My Spring Garden

 

Despite it being the middle of May we are still harvesting some of the Winter crops. Our leeks have been particularly good this year so we have made a lot of leek and potato soup and leek in cheese sauce with pasta-a really warming, comforting dish after being in the garden in this cold May weather!

 

 

We also have some parsnips still growing in the veg garden (one of my favourite vegetables which I just simply roast). We are going to grow more parsnip (Tender and True) this year in an effort to expand our winter veg garden.

 

 

Our rhubarb is growing really well this year, we've had several rhubarb crumbles already and I've made Rhubarb and Apple Jam with it too (see previous blog post). 

 

 

Our potatoes (Desiree) have been very slow to germinate this year but are starting to emerge from the ground now.

 

 

The garlic is just staring to germinate too. We haven't grown garlic for a few years (I've no idea why really as we use it a lot!) so this year we have put in a few bulbs to see how it grows-hopefully very well.

 

 

The white onions (Golden Ball) are starting to emerge.

 

 

As are the red onions (Red Baron).

 

 

And we even have some flowers on the strawberries this year. Last year they were very poor, so we are hoping for better success this year. Maybe we should put them under a cloche??

 

 

The Tayberries are starting to flower too, these berries are so sweet that they make excellent jam or can be eaten with meringues and cream-lovely!

 

 

Our compost this year has been so good, really crumbly fine stuff. It's amazing to think that this comes from all our kitchen waste, with a few grass clippings and newspaper thrown in too. Just wish we had more space for more than the 3 compost bins we have!

 

 

The spring grape hyacinth (Muscari armeniacum) seem to be spreading everywhere in our back garden, but they are beautiful so we don't mind! 

 

 

 My Bleeding Heart (Lamprocapnos spectabilis, formerly Dicentra spectabilis) plant was also looking really good before this cold, wet, windy May weather returned to batter it's delicate flowers!

 

 

My miniature Narcissus are surviving well though in their tub next to the sheltering wall in the back garden.

 

 

The giant Iris (Iris giganticaerulea) is looking really healthy in the front garden. This is a cutting we took 2 years ago from the original rhizomes, which we divided into 8 plants. Only one of the cuttings flowered last year but this year all 8 plants have flower heads on them, which we are really pleased about. The flowers are a lovely delicate blue, quite fragle, so lets hope the wind and rain stop before the flowers emerge!

 

 

 I'm not sure what this ground cover plant is! We bought it from a National Trust garden a few years ago and I've lost the label for it :(   It has grown really well in our garden though and has lovely little cornflower blue flowers in early spring. One of my cats, Tilly, uses it as an outdoor carpet to lie on when the sun is in the front garden! 

Rhubarb and Apple Jam

 



Ever since me and my husband started growing our own food, over 13 years ago, we've always grown rhubarb. I wanted to grow it as I remember my Dad growing it in our garden in Chester when I was a little girl. My cat Sooty used to sleep amongst the stalks on a warm summers day.

 

Our rhubarb patch this year has been really good, I knew with such a good crop that I had enough to make one of my husbands favourite jams-rhubarb and apple.

 



 



The recipe book I use for this jam is a Sue Ashworth book called Traditional Jams, Jellies and Preserves. I've used this book for several jam recipes including Plum Jam, Damson Jam and Blackberry and Apple Jam. All have been successful.





 

 

The recipe is so easy to follow, only 4 steps in the whole recipe. I didn't have any fresh ginger so used ground ginger. The addition of the ginger and cinnamon to the final jam just gives it a little bit of 'bite' but it's very subtle so if you aren't a lover of ginger I would still add it. 

 

 

I roped my 18 year old son into peeling the apples with me, mainly by challenging him to an apple peeling competition-the longest length of apple skin wins! I won :)

 

 

The rhubarb is first softened in the water for 10-15 minutes before the apple is added. This is then softened for a further 30 minutes.

 

 

Once the fruit is softened the sugar is added away from the heat and when this has all dissolved the jam is returned to the heat to be hard boiled.

 

The jam takes quite a lot of hard boiling before the setting point is reached, mainly because the rhubarb and apple are quite watery fruit. The jam also produces quite a lot of 'skum' which needs to be skimmed off as the jam boils.

 

Once the setting point is reached the ginger and cinnamon are stirred into the jam.

 

 

Once the ginger and cinnamon are added the jam is poured into sterilised jars and sealed straight away.

 

I always use recycled jars for my jam, although I have some Kilner Jars too. So most of the jars I use have been recycled several times and are perfectly good, as long as they are sterilised before they are reused.

 

 I used these pretty labels to label my jam, which my daughter bought for me for Mother's Day. I always date my jams too so that I can use the oldest stock first.

 

 

The Rhubarb and Apple Jam is lovely spread on homemade bread and is a lovely reminder of my Dads rhubarb patch from many years ago. Not to mention my cat Sooty!