Almond blossom

 Almond blossom

The first fruit tree to flower in spring is one we think of as a nut. But the almond 'nut' is really the kernel of the almond fruit, Prunus dulcis, which belongs to the big Prunus genus and is a closer cousin to apricots, peaches, cherries and plums (all of which will be coming into flower next month) than it is to true nuts like walnuts and hazelnuts. A ripe almond fruit looks like an oval unripe apricot or peach, with hard green furry flesh. When the fruit is ripe the flesh starts to split, revealing the distinctive pitted shell containing the edible kernel.

I planted the tree in the picture in January 2005 and it has surprised me by growing so big so quickly, plus it had a very heavy crop of nuts in just its fourth year. I thought it was going to be slow-growing and largely ornamental, which is why I planted it next to a strolling path, not in the orchard proper. 

  My young almond tree in full flower in September 2008

Now when its lower branches are heavy with nuts one has to duck to get under them when going down the path, but it certainly is an ornamental sight from the kitchen window at this time of year, covered in white blossom with a hint of pink.

It was sold to me by the name of 'Mona Vale', but after thirty minutes of roaming round the Web trying to check on where this cultivar originated, I am coming to the conclusion that there may be a mix-up with the similarly-named 'Monovale', with some nurseries and garden centres calling it one name and some the other. But if anyone knows that there really is a difference and can tell me what it is, I would love to know.

Almond tree blossom is beautiful as well as early, but the most beautiful fruiting tree flowers are not out until late September in the Eco Garden - see the posts on Crab Apple Blossom and Quince Blossom.

Mastering the art of sourdough

Sourdough no-knead bread batter, the sourdough starter, and the organic rye flour used to feed the starter.

 A loaf of no-knead sourdough bread made with wholemeal and white flours, and sunflower seeds. Delicious topped with homemade apricot jam and a sharp cheddar cheese.

Who needs a garden for growing things when a kitchen can also be a centre of nourishing biological activity? Seeds can be sprouted, yoghurt and ginger beer starters can be nurtured, and sourdough bread starters can be multiplying away in the fridge.

I bought a sourdough starter from Running Brook Seeds near Auckland recently – all part of the special service offered by this one woman firm. It came in the post with basic instructions and recipes, and I made my first loaf with it last week, following the instructions for a plain loaf exactly as written. Well – eventually – after tipping the not-really-rising loaf out of the tin twice and mixing in more flour because I had not made the batter thick enough.

The recipe is for a batter bread, which does not require kneading. I appreciate this now that I have arthritis in my fingers, and find it hard to knead for any length of time. It makes a moist loaf, which does not crumble, with a open texture like Vogels bread. This makes it great for sandwiches and toast, as well as very nice spread with butter and honey.

Despite the lack of kneading, this is not a quick bread to make because on baking day the starter needs three to four hours to get working again after a lot more flour and water is mixed in, and then the bread takes at least two hours to rise in its tin in a warm room, and longer in a cool one. It also needs another hour in the oven. However, the actual mixing time is less than ten minutes, so it is much less work overall than most home-baked breads.

The flavour can be varied by using different flours, and adding seeds. A fruit and spice bread is another option, and will be my next experiment with sourdough baking. It's great to have such a user-friendly and economical alternative for making bread – I estimate that a loaf made with the starter costs less than half what a bought loaf using equivalent quality organic ingredients costs. So I will keep feeding it – and it will keep feeding us.

The cycle starts again - seed sowing

 

 All my seed sowing containers are reused again and again. Except the toilet rolls - they each contain one corn seed and the plants will go into the ground in their biodegradable containers.

I did a big sowing of seeds in containers in the glasshouse today and yesterday, following on from what I did two weeks ago (July 31). Some of those seeds (cauliflower, lettuce, beetroot) have already germinated, and the basil is just starting to push through. The bigger seeds that like it warmer will take a while yet, but I know that in two-three months time (with proper care) the sweetcorn, pumpkins and so on will be ready to plant out in the garden.

The advantage to starting one's own vege plants from seed is that as well as being cheaper than buying punnets from the garden centre the range of varieties available is so much greater and more exciting. Below is the list of what I have sown so far – no same old, same old stuff for us at harvest time!

It's a bit early for sowing most things in the open ground (especially with snow forecast) but peas can cope with the cold, so I made my first outdoor sowing of the season with Purple Flowered Snow Peas. I'm already salivating at the thought of eating them again...

My Spring Sowing

Basil                Bolloso Napoletano, Lettuce Leaf

Beetroot          Crosby's Egyptian Flat

Broccoli           Purple Sprouting Early

Cauliflower       Phenomenal Early, Violet Sicilian, Orange Bouquet

Chilli Peppers   Cayenne Long Thin,  Jalapeno

Corn                  Chieftain F1, Honey and Pearl F1

Cucumber       Lebanese F1, Tendergreen

Eggplant         Black Beauty, Black Egg, Long Purple

Gherkin             Homemade Pickles

Lettuce                Buttercrunch, Cos Verdi, Half Century, Merveille de 4 Saisons

Melon                 Hales Best Jumbo, Sweet Granite, Charentais

Onion, Spring       Ishikura

Pepper            Friggitello, Jingle Belles, Marconi Red, Orange Sun,               

                       Tomato Paprika

Pumpkin                  Galeux d'Eysines, Musquee de Provence, Queensland Blue

                               Whangaparaoa Crown

Silverbeet               Margaret's Selection

Squash                 Waltham Butternut

Tomato             Brandywine Pink, Baxter's Early Bush Cherry, Orange Cherry

                        Oxheart, Red Pear, Roma, San Marzano, Scotland Yellow, 

                       Sweet 100, Yellow Pear

Watermelon              Crimson Sweet, Sugar Baby, Sweet Siberian

Zucchini           Black Beauty, Cocozelle di Napoli, Gold Rush F1 

 The first outdoor sowing of spring - the pea tepee.

Snow fuchsia

Snow-covered fuchsia branches bend across a creek

New Zealand has very few native deciduous trees, but one of the few we do have, the kotukutuku or tree fuchsia, has much to recommend it. I have already blogged about how good it is to have in the garden in summer, when its sweet berries are excellent food for bellbirds (and not bad for humans either).

But perhaps it is in winter that this little tree really proves its garden worthyness, since the loss of leaves exposes its distinctive pale red-brown bark, which peels away to reveal greenish new bark beneath. It typically grows in quite twisted and contorted ways, and when snow falls on the almost horizontal branches, as it did last month, the contrast is striking and appealing.

After the big snow at the end of July had stopped falling and the sun had come out again I took a walk up the road to a grove of kotukutuku, and took these photos of just how good they can look with a white 'coat'.