I have given my sister some bags to put her horses poo in and watched the green manure come to life, so for the time being its bonfires and the occasional hoeing to keep the little weeds from popping up!
At the moment we are enjoying our first proper harvest so far of mizuna and mibuna. I would recommend growing these to anyone as once they get going you have months of fresh greens with everything. They don't have a strong flavour like rocket but have a distinctive fresh green flavour,the leaves are very pretty and can be used in salads or stir-fries. I have been enjoying them with a little butter to go with fish or potatoes. I find them a nice alternative to spinach. The best thing though is that they grow best in colder climates as they tend to bolt if they get to warm.
I have learnt a lot already though that as much as the packet says you can plant things straight into the ground I will definitely start everything in seed modules first. I have planted rainbow chard and lettuces and as neat as I have kept the rows they just got lost amongst all the weeds that seem to grow at the same speed if not faster and the seedlings that don't get munched by some very lucky slugs get lost. I spent a very long time trying to distinguish which was a lettuce and which was a weed and then carefully pulled the weeds out around them ,so next time I am going to grow them till they are stronger in the modules,in the mean time keep all the weed at bay in the seed beds do that when I transfer them the lettuces etc have had a good head start!
Ed doesn't know it yet but I am planning on lifting all the covers off one more time to rotavate some manure in quickly think cover it back up so it has time to get worked into the ground with the frost and worms in time for next spring. We are also going to have some bonfires to get rid of all the left over weeds we dug up in the summer and cover that space to become the boys play area next year.
I am afraid I have gotten a little ahead if myself and already ordered all my seeds for next year from the real seed company which you can find on www.realseeds.co.uk , they are a brilliant family company with an amazing collection of seeds that they have tried and tested themselves for success in production and taste. You will find a anything from big croppers to rare heirlooms! So I have 23 new things to look forward to next year and in fear of boring you to death here is just a few that I am excited about : purple ukraine tomato, patti pan, summer crook neck, and tondo do placena which is a spherical courgette apparently better than the traditional long shape as they have more surface area for the sun but taste and behave pretty much the same when cooked.
So, sad as it may be I am very excited about the autumn, for me the most romantic cosy time of the year where we can prepare for and anticipate the spring and all the beautiful fruits it will give us!
