http://www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk/leisure/kendalbloggers/blog_dirtynails/ The Westmorland Gazette /leisure/kendalbloggers/blog_dirtynails/ en-gb Sat, 04 Jul 2009 06:54:04 +0100 Sat, 04 Jul 2009 06:54:04 +0100 http://www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk/leisure/kendalbloggers/blog_dirtynails/rssterms/ M6 nvincent@newsquest.co.uk (Nigel Vincent) webmaster@digitalmedia.newsquest.co.uk (Tim Joy) http://www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk/resources/images/774670/?type=rsslogo http://www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk/leisure/kendalbloggers/blog_dirtynails/ http://www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk/leisure/kendalbloggers/blog_dirtynails/4463366.July_1st_Week__Harvesting_Shallots__Potato_Blight__Trinity__Jobs_To_Do_This_Week/?ref=rss GROW YOUR OWN FOOD WITH DIRTY NAILS JULY, 1ST WEEK HARVESTING SHALLOTS Shallots planted on the shortest day of the year are now ready for harvesting. Pulling ripe shallots is best done during dry and sunny weather. The tops are browning at their ends. Up to ten chestnut-sized, or larger, bulbs have miraculously been borne out of each individual set. Lifting the crop is both gentle and pleasurable. A fork is inserted diagonally beneath the cluster and levered up slightly to loosen the soil. Shallots sit on the surface. Dirty Nails takes hold of all the yellowing greenery on top and shakes the plants free of earth. When ripe, the multiple bulbs break apart easily in the hand, and he rubs off excess soil before putting them in a wheelbarrow. Shallots store well. The crop will be tied into bunches of a dozen or so and hung in a cool, airy spot to dry off until the tops have withered to a crunchy brown husk and the papery skins are crisp and flaky. An open-sided shed, or under eaves, is an ideal place. Dirty Nails will then remove any loose, dry exterior shell and keep them stacked in well ventilated vegetable trays. In the kitchen, Mrs Nails likes to simply peel whole shallots, place them on a flat tray, drizzle with olive oil, then roast until glistening and golden brown. Cooked thus, they have a deep, intense and rich flavour which gets the families taste-buds drooling. Mon, 29 Jun 2009 08:24:53 +0100 bb1bd867ad931b0a4a59253788e58890 http://www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk/leisure/kendalbloggers/blog_dirtynails/4450972.June__4th_Week__Red_Cabbage__Watching_A_Drowning_Bee_Recover__Weekly_Jobs_To_Do__June_Veg_On_The_Menu/?ref=rss GROW YOUR OWN FOOD WITH DIRTY NAILS JUNE, 4TH WEEK RED CABBAGE This week Dirty Nails has been sowing Red Drumhead cabbages. He favours starting them off in small pots of compost in the greenhouse but a finely raked seedbed outdoors is ideal too. He uses tweezers to pop the pinhead-sized, maroon-grey seeds in to a depth of ½ an inch (1½ cm), and keeps them warm and moist. When the seedlings are little more than 2 inches (5 cm) tall, they will be transplanted into bigger pots and placed outside. If sown outdoors, seedlings should be thinned to allow 2 inches (5 cm) between plants before they are touching. Potted-on, Red Drumhead should suffer no ill-effects as long as the compost is kept moist and the roots are not constricted in their container. In four or five weeks, when the seedlings are about 6 inches (15 cm) in height, Dirty Nails will get them out into the veg plot. Direct sowings are best planted out into their final resting places at this stage too. Mon, 22 Jun 2009 09:29:14 +0100 3a0b76928b74fa75cd67ba8dbb6e6fae http://www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk/leisure/kendalbloggers/blog_dirtynails/4437494.June__3rd_Week__Downy_Mildew__A_Much_Needed_Present__Mid_Summer_In_St_James__Weekly_Jobs_To_Do/?ref=rss GROW YOUR OWN FOOD WITH DIRTY NAILS JUNE, 3RD WEEK DOWNY MILDEW Dirty Nails is suffering from an outbreak of downy mildew on his onions. Instead of being lush, erect and shiny, the green leaves have a dull, greyish hue and are dying back from the ends. His entire onion bed is infected, with most plants looking distinctly off-colour. Downy mildew is a potentially very damaging fungal infection which can strike at any time of the year, but the cool, damp conditions of a summer which is slow to start are ideal. The earlier in the season it strikes, the smaller the onions will be, plus they are unlikely to be much good for storing. Dirty Nails is understandably very upset by this natural phenomenon, especially as there appears to be a secondary disease striking too, which is creating crispy brown patches on the leaves. However, that is gardening, and vegetable growing especially can seem like a constant battle with the forces of nature. Dirty Nails has removed all the infected foliage to a fire site, which has created a lot more room between the plants. He is hoping that sunshine now will radiate more freely amongst his crop and might slow down the attack. Nevertheless, downy mildew spreads its spores via water-splash from rain and on the breeze, so his hopes are not high. Recourse to heavy-duty chemicals is one avenue of action for the grower thus infected but Dirty Nails prefers to take a more relaxed option. That is, even though the bulbs are small, to start eating the crop straight away. At least it won’t be wasted, and the lack of home-produced onions this coming winter can be overcome by purchasing them from more fortunate growers instead. He plans to try again next season on a fresh site which has not grown onions, leeks, shallots, or garlic for at least two years. Sun, 14 Jun 2009 11:20:20 +0100 0cef045673f09dbffcb6e8d4936a0c5c http://www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk/leisure/kendalbloggers/blog_dirtynails/4424846.June__2nd_Week__Cylindra_Beetroot__Working_From_Home__Weekly_Jobs_To_Do/?ref=rss GROW YOUR OWN FOOD WITH DIRTY NAILS JUNE, 2ND WEEK CYLINDRA BEETROOT This week Dirty Nails has been making a final sowing of beetroot. At this time of year, he plumps for cultivating the Cylindra variety. It is a long-rooted beet, rich, deep purple in colour with a strong and distinctly earthy flavour. Beetroot sown now should, all being well, be ready for pulling in the autumn. Mon, 08 Jun 2009 08:06:53 +0100 7fb5aabed7a796a1e25afbbb87329ee9 http://www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk/leisure/kendalbloggers/blog_dirtynails/4409799.June__1st_Week__Sunshine__Showers__Weeds___Tomatoes___Song_Thrush___Jobs_To_Do_This_Week/?ref=rss GROW YOUR OWN FOOD WITH DIRTY NAILS JUNE, 1ST WEEK SUNSHINE & SHOWERS, WEEDS & TOMATOES A few consecutive days of sunshine and showers can prove to be a heady mix in early June. There is a lush, dripping greenness to foliage which provides a perfect backdrop to the rainbow shades which flowers provide. In the orchard, they dance in anarchic swathes and patches. Their natural gay abandon contrasts and compliments the sumptuous, over-flowing, lovingly-tended shapes, colours and textures of the cottage garden. In the veg patch, Dirty Nails can admire the rich, deep browns and black of the wonderful, fertile, loamy soil that he is blessed to work with and maintain year on year with manure, leaf mould, and compost. Mon, 01 Jun 2009 07:56:38 +0100 6bbc210b5d5c5e49da953424248665ed http://www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk/leisure/kendalbloggers/blog_dirtynails/4394091.May_4th_Week__Cucumbers__Beans__Feast___Fast__Apples___Of_the_Woods___Jobs_To_Do_This_week__May_Veg_On_The_Menu/?ref=rss GROW YOUR OWN FOOD WITH DIRTY NAILS MAY, 4TH WEEK CUCUMBERS Dirty Nails has planted out his cucumbers this week. They are very sensitive creatures, especially when young. A cold snap in May can do damage so he waits as long as possible before getting them out into their final growing positions towards the end of the month. Dirty Nails cultivates Marketmore, which is a climbing outdoor (or ‘ridge’) variety producing an abundance of delicious, slightly spiky fruits. Having raised them from seed in the greenhouse (a windowsill is ideal, too) since mid-April, they are now sporting three or four lush, richly veined leaves, and look like they really want to get growing. He prepared their bed some weeks ago. A sunny sight against a shed, with netting to clamber up, is ideal. The earth was enriched by heaping two buckets of soil onto one bucket of manure per plant, at 2 feet (60 cm) spacings. Dirty Nails only needed to part the top of each mound with his hands to accommodate the pot-grown cucumber root ball, fold the soil back and water-in. He uses a fine rose on his can to sprinkle water lightly and gently from above. Mon, 25 May 2009 10:17:27 +0100 e463901e77f0a0d85f0cd198b2273932 http://www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk/leisure/kendalbloggers/blog_dirtynails/4375654.May_3rd_Week__Succession_Sowing__Bird_Watching__Enjoying_Pine_Walk__Jobs_To_Do_This_Week/?ref=rss GARDENING WITH DIRTY NAILS MAY, 3RD WEEK SUCCESSION SOWING Sowing seeds is so rewarding and fun at this time of year! Since the beginning of May, Dirty Nails has put down 6 foot (2 metre) rows of beetroot (Boltardy), Spring onion (White Lisbon), carrot (Berlicum and Autumn Giant), Swiss chard, leaf beet, lettuce (Anouk, Little Gem, Great Lakes), and Florence fennel (Romanesque). With two short weeks barely passed everything except the fennel is already showing. In fairness, the fennel only went in a few days ago. Mon, 18 May 2009 07:30:42 +0100 1f36e8f4743b6eab360f8904717c1354 http://www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk/leisure/kendalbloggers/blog_dirtynails/4358038.May_2nd_Week__Planting_Out_Kale__Looking_After_Water_Boatmen__Christies_Lane_In_May/?ref=rss GROW YOUR OWN FOOD WITH DIRTY NAILS MAY, 2ND WEEK PLANTING OUT KALE In early March, Dirty Nails sowed kale seeds in pots in the greenhouse. The Pentland Brig and Westland Winter varieties have thrived and were transplanted into bigger pots mid-April. After a spell outside in the protection of a cold-frame, these strong young brassicas have been planted into their final growing positions this week. Their bed needs to be rich and well prepared. Dirty Nails weeds it completely, and firms hard by treading it down with small sideways, back and fore footsteps (the so-called ‘gardeners shuffle’). He then rakes and treads some more. Kale, like cabbages, Brussels sprouts and purple sprouting, needs really firm ground to anchor its roots and likes at least 2 feet (60 cm) between plants. Holes are dug with a trowel deep enough to take the kale up to its first set of leaves and filled with water. After allowing the water to drain, Dirty Nails pops the young plant in. As much growing medium is retained around the roots as possible. He uses his fingers to press soil down around the root ball. Then a boot heel is employed for a careful firming-in, followed by another watering. Mon, 11 May 2009 09:15:37 +0100 3972a92e96ae879ff3ff8888544520c5 http://www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk/leisure/kendalbloggers/blog_dirtynails/4340517.May_1st_Week__Earthing_Up_Spuds__Greenhouse_Slug_Patrol__Tess__Story__Jobs_To_Do_This_Week/?ref=rss GROW YOUR OWN FOOD WITH DIRTY NAILS MAY, 1ST WEEK EARTHING-UP SPUDS Both First and Second Early spuds are up and showing, which pleases Dirty Nails. He grows his spuds in trenches with the excavated soil thrown up in ridges running adjacent. At this time in the season, the tops (known as ‘haulms’) sprout at regular intervals from within the trench. His Concorde First Earlies, which were planted in mid-March, are most advanced. They have a rapidly increasing tuft of healthy looking greenery. Dirty Nails has earthed them up twice this week. It is a straightforward procedure which involves almost covering the haulms with fresh soil. This encourages further growth and more underground tuber production in the process. These developing spuds need to be kept free from exposure to light, and earthing-up does this job too. A draw (swan-necked) hoe is used to push and drag mounded soil from either side snugly around the haulms. Earthing-up is an ongoing job as potatoes grow fast, and his Second Early Kestrel spuds will also need it done in the next day or two. Dirty Nails enjoys the look of freshly earthed-up tatties. Over the summer, his potato plot changes shape completely. The ridges and trenches gradually swap places until the entire bed is covered with dense foliage. Weeds are kept in check until then by the regular soil disturbance. Mon, 04 May 2009 11:04:37 +0100 9b3e30f1c9b27f34044bf1718693478c http://www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk/leisure/kendalbloggers/blog_dirtynails/4321963.April_Week_4_/?ref=rss GROW YOUR OWN FOOD WITH DIRTY NAILS APRIL, 4TH WEEK WATCHING AND LISTENING As April transcends magically into May, Dirty Nails has the time of his life getting amongst his veg at every opportunity. As with children, tender loving care lavished at a young and formative age is a worthwhile investment for a hopefully healthy and productive life. Mon, 27 Apr 2009 07:05:01 +0100 36825b2f6928f90b5f7f9d3ce2454c7e