Posted on

Green side up

So, aged 20 and freshly moved into my new flat with French windows opening onto a small terrace, I decided to give gardening a go.

Green side up- Container gardening for complete beginners

Growing up on a nursery, surrounded by plants, I have seen millions of plants grown for growers, farmers and individuals over the years. My achievements to date include planting a bulb garden (aged 5) which was subsequently buried under a bonfire and growing a reasonably sized sage plant in the family herb garden so I can hardly be considered an expert but, from my new flat, I am hoping to start gardening in my adult life with this one golden rule: green side up!

Posted on

Something other than me is eating my rocket…

AgonyPlant sub-page rocket
Something other than me is eating my rocket..

Something other than me is eating my rocket… y  (via twitter)


It’s flea beetle; they love brassicas, especially rocket, radish and Chinese takeaways (pak choi and the like).  It’s best to cover susceptible seedlings with Enviromesh (or similar) straight after planting, but this isn’t very practical in a mixed pot with lettuces (which aren’t affected). 

Pick off the worst affected leaves, blow/flick the plants (tiny beetles 2-3mm long can be seen jumping off leaves when disturbed).

Cover with fine mesh, old tights or a plastic sieve (from a charity shop?) for a week or two until the plants have plenty of new growth. Keep plants well-watered during dry spells.

In late summer there is sometimes an invasion of homeless adult beetles into gardens when oilseed rape is harvested (that crop with the bright yellow flowers you see everywhere); even mature plants can be checked if there are large numbers.  There should be less damage later in the year.

Do send me pics of your improvised plant cover – I’d love to hear how it works.

Happy Gardening,

Agony Plant


Posted on

trays laid out in greenhouse

trays laid out in greenhouse

Monday 5 August 2013

Today we laid out all the trays in the greenhouse.  They are raised on plastic pots to ‘air-prune’ the roots and stop them from ramifying underneath the trays and tangling up; this would make it difficult to pull the plants from the modules at planting time.

The trial is divided into three main blocks according to plant type:

Lettuce

Chinese cabbage

Spring cabbage

Within each crop there are four rows each containing one tray of each growing medium.

After the trial was laid out, it was given its first watering with plain water. In 7-10 days we will assess the germination/emergence. Meanwhile we will send off samples of unused compost for nutrient analyses.

Posted on

Prawn, Chorizo and Courgette Spaghetti

A gorgeous summery dish perfect after a hard day.

Serves 2

A lovely dish, with a light delicate flavour, for summer evenings, preparation time 25 minutes. 

Ingredients

200g spaghetti
100g chorizo
200g courgette, diced
half a teaspoon of dried chilli flakes
6 medium-sized tomatoes
2 teaspoons of tomato puree
a small glass of white wine
200g cooked and peeled prawns
Juice of half a lemon
a few leaves of basil (for garnishing)

Method

  1. Place a large pan of water on the heat ready for your spaghetti.
  2. Peel the chorizo and cut it into mouth-sized chunks. Place in a heavy based frying pan on a medium heat. As the oil begins to seep from the chorizo, add the diced courgette and fry gently for 10 minutes.
  3. Blanch your tomatoes in the water you will later use for the spaghetti and carefully remove their skins and most of the seeds. Chop finely and add to the sauce along with the wine and continue to simmer.
  4. Throw in your spaghetti and boil for 12 minutes.
  5. 3 minutes before your pasta is cooked, add the prawns to the sauce to warm through, check your seasoning, I find this sauce benefits from a liberal grind of black pepper.
  6. When your pasta is cooked, remove the sauce from the heat and squeeze in the lemon juice.
  7. Drain the pasta and, in the cooking pan, combine the pasta and the sauce. To serve, sprinkle with basil and eat immediately. 

Posted on

Rocket and almond pesto pasta with courgettes and pan-fried salmon

July 2013

Healthy, hearty and a great idea when you need to use up some of the multitudinous courgettes we all accumulate in July. Serves 4. Preparation time 35 minutes

Ingredients

500g of courgette
1 pepper
1 onion
A small handful of fresh rocket plus extra leaves for garnish
30g almonds
50mls olive oil plus extra for vegetable roasting
50g grated parmesan cheese
1 clove of garlic
Juice of one lemon plus wedges to serve
350g penne pasta
4 skin on salmon fillets

Method

  1. Chop the vegetables into bite sized cubes , season with salt and pepper, place in a roasting tin and roast in a 180 degree oven for 30 minutes stirring occasionally.
  2. Heat a large pan of water ready for your pasta later.
  3. While the veg is roasting make the pesto, add the rocket, almonds, olive oil, lemon juice, grated cheese and garlic to a food processor and blend to a smoothish paste.
  4. Fifteen minutes into the veg cooking time and it’s time for the salmon. Pat the skin dry with a paper towel and season with salt. Place in hot frying pan skin side down for 5 minutes until golden. Flip the salmon fillets and place the pan in the oven with the vegetables for the last 10 minutes of cooking. Finishing fish and meat off in the oven cooks it more evenly ensuring a succulent end product with the crispy skin you get from frying.
  5. Now it’s time to boil your pasta. When it is done to your liking, drain and return to the cooking pan. Mix through the pesto and tender roasted veg
  6. Serve in a bowl topped with your perfectly cooked salmon, extra rocket leaves and lemon wedges. Lovely.

Posted on

Rhubarb and Lemon muffins with Cinnamon Crumble topping

Rhubarb and Lemon muffins with Cinnamon Crumble topping

Ingredients

For the Muffin mixture
175g light muscovado sugar
175g rhubarb, diced into half centimetre cubes
zest and juice of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons sunflower oil
1 egg, beaten
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
125mls of milk
200g plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
 
For the crumble topping
50g muscovado sugar
50g cool butter
50g porridge oats
2 teaspoons of cinnamon
 

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 200°C and place 9 muffin cases in a muffin pan ready for your mixture.  
  2. Place the crumble ingredients in a bowl and rub in the butter with your fingers; you can use a food processor for this but that can result in a finer texture and some of your oats may suffer for it. 
  3. In a separate bowl, combine the sugar, rhubarb, lemon, oil, egg, vanilla and milk. 
  4. Sift on the flour and raising agents. Stir the mixture 10 times. You will get gloriously light muffins as an end result but currently the mixture will look horrifying – probably with a few patches of flour remaining un-combined – Don’t Panic!
  5. Spoon your mixture into the muffin cases (around a tablespoon in each) and sprinkle on your crumble topping.
  6. Bake for 15 minutes until bouncy to the touch.

Posted on

Lemony prawn risotto with spring vegetables and rocket

Lemony prawn risotto with spring vegetables and rocket

Serves 2

This is a beautifully summery dish perfect for alfresco dining with a nice cool glass of white wine.

Ingredients

Half an onion
3 cloves of garlic
Olive oil for frying
300g Arborio risotto rice
A bunch of spring onions (around 125g)
A generous glass of white wine (Sauvignon Blanc works wonderfully)
1 pint of vegetable stock
Half a teaspoon of chilli powder
1 lemon (zest and juice)
225g best quality raw tiger prawns
A small handful of peas, fresh if you can get them
A small handful of spinach
A generous handful of parmesan cheese (plus an extra sprinkling for serving)
A small knob of butter
A small handful of rocket

 

Method

  1. Finely chop your half onion and garlic and sweat it gently in a large heavy based pan with a little olive oil.
  2. When the onion is beginning to become soft and translucent add your rice and sliced spring onions and turns up the heat slightly.
  3. Now it’s time to add the wine, from this point onwards you will need to keep a sharp eye on your risotto and stir it often so it doesn’t stick.
  4. Gradually add your vegetable stock when your risotto threatens to stick. Continue with this process for ten minutes, then add your prawns, chilli powder, peas, spinach and the zest of your lemon reserving the juice for the end.
  5. When the rice is just soft and your prawns are pink and juicy (should be another 5-10 mins) remove the pan from the heat. Add the cheese, lemon juice and butter. Adjust your seasoning, add good grind of black pepper but taste carefully before adding too much salt (the prawns, cheese, butter and stock might make your risotto salty enough already).
  6. To serve, spoon the thick oozy risotto into shallow bowls and scatter over your rocket leaves. Sprinkle on the last of your parmesan and enjoy. 

Posted on

Oven-roasted round courgette with cheese and chilli baked fondue

August 2013

Serves 4 as a sharing starter. Perfect for stress free but impressive entertaining. 

Ingredients

2 large round courgettes
A drizzle of olive oil
100g mozzarella cheese, chopped into small cubes
80g cheddar cheese, finely grated
10 leaves of basil, finely chopped
I clove of garlic, crushed
a half teaspoon of dried chilli flakes
2 heaped teaspoons of Crème fraîche
2 level teaspoons of corn flour

Method

  1. Preheat your oven to 200 degrees celsius.
  2. Cut the tops off of the courgettes and scoop out the seeds. Drizzle the insides of the courgettes with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place in the oven on a baking sheet for 1 hour.
  3. Meanwhile, combine all of the other ingredients in a bowl.
  4. 30mins into the courgette’s cooking time, spoon the fondue mixture into the centre of the baking courgettes put them back in the oven for the remaining cooking time.
  5. When the courgettes are tender and the fondue is melting and unctuous remove them from the oven onto a serving plate. Replace the courgette tops and surround with fresh herby salad allow a generous amount of crusty bread per person for dipping and enjoy!