A neglected pot, and tackling Veg Plot 1

 

Sept 2015:

- one pot of sloes (blackthorn berries),

being stewed up to use as a dye for our homespun wool.

Please note the date.

 

May 2016.

Same pot, same sloes, but with water added,

because eight months on and the cooked sloes had become dehydrated.

 

So, for eight months, this pot had been languishing in the Back Kitchen,

always in full view,

never hidden away,

and waiting for Myself to get round to sieving the liquid,

and then storing it in a plastic container ready for when I start dyeing our wool.

There was hardly a day went past without me thinking

'I must do.....'

but I never did.

 

But now I have a bucket of slowly mouldering yarrow

that I spoke about in the last blog,

and that needs to be stewed in the pot,

so I need to get the sloe mix sorted out,

and I nearly have.
Hopefully the pot will have the yarrow in it tomorrow.

(Message to self: do remember to attend to the bacon in the fridge tomorrow as well.
It does not need another day in the dry salt bath. )

 

Today it was dry,

so off out into Veg Plot 1 to get it prepped for ploughing.

 

 

Noooooo! this is Veg Plot 2,

with Veg Plot 3 the other side of the line of poles.

And very tidy they look too,

now they are managed by Himself.

 

This is Veg Plot 1:

....and it needs sorting out.

It is not as 'wild' as the patch I spoke about in the last blog,

but now the kale and broccoli have seeded,

and the broad beans have been harvested,

the space needs to be cleared.

Meanwhile I have continued to harvest the chamomile,

 

five buckets I have picked, and there is still more to come.

I was going to hang it up on the racks above the Rayburn range cooker,

thinking that it would lend an arty farmhouse look to the kitchen,

but decided to dehydrate them instead.

An hour to pick the flower heads off,

and job done.

 

 ... and the broad bean harvest, which was a surprise,

as I gave up on the plants in December,

after chilly weather and sharp winds damaged the plants.

But they hung on,

and although overgrown with docks and grass,

they still managed to produce a small crop for us.

We shall do these beans again,

but try to give them better shelter against the weather.

The young pods were delicious,

and these mature ones I shall dry and use later.

 

Lissie is still giving us milk,

but I have stopped making cheese for this season.

I was a bit disappointed with myself because several of the stored cheese wheels 'blew',

which means they inflated,

not hugely,

just enough to plump up,

which means that they are not good for us to eat,

although the dogs, chickens, and pigs will joyously eat those spoilt wheels.

Also, I have found that cheese wax does not do well with our particular type of cheese,

I think this is because of the high cream content of the milk.

Anyway, I have had to revert back to wrapping the cheeses in muslin and lard.

Cheese is not hard to make,

but it can be precocious to store.

Not to worry,

I shall keep persevering,

because the cheese which does turn out alright is delicious.

 

Ah but it is getting late,

so I must away to my bed

 

Bye for now,

 

Vx