Out in the back garden, the garlic cloves from Fruit Hill Farm near Bantry, planted in November last, are now sprouting forth, in spite of the severe ice and snow.

Got to cut wood for tinder using dried prunings from blackcurrant bushes and apple tree which were in storage over the summer. May not get much time in garden between now and the General Election. Wildlife on the garden may well be pleased to be undisturbed for the next few weeks. Must remember to feed the birds at least.

Image: Atelier Nouvelles Images

Lamb’s Lettuce looks more like dandelion than say Iceberg Lettuce. It has small leaves and they melt rather than ‘crunch’ in the mouth and the taste is mild. However, to get any salad leaves without a greenhouse is rare in this weather. I let this heritage lettuce variety go to seed each year. This guarantees me copious fresh salad leaves early the following year.

I mentioned this variety to a local farmer who is very interested in developing another  early season salad leaf commercially. I gave him a pot of my variety and I wish him luck in growing it on. Meanwhile, life in Dáil Éireann is trying enough at present and fresh salad leaves in a homemade sandwich at lunch help to keep things in perspective and feet on the ground. Roll on March and milder weather.

Nevertheless, if my impatience is punished I can make further sowings in March. So I have nothing to lose and maybe a slightly earlier harvest to gain. Rather than repeating myself, I hope the video clip below [video coming soon] says it all. Lettuce, tomato, sweetpea and lobelia seeds are now sown and sitting on my windowsill in their 3 inch pots. Their very presence seems to herald in milder and brighter days.

However with over 5000 varieties of potato worldwide, the potatoes grown in China or Africa or in South America are probably different from those we favour in Ireland. Our favourite spud bought by almost half of Irish consumers is the Rooster, which was bred here expressly to suit the Irish palate.

Early varieties (such as Colleen or Orla) get sown first, followed by ‘second earlies (such as Carlingford) a few weeks later. The main crop (such as Rooster) is planted later in Spring to mature later giving a bigger yield and some is stored until the ‘earlies’ are harvested the next year.

Before planting my few Orla seed potatoes in grow bags at the end of February, I first show them light in a frost free environment for a couple of week so that they sprout. This can speed them on their way once they are planted in a soil and compost mixture.

Chitting is the word used to sprout seed potatoes before planting. It is a simple procedure as the following video shows. The only precaution worth noting is be sure your seed potatoes are disease free. I make sure I buy mine as ‘certified seed potato’, for peace of mind.

The cabbage variety I grow each year is particularly well suited to a small garden. I got it first from I.S.S.A. (Irish Seed  Savers Association) in Scariff, Co. CLare. It is a perennial bush, but I don’t leave it for more than a year in one spot to prevent any diseases such as clubroot and to maximise soil fertility.

At the end of February, I pull off and plant up about 8 cuttings. A cutting is essentially a small branch pulled off the main stem. Using a sharp kitchen knife, I slice diagonally to create a wedge-shaped tip which will become the new rooting area when the cutting is planted.

I then remove any lower leaves to leave just 4 or 5 leaves at the growing point of each cutting. This helps the plant to become established and to develop a good root. The cutting is planted without delay while it is still fresh.

I fill 6-inch pots with soil from the patch where other cabbage family members (sprouts, kale, etc.) are to grow in the coming season. I plant two cuttings in each pot. Before planting out, I will remove the weaker of the new cabbage plants. Meanwhile, the new cuttings in their pots are positioned in a bright location (such as a greenhouse or a porch to develop for a month or so.

Pruning the Apple Tree

My fruit trees and blackcurrant bushes especially need to be pruned in the New Year before the sap rises and buds open.

The garden is too small to allow the apple tree, in particular, to grow as large as it would in the wild.

A long-armed loper and a saw are required, as well as a small stepladder, to prune the apple tree.

The objsectives are (a) to remove branches which obstruct a pathway (b) to reduce the height of any skyward bound branches so that the tree in leaf will not shade my herb patch and finally (c) to remove any damaged boughs or branches. If left, these would dmage the bark with chaffing in fuyure.

If  a bough is too thick to be cut by a secateurs or a loper, hen a saw is called for. It is important that the cut is clean and that it heals flat and quicckly without any cracks which could become infected.

Pruning Blackcurrants

My two blackcurrant bushes are planted on either side of the bird table and have served me well for the last ten years. The birds fo not seem to eat the fruit, which is plentiful. A lovely dessert is fresh blackcurrants, a dollop of yoghurt and a spoonful of honey on top.

Blackcurrants fruit on new wood which is paler in colour that wood which has grown up from the base  a couple of years ago. I use a secateurs to firstly remove the older, dark wood.

After the dark wood , I look for any branches which are touching each other and remove the least crooked one. My objective is to thin out the branches so I can reach all parts of the bush to pick the fruit in the summer.

2 February 2009

Weather: today was bitterly cold with a chilling north-easterly wind bringing sleet and snow.

Today Trevor plants some radish seeds in a planter. Radishes are easy to grow and provide a delicious early vegetable. By planting several containers a week apart, Trevor makes sure to have a ready supply of fresh radishes throughout the growing season.

What you need:

• Planter or other suitable container. This will be stored indoors for the first few weeks.
• Seeds – Trevor only uses certified organic seeds but radish seed is widely available in garden centres
• Soil – Trevor uses soil from the plot where he grew cabbages last season
• Compost
• Shovel or trowel

Make sure the planter is clean before you fill it. Then fill it to within a couple of inches of the top with the soil. Sow the seeds thinly (i.e. well spread out) on top of the soil and cover with a thin layer of compost (or more soil if you don’t have compost). Then place the planter in a well lit location protected from frost. Trevor placed his planter indoors, just inside his patio doors. When the weather gets a bit better, he will move the planter outdoors.

Next week, and for each of the following four weeks, he will start another planter of radishes. That way, he will have a continuous supply of fresh radishes throughout the season.

For more information on growing and cooking radishes, take a look at this article on Garden.ie

Rhubarb is a very easy plant to grow and makes a very refreshing dessert. This video shows you a very simple and easy way to force rhubarb. This means getting the plant to grow faster than it would normally by “tricking” it into thinking that it has not reached the surface of the soil. Trevor does this using a special forcing jar, but as you will see in the video, a bucket will do just as well.

For an interesting article on rhubarb, including some recipes check this article in The Post.ie.