Answering comments postings in one go

Claire - thanks for your lovely comment I had already posted a reply in that section so you are not mentioned here.

lilymarlene said...

What about rhubarb fool? Like gooseberry fool only using rhubarb. I love it.

I made a rhubarb and ginger crumble today. It had to be wheat free for DH......his arthritic hip is playing up at the moment. I made it with rice flour and a handful of oats....and it was equally as nice as with wheat...probably lighter.

I am so glad you decided to carry on with your blog. Only having followed it for a month or so I was wondering why it was called "Allotment Lady" when it was just about chickens....then all of a sudden after you re-started...wow!...what an allotment!

11:49 PM

I love rhubarb fool too lily and great minds think alike. I took some photos of the crumbles I made yesterday - haven't put them on yet and I always use jumbo organic oats in the mix - they taste great don't they. I have yet to try rice flour - I must have a look out for that, but our small supermarkets in these parts do not stock lots of the 'fancy' stuff as one assistant called it when I wanted something which I thought was basis.

Thanks for your support. I started my blog last year as a record for me and my friends to see how it was progressing from the field full of 6ft high and taller perennial weeds, 40-50 old carpets through which the weeds had grown, lots or rubbish and junk, wood, metal, scrap etc.

I was amazed that I got a following! Then when the harvesting time and the end of the season was coming to a close; just for something to write about I started posting what I was doing, what I was making, and then got reqests for my recipes. Then I talked about getting chickens, so those and odds and ends kept the blog going through winter. I did warm the allotment people about it beforehand though LOL.

I then added a counter in late December just to see how many hits I got out of curiousity and nearly ' fainted' at how many.

Then when I decided to stop due to the security issues from a site that were not being addressed, I had so many mails, that I realised that I would be letting a lot of people down. So I spent hours in fact a couple of days deleting over 200 posts that contained what I considered information that could identify myself and children and grandchildren, friends and their children - just to be on the safe side - and here I am again.

I have probably lost lots of readers as I posted that I was finishing but they may find me resurected through the grape vine.

So here I am again, now that the season has started and in full swing - back as allotment lady and not chicken licken


Petunia's Gardener said...
AL, hope you feel better with each new day. I've just enjoyed catching up on your garden, allotment and chicken photos. Very lovely. I'm taking advice on a bean structure on my page if you get a chance to look. I planned to use poles like yours, but then thought the fencing sections I thought might work. Runner & other pole beans will climb metal fencing also, won't they? Keeping getting some rest and get well soon!

I have been reading your blog, but have missed the bean bit. I also use pig wire and chicken netting and plastic netting etc. I found that plastic netting was great for one season, but not so good when you had to removed the old stems even if you left them overwinter and cut them off at the roots. (The roots should be dug in as they are a great source of nitrogen). Chicken wire was the same. Chicken/poultry netting was ok but if you get the string sort it flaps about in the wind etc. The pig wire was the best, supported on strong posts. Easy to clean off the dead foliage afterwards too. It can stay in place year after year (you can grow beans on the same plot for 7 years if you did bean trenches each year.)

I use pig wire for all my pea supports. I used canes this year as I had run out of pig wire and I wasn't well enough to go find somewhere that sells it - so canes were the easier option. I also used tall tree stems/branches complete with their side branches and tied them up along a central rope = they were brilliant, but after a couple of years needed burning.
12:36 AM


Sandie's Patch said...
Hi AL, did you watch Gardener's world on friday? Monty Don is growing Sweet Cicely in his 'shade' garden, he says it's useful (think he said use the stalks)when cooking rhubarb as it takes away some of the acidity so that you need less sugar! I may start eating it again if I can get my hands on some 'cicely.
Went to the Malvern showground yesterday with my sister, to the Spring Quilt show. Have taken lots of photos which will be on my blog over the next few days if you want to take a peek.

1:33 AM

Sandie, yes I did what GW, and knew about sweet cicely. I had some growing somewhere, you get that lovely blue flower on it don't you. It didn't reappear in my garden last year and I have not yet found a source for plants. If anyone has a root they would like to sell me of know of a source I would be most grateful. I keep popping over to your blog, and will do so as soon as I have made my bread and the jam today! I should be doing both now but got side tracked walking past this little room to the kitchen = Fatal Attraction.

It is 11.30am I am so behind with everything.


Sweet--Sister Three said...
Have you tried strawberry/rhubarb
cobbler...oh, it is one of my
favorite. It reminds of the
gooseberry cobbler we used to
have when Patsy and I were on
the farm.

2:08 AM
Hello sweet sister three - nice to see you here. I have made raspberry cobbler and sponges and crumbles but not with strawberries what a lovely combination. The rhubarb over here is in season now, and but rest of the soft fruit comes in the summer months. I alwasy freeze a lot of rhubarb as it is so easy to do, so will add that suggestion to my recipe notes book thank you so much


patsy said...
Since sis mention gooseberries, do they grow in UK? I picked them when I was a girl and aways got poison Ivy because they liked the same growing conditions.

2:20 AM

Pasty........I was saving my gooseberry writings until later! I have grown some plants and had a few off them last year - but you should and will see them soon. They are looking brilliant and have little goosegogs on them already but will not be ripe for a few weeks yet.

Off to take some painkillers and to get going on all my cooking.

Great to 'see' you all here this morning - in fact I was thrilled - just like having friends pop in as a surprise.

HUGE Thanks