The Big One

The giant and siblings, September 2024

I had eight good sized squashes (and two small but still edible) this year.  One was damaged on the vine so got cooked right away;  the others are still curing in my living room.  We actually ate our last 2023 squash in July of 2024!  I saved seed from that one to plant in 2025, but I'm also planning on saving seed from that big orange squash too--which also came from my own saved seed of course.

As I mentioned in a previous post, my big squash had its two minutes of fame:  it went to my work (a school) for a "guess the weight" contest.  It's 15.2 kg!  The farthest left squash in the photo above is the next biggest (but unweighed as of yet) and a similar size to my biggest squashes last year.  All these grew from the seed of one squash I'd saved, and I got those three colors:  orange, dark green, light green.  I grow them at my allotment where the bees are free to pollinate with everyone else's squashes, and I suspect that last year I got some pollen from someone else's Atlantic Giant variety to get that prize orange one.

A colleague organized the contest on a whim, though she'd asked me initially to bring it in for her harvest display (I also brought in some beets with greens and purple podded French beans).  We had the weighing scales out for something else and I suddenly thought we could weigh my squash.  We were both amazed by its weight;  then she said, we should hold a contest!  She printed the slips of paper for all the kids (and adults) to write down their guesses and a box to put them in, and afterward we went through the box to find the three closest.  Those three got a toffee apple each, which my colleague kindly bought, and the head teacher announced and presented at an assembly.

Below is the daughter giving it a hug;  when I brought it home safely from school (I had several moments of trepidation during its week at school), I gave it a big hug too. 

Squash love, October 2024

Bringing in the harvest

My tomatoes are still rolling in a few at a time, though the husband warned it might frost later this week.  I hope it doesn't--not yet--our usual first frost is November or later.  If my tomatoes do bite the dust I'll make some green tomato pickle or salsa with the remainder.  Or both, depending on how many I have left.  Most of the red ones have gone into the freezer for future sauce;  the cherry toms have gone on lots of salads and also into lots of soups and curries.

I've stopped picking purple podded French beans in the hopes for some seeds, though I'm still picking a few of the green podded beans--still got a lot of these but I'll want seeds off them too.  Also pulling up beets as and when they are needed;  most are a good size by now.  The cucumbers are done, having picked the last pickling ones a few weeks ago and the salad ones this week;  I'll be transplanting my cauliflowers, komatsuna and winter lettuce into the salad cuc bed as soon as I can.  I also picked the last zuc at the weekend.

All the squashes are in, and my famous big one is also safely back at home, having survived all 200+ children and adults at my work (a school) for a "guess the weight" contest.  And the weight is:  15.2 kg!  My own old fashioned kitchen scales are in pounds and ounces;  the conversion is 33 lb 7 oz!  Last year my biggest one was about 17 lb, and I thought that one was enormous.

My batch of lettuce from late summer is producing nicely now, hopefully for a few more weeks, but the achocha has mostly finished;  I'll probably let it develop and drop seed.  My leeks look good despite the grassy sward they are growing in, and the radishes and turnips (sown in August) look lush and leafy, though not ready to pull.  I have about half a dozen cabbage heads forming, but also not quite there yet.  I plan on eating lots of fresh veg over winter, as well as eating from the freezer, pantry and fridge.

Eggs, flowers, frost, squash and kimchi

 

Dahlias blown over the veg patch, September 2024

I'm rather shocked that we're still getting three or even four eggs a day from our faithful hens.  Two of the eight are no longer laying, and two more are four and five years old respectively (but still laying once or twice a week).  At this time of year, as the days are much shorter, I'm actually surprised to get any eggs at all.  All the hens are at their small yard in the allotment;  Girl Duck and Boy Duck are currently at home, free ranging on and off (off when the grass gets too poo-y).  No duck eggs for at least a month;  she doesn't have a dedicated nest so I don't always find them but I don't think she's laying this time of year anyway.

My big sunflower finally blew over, but as it wasn't uprooted, I just went out and tied it up to the tree it was growing next to (a medium-sized pyracanthus).  Hopefully its seeds have enough time to mature for next year's plants.  My beautiful red dahlia also got too top heavy and fell over, but again I was able to prop it up;  it's up to my shoulder:  pretty tall.  Its pink and white neighbor is just as tall but still standing unassisted thankfully.  All three of these are still flowering beautifully in my veg patch at home. 

There was a touch of frost at our local country park at the weekend, though it didn't touch the garden and the allotment looks all right too.  I went out for my run at 7.15 in the morning and while I didn't see any frost on any cars or lawns I passed, I did see it on an open section of grass at the park.  To be on the safe side, when I saw the forecast, the son and I went and picked all the squashes from the allotment the day before.  I took my chances with the remaining beans and tomatoes.

Speaking of squashes, I lent my biggest one to my work (a school) and we're having a "guess the weight" contest.  My squash is famous!  And huge!  Seriously, I won't publish the actual weight until the contest is over (later this week) but I will say that it is at least twice the size of my biggest one last year--and I thought that one was a giant.  In total there are eight squashes this year, plus two small immature ones that might not be worth eating (picked them anyway).  The big one is coming back home with me after the contest, for lots of pumpkin pie.

What else?  More kimchi of course!  Of the twenty or so pak choi from my first sowing, I was able to make a liter of kimchi at the weekend, now fermenting for a few days on my counter.  I still have a 1.8L jar of kohlrabi kkakdugi and half of a 3.3L jar of kohlrabi dongchimi in my fridge.  So not lacking in kimchi just yet--though I do go through it pretty quickly.  I have a small tub of the leftover kimchi paste in my fridge at the moment and am considering giving beet greens/stems the kimchi treatment with it, I mean why not?

Keep it coming, September 2024

It feels like summer barely began and now it's finishing.  It certainly began late this year (I was planting out some of my summer veg in mid to late June even) and while we've had some warm days, and a few hot ones, there have been a fair few cool ones too.

I cleared away my main kitchen garden bed, home to kohlrabi (mostly they went into kimchi).  After hoeing and raking, I replanted with fennel, winter lettuces, pak choi and a few komatsuna (another Asian brassica).  The son helped me cover it loosely with another piece of netting, more for pigeon deterence than butterfly--I think cabbage butterfly season is over.  

He and the daughter also helped me move our motley collection of fencing materials and wrap them around the perimeter of the veg beds, excluding them and the patio from our two free ranging ducks (chickens are still at the allotment for the present).  Actually I locked the ducks back up too, to let the rain wash away some of their poo off the lawn for a few days.  When they're allowed back out they'll get the whole of the lawn and back garden but not the veg beds or, critically, the patio--they love hanging out on the patio and it gets poo-y quickly.

So even though we are now officially into autumn--equinox was on Sunday--I'm still hard at it.  Not only am I still planting out (got more winter lettuce, komatsuna and cauliflower seedlings), I'm still harvesting a lot of beans (both green and purple podded), cherry and plum tomatoes, and a steady stream of salad cucumbers, beets and lettuce.  I'm not ready to finish yet:  keep it coming!

Caterpillar carnage

Cabbages still got leaves, September 2024

When I pulled up all the caterpillar-y kohlrabi, I trimmed and left the leaves laying on the empty bed;  it was near enough the mini daikon radishes that several caterpillars were able to crawl underneath the netting and discover it.  At least they didn't discover the pak choi and cabbages further on.  I don't know if the radishes will still have time to grow more leaves in order to make roots--though luckily I have another bed at the allotment (not pictured) which is completely covered and untouched;  this one I buried all the edges of the mesh, not just weighed it down with bricks.

Poor broccoli, September 2024

The purple sprouting broccoli right next to the cabbages (cabbages in the first picture, broccoli above) were unnetted and have suffered the consequences.  Though I made my best effort to de-caterpillar, it was not enough.  I am hopeful it will leaf out again;  harvest won't be until next spring and I've had this happen in the past and still got a good harvest.  And again, my allotment broccoli (not pictured) is in much better shape than my garden, despite it also being unnetted.  Why?  Not quite sure, but maybe fewer butterflies?  I did pick caterpillars off the allotment ones too, but all the plants there still have leaves, unlike at home.

The caterpillars are pretty much past now;  only a few stragglers remain.  The rest are no doubt happily tucked up in their cocoons, dreaming of next summer.

Fruit and sunflowers

 

One precious plum, September 2024

We have had very few plums on our Czar tree this year, and most of them are out of reach.  Maybe 20 or 30 on the tree at the very most.  The daughter has had what few we could pick.

The Kumoi pear also had a grand total of one fruit, which we picked two weeks ago.  It was crisp, juicy and sweet;  a truly delightful pear, somewhat like a European pear but also not.  If a European pear is crisp, it's usually not juicy or sweet--the texture is what I love about Kumoi.

Sparta apples in their glory, September 2024

Last week I picked the Sparta tree clean, harvest shown in its entirety above.  Not a lot, but at least all are excellent size (unlike my Laxton Fortune).  It's meant to be a red apple, but most of these matured in part-shade so only a couple are fully red;  though as you can see it's really dark, almost purple.  Like the Kumoi pear, Sparta is crisp, juicy and sweet.  A very good eating apple.

And to complete the set, in my weighing bowl in the above photo is also a glimpse of a Brown Turkey fig.  So far I think I've picked three off my tree.  Now mid-September, while still a lot of green fruits of various sizes, that may be it. 

Self seeded sunflower at the back of zucchini and netted pak choi and radishes, September 2024

And look at my huge sunflower!  I usually get a handful of these sprouting up every year in this spot, where they drop the seed the previous autumn.  I had two others, both no more than waist height, both now finished.  This one is probably twice my height or more and showing no signs of stopping.  I'm hoping for lots of seeds for next year's show.

Zucs and cucs, August 2024

Di Nizzo zucchini in the garden, August 2024

Last year I was overloaded with both zucchini and cucumbers, with around 50 and 40 pounds respectively--what a great year.  This year, it's shaping up to be a much more modest harvest.  Though I got a lucky few free ones (of each) from other allotmenters to supplement my own too:  I never say no to free food, especially vegetables.

I grew so much zuc last year that I still have some dehydrated in my cupboard so this year we are mostly eating it fresh, but I have also made a jar of kimchi with it.  I mean, why not--I'm on a roll with kimchi.  It's crunchy and spicy and may not last very long, the way I'm eating it!  I also made a couple of batches of tortillas with cooked mashed zuc:  just keep adding flour to the mash till it makes a rollable dough (mine was still a bit sticky) and cook in a hot pan about a minute each side.  They were a hit with the kids, even the son who dislikes zucchini.  The cooked mash was a bit watery so I left it to drain in a sieve for a few hours first.

With my little pickling cucumbers, I've filled a 1.8L jar of refrigerator pickles, and am 3/4 of the way through another.  Some of the smaller salad cucumbers have found their way in the jars too.  I saved seed from the pickling cucs last year, and have another couple left overripe for seed this year too (I've already bought salad cucumber seed for next year but who knows, maybe I've missed an overripe one of these too).  Apparently these can be made into kimchi too...

Marketmore cucumber in the garden, August 2024