September round up

I finally managed to pop down today to plant my Spring cabbages.  Life (ie work) has been rather busy and full on at the moment so finding time to go down to the allotment was lovely. It truly is an oasis of sanity.  I'm really not happy at work for lots of reasons so I'm looking for joy in the other things in my life.

Cauliflowers and Kale in the raised beds at the front of the house

Purple sprouting broccoli

Inside the polytunnel: 2 types of spinach, cauliflowers and purple sprouting broccoli plus my strawberry runners planted up in pots!  I feel such pleasure when the things I plant actually grow!

In other news:  my eldest son's girlfriend has moved in with him and I spent yesterday moving loads of boxes (mainly books) into his wee flat.  They're good together and I'm really happy for him. 💕

My middle son turned 30 (eeeek!) and got his PR (Permanent Residency) to stay in Australia.

And my youngest has started the final year (4th) of his degree (radiology) and looks set to get a First if he maintains his grades.

When I'm doubting myself, I look at my kids and think I did ok 💓

Sneaky Supermarket!

I popped into Sainsbury's at lunchtime to pick up a few things.  I had around £24 cash in my purse and wanted to use that instead of my credit card.  I used the calculator on my phone to add up the cost as I went round (this really concentrates my mind on 'do I really need this?') 😄 My total was exactly £24.50.

However, when I went through the checkout the total was £26.65.  I had to use my card!  I checked my receipt and nothing seemed amiss but how did my shopping come to be £2 more than my total???

I'm guessing the shelf ticket prices didn't match the till prices.  Very sneaky! And I'm sure it's illegal!!

Since I'm making an effort to get back to more frugal ways, in future I'll be noting the ticket prices and comparing them to my receipt!  Then I'll be complaining 😠

Preserving for Winter

The weather here is definitely on the turn and thoughts are turning to getting ready for Winter.  I was rather pleased that I successfully grew some outdoor tomatoes this year.  Sadly, not that many ripened before the vines succumbed to wind and disease.  So I have loads of green ones.  According to Pinterest they can be sliced and frozen for fried green tomatoes (dip them in cornmeal while still frozen then fried as normal) so I'm giving them a go.  I also made some pickled green tomatoes.  These will be stored in the fridge for a month before eating with cheese.  I'm looking forward to trying them!  And I still have plenty of tomatoes left for some chutney.

I also did some poached pears in white wine and stewed apples in vanilla and cinnamon.  My Lovely Mum grew them but the pears would not ripen.  She also gave me some plums that she'd already halved, stoned and froze for me.  So I have a few fruits preserved for Winter in jars and in the freezer.
 

I decided to reinstate the polytunnel in my back garden by buying a new cover.  Unfortunately the frame was an unusual size so I had to buy one that was 50cm too long!

I've pulled it down at the back and weighted down the excess with some heavy pots.  It survived last night's high winds so I'm confident(ish) it will last the Winter.  I'm hoping to add some hanging baskets to overwinter my strawberry plants without them getting eaten by the slugs!!

I had to pull out all the rasps and currant bushes to put the cover back on.  They really didn't do well at all this year.  Some have been relocated but most are done.  As I've been rather poorly this week (again!!) I hadn't got round to chopping them up for the compost bin.  The chickens have loved pecking at them so I don't feel too bad.  That's on this week's to do list.

I have some more Winter plug plants arriving this week for the allotment.  My plan is to put some in the polytunnel too so I can compare yields.   I've been watching some Youtube videos on using a  polytunnel throughout Winter so I hope to keep producing edibles for the next few months.

I think I'm getting my mojo back at long last 😊