Tattie clamp

Starting out with our new plot last year, we put nearly half of it over to potatoes - this saved us having to do anything else with it, such as building beds, and it automatically prepared the soil for this year’s full use of the plot.


The upside was a summer full of potatoes for anyone who would have them, and us burying the rest - some 60kg - in a clamp.

 This old school storage method of re-burying potatoes in a straw-lined hole in the ground keeps them in the proverbial cool, dark place with sufficient moisture to keep well into the winter and beyond. A method of building a clamp is described with pictures here: http://blog.mr-fothergills.co.uk/potato-clamps-storing-potatoes-vegetables-using-clamp/

So how is this news six months later? Well, we just collected the last bucket of potatoes from the clamp to turn into chips, pie mash and roast tatties.

Clamping produced mixed results for us last year. We were most successful with large Maris Piper, which were muddy but unblemished when retrieved. Not so with Red Duke of York, which either rotted or started sprouting, while smaller Kestrel and Maris Piper seemed popular winter homes for slugs and even some golden cyst worm. Given half the potatoes that went in the clamp were not in the best condition in the first place - scabbed rather than damaged - I estimate we lost between 10 and 20% to rot and slugs. In hindsight, I would have lined the bottom of the clamp with stones to drain away rain, used a lot more straw to eat off the soil and wildlife, and clamped higher above ground level rather than fully buried - but then who knew winter would be quite this wet.

Lessons learnt for next time, however our new and permanent plot layout won’t require this scale of effort again; our new potato beds  take up barely 1/3 of last year’s space - and that’s fine, because nobody in this day and age needs to grow, and indeed store, this many potatoes.

The old tattie patch has now given way to two 4x1.2m bean beds, a chard cold frame, a raised greens and pumpkin patch, two new red currants, two gooseberries and lots of new raspberries.

On the other side of the plot, following out four-bed rotation, in 2020 we are going to try Charlottes, to be eaten fresh, Cara as main crop, and a little gem of a tasty yellow-fleshed wonder we ate and loved at a Blackisle restaurant - when we asked for the variety, we were presented with a small paper bag of seed potatoes and a shrug. They are happily chitting in the greenhouse - we will see!

The hunger gap risotto

March is notorious as the month where investment into the allotment doesn’t come close to matching the output, the hunger gap for subsistence farmers and those attempting self sufficiency. This is the first year where, with the help of a cold frame and greenhouse, I have had year-round lettuce in the form of winter varieties: butter head and endive. The sheltered chard is also ready for gentle harvest and the purple sprouting broccoli is not far off our first meal. Our clamped potatoes are nearly used up - finally - the remaining leeks need to be used and the kale is looking magnificent after a very mild winter. Sadly, so are the slugs.

Tonight’s dinner used some of these In a way or young children will eat, by themselves, without argument: hidden vegetable risotto (easy, 30 minutes)

One onion, chopped
One garlic clove, chopped
Olive oil for sautéing
Four small leeks, chopped into chunks
Fry these until softened, then add
One and a half cups of arborio rice
One cup of white wine (why do I have left over Pinot Grigio?)
Three cups of good vegetable stock
Four tablespoons of nutritional yeast flakes
Black pepper
Stir in
A bunch of fresh kale leaves, chopped quite fine, particularly of source of complaint
Half a cup each of frozen peas and broad beans
Stir frequently to prevent sticking to the bottom of the pot until rice is cooked but not mushy - about 15 minutes. Serve with gran padano or parmesan cheese, toasted pumpkin seeds and salad. And wine.

Sowing time

It’s March! Sowed Oriental bright salad mix, purple mustard mizuna, green mizuna, round red lettuce, marouli and light and dark blita in the cold frame. Tomatoes, leeks and brussels sprouts seedlings are already growing in the greenhouse. Some lovely tomato varieties: red robin, golden crown, Alicante and red cherry. Bring right next to Musselburgh, that was our first choice of leek.

Beetroot leaves

 Do you like chard? Chances are you'll love beetroot leaves. Here's what we've done with them for lunches on the go. Vegetarian, savoury, filling and healthy. Packed with protein and a good chunk of your five a day.

You'll need:

9 filo pastry sheets (or pastry of your choice)

2 white onions

300g beetroot leaves and stems

1 pack feta cheese 

1 egg

1 tin butter beans

1 tbsp dried dill

salt, pepper, cumin to taste

olive oil to brush

Fry diced onions in a little olive oil, add chopped beetroot leaves and stems when translucent and cook until wilted. Allow to cool before mixing in the crumbled cheese, beaten egg, beans, dill and seasoning. Set aside.

Lay a stack of three filo sheets on a clean work surface. Cut in to two lengthways and set one strip aside. Place 1/6 of the filling 5cm from the edge of the filo strip and fold the edge over the top before folding the pie up like a triangle and placing on an oiled baking tray. Brush with olive oil and repeat for the other five triangles. Bake for 30 minutes at 200C.
Keeps in the fridge until demolished.

Well hello again!

The seasons have come and gone, the ground has frozen and thawed, weeds and plants thrived and wilted, trees have grown and so much has been sowed, picked, cooked and eaten.

We just haven't been online much.

Allotment holiday

 Parents have a way of getting things right and being impressive - and when it comes to the size of their vegetables, mine have definitely got something right in Greece. I remember when they grew rocket from seeds I sent and complained it tasted "woody" - when I visited I was presented with a small christmas tree of a rocket plant with foot-long leaves. Mine had hardly grown two inches before bolting in Scotland...

Anyway, this time Carol showed off her beetroot, while Wolfgang was worried two leeks might not feed 4 people. Under normal circumstances I would agree, but with these two, not a problem.

So, here are two tried, tested and much praised recipes for what to do with leeks and beetroots. Don't worry - normal sized vegetables will work fine, just tripple the quantity!

Leeks a la Nenya

2 of Wolfgang's Leeks (or 6 from the shop)
4tbsp olive oil
salt to taste
300ml red wine (Shiraz will work well)

Cut Leeks into 3cm cylinders, fry upright in a non-stick pan with a little olive oil on a low heat, covered with a lid, until the bottom half is soft. Take care not to burn - switch pan off and rest if necessary. Turn individually to cook the other side by the same method. Season with salt. Now comes the trick: increase the heat and add red wine, half a glass at a time, to cool the pan and caramelise the leeks on both sides. Serve hot or cold. Surprisingly very very tasty.

Beetroot salad a la Carol

2 of Carol's Beetroots (or 6 from the shop)
olive oil
garlic powder
tsatsiki mix (alternatively salt and dill)

Boil the beetroots, drain, peel and slice 5mm thick. Sprinkle generously with garlic powder and tsatsiki mix. This salad keeps for a few days in the fridge, tastes better with time and keeps giving.

Frost

Woke up to a white icing sugar dusting over Edinburgh - some of which didn't clear until mid-day. The few days of warm sunshine were a wee taste of spring, not to be taken as the start of a bright and warm growing season. Fingers crossed the beetroot seeds will forgive me...