Resourcefulness: The budgeter's friend

foxgloves

@CRANKY40 - My 1st job was 3 weeks on a land settlement looking after tomato plants. I was 15 & didn't enjoy it at all. Why 3 weeks? Because at £15 per week, that was how much I needed to save up to buy the £45 coat my Mum said was too expensive. Mostly my job was picking them. Huge buckets. I only worked mornings & the most I could manage was 22 buckets a day. The worst job was 'leafing'. This was going along rows of plants in long, long greenhouses snapping the lower leaves up & off so the fruits ripened more speedily. I have done it on my own tomato plants ever since 
This tomatoey job wss also a good introduction to capitalism. The tomatoes were mostly sold at the farm shop on site. When there was a glut, which happened while I was there, you would expect that prices would be lowered to shift more of them. Alas no, there was big food inflation in the 70s & rather than sell them cheaper, I saw the owner push a handcart containing our freshly picked tomatoes down to behind one of the greenhouses & tip the whole lot onto a bonfire! Even at age 15 that just seemed so utterly wrong.
But 'leafing' I have continued & will be doing plenty of it this week. Back to my strawberry troughs now......
F

foxgloves

Well, at last half an hour on my bench at the very bottom of the veggie garden next to the triffid formerly known as 'rhubarb'.
I am going to be a bit achey later but have thoroughly enjoyed today's garden efforts. I have weeded out all 4 strawberry troughs, assessed which runners to grown on & secured them into pots of compost. Because of all the rain, every job seems to take twice as long as weeds need hacking back before I can properly see the task in hand. The 🍓 runners will be severed from parent plant once adequately rooted & will spend winter in my coldframe ready to increase stock next Spring.
I did manage to de-leaf the lower stems of all 18 tomato plants. I couldn't see any blight but will check daily. My friend lives on the opposite side of the county but I know conditions have been just right for it so must be vigilant. It's many years since we lost almost our entire crop & I'd rather it didn't happen again....though tbh not a lot stops it apart from growing resistant varieties.
Also did today's garden pickings: Courgettes inc a tromboncino, tomatoes, a bunch of sage, chillies & a few blackberries to add to the freezer container. Have been visited in the veg plot by Soot, Ash, a red admiral, a holly blue, lots of gatekeepers & bees on the oregano flowers which they adore & a dragonfly. All welcome. I don't like the weather too hot - liw 20s is fine for me - but isn't it a lift to the spirits to feel the sun on our arms & faces - not legs today as am wearing my lime green tartan footless tights.
Grapes ate ripening but I tested a couple earlier & they are not ripe enough to eat yet. I might thin off some of the tiny ones tomorrow & let the energy go into the bigger ones...bit you don't need to know all these rambling details.
Oh...in addition to cashing out £50 YouGov earnings, Mr F has also had £4 of M&S vouchers arrive today plus a random email voucher for some free branded sauce. His packed lunch tomorrow is a free frozen vegan meal he was given a voucher for at Waitbl00m. 
Oh my sainted trousers, I think this rhubarb has grown more even since I've been sitting here. Maybe I should make some rhubarb & ginger jam after all. I am on my last jar of last year's. 
I'll shut up now,
F x

Makingabobor2

Sounds like a very productive day. I do love reading about your exploits in the garden. I try and picture what your garden must look like, it sounds huge. 
Glad you have had some sunshine, we had some for about an hour first thing and then been overcast & chilly for the rest of the day and we even had some rain. Looking good tomorrow though. 

rtandon27

FG - I for one absolutely love your rambles!

marionmgcars

Go for it with the jam 👍. We only had a small growth on our plant but made a few jars.  It’s delicious.  I’m looking  at the blackberries next.  While out and about I passed a man with his two children.  They had a large sheet and they were collecting plums from waste land.  I stopped to chat and he said, “oh we know how to do this and make jam. We are from Romania- how refreshing to see the family working together 😊

Kantankrus_Mare

Thanks for the info regarding beans. We also have a couple of recipes that use them. Despite me growing veggies, we arent really a meat, potatoes and veggies eating family but a lot of what I grow gets used in various recipes and nothing gives me more pleasure than saving a quid or two when making something and I can supply one of the ingredients needed. Ive got loads of rhubarb still looking healthy. Never made jam with it but really should have a go.

PennysIntoPounds

As @rtandon27 says, your ramblings are loved. Great work in the garden, what a lot of free exercise! The nice weather must've worked its way up to you as it's been grim and uninspiring again here today after a one-off nice day yesterday. I haven't risen to the positive and productive week focus today because it seems as soon as it's grey and rainy my body and mind shut down into hibernation mode, but I have had some nice beers with a good friend, and at least re-allocated the to-do list in the diary. Some days are like that, and that's okay. Must get try to swallow some frogs tomorrow though. As Oscar Wilde didn't say, to lose one day is unfortunate, to lose two is careless (unless it's one's period but haven't got that excuse this week). 
I believe that was pretty much the whole quote 😁

EssexHebridean

Delighted to catch up and see your good news regarding test results - so still a big thing with possibly having to consider surgery but at least that's one worry relieved.  

I also enjoy your "ramblings" - and as for the garden stuff I am looking forward to being able to ramble more fully on that subject myself, of course! Thank you also for reminding me about survey cash-outs as I have just recalled how close I was on 1P, have popped across there and done a single survey which tipped me over the edge so that has been dealt with and £25 heading my way from there! 

foxgloves

@Kantankrus_Mare - I've tried various different rhubarb jam recipes over the years, but have now settled on my favourite which I found on the L*kel*nd website - Rhubarb & ginger jam which uses both root & crystallized ginger. It tastes expensive & I have often given it as a present. My Dad loved it & was apparently asking for it on toast in the final few days of his life, when really he was too poorly to have been enjoying jam. I'm glad he was still enjoying it though & will think of him when I make some next week.
I can recommend it on hot buttered crumpets. My sister swirled it through whipped cream & used it to sandwich home made meringues together when she needed a no-fuss dessert & it was apparently gorgeous. I've also filled cakes with it for a change & we enjoyed a spoonful on top of porridge, home made rice pudding, etc. 
F 

foxgloves

@PennysIntoPounds - Yes, gardening is definitely good exercise. I am really stiff today after all that bending & stretching yesterday but it's pretty much the only exercise I do apart from a bit of walking when I feel like it. I've even stopped riding my bike, which is a shame as I used to enjoy it. 
F