Mabel the hen
Now’s the time to sow your greens for winter – cabbage, broccoli, pak choi, lettuces, kale, silverbeet, spinach, rocket, mizuna, mibuna, claytonia and spring onions. If you want to read more about growing winter salad crops, Joy Larkcom is my favourite expert. Root vegetables can go in now too – sow radishes, carrots, turnips and beetroot. With some sunshine and showers forecast, you won’t have to do much watering, just a bit of thinning and weeding. Everything will do better for getting started whilst there’s still some warmth in the soil.
I’ve sown some things in pots and some outside to hedge my bets. I’ve tried some peas and beans in large pots – they’re coming up after a week but I don’t know if I’ll get a crop. I’ll keep everything protected from birds and wind to help things along.
I’ve been doing some preserving. My first foray into jam making resulted in some delicious fresh peach preserve based on a Delia Smith recipe. It will be perfect for spreading on some hot cross buns. I make a secular version, without the crosses, using a spiced, fruit, dough in the bread maker. Fortunately I hadn’t got round to making Christmas cake so I still had some mixed dried fruit to spare in the pantry.
If you’re in the CBD this weekend, Sue Wickison is exhibiting some of her exquisite, award-winning botanical art at the Academy Galleries on Queen’s Wharf in Wellington from this Saturday.
