Don’t miss the dandelions. Gilbert’s dandelion wine recipe
Have you ever tasted dandelion wine? Dandelions can be annoying in the garden. They’re a palaver to remove as their tap roots are thick and sturdy. But they are the key ingredient in an excellent homemade white table wine. Gilbert will sometimes pour a glass if you pop round on a summer’s evening. As long as you are on foot. The first time that I sampled his patent recipe, it slipped down like water from a clear cold stream. I accepted a second glass. After the third, I had to feel my way home. Two years ago I picked the dandelions...
read moreCan you identify this small white flower?
I am working in the village at the moment. A good job working outside in the sunshine for and old friend. I don’t even need to drive to work so Jalopy snoozes in the drive. Sometimes I cross the road to retrieve a tool from her capacious boot or make a fresh cup of tea to take back to the job. For a few weeks I’ll enjoy the sort of life that I might have led a hundred years ago. Quiet and sedentary. I can hear the gentle buff of the cottage door opening and see the place as others must. I can observe Danny, identify the familiar...
read moreCooking for your chickens: supplementing your layers pellets
Why not supplement your chicken feed with homemade mash? The cost of chicken feed is rocketing. It has already gone up 30% on last year’s feed prices. With a small flock of just five hens and the guinea fowl couple, the impact isn’t huge but any saving could be put towards maintenance and equipment costs. These can be big for people who have just started with chickens. And if you find a market for your eggs and want to expand, the investment in extra chicken housing and runs can be large. Unlike the UK human housing market, chicken...
read moreExceptional people: Brad Rising
Everyone occasionally meets an exceptional person. These do not have to be Nobel prize winners. Truly special people are scattered liberally across the globe. They are not necessarily those who raise thousands for charity every year. They can be women or men who lead a backwater life. You know if you meet one. You can’t stop thinking about them. They affect your life in a quiet way. These are the people who influence deep changes in your life but they probably never realise their impact. Their lives reverb. They are not hungry for fame...
read moreFlowers from the garden: May 2008
I used to leave this post until the end of each month, hoping that there will be more plants in flower. Then I would cram as many different flowers as I could find into a vase. A large mixed bunch is a joy but sometimes a simple combination just works well. When I saw my favourite rose coming into flower and the cornflowers beneath it, I just had to pick them both. A perfect summery pairing. Our Rosa banksiae ‘Lutea’ has hovered on the verge of flowering since late January. May is the month when it is at its best and should burst...
read moreThe slow cooker chef: comes to the rescue. Tasty, easy, low fat leek and potato soup recipe (vichyssoise)
When I pointed out that soup was on offer at Waitrose my mother’s reaction was instant. “Who’d want to eat soup at this time of year?” Well, Danny and me for starters. We’ve stopped eating soup for lunch for the past month or so and now the weighing scales are in danger of collapsing when we step on board. Soup is so easy to make – why does it seem such a palaver? I’ve been working much nearer home so lunch boxes are no longer planned. I swoop home grab some Boston Baked beans, a chunk of polenta bake...
read moreTea
Friday night. I’ve been working outside all week with no radio. That’s fine as I tune into the pattern of sounds in our village. The girl that tacks out on a coloured horse every afternoon. The heavy breathed joggers. The trail of mothers and children that venture to school and back at tea time. And the intermittent traffic, usually driving far too fast. Our cottage is set back from the road in a dip. It’s a secret place. On a tight bend, people just don’t notice our home. We have double glazing and a deep drive. We...
read moreWatching chickens
“If I have to return I’d like to come back as one of Fiona’s chickens.” I overheard this at a summer party when I was topping up people’s wine. I was delighted. The chickens were relatively new back then. The run was filled with a good two inches of gravel, the immaculate accommodation comprised of a pretty hen house and the Ken Doherty day centre. Our flock of seven live an enclosure (30 x 6 feet). A gated community. Until we stop keeping Min Pins, this is the status quo chicken wise. If I came back as a chicken...
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