As the garden has developed we have both grown very fond of deep red, dark purple and almost black planting in the garden. Sunlight enhances the rich coloured leaves by enabling them to show their rich deep red and purple tones whilst the dullest of days serves to bring out the black. Add rain or dew to the mix and you get an altogether different perspective: the raindrops reflect the light like diamonds. This group of hues adds focal points to the garden and serves as a splendid backdrop to other plants and flowers or helps to lead the eye to a view. If you have any recommendations for black or deep purple foliage plants, please let us know in the comments below.
Harvests come and go and when you grow the majority of your own fruit and vegetables or forage fruits and nuts, you cannot delay harvesting or processing; if you do you risk losing them to the animals or to nature.
In Asturias we have a wild peach called Piesco that produces small fruits which have a strong peachy taste but once ripe, do not last. If the rain comes their skins spoil and the insects and birds can soon devastate the crop. Knowing when to harvest is paramount. The reason we use these wild peaches is because of their wonderful flavour and they are perfect for making jams, chutneys and for dehydrating. A kind neighbour lets us have their crop of piescos that grow on one of their fields as they don't use them and they know how much we love them. 4kg of them were used to make jam and a further 6kg were chopped and frozen for use either for jam or chutney. They freeze well and it is a great way to preserve as much as the crop as possible before they spoil, especially if you don't have the time to use them straight away. We will collect more this week for dehydrating; they make a great snack for when out walking.
The beans have just been harvested and just in time. The recent heavy rains has caused some damage to the outer pod but fortunately this has not spread to the beans inside. We quickly shelled them and have left them to dry for a few days in the sun after which they will be frozen as is for 24 hours, re dried and stored. The freezing part was a tip from a neighbour who tells us that it destroys any lingering bugs or bacteria and therefore they last much longer and in better condition. It works for us.
Elsewhere we are just about to harvest our first tomatoes which is always a treat. We still have lots of basil left so plenty of scope for some Italian inspired tomato based dishes. On the list of things to do this week include: making piccalilli, chopping wood, extending the stone skirt to the garage, beginning to thin out and weed the garden....enough already.
What are you currently harvesting and what jobs are taking up your time during September?
Asturias is a popular destination during the heat of the summer in Spain. Many Spanish people come during the main holiday period of last two weeks of July, August and beginning of September. Many leave their town and city based apartments where the summer temperatures rarely fall below 30 degrees Celsius, to come to the milder and more tolerable northern coast; Spain's Natural Paradise, Asturias.
The once quiet towns and low-key cities now buzz with extra traffic, more pedestrians and busy terrace cafes and bars. The beaches that are mainly deserted for 10 months of the year become a mosaic of sun chairs, beach umbrellas, beach towels and sand castles. The hundreds of peaceful walking routes become punctuated with walkers, ramblers, cyclists and runners, the gentle hum of the mountains ring out with cattle bells and camera shutters and the subdued markets come to life with extra stalls and animated stall-holders eager to sell their wares to passing tourists.
As you wander around the small fishing villages, farming communities and hidden towns, the aromas of cured ham, grilled fish and seafood, still cider and barbecued meats float through the air with unprecedented regularity and the haze of wood smoke intensifies the tapestry of greens, golds and blues that are typical of summer here in Asturias. During the next few weeks we will see and hear a proliferation of fiestas, music festivals, street theatres and recitals, all geared up to entertain and bemuse both the locals and the incomers; something for everyone.
It is great to see this influx of visitors during the summer months and although it can upset our normality, we realise that the economy needs it. What always confuses us is why Asturias is so quiet during the remainder of the year? We appreciate that it is the main holiday period for many Spanish workers but we feel that there is no-where better to visit in Autumn or Spring and even Winter than this beautiful region of Spain. OK the weather can be unpredictable particularly in Spring and sometimes in summer but cooler and wet weather fronts rarely last for long and after all, that is why Asturias is so green and lush. With mountains, woodlands, pastures and coast, larger cities and quaint villages all easily accessible within half an hour no matter where you stay, Asturias really does cater for all tastes.
Below are a couple of videos that show some of the beauty of Asturias, the first is a video from the hotel we first stayed in on our first time in Asturias (worth a visit) and the second is one I have featured before of the Cares Gorge; the most iconic walk in Asturias. Who knows we just might meet here one day....?
In the still of the night when we are asleep, the garden continues to host an array of wildlife we rarely see or think about... What happens in your garden at night?
As dusk falls, the birds call out the end of the day before roosting in bushes, trees and crevices. The bats take flight and feast on the abundant mist of midges, flies and moths and the owls fly low from perch to perch in search of mice, voles and frogs. The frogs begin their chatter and the toads sing out loud announcing their presence to passing mates. Meanwhile the snails and slugs exit their daytime refuge and take advantage of the cooler air and dew that settles on the grasses and plants, easing their journey to feast on luscious greens and petals.
Excitement grows for Wentworth and Gawber as they tune in to the music of the night. A rustle here, a flutter there, a call in the distance, both Wentworth and Gawber finely tune their senses to ensure their safety and maintain their territory. A large male stag beetle signals its presence with a loud whirring noise as it navigates the garden only to be chased by two curios and playful cats.
Every so often we sit in the darkness on the terrace and experience the sounds and sights of the night. It is amazing to think that within a few meters, creatures great and small are feeding, travelling to and fro and, on constant alert for friend or foe. It is clear that we only ever experience a fraction of the abundance of life that uses our garden.
Here is a short compilation of night-time infrared videos filmed in the wildest parts of our plot. It features, badgers, deer, fox, pine marten, hedgehog, wild boar, a raton and of course, cats. When we view the films we can often see the reflections of curious cats eyes watching from a distance. The final scene is a lovely reminder that our domesticated cats bridge the life in the garden we know and the life we rarely catch a glimpse of...
Onions have always cropped well for us, granted, some years have been better than others but on the whole we usually grow enough onions to last us most of the year. We use a lot of onions in cooking, in chutneys and pickles and in salads. This year like previous years we have planted 150 early onions, 150 red and 150 white. Together with spring onions and leeks we will, mother nature willing, have enough at harvest time to last throughout the year.
The ground is prepared by ensuring it has lots of compost and green manure dug in and left for a few weeks for the worms and micro organisms to start their work. We buy our main onion crop as small plants from a local grower who has a stall in Ribadesella market. Although they are not organic, we will grow them on using organic principals. We bought 400 onions and 12 lettuce from him for 20€.
We look for a good green and strong plant that has been well watered and not left to grow too leggy in the plant module. We have always been pleased with the quality of his stock.
We give the onions a good start in the ground by supplementing the rich soil with extremely well rotted manure. We have found a source near to us from a local farmer who has a few cows and horses. Over the years he has just piled up the manure and it has turned into black gold. We usually drop him off a bottle of home made liqueur based on Orujo and orange which we know he likes. We take the car up, fill a few sacks and off we go.
Heaps of black gold
A small trench is dug and filled in the base with black gold and then watered. The onions are laid out about 15cms apart, the trench filled and the onions bedded in. A final watering is pretty much all there is left to do and apart from a bit of light weeding from time to time and spraying with a natural fungicide, the onions will grow and swell without little interference from us.
Knowing our onions, the conditions they like, when and when not to spray and when to harvest works for us and results in a year round supply of delicious red and white onions for cooking and preserving. What are your tips on onion growing, maybe leave us a comment below or a link to your blog and we'll check them out? I bet they're not as big as ours.... ;-)
