Dig for Victory - Mark II

ceridwen

I used to think I didnt like any vegetables apart from tomatoes and mushrooms (okay okay - I know tomatoes are really classified as a fruit!) as a child - but then I found that once I was the one preparing them and I experimented a bit with ways of serving them that I actually like the majority of them now.

Salt/butter/olive oil and lemon juice/decent mayonnaise or French dressing made with balsamic vinegar and I'll eat most things.

Right now - part of my lunch is steamed kale served with fresh lemon juice and a bit of olive oil drizzled over it and some sprouted sunflower seeds scattered on top. Its nice actually.:D

Lotus-eater

ceridwen wrote: »

A tv programme coming up here of interest - 8pm, Friday, 20 February on BBc2 - A Farm for the Future.

Its about Rebecca Hosking - the inspirational woman behind the anti Plastic Bag Campaign and how she plans to transform her family farm into a "farm for the future".

Theres an article about her in todays "Mail on Sunday":

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1145431/Now-farm-help-teach-world-live-oil-says-woman-banished-plastic-bags-town.html

Now - if I was her mother I'd be one proud woman.

Thanks for the link, it looks very interesting. BBC2 though.... preaching to the converted I think.
Quite a woman, not half bad on the eyes either

rhiwfield

Lotus-eater wrote: »

I can understand some of that list, I don't like broad beans and radish much, so don't grow them. But sweetcorn! are you sure, it's one of the top crops from the garden. I suspect you might not have harvested them at the right time. What did they taste like to you?

Try lettuce "little gem" absolutely gorgeous, also some hotter peppery leaves like oriental mixed salad leaves, i think she could be brought round to eating home grown salads, but many people I find grow tasteless green pap.

No, its OH's taste test they didnt meet . I had to fight off the gds to get some for myself, they were lovely

Broad beans I love, especially cooked with chorizo as a filling lunch.

rhiwfield

I think I recall that an allotment (250 sq m full size?) was meant to supply with food a labourers family of six. Also that the majority of this space was put down to potatoes.

So I was thinking about Beki's post on how much land she's devoting to raised beds (about 54 sq m) but then thats all dedicated growing space. If you factor into an allotment's non-growing space ie the shed, compost heaps, pond, paths, wider planting spaces what sq m of raised beds would equate to a full sized allotment?

ceridwen

Lotus-eater wrote: »

Thanks for the link, it looks very interesting. BBC2 though.... preaching to the converted I think.
Quite a woman, not half bad on the eyes either

Well - I dont THINK she's attached - if you fancy moving to South Devon....:D

Always helps if the "messenger" is presentable;)

Lotus-eater

I think dirty old boots, holey t-shirts, mended jeans, 10 year old jumpers and a cowboy hat, is maybe not what you mean by presentable.
Unfortunately it is all I have to offer

Patchwork_Quilt

Something that I would never eat from a shop is coleslaw.

Our cabbage, carrots and onions, however, transformed it to something irresistible.

Davesnave

Great article about Rebecca Hosking. Thanks.

As someone else pointed out, the UK needs some kind of land reform before there will be enough smallholdings in all parts of the country. Certainly, you needn't consider buying anything with a couple of acres in the area around Rebecca's home town; unless you have at least £500k going spare, that is!

I used to get a small living from 1/4 acre nursery, and I could now get a good one from less than an acre if only my sales department hadn't lost the will to sit at a draughty market stall 6 days a week! Our system used little diesel or fertilizer and half our plants were sold less than a mile from their point of production.

Similarly, there could be smallholdings around the periphery of all our major conurbations, feeding into well-run markets or shops & cutting out much wasteful long-haul transport. This would make more efficient use of the land too.

At present, such ideas are all pie in the sky, but if this recession turns into the beast I imagine it to be, the old status quo won't be with us much longer.
One day, we may wake up to find that GB Plc hasn't the financial clout to buy-in so much food. Trouble is, establishment of sustainable alternatives to the current monocultures will take years.....oh, and a bit of a revolution!

nodwah

You not running a nursery any more Davesnave?

I like to buy stuff from local small nurseries if I can but I'm frequently seduced by the cheap offers in the supermarkets etc

There is a thing about community supported farms - don't know much about it but sounds like what your talking about.

it's my dream to run a shop selling locally produced veg and meat myabe as some kind of co-operative ( and i'd like to have a nursery and be a full time gardener)- ah - keep dreaming

Lotus-eater

Davesnave wrote: »

Trouble is, establishment of sustainable alternatives to the current monocultures will take years.....oh, and a bit of a revolution!

This is what I've been blinking saying for ages! All I get in response is "Oh we've got enough land to grow our own".

Yeah, who's going to grow it, who's got the skills needed, where's the infrastructure?
How are we going to grow pears when we haven't got enough trees? When we have got enough trees are we ready to wait for years till we get enough fruit?
How are we going to deal with the situation when we have trouble storing food because of power cuts?

It might be a revolution, but its not going to be a very nice one. No power to the people I'm afraid.