Little Storping-in-the-Swuff: Vegetables

Time for the Red Duke of Yorks.

I didn’t get many pototoes from such a bit pot. I hope there are more Maris Peers under there…

We Lewesians are getting a bit spoiled with a superb range of varieties as farmer’s markets at the moment, but there’s still something unbeatable about a potato that was underground three quarters of an hour ago.

When the subject of chitting came up before it proved surprisingly controversial. Since I’ve only planted 9 seed potatoes, sticking them on the windowsill in egg boxes didn’t really constitute chitting hell (as described by Tar Baby) but I was alarmed at the news that chitting could actually inhibit yield.

Tar Baby reports that first earlies benefit from chitting. Second earlies show no effect. Main crop is inhibited (but I’m not growing any). No news on charlotte the salad potato.

To add to the data on which these results are based, here’s my report:

First earlier were the slowest of the starting block. They’re now beginning to flower (as seen here) but in terms of pushing through the sods, back then they were trailing last. Second earlies (below) did best, closely followed by the salad spuds. So much for chitting.

This is one of my favourite vegetables.

When I dug my pond, a couple of years back, a friend told me you could grow watercress just by throwing it in the pond. So I got a bunch out of the fridge and threw it in. They were right, it completely took over!

But I’ve never eaten my watercress, for fear of the danger. No cows or sheep live by my pond (it’s a town garden) so there’s little danger of the deadly liver fluke. My garden is also free from industrial or agricultural pollution. All the same, watercress is supposed to grow in free running water, and (although a solar pump cyles it) the water in my pond isn’t really fresh.

Then I ran across a post at The Cottage Smallholder, which described how you could grow watercress in pots, from seed. I also found this description of growing it in a plastic paddling pool! So if you can do that, maybe my watercress is alright after all?

Now I’ve harvested a few stems, soaked them in brine, and left them in fresh water overnight. My friend (who knows about these things) and I have consumed them.

If I don’t survive, I’ve asked for a warning to be appended to this post, so others may learn from our foolishness. But it was delicious.

My back “garden” (yard) is pretty small.

I want to grow vegetables.

With my pond, pear tree, roses, fruit and herbs, there’s not really room for pototatoes. But fresh (I mean really fresh, hours old) potatoes are delicious. So when I saw a potato patio starter kit I decided to give it a go, and it’s just arrived.

The kit contains three large planter buckets

and 15 seed potatoes, five each of Maris Piper, Red Duke of York and Charlotte, which are now chitting on my windowsill.