pine needle tea, once
Someone at work mentioned pine needle tea and said it was full of vitamin C. I tried it. Fresh young needles from a pine I know well (not yew, not anything I'm unsure of), chopped, steeped in hot but not boiling water for ten minutes. Read on