Wednesday 30 November 2011

Berry season

Berry picking has started in earnest in Gnomesville. This year we had to net the berry patch as the birds had started to move in.
First we had the little birds (wrens, thrushes, etc.), and we didn't worry too much. But then the magpies came in great numbers, and finally the yellow-tailed black cockatoos. That's when we knew we'd have to net the patch, as the cockatoos do a lot of damage. Not just eating the berries, but breaking off branches.
This is yesterday's haul. All together 3.5 kilos of berries.
There are raspberries, silvanberries, tayberries, yellow raspberries, boysenberries.And strawberries.

Thursday 24 November 2011

Potato & Brie Pizza

This is such a great combination!Thin pizza dough, sprinkled with fresh, chopped herbs (thyme, rosemary, etc.), drizzled with good olive oil. Then a layer of brie (it works really well with blue cheese, too!), a layer of very thinly sliced potatoes, then another sprinkling of herbs and a drizzle of olive oil. Then a good grating of black pepper. Bake in very hot oven till potatoes are done and pizza base is slightly crisp! Yum!

Tuesday 22 November 2011

Garden Stir-Fry

We are still harvesting quite a good array of veggies.

Here's a garden stir-fry. Everything's from the garden. Onion, carrot, broad beans, asparagus, garlic. All picked just a few minutes before they got thrown into the frying pan. :)

Thursday 17 November 2011

Elderflowers

The elder tree is laden with flowers again.
What a gorgeous sight that is!It started flowering a few weeks ago.I never get tired of our beautiful elder tree and its flowers.

Wednesday 16 November 2011

Busy bees

The bees have been very busy during all these sunny days. It's a great pleasure to see them buzzing about. All you can hear on a quiet day is the buzzing of the bees. We will have another look inside the boxes very soon to check that everything is okay, and how much work they've done.

Tuesday 8 November 2011

Mullein

This is a fairly new addition to my herb garden. It's a stunning plant. The leaves are a gorgeous silvery-green colour, and the long flower spike is laden with flowers, when in full bloom. Every part of it can be used for medicinal purposes, but I haven't experimented with it yet. It's also very low maintenance - always a bonus! :)

Monday 7 November 2011

The Red Hot Pokers...

....are a-poking madly.