Penellype's 2015 Edible Garden Challenge

[Penellype]

Nothing else new to report, but I have planted some microgreens (mustard and radish sangria) which grow very quickly so hopefully I will have some interesting sandwiches soon. These were among 10 packets of seeds that arrived in the post yesterday. Another 4 should be with me shortly. I'm having to do a small rearrangement of the office to accomodate an extra box of seed packets...

Got to get the priorities right

[Penellype]

Nice little salad for lunch today, with the usual suspects - lettuce salad bowl, mizuna, provencale salad and finished off the long suffering pak choi plant that I have been taking leaves off for about 2 months. Added a couple of new ingredients - flat leaf parsley from the garden and some very tiny baby spinach Bloomsdale leaves from under the grow lights. Also ate the last of the red tomatoes (Shirley) - there is one green one coming along in the kitchen and some flowers have opened in the last day or so on one of the sitting room plants.

Total varieties so far = 15

[Penellype]

Ate some pea shoots with my lunch today (Hurst Green Shaft). That's another summer veg I won't be able to claim later!

Total varieties so far = 16

[Penellype]

Well, its the end of January - 1/12th of the way through the year!

So far I have eaten 16 different varieties grown in my house and garden, although all but two were actually sown or planted last year:

Alfalfa (sown this year)
Basil
Carrot Eskimo
Carrot Nantes Frubund Fastcrop
Leek Albana
Lettuce Salad Bowl Mix (baby leaves)
Mizuna Red Knight
Pak Choi Tri-colour Mix
Parsley (flat leaf)
Pea Hurst Greenshaft (pea shoots, sown this year)
Pepper California Wonder
Pepper Snackbite Orange
Potato Desiree
Provencale salad mix
Spinach Bloomsdale (baby leaf)
Tomato Shirley

I have a few things waiting in the wings, including the following that have been sown this year:
American Land Cress (not yet germinated)
Leek Oarsman (I have some of these still to eat from last year's sowing)
Lettuce Lollo Rossa
Mustard Green Frills
Pea Half Pint
Pepper Snackbite Orange
Radish Sangria
Tomato Shirley

[Penellype]

Been a bit quiet recently due to cold weather meaning I'm eating mostly out of the freezer. Ate some Radish Sangria microleaves with my lunch yesterday.

Total varieties so far = 17

[Penellype]

Tried a different variety of leek today - Oarsman. They are supposed to be rust resistant, so I'm a little puzzled as to why the Oarsman have rust and the Albana nearby do not...

Total varieties so far = 18

[Penellype]

Spent some of today putting up what I hope will eventually be my fruit cage, but is actually a blowaway greenhouse. I reckon if it can survive as a greenhouse it should be able to survive as a fruit cage with veggiemesh on, unlike the custom made fruit cage which blew down in the wind last year. One reason I ended up with this instead of a real fruit cage is that it will fit in the space I have available, whereas the fruit cages I found were either 1m wide (too small) or 2m (too big). This is 125cm wide, which is just right.

I was going to wait and put it up a bit later in the year for the potatoes, but today I noticed that something (probably a bird) has pulled a load of fresh green leaves off my new strawberry plants, so I have put them in the greenhouse. I might even get some nice early strawberries, providing the thing doesn't blow away first. I've weighted the frame down with bricks and tied guy ropes to the cover and my archway and compost bin. Now I just have to remember not to garotte myself on the ropes...

[Penellype]

New variety today - Mustard Green Frills with my salad for tea.

Total varieties so far = 19

[Penellype]

Cabbage Duncan as spring greens tonight, bringing the total number of varieties neatly to 20

[Penellype]

End of February report and not surprisingly only 4 new additions to the list. I feel I am very much on target for this challenge

Alfalfa (sown this year)
Basil
Cabbage Duncan
Carrot Eskimo
Carrot Nantes Frubund Fastcrop
Leek Albana
Leek Oarsman
Lettuce Salad Bowl Mix (baby leaves)
Mizuna Red Knight
Mustard Green Frills (microleaves, sown this year)
Pak Choi Tri-colour Mix
Parsley (flat leaf)
Pea Hurst Greenshaft (pea shoots, sown this year)
Pepper California Wonder
Pepper Snackbite Orange
Potato Desiree
Provencale salad mix
Radish Sangria (microleaves, sown this year)
Spinach Bloomsdale (baby leaf)
Tomato Shirley


Sowings and plantings this month (all under cover of some sort, even if only fleece):
Alfalfa
Cabbage Hispi
Carrot Nantes Frubund
Chervil (proving stubborn to germinate)
Lettuce Salad Bowl Mix
Mizuna Red Knight
Onion Sturon (sets)
Pak Choi Tricolour Mix
Parsnips (these are likely to end up at my friend's house)
Pea Meteor
Pepper Snackbite Orange
Potato Rocket
Spinach Reddy
Tomato Balconi Red (very dwarf variety to stay indoors until frosts have finished)
Tomato Balconi Yellow (ditto)
Tomato Shirley (to be grown indoors)

[Penellype]

New variety today - chard bright lights. I've not grown this before and was on the point of pulling it out as it has been completely shredded by something (caterpillars or slugs) all winter. Today I was inspecting everything and saw that there were finally a few new leaves which were comparatively undamaged, so I cut a few while I could. Verdict - useful for bulking up a salad when you are a bit short in the lettuce department, but I wouldn't go wild about it.

Total varieties so far = 21

[Penellype]

The first flowerhead of PSB from my long suffering plants grown against the north facing wall of next door's garage. A month later than their seed tray companions at my friend's house which have the benefit of full sun. Its probably my imagination, but I'm sure mine tastes better!

Total varieties so far = 22

[marchogaeth]

Verdict - useful for bulking up a salad when you are a bit short in the lettuce department, but I wouldn't go wild about it.

Total varieties so far = 21

I'm not keen on it raw but I do adore it cooked. Wash shake and cook in its own juices (you probably know that). In fact got it in an omelette tonight with HG leeks. I grow it instead of spinach, I especially like theb fact that you can pick and eat the stems if they start to bolt and it just seems to come from the bottom as a leafy plant again.

[Penellype]

I've not had enough of it to go anywhere near a pan! The slugs or caterpillars have left most of it looking like lace and I'm surprised it has survived. I adore spinach, and I've tried spinach beet before as a substitute but its a very poor relation in my opinion. It lacks the sharpness of spinach which is due to the oxalic acid in the leaves.

My spinach this year is being cossetted in a self watering salad grow with its own transparent lid and protected in the garage while it germinates. I'm doing a control experiment with the same 2 varieties sown in my usual manner in an ordinary pot. Expecting a supply of leaves the size of my hand and as much as I can eat

[Penellype]

Another variety to tick off the list today, lettuce Winter Gem. These have been occupying the grow light garden since December and seemed to take absolutely ages to grow much at all. Recently they have been moved to the landing windowsill and have started to grow. I've not grown this variety before - its a cos type. Tasted very nice harvested with leaves about 4 inches long.

Total varieties so far = 23