The kitchen garden is looking bare now, apart from the fallen leaves that are scattered about but we have been clearing them as they have fallen so even, they are now minimal.
However, we do have some lovely looking Brussel sprouts adding a bit of greenery to the area but they will soon be harvested along with the last of the leeks. Our parsnips are starting to come up now and are finding their way to the dinner table.
The kale and early sprouting broccoli are growing well we are continuing to add feed to soil around them in the form of seaweed meal, a little sprinkle every few weeks. This seems to be working well, liquid feeds this time of year just don’t really get the job done as we have had so much wet weather.
REMIN volcanic rock dust is another fantastic natural source of minerals that we use around the kitchen garden to help rejuvenate the soil. It boosts soil fertility and plant growth and can be used at any time of year unless the ground is frozen or in windy conditions.
The broad beans in the cold frame have really grown on well. They look like nice strong healthy plants which is a bonus as the ones that were sown directly in the ground haven’t done well at all.
The carrots have had a second thinning this week none large enough to eat yet but they are all growing true with no forking so we are really happy with how they are looking.
We have done quite a bit of general weeding and tidying in the kitchen garden this week. Even this cold weather doesn’t seem to stop the most persistent weeds from growing.
In the rest of the garden it has just been leaf clearing as usual. We are surrounded by so many trees that it seems an endless task but looking at the trees now we should be coming towards the end of it. Most now seem to have fully shed their leaves. it is just the wisterias that seem to be hanging on to a few of theirs, even with all the strong winds we have had over the past week.
As this will be the last blog of the year from us at Stephanie’s Kitchen Garden, we would like to wish you all a very Happy Christmas and a productive new year.
