This Thing of Beauty....

Is indeed; a joy forever...

Birthday indulgence; to myself; last month....

But for less than the cost of a night in a mid range B&B; plus maybe a small vegetable offering; this felt like a pretty good deal.
I'll camp just one night more; next hols......

It is fiendishly difficult (for difficult read 'squirm inducingly nigh on impossible') for a lot of us; to promote our own works, produce of our labours, services, or what we might dare; if we're having a confident day; to call talents....

So it would seem churlish of me whilst Beth is having a clear out; not to pass on to you; the chance to get your hands on some of this utter gorgeousness; from a very talented; but modest lady; whilst it's still unfeasibly affordable; (and as you can see; adorable.)

And no; no commission in it for me; just a visual lift for years to come....Go on; how could you resist....?

https://www.artfinder.com/artist/beth-pearson/

At it again...

Maybe 5% of the time spent doing veg work here is spent on the faithful old Ford.

But just how much you can do; with fairly basic mechanisation; in that relatively small amount of time is easy to discern in this before and after illustration.

And I would defy; even the most determined eschewer of infernal combustion; not to get a little bit of a thrill out of having that much power at their command..

Skilled hand work; with well designed tools; is appropriate for most tasks here.
But to do it all manually would require something like a threefold increase in the price of veg..

Or perhaps one of those regularly overflying troop carrying helicopters from the local marine camp, could drop off some personnel for a bit of 'in the field' exercise?

Mmm; unlikely..

So we're going to be burning diesel for some time yet to produce affordable food.

Of course the environmental effect of a bit of fuel use; is negligible in the grand scheme of things..

It's ironic that having children; which it could easily be argued is the 'biggest ticket item' in terms of individual contribution to environmental load; is an event that often initiates people  'thinking green'.

But no amount of organic shampoo; or wooden toys; is going to offset adding more, first world, entitled, happy shopping bods' to our ranks?

What's the answer?
Controlling our numbers? Perhaps.
But how to do that equitably; and effectively: and with humanity?

If there was an easy answer; then surely we'd have found it by now...

Beware anyone offering 'simple' solutions to complex problems...

The greatest likelihood is that they're just a bit 'simple' themselves..

Here making much fun in the country; mowing down the old sweetcorn that I spent all summer defending against the badgers; a point to me you fuzzy bottomed beasties....

Hello Kitty!

Trailer Trash Pusser.....

Supervising the spinach beet planting.

Remember those fecund bundles of sunshine; over two tonnes of which were harvested a month ago?

Well now those squash are safely tucked up in the barn; and quite a few have been sent out already to new homes.

But the still fertile soil; warm and weed free thanks to the ground cover sheet through which the summer crop grew; is just the place for a few hundred hardy greens to grow on.

The stripey one had an utterly exhausting day; keeping an eye; not only on my work rate; but overseeing two girl Mondays as well....

 My fuzzy friend is expected to be doing a double shift; she needs to be up there now chasing off the rabbits; there were considerable quantities of bunny currents in evidence.... 

Wildlife battling resumes...

Sunshine on a rainy day..........

Further Head Spinning Time Travels......

For any of you keen to resume awandering through the Not - always - sunny Pyrenees 

I have managed in part due to 'rain stops play' here at the farm to put out the penultimate 'part five'

of the September trip....

see labels 'Pyrenees' 

I could post a link; but just how much hand holding do you really need? 

Birds Eye View.....

Mmmmm.

Fresh bedding....
Not quite smooth sheets; but the next best thing...

The heady sweet scent of fresh wood shavings; see us nest and nestle.

How could this not make our feathered friends happy?

And in turn produce even more; eggcellent custard ingredients....

The ladies are supposed to lay in the cubby holes provided; but some girls have other ideas....

It would appear; even hens; can think outside the box.

Look Look...!

I made a rainbow for us; on this "No sun, no fun No'vember". Drizzlesome day....

Whoever said that; was a bit of an Eyeore....

There's always some fun to be had; you've just not got to be too picky; and use your imagination some more...

Prettily arranging chard stalks is a bit of light relief; from weeding and planting in the polytunnel .

And what now?

Clean out the chicken house of course.

See? The fun really does; just not; stop....

What Fresh Madness is this?

The Baked Thursday Custard is the one point of sanity; around which the rest of this operation giddily orbits..

But globe artichokes? In November?

Thought it was a bit balmy sitting outside for lunch on the first of the month....
And then these budding beauties...Regrown from a plant cut earlier in the season.

They are a fiddle to pull to bits after 40 mins steaming.
But if you like the flavour it's a proper slow food treat; dipping the ends of the petals in melted butter and pulling off the flesh with your teeth.

Then scraping off the hairy choke, and tucking into the nutty nugget hidden at its heart.

Definitely not for folks who only see food as fast fuel.

And do bear in mind they can be seriously spikey; they are after all; part of the fearsome thistle tribe...

Hear the Excited Cries

Of young children; up and down the Vale...

And hark the gleeful rubbing of estate agents uncalloused hands; as they see prices spiral skywards within the 'Fresh and Green' delivery area...

For the first sprouts were harvested today.

They are actually very tasty..So long as you don't boil em to within an inch of their lives.

Also good halved, steamed, then stir fried in a satay sauce.

Or.... Shred; and mix with chopped autumnal apple; plus maybe some carrot; and if you're feeling aniseedy some juicy sliced fennel...See previous post....For a really supeb slaw.

After all; sprouts are really just cabbages for Faeries.

A Magnificent Specimen

And a pretty marvellous Fennel too..
Just look at the size of it.
Seductively modelled here by my able assistant.

Caught the 'sowing window' just right this year (mid July).
Sow too early and they will bolt and go to seed.(veg just wants to make babies; not feed us)
Too late; and you won't get the gorgeously crunchy; bulbous bulk that can be used to great effect in the kitchen; by those who know how...

Not content with labouring all day 'pon the field. August (and every other month) assistant now shimmies off; to carefully craft a Luscious Thursday Custard.

Amply Blessed.

Oh; and perhaps don't let on to the animal welfare lot; just how much entertainment there is to be had; from watching four hairy pigs chase each other round after a misshapen fennel bulb   ;-)

Dramatic Effect....

To anyone who doesn't know me well; it might come as a surprise; just how much visceral pleasure I take in flailing the b'jeesuz out of the assorted crop residues and weeds; that hang about the place making it look untidy, at the tail end of the season.

There is no small thrill; in having; even a relatively small amount of horse power; hydrocarbons; and last centuries agricultural implementation; at ones disposal.

It enables a swift transformation from vegetative nuisance; to valuable mulch with one noisy pass...

Enjoying those destructive powers so much might provide a counterpoint to the oft perceived organic vegetable growing; country cycling; yoga preaching; wholesome bundle of loveliness image'.

Which can on occasion; get a bit tiresome; given that; as with most lazy pigeon holeing; it's not quite the whole story...

Really glad the sun came out too.

That made first day back; at proper work just a bit more bearable.

Plentiful crops showing in background, beetroot, parsnip, and furthest away Florence Fennel... Harvesting a good amount of that again this week.