Winter has arrived

During the last few days we have had the first flurreys of icing sugar snow and heard the snap, crackle and pop of hailstones bouncing off the roof light in the kitchen.  Those warmer than usual autumn days have long gone and it is time to upgrade to heavy duty boots and thicker jumpers.

There is plenty to do outside but it is a tough gardener who ventures outside to tend the plot.  I do have a pair of thermal gardening gloves but at the back of my mind there is the idea that walking on wet ground will compact the soil structure and store up trouble for next year.  Well, that’s my excuse anyway.  I am very happy to put my ‘I’d rather be in the garden’ mug in the back of the cupboard, until it feels a degree or two warmer.

So, gardening at Springfield is currently a series of quick dashes up and down the garden path.   Of course, the chickens need constant care and today they were sheltering underneath their new rain cover, looking a little pensive.  I bought the cover from
www.omlet.co.uk and the great thing about it is that it is made from clear, heavy duty plastic so the hens can see out and I can see inside the run more easily.  We are now waiting to see how much weather the winter will throw at it.

I still have some salads in the raised beds.  The radicchio leaves are soggy on the outise but the hearts are still going strong and bring a sharply flavoured, ruby-red crispness to a salad.  The spiky mizuna and glossy spinach are hanging on in there too.  In the greenhouse, there are trays of cut and come again salad greens and I have some little Winter Gems bobbing along nicely.


Now that the plot has been well frosted, Doc digs some parsnips every week.  After a blast of cold air, the starches turn to sugar and the parsnips caramelise in the oven and taste so much sweeter.  If we don’t need to use the parsnips immediately, Doc leaves the soil on them because they store better this way and as I write there are a couple waiting expectantly in the utility room.
 
The leeks are another joy of winter and Doc regularly digs up half a dozen or so.  He cleans them all, pops them in a poly bag in the fridge and then we cook with them through the following week.  They are just as versatile as onions but offer a softer, oniony flavour.  One of our favourite dishes is leeks sautéed with bacon and covered with a thick, cheese sauce and topped with crispy breadcrumbs.....

Fortunately we managed to arrange one of the bigger autumn tasks to be finished before the cold snap this week.   A large, variegated holly was in need of a substantial taming so a friend of ours who has the kit, offered to tackle the job for us.  The result was a huge mound of prickly potential for our family florist.  Number One Daughter was visiting last weekend so she took a huge bag full of it back to Arcade Flowers in Ringwood.  Stored outside, it lasts for ages.  As for the rest of the heap, a more local florist has taken it away which is great.  Instead of being consigned to the bonfire heap, the lovely holly will brighten up many a front door over the festive period.