I cant believe its October already,this year has passed in a blink of an eye…
Traditionally the puddings are made on stir up Sunday
Ingredients..

225g/8oz golden caster sugar
225g/8oz vegetarian suet
340g/12oz sultanas
340g/12oz raisins
225g/8oz currants
110g/4oz candied peel, chopped
110g/4oz plain flour
110g/4oz fresh white breadcrumbs
55g/2oz flaked almonds
1 lemon, zest only
5 eggs, beaten
1 level tsp ground cinnamon
1 level tsp mixed spice
5g/1 level tsp freshly grated nutmeg
pinch of salt
150ml/5fl oz brandy or rum

Method

Mix all the dried fruit in a bowl the brandy and leave to stand covered with a clean tea towel over night..

1. Lightly grease 4×600ml/1 pint or 2×1.2 litre/2 pint pudding basins.
2. Mix together all the dry ingredients.
3. Stir in the eggs and brandy and mix well.
4. Spoon the mix into basins. Put a circle of greaseproof paper [fold to make a pleat] and foil over the top of each basin and tie securely with string. Make a string handle from one side of the basin to the other so it is easier to pick the basin out of the pan after cooking.
5. Put the basins in a large steamer of boiling water and cover with a lid. Boil for 5-6 hours, topping the boiling water up from time to time, if necessary. If you do not have a steamer, put the basins in a large pan on inverted saucers on the base. Pour in boiling water to come a third of the way up the sides of the pudding bowls. Cover and steam as before.
Or place the covered puddings in a deep roasting tray, fill the tray with water, cover the tray with greaseproof paper making a pleat down the centre then cover with foil and steam in the oven.. gas mark 2 / 150c for 4/5 hours [ I prefer the oven method ]
6. Cool. Change the greaseproof paper and foil covers for fresh ones and tie up as before. Store in a cool cupboard until Christmas Day.

To serve: steam for 2 hours and serve with brandy butter, rum sauce, cream or home-made custard.

I used Noro Tubu on 15mm needles..

How i hate large needles.! I can never get comfortable knitting with them. The only good point is that the knitting grows quickly saving my poor little digits and wrists from too much strain.

This was super quick to knit it only took around 4/5 hours over a couple of days while watching a film and will come in handy when I need to go to the allotment over the winter.

The pattern can be found on Ravelry  “My so called scarf”

I dug out a pattern from one of my knitting mags [ cant remember off hand which one] and frankly Edward Scissor hands would have more luck than I’m having with the pattern..

I’ve ripped, sworn, thrown in on the floor in disgust, picked it up and ripped back countless times, much to Dave’s amusement..

Like – I’ve never knitted socks before ? I have

Give up he said, the pattern could have errors.

Its not the pattern [ I'm always right ] its you, I shouted back – your feet’s too big

The picture is of my Cat, Woody.. He’s got big feet too

Gaze upon all its glory,
In purple, white and pink,
Watch it’s petals widen,
And shake away it’s pollen.

How graciously it stands,
Tip pointing the sun,
Leaning upon it’s stem,
Upholding all it’s love.

Watch it sway so gently,
In the summer breeze,
See it close it’s petals,
As night fall comes around.

So praise this wonderful beauty,
Crane all of your grace..

Grown on my allotment and looking a little jaded now!

Soon to be put to bed for the winter..

Deciding to cover them on site to protect from frost rather than digging up for storing. I’m so forgetful, they stand a better chance staying where they are with a little help from me..  Fingers crossed!! and toes…

Life in  Years                Avg Days to Germination

Bean, Broad     2          21

Bean, French    2          14

Bean, Runner    2          14

Beet                      5            13

Beet Spinach    5           13

Broccoli           5              8

Cabbage          5               8

Carrot             3               16

Cauliflower       5           8

Cucumber        7           9

Kale                   4            8

Kohlrabi           4           7

Leek                  3          14

Lettuce             4          7

Marrow            6          7

Courgette         6          7

Onion                 4          14

Parsley             2          10

Parsnip             1          17

Peas                    2          10

Radish                4          6

Salsify                 2          12

Spinach             2          11

Swede                  2          8

Sweetcorn        3          9

Tomato            3          7

Turnip               2          8

So what do you do with that half packet of seeds you have left over?

The  main points are to keep the seeds cool, but not frozen, dark and to exclude air. Reseal the little silver foil packets by folding over and then place the seeds in an airtight tin or plastic storage box. Ideally you would keep them in the fridge but anywhere cool will have to suffice in most households.

Checking Seed Germination Rate….

If you have a left over packet of seeds that you are unsure of check the germination rate for your seeds on kitchen paper …

To germinate,  take a piece of kitchen roll and dampen it. Onto the damp kitchen roll put a number of seeds, 20 is good if you have a lot, and place into a plastic bag or Tupperware type container. Put somewhere dark and warm, an airing cupboard or a closed cupboard in an occupied room.

Check the seeds to see which have sprouted and if they fail then you haven’t wasted time and effort planting them. The table above gives the average germination time for each seed, so you know how long to wait before declaring a failure. Often they germinate well before the average time, so check frequently.

My Sweetcorn “swift” Are ready now, 22 cobs altogether…

The bottom pick shows the last of my Carrots and my butter-nut Squash.. If my Squash ever decides to grow any bigger I’ll post a pic or even the recipe I’ve been dying to try out..

The Tomatoes, “Sweet million” have lived up to their name. I’ve had a couple of branches break under the weight of them..

Now the challenge is whether i can get it to flower next year or will it end up on the compost. Only time will tell !

I’ve just placed my order for spring bulbs, for home and the allotment.

My usual narcissi paper whites, some dwarf tulips and short stemmed Asiatic lilies for home, with a couple of amaryllis.

This year I’ve chosen Apple blossom and Black pearl..  Along with a  mixture of spring bulbs to plant under my trees at the back of my plot -  daffs, snow drops, some crocus’s and  Fritillaiar { hope I’ve spelt that right} which apparently like it damp, so they should feel at home at the back near the tap where hopefully they will neutralize well.. And finally some alliums to go near my shed..

Note to self :  Don’t listen to husband when he complains that we have run out of storage.. Suggest we buy a bigger freezer *wink*

And finally, I found this little fellow this morning, climbing up my wall..

Obviously hitched a ride home with the cabbage *smiles*

Off now to clear and tidy Mums room, as it’s called.. Sometimes called with tongue in cheek,  Mums office.. tsk… Basically a utility room where every thing from my craft supplies, books, to kitchen equipment that’s not used on a regular bases gets chucked/stored in..

I could be some time !! as there are books with lovely glossy photos of food to distract me *smiles*

Beetroot is a relativity easy veg to grow {she says after 2 failed attempts}

I sow my beetroot seeds direct around April/ May, Spacing them around 6ins in rows a foot apart. I don’t think its necessary to sow any closer and then thin  out {which is what most books tell you}

They can be sown earlier [ March/April} if you cover them with a cloche or small polytunnel..

Don’t do as i did and chuck compost on the bed 3 weeks before sowing { failed attemped 1} The prefer ground that has been manured the previous year..

Oh, and remember to soak the seeds for an hour or two beforehand to aid the germination.. {failed attempt no 2}  They can be erratic at germinating, so be prepared to fill any gaps when they finally germinate.. Which  takes around two weeks …

Water the bed well before sowing..They will definitely appreciate a thorough watering if the conditions become dry. This will encourage them to grow quickly.. Very little weeding should be required because the foliage of beetroot is dense enough to keep most weeds at bay. I usually water once a week unless its exceptionally dry.

Beets are usually ready for harvesting around 10 weeks after sowing at this time you can use the beet leaves in salads while their still young..

When harvesting beets never cut the foliage off.. Twist the stems an inch or two above the bulb to prevent bleeding.  A tip also.. When cooking beets put a little vinegar in the water to help prevent bleeding, it doesn’t stop it completely but helps..

There you have it – How I grow my beets

Pests
Beetroot is relatively free from pests and diseases (apart from birds at the seedling stage) If birds are a problem then cover the bed with netting..

Disease

Symptoms

Mangold Flies (Beet Leaf Miner)

Leaves with light brown blisters. The leaves turn completely brown and fall off. Growth is stunted.

Swift Moth
This is a root problem and may not be clearly seen at first. The plants look unhealthy, and growth is stunted. No obvious leaf damage.

Rust
Slightly raised round spots on the underside of the leaves. The spots are rust coloured (browny-red).

Aphids
Leaves curl and new shoots are distorted