2024 Fashion On The Ration Challenge

maryb

interesting link.  The Ministry’s monthly leaflets on gardening in wartime also show how to produce a big proportion of a family’s food from an average allotment sized plot. https://dig-for-victory.org.uk/growing-advice/dig-victory-leaflets-ww2/

2Scratters

@PipneyJane sorry to hear of DH's change of employment status. I do believe things happen for a reason but we seldom know why at the time. Hope he can keep bug free for you too. Upside to this there will be some jobs completed sooner than planned. The garden will love the extra attention. 

Take care

2 Scratters xx

Cherryfudge

Thanks for that link, @maryb, there's a lot of information in there. I've had to drag myself away for now but I'll be back to it! And presumably that's a picture of @PipneyJane's husband on the right hand side?  

Laura_Elsewhere

Twenty-odd years ago I dug and planted an asparagus patch for Mum's birthday - the tiniest patch ever, a whole one square yard, but four foot deep dug out, and then back in with layers of various materials so it was incredibly well-drained but very very rich- anyway, I read every gardening book in the house to find out what was best for preparing to grow asparagus, so the advice ranged from around 1890 to the 1990s. The startling bit was the very frequently-repeated advice that for a family of four, you needed something like five feet wide by TWENTY-FIVE FEET long...! 
For the record, that one square yard held four plants, and they did very nicely for about 15 years of not really being looked after at all- enough sparrowgrass for Mum and Dad to have as a light lunch or starter 3-4 days a week, plus a meal with others once a week. 

Twenty five feet?! 

Watty1

That sounds a fabulous return on a small patch.  You have me thinking now as I have a patch of ground that is unused and mostly shaded by my parking my horse box beside it but I could park elsewhere and use that patch.

It was once a really productive strawberry patch.   I have been thinking I should grow something there but just don't have time for much gardening as I work really long hours.

Laura_Elsewhere

Watty1 said:

That sounds a fabulous return on a small patch.  You have me thinking now as I have a patch of ground that is unused and mostly shaded by my parking my horse box beside it but I could park elsewhere and use that patch.

It was once a really productive strawberry patch.   I have been thinking I should grow something there but just don't have time for much gardening as I work really long hours.

Well, asparagus doesn't need a lot of attention, ime- it does need a LOT of watering if you don't live in a wet place, and the ground needs a lot of preparation, so maybe not this year...

Can you get the little British native wild strawbs? They spread like weeds and will happily swamp a patch of ground, and the birds and slugs and snails are not at all interested in the strawberries yiou do need to check for woodlice but they're only occasionally curled up inside a half-eaten one The trick with them is not to pick them as soon as they turn the bright red of supermarket modern strawbs, but to wait until they turn darker red when they are beautifully sweet... 

Gem-gem

Thanks for that links, @maryb and @Cherryfudge there's a lot of very interesting information there. 

I would need about 12 acres with cows and chickens. 

@Laura_Elsewhere, woodlice seem to eat more of my strawberries than my DH and I do. It is very frustrating. 

florianatwobob

I shall enjoy that link @maryb.  We have an ancient Percy Thrower gardening manual which is very useful (barring the use of various now banned chemicals). I do love that the pictures of Percy always have him in tweeds and shirtsleeves. Strangely reassuring. 

I do need to address my strawberry patch (a very large plant pot) but will do that when back from manoeuvres. 

We’ve had ‘the men from the ministry’ in this week which along with co-ordinating events for International Women’s Day (we like to up the ante with a week of events) has made for a rather busy week. 

PipneyJane

Good morning All.  Cup of tea?  I’m just making a fresh pot.

What is everyone crafting at the moment? Having finished the body, I’m currently working on the sleeves of Susan Crawford’s Simple - But So Attractive, knitting them two-at-a-time, in the round, on a long circular needle.  It’s not a difficult technique, but I lost several days’ knitting because I forgot about the increases and had to methodically tink back 20 rounds on each sleeve, in order to put them in. That took 2 days. Ironically, it only took me yesterday afternoon/evening to reknit.  (ETA:  yes, I could have just frogged them both BUT the cuffs are on such small needles that it took me over a week to knit them and I couldn’t face doing that again.)

Talking of yesterday, I spent several hours feeling like I’d stepped back to the spring of 1939.  DH was in his armchair, while I was sitting on the couch, knitting, and we both listened to the football on the wireless.  Some things are timeless.

- Pip

PollyWollyDoodle

Ooh yes please, I’ll have a cup.  That sounds absolutely idyllic, Pip - only I assume your DH wasn’t wearing a collar and tie and smoking a pipe 😄

That’s a lovely pattern, have you made it before? I have nothing on the go at the moment, and I am missing it, but just can’t seem to organise myself to get even a sock on the needles. The long-awaited builder is starting tomorrow on some work in my lounge (when I say long, it’s been ten months since he quoted for the work). This means I’ve had to move all the furniture out and I’ll be spending my evenings in the spare room while he works wonders.  

No excuses, I know where there is some sock wool and a bit of therapeutic knitting is just what I need to calm the nerves while the house is in turmoil.