Rhubarb tastes so much better in a crumble!

Neil.

I have enough of it that I may just try that!

I seem to have a lot of leeks this year, and they are so early for them as they are very hardy and last over the winter. I am glad I have a lot as they never mind what the weather throws at them for they survive.
Quite indispensable in soups, casseroles, stews and of course Ham, cheese and leeks. They are so easy to grow as long as you have enough water, which we do not lack in the UK most of the time.
Cauliflowers and the broccoli are doing well, and the baby carrots which I planted late are gorgeous.
Regards.
Neil.

Maybe I'll grow some leeks next year, but perhaps I'll have to be watering them more than usual, because it's so dry in Calgary.

Dear Susan, when you plant leek seedlings always remember that you just make a small hole and drop one in! Then you fill the little hole with water and do not put any soil in it or firm them in as they will do the rest for you!
That is very important with them. For if you try to put soil in or compress them they die off quickly. In the north of England they pride themselves on their leeks as they grow single ones in pots for shows and they are massive.
They are a member of the onion family and are very easy to grow if you water them. Baby leeks are fantastic to eat as they are sweet and have a subtle onion flavour, You can always grate them as well and fry them very quickly.
Always take the outside layer off as that is where the dirt hides, and do waste the green bits! Not the leaves I am talking about on the stem.
Regards.
Neil.

Dear all, our friend Richard from Kew has put some beautiful photos on this morning it is at
Regards.
Neil.

Dearest Neil - thank you for the insight on leek growing!
There are several plants, Datura flowers included, that do Not want to have soil covering them. I believe it's because they too, will suffocate.
Aren't plants interesting that way?
On another thread someone explained how to grow roses from a single flower. How very interesting!

Dear Susan, all plants are interesting! In fact they are more fascinating than a lot of the Human idiots who live around here, who prefer to riot than do anything productive.
As for leeks I was not trying to give you or anyone else a lecture on them, as a lot of people are better leek growers than I am. It is just that the further north you go in the UK the more they are grown, as they are so hardy.
They are also cheap to grow and do not take up a lot of space to other vegetables, and seem to be forgotten, which is such a shame as they are so versatile in everything.
A lot of vegetables that are grown to show and be judged are hardly edible and taste of nothing. However leeks are one of the few vegetables that you can grow to any size and they are still good to eat!
My granddad in Yorkshire used to grow 'pot leeks' for shows and these things were so big each you would not believe them. They were closely guarded from the other competitors, and near the show time he would stay all night in his shed guarding the leeks! They were all careful wrapped in corrugated cardboard as there were no self blanching ones then. Now of course they have breed that into them, so that the stems go white without all that work.
Regards.
Neil.

Your grandad & shows sounds like some iris people I know.

Dearest Neil - I did not take your speaking about Leeks as a lecture - my goodness no!
I have never grown leeks, so appreciate any information on them you can pass onto me.
I've used leeks before. Are they the ones that are used in cock-a-leekie soup?

Dear Susan, they most certainly are used in that recipe which goes back to the early 1500s in Scotland. You will find them in thousands of British recipes that use them as they are such a versatile vegetable. In our winters we can only rely on Brussels sprouts as they are very hardy, cabbages, leeks and root vegetables. Unless you buy imported stuff and a lot of us will not do that.
But our spring comes early and then there is an new rush of vegetables to enjoy!
Regards.
Neil.

Neil - what do you consider early, for Spring?

Dear Susan, depending on the weather the snowdrops and crocus start coming out in January and the daffodils in early February. That heralds spring to us, but can vary as the last four years we have had very cold spots in February.
Though these cold spots have not lasted long about two weeks normally, they have totally out all the plants out of sequence. But in a normal year we work on the plants and the sight of the daffodils!
Regards.
Neil.

Although windy the sun came out today which is a rare treat for us so I managed to get a photo of this for you all. It is Passiflora caerulea or the blue passion flower!
What a lovely treat after being battered by gales force winds to see this in flower.
Regards.
Neil.

Lovely. I had not seen a blue one before.

is very pretty., Next to purple I like blue next,

Dearest Neil: I can't recall ever seeing a blue passion flower (or any other colour for that matter) other than those I've seen you photograph.

Michaelmas, the feast of Saint Michael the Archangel (also the Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, the Feast of the Archangels, or the Feast of Saint Michael and All Angels) is a day in the Western Christian calendar which occurs on 29 September. Because it falls near the equinox, it is associated in the northern hemisphere with the beginning of autumn and the shortening of days. Michael is the greatest of all the archangels and is honored for defeating Lucifer in the war in heaven.
It happens that in the UK a plant Aster novi-belgii and its many cultivars are called the Michaelmas daisy as they always flower in September an around the 29th which is the actual day.
We also have Michaelmas fairs in many of the villages, which sell local produce.
Here is one that has seeded it self in my garden!
Regards.
Neil.

Way back in the days of yore ( a long time ago) Michaelmas Fiars were also the places were landlords collected their rent for the year. Farm labourers went to the fairs to hire themselves out for the coming year too. They would hope to be in the same place as the year before because their cottages were 'tied' to the farm they worked for and changing employer meant changing home too.

Domestic servants could be hired at these fairs. Once the produce was sold, the rents paid and jobs found they could go on to buy ptovisions for the coming winter and enjoy 'all the fun of the fair'. If there was any money left they could also buy fancies - ribbons and gloves perhaps - medicinal herbs or new tools or visit a fortune teller.

A town had to have a licence from the king to hold fairs. As they brought in people from miles around there was fierce competition between the towns to earn the right to a licence and disorder at a fair could get the licence revoked. The Michaelmas Dair was particularly valuable as the harvest was in and there was a lot to sell.

Nowadays a lot of these towns still have fairs but they are no longer used for hiring and firing! They have roundabouts, ferris wheels and the latest rides as well as the more traditional coconut shies and helter-skelters The travelling fairs start earlierin the yearat the smaller towns and grow with each week until the two biggest Hull Fair and Nottingham 'Goose Fair' in early October. After that they head for winter quarters and start travelling again in the Spring with the Easter Fairs.

Nottingham calls their's 'Goose Fair' as farmers drove in herds of young Geese people would buy their own to take home and fatten for Christmas. No handy butchers or supermarkets back then, but its a long time since I've seen a goose there!!

And the best thing, it's my birthday! St. Michael is considered my Guardian Angel.