I’ve been using Oddbox for about a year now. I’ve settled into a small veg box and a fruit booster very other week and it’s been useful for making sure I get a lot of veg. I may stop the veg box in the summer but so far so good.
I get get kiwis quite a lot and I’m not keen on eating them as is and there aren’t a lot of ways to cook kiwis.
I thought I’d make a smoothie pack (I used to do this quite a bit). The week I did this I had apples and spinach in the Oddbox to. I did need to buy bananas but I collect the single ones rather than a bunch so I can get the right amount.
Yes for the sake of this photo, I poured smoothie into a wine glass…
I made up the smoothie packs with one kiwi, half an apple, half a banana, a handful of spinach. In the morning I add half a cup of whole yoghurt and half a cup of water and blend.
They are really handy to have in the freezer, especially on the days that I go into the office because breakfast is harder when I have to leave the house at 7:30 in the morning, what I don’t get to drinking before I leave the house, I can stick in a flask and finish in the office.
Actually it’s more like some of the tomatoes are in the ground. Last week, London got up to 27C and while some of the tomatoes did well, some didn’t. It could be that they didn’t have enough water or that they were too wet. The peat free compost from Wickes, gets really dry on top but under that is really soggy, it could just be that they were too small and didn’t have a good enough root system.
So on Saturday, we chose the ones that were going out and we’ll leave the rest on life support for a bit longer, last week we (ok I) succumbed to the Grow Your Own offer and bought some Sungold Cherry tomatoes, so we’re waiting on those.
The big bed got 15 plants, all Feo de Rio Gordo (eight) and Amish Paste (seven). All the Gardener’s Sweetheart (six) went in but only one of the Yellow Millefleur looked good enough. The three Orange Queen plants might make it and there are four Black Russian plants that need a bit of time but are looking really heathy, so they are going to spend some time in the poly this week, with the four Peche Vilmorin plants. All six of the Tigerella plants are in the ground and look well. The biggest failure were the Ethel Watkins Best, they are looking really weedy (and didn’t do well last year!) so we’ll see. I have 25 plants in the poly, 12 Sungolds on order and 19 spaces in the beds, so I’m going to be ok!
We had a bit of a compost assessment after we topped up all the potatoes, I’m going to order another 12 bags, that will deal with the four summer squash beds, the cucumber bed, the winter squash beds and the two beds at the back of the pot (where the chard and the turnips were) and then we have to be done because I’m so over wheelbarrowing it to the plot!
Other than my tomato babies, we sowed the dwarf french beans (Aida Gold and Purple Queen) and drying beans (Jacobs Cattle Gold).
Ladybird lava hanging out on the shed door
We also did a bit of weeding around the gooseberries, removing some cornflowers and bindweed. We also covered the blackcurrant bush, to protect them from the birds, I would like more than 12 blackcurrants this year.
Then we put together another arch. I know they don’t look perfect but they are what we can afford. One more to go and then we’ll sow climbing beans up them. Giantes and some climbing french beans. Hopefully after the next Bank Holiday, we’ll have both squash beds planted up. Ma did ask if I was also going to sow sweetcorn for a “three indian” bed but I’m not sure that the longer, thinner beds will work as well for a three sisters bed, but you never know, I may change my mind when we move the squash into them.
I’ve been saying that we should visit Seaton Delaval Hall for ages and I finally got Ma to agree as the 40-ish minute bus ride from Newcastle seemed like a better prospect than the drive from Amble did last year.
I didn’t bring my camera with me for this trip so all photos are from my phone..
The Hall was designed by John Vanbrugh, who designed Blenheim Palace and Castle Howard, and while Seaton Delaval is not quite on that scale, you can see it’s in the same style (though one of the volunteers did point out that Blenheim has a bit more gilt – which scans for the Churchills!).
Unfortunately, Seaton Delaval didn’t last very long as a family home, building finished in 1728, it was destroyed by fire in 1822 and for 40 years had no roof.
It was sold to the National Trust in 2009 and there has been extensive work to stop it falling further into decay but there are no plans to fully restore it.
We got the bus from Newcastle, it took about 45 minutes and it’s well worth a visit.
We had a fabulous couple of days in Newcastle, it is my favourite UK city after London and the only one I’d contemplate living in full time if I didn’t already live in London. (Although I would also consider Dublin and Paris – although they would be difficult to live in given that we’re not in the EU anymore and I’m really conflicted about applying for an Irish passport*)
We went to Tynemouth and Seaton Delaval and the Baltic. I love the Baltic, it’s just the right amount of space to do enough art, I find the Tate and Tate Modern can be a little bit overwhelming (but I also need to go more often and then it would be less overwhelming!) I love self catering holidays but there was something lovely about not cooking at all for three days. Every morning, I got up and walked along the Quayside to Greggs to pick up coffee and bacon rolls for Ma and I to eat while we planned our day. We ate at Riley’s in Tynemouth, Six at the Baltic (thanks to Laura for the rec) and the Real Greek on our first night. It was delightful.
We got back on Thursday afternoon, and I spent the weekend sorting myself out and tending to the plot.
This week, I’m all about home and work because I have this week and Monday and then I’m on leave again, this time to do more boring things, like have a haircut and sort of the cupboard of doom!
Have a good week!
*possibly a post for another time but my while I could work it out and apply for an Irish passport, it feels like I’m taking advantage of an entire nation to get the advantages of an EU passport. I have a complicated enough relationship with my Dad (yes he’s been dead for 20 odd years – what of it?). Aside from anything else, Dad had pretty strong feelings about claiming to be from a country that he didn’t grow up in. He used to say that he was born in the UK, housed in the UK, educated in the UK and didn’t have to deal with any of the Church nonsense that that his cousins in Ireland had to deal with, so no he was British and of Irish descent. I would say that I’m English but I also know that he always said British and not English, (he was the child of immigrants and it’s complicated).
Woman convicted of murdering baby she wanted to adopt. Jesus this is just awful, how can you talk about a baby like this? If a baby is crying and you can’t handle it, you make sure they are safe and you walk away, you don’t smack them.
On Tuesday, we went to Tynemouth. We visited the Priory and then walked to King Edward’s Bay to have lunch at Riley’s Fish Shack.
We didn’t book, but they were happy to set us up with two deckchairs, a table and a windbreak
We shared the anchovies and I had a Seasalt Negroni (Hepple Gin, Martini Rosso, Campari and sea salt), Ma had a gin and tonic (Hepple Gin and Artisan Tonic).
The service was great, friendly but relaxed, I could have sat there all day and I think they would have let me!
I’d ordered the Salt Cod, which was amazing and so much food.
Salt Cod
Ma had the Monkfish tail, which had equally generous portions.
Monkfish
It was a perfect way to spend a couple of hours on the beach, with a beautiful view and excellent food.
This week, I was on a mission. There were a couple of things I felt had to be done;
get all the plants in the living room into the polytunnel and work out how many I have and where they are going;
to get all the summer and winter squash sown and in the polytunnel;
to get all the compost to the plot; and
plant the blackberries into pots.
I got all of it done and watched my plot neighbour’s bees, swarm.
The polytunnel on Sunday
I’m a bit worried about the plants in the poly, given how hot it is in London this week, but I left them in water and I’m just going to keep my fingers crossed.
I’ll hopefully get the tomatoes out on Friday when I’m back!
ChivesCalendulaMore irisesThe first borage flowerMy favourite rosesLavender about to flower
The irises on the plot came up just in time for my grandmother’s birthday.
Iris Lillian Bright was (I’m told) named Iris because they were blooming in her father’s garden when she was born (and she would probably have been born at home). She was by all accounts lovely and I’m sure I would have loved her but she was only a year older than I am now when she died. My grandparents marriage wasn’t a great success, it may have gotten smoother if they’d had more time, it may have got worse. We can’t know, I’ve always thought that not having Iris around probably gave Grandad a chance to shine with his grandchildren. Although, if Iris had lived longer Ma would probably have gone onto A levels and University and I wouldn’t have existed.
I also don’t have a picture of her by herself!
I will always have irises in my garden mostly because they are pretty and also because they are a part of my childhood, Grandad used to bring irises in May, and because they link me to all the people that are a part of who I am even though I never met them!
Today, I’m headed north for a couple of days in my second favourite UK city. We’re headed to Newcastle, to go to the beach at Tynemouth, the Baltic and finally I get to go to Seaton Delaval Hall.
The Baltic
Short but sweet. I’m ready for a break and while I’m only technically away from home for 3 days, I have the week off work, which will give me a day to do things like plant tomatoes out…
Back to the music that you inherit, this one is from Ma. There is a story. She heard it on the radio and then went to the record shop and sang it because she didn’t catch what it was called. Not something I ever had to do because I heard it a lot growing up. And not something anyone would be able to do now!
Nic Dempsey 