All Change. New Job, New Start and New Challenges.

Well, you might have noticed I've changed the name of my blog. I have been thinking about it for a while now and because of all the things we have planned in the near future, I thought that now was the right time to do it. It's still going to be mostly me just rambling on and on about boring country stuff but I'm also hoping to get my husband to do a couple of guest posts on things like what we have learned during all the building of poly tunnels and chicken coops and garden planning and landscaping and stuff. Technical stuff that doesn't include flowers, bunting, animals or fluffy stuff, things that he's much better qualified to write about than because he's been the one that has been doing it. I have mostly been holding stuff, passing him tools and providing tea and biccies 😊 ie.very important stuff!

So, things have been a bit hectic and frantic down here in deepest, darkest Cornwall. I have just changed jobs. I know!!  ..... it was a total shock for me too. I had spotted a job on the job site website and although the deadline had expired by about 4 weeks, I applied on the off chance because the hours were perfect and it was really local. I submitted my CV and 20 minutes later I got a call asking me to pop along for an interview the next day. Twenty minutes after I finished the interview, they rang and offered me the job! I now no longer have to work weekends! You have no idea just how amazing that feeling is after 18 months of working pretty much every single weekend. Luckily I only had to give a weeks notice in my old job and I started my new job on Monday. Talk about whirlwind! 

On the poly tunnel front, great news ..... the cover is on! It's not completely finished, despite working 'til it was too dark to see on Sunday evening but the cover is on, the doors are fitted, most of it is secured with the wiggle wire, the paving slabs are down. Although there is some finishing off to do it's almost finished and the planting and growing and of course the decking out with bunting and the installing of the table and chairs and potting bench etc ..... basically the cool, fun stuff ...... can begin. I just can't wait I'm beyond excited. My bunting is ordered, my compost is waiting and my potting bench is being built by my lovely husband. 

Not quite finished, it was too dark to take pictures by the time we finished and I have been at work pretty much ever since but will take a few more pics this weekend.

The plan is now to get the new garden raised beds and the poly tunnel stuffed to the brim with plants and veg for us to both eat and sell on. And therein lies the new challenges. The growing and the planting is pretty straight forward but getting my head around successional planting and things like how many of each plant to plant, where to sell what we grow, how to preserve the produce to keep us going throughout the year with as little a 'hungry gap' as possible and basically building a small business in the next couple of years ready for the next step. Luckily, we have those couple of years to practice everything before things need to get serious which is why we have worked like maniacs for the last 7 months to get things into place so the practicing can now start in earnest.

Fruit bushes ready to be planted.

I have set up an Instagram account so people can follow on there as well as on here so if you want to pop along and see what we're up to I have added a link both HERE  and on the Instagram button at the top of the page. And please, any comments, suggestions or advice will be most welcome. 

Poly Tunnel Update

Just a quick update on the poly tunnel before I run back outside and carry on shifting soil.

The inside of the poly tunnel is now almost finished. A bit of levelling up of the slabs is needed but the raised beds are in and awaiting their mix of top soil and compost.

I've moved almost a tonne and half of top soil in the last couple of days and I have at least another tonne to move. Then there are the 40 bags of compost to lug through to the field to top up the beds so there is loads of nutrients in there for me little seedlings and I have also collected some llama poo, which I have in total abundance courtesy of my lovely llama boys to add some extra oomph to my soil.

I can't wait to get planting, I'm trying to control my urge to plant every seed I possess but it's getting harder by the second and finally, I have some seeds that I can actually plant so tomorrow, thats what I plan to do. Watch this space for a seed planting list and the biodynamic planting methods that I will be following this year.

Hummus and Poly Tunnel Progress

Well, there is much excitement in the field right now, the poly tunnel is almost at the stage where we can put the polythene cover on and get things ready for planting. You have no idea how excited I am. It's just laughable really but I have actually been having sleepless nights about getting things done in time for when the growing season starts! I know it's only January but I just can't help myself. 

The side rails are on, the rails half way up the sides are on ready for the metal channels and the wiggle wire to fix the polythene in place and the weed membrane is now covering three quarters of the inside. All we have left to do is level the end of the poly tunnel where my lovely table and chairs will be and then the raised beds need putting back together and the paving slabs need to go down and the doors need to be made and then it should be done. Actually, when I write it all down, it sounds like there is still a LOT to do :-) never mind, we will just keep plodding on and it will be done before we know it.

Before the side rails went on. 

The door frames are actually are level

Anyway, in order to take my mind off the fact that rain stopped play last week and we couldn't get anything done outside, I had a go at making hummus. I love hummus but it's getting really expensive in the supermarkets and more to the point, I tried some hummus that a friend of mine made a couple of weeks ago and it was so amazing the shop bought stuff was a pale imitation by comparison. My domestic-goddess-esque friend used dried, soaked chickpeas because she's so organised that she always puts me to shame but I used tinned chick peas because I had forgotten to soak and cook the dried chick peas I had bought and I used red peppers from a jar for the roasted red pepper hummus that I made because, sadly, I am nowhere near as organised and goddess-like as my friend. It tasted amazing though and I will definitely be doing it again. Here is the basic recipe. I tried making the basic stuff two ways, one I left coarse and chunky and one I blended into oblivion because apparently that's how it's traditionally meant to be. I have to say I preferred the chunkier version but my absolute favourite is the roasted red pepper hummus.

One point, if you use peppers from a jar, which are preserved in olive oil like mine were, reduce the amount of oil you add to the hummus initially because the additional oil that's on the peppers can make the mixture looser than in the original recipe. You can always add more at the end of processing if the hummus is a little thick. I also used a light tahini paste, not really because I wanted to cut down on the calories but because it was the only one they had in the supermarket. 

I'm going to try a lemon and coriander one next and then who knows what else I might add to the basic recipe. I guess the sky's the limit. 

Basic houmous recipe

Serves 6-8 as a starter

2 x 400g cans of chickpeas (reserve the liquid and a few chickpeas for decoration)
4 tsp tahini
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp crushed sea salt
6 tbsp quality extra virgin olive oil (plus extra for drizzling)
3½ tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
Paprika (optional)
Coriander or parsley leaves (optional)

Rinse the chickpeas in cold water and tip into the food processor. Add the tahini, crushed garlic, salt, lemon juice and seven tablespoons of the reserved liquid from the cans. Turn on the food processor and slowly pour in the oil while it runs.

When the mixture is fully combined and smooth, tip it into a serving dish. Drizzle with some more extra virgin olive oil and decorate with a few whole chickpeas. Sprinkle with paprika and finely chopped coriander or parsley leaves, for colour.

The recipe is a Jamie Oliver recipe and can be found here

Happy New Year to All

Hi everyone, I hope you all had a fabulous Christmas and New Year. Ours was so nice, I can honestly say it was one of the nicest Christmases I have had in a long time. I was thoroughly spoiled and despite only having Christmas Eve and Christmas Day off work, it was so lovely to spend time with my family that it's a real anti-climax now that everyone has gone home and it's back to being just the animals and me, at least during the week. Weekends are now full of hard graft trying to get the poly tunnel up and running, finishing off the raised beds on the front lawn ....... only one more to construct, paint and get into place and then it's sorted, and then, generally tidying things up and getting rid of the "building site look" before the growing season starts in earnest. I am simply so excited that it's getting harder and harder to face the drudgery of my hideously boring-but-essential day job. I know it provides the money for things like seeds and compost and plant pots and poly tunnels and paving slabs and the endless other things we need to help us on our way with the self sufficiency venture we have planned but the reality of grumpy, stroppy and downright nasty customers I have to deal with on a daily basis can be a tad trying after a while. Still, I am very hopeful that by the end of the year I will be able to quit my job and concentrate full time on growing, harvesting, making and baking and there won't be a pair of shoes or a grumpy customer in sight :-). 

Anyway, here are a few of the pictures we have taken over the last few months of the progress we have been making. 

The poly tunnel has gone from this 

The beds are laid out where they will be and the internal patio/potting/cooking/filming space has been marked out and once the ground has thawed out, we can get on with the levelling of the area ready for the paving slabs. There is loads more to do, mostly stuff I don't quite get because I can't picture it in my head but hubby assures me it will be "a piece of cake". I'm withholding judgement until I see what happens but he's pretty good at doing stuff like this so I'm hopeful it won't take too long. 

I drew a little picture on my whiteboard of how I wanted the poly tunnel to look. After my husband had stopped laughing at my awful drawing, he then sighed with resignation when he realised I was actually being serious and we set about designing the space ........ including the bunting which everyone thinks is bonkers but I don't care lol 

The cover will be going on now that the wiggle wire has arrived!! I kid you not, that's what it's called lol, it's a very cool way for stretching and fixing the plastic in place without using nails. It's been MIA for the last week until about 11am this morning when I donned my metaphorical "Sherlock" hat and went to find it. It had been delivered to totally the wrong place but after a process of elimination I managed to track it down and bring it home. Case Closed lol :-)

The chickens are under lockdown because of the avian flu risk. They'e none too pleased about life in captivity but it's for their own good. They have a new toy to play with. My husband read somewhere that chickens are inquisitive and that one woman had bought hers a child's xylophone to play with so I hopped online and bought them this.

I've not actually seen the using it yet but they like to go and look at it. They also have loads of shelves and ladders for them to hop about on and I've ordered them a chicken-safe mirror because apparently they like to see their own reflection lol. I have no idea if this is true or not but I'm happy to give it a go if it makes them more contented while they're on lockdown.

They've also been having the odd treat every now and then. They love water melon so I have been adding a few chunks to their bowl a couple of times a week and this morning, it was so cold and frosty that I made them some porridge. They totally love it. No milk or sugar, just oats made with water and given to them while it's still warm. Only as an occasional treat but they seem happy and contented enough and I'm still getting a couple of eggs a day from them so they must be doing ok.

The girls tucking into their breakfast this morning. 

Anyway, that's all I have time to write for now. Got to go chop and collect some firewood, fetch llama food from the feed store and make something hot and delicious for my supper because it's absolutely FREEZING here in Cornwall just now. I will just leave you with my favourite picture of my house this Christmas. I've never had outdoor lights before but this year I decided I would give it a go. I totally LOVE them and I'm never taking them down :-)

Happy New Year Everyone XxX

Much Excitement In The Field.

Well, there was much excitement in the field last Monday with the arrival of this fabulous bundle of things. After a hernia-inducing 20 minutes lugging the whole lot through to the field because the delivery driver just dumped them in front of my house and legged it so he wouldn't have to help, I stood back and surveyed my poly tunnel bits. 

For years and years I have been saving up for a greenhouse and every time I manage to scrape together the money to buy one something comes along and I have to spend the money on something else. Not this time. This time I will be getting my indoor growing space and it's going to be epic. My poly tunnel arrived. It's HUGE! Well, the pieces are huge so I'm guessing the actual poly tunnel will be huge when it's finished. I'm thrilled to bits and I can't wait to try and get it put together, hopefully this weekend, weather permitting - although the forecast for the weekend is not looking promising, I'm still hopeful that we can at least get the frame put up. 

This is what it should look like, this is the photo from eBay, which is where we got it from. Our's is probably a bit smaller but not much. We fitted one of the hoops together and propped it in place and it's so big you could practically live in it!!

I have so many plans for planting things and making the inside look nice ..... I know that's a bit girly of me but nevertheless, I want it to look nice as well as being somewhere practical to grow things. I have bought a little gas camping stove and a whistling kettle so I can spend my days out there getting on with all sorts of growing and planting and harvesting ....... do I sound like a compete nutty loon about all this? It's probably because I'm hoping to be able to be so self sufficient that I can give up work and do it full time so I am very, very keen to make a go of it but I promise I will try and keep my nuttiness to a minimum :-) 

I harvested the last of my beetroot a couple of weeks ago and spent the morning boiling, peeling and pickling and I eventually ended up with 4 jars of delicious beetroot. A couple of jars of normal beetroot, one jar of a pinky coloured beetroot and some that looks a bit like pickled pears but which is, in fact, beetroot. I planted mixed colours by mistake this year, normally I just plant a variety called Boltardy but I have a feeling that the mixed colours were ones that I got free with a magazine and I'm guessing I thought it was a good idea to try something new. I won't be making that mistake next year. I also made the mistake of using pickling vinegar this year instead of distilled white vinegar because I couldn't get hold of any of the distilled stuff and the spices in the pickling vinegar are a bit strong for the delicate beetroot and completely overwhelms the lovely woody, earthy taste. Another one to chalk up to experience. It's been a very steep learning curve this year and I'm guessing the next year or two are going to be even steeper. Besides, my husband didn't even notice the difference so maybe it's just me. 

I also harvested my leeks last week and turned them into leek and potato soup for the freezer. I know it's too early and because they went in so late they were quite small but we needed the space to get the last two raised beds in place before we can start to fill them with compost over the next few months ready for next year. There will be six raised beds in all and although there is now at least four times more growing space than I had last year, I still don't think it's going to be enough. I guess we will just have to play it by ear and see how it goes. 

My gorgeous new preserving pan. Not only is it amazing for making jam but it's brilliant for making vast amounts of soup. It's like my very own cauldron .... I love it 😊 (I found the new emoji button thingy, how cool is that) 

Anyway, hopefully, by next week I can post some pictures of my new poly tunnel ...... weather permitting, so watch this space. 

Oh and one final thing. If anyone out there has any tips for growing in poly tunnels I would be very, very, extremely grateful. I have absolutely no clue where to start. 

More Garden and Field Pics

Over the past few months, as I mentioned before, there have been a few changes. I acquired some more chickens and I now have 5 girls. Harriet, Bluebell, Marigold, Lobelia and Poppy.

Marigold is the cream one and Poppy is the speckly one

Marigold and Bluebell, the ginger one.

Lobelia on the day we got her and her sister Marigold

They lay the beautiful pale blue eggs in the pictures 

above and Poppy lays the dark brown ones.

We built them a cute new chicken run to keep them warm and cosy in the winter when they aren't running around the garden. I like for them to be out and free-ranging as much as possible but when I'm at work I like to know they're safe so they have a secure run. They have little shelves to hop up onto, a massive perch thing with different height roosting bars which they love and they have various things to play with, one of which is their sweetcorn on a string. They totally love it. I've tried to upload a video but I'm not sure if it will work ..... fingers crossed. 

We have also been building an identical structure in the field as a hay store. My husband has pretty much been building stuff non-stop for months now and he's made all the raised beds, the chicken run, the hay store and the log store. Personally I think it's just been one massive ploy to buy more power tools but hey, I'm not complaining, he's getting kinda good at it :-)

This is how far we got this weekend. Actually we did get the back and the two sides clad in ship-lap cladding but by the time we had finished, it was too dark to see let alone take pictures so I will nip out and snap some tomorrow. We only have the front and the door to clad and then some little fiddly bits to fill in and then it's done and I can start filling it with hay for the llamas to keep them happy through the winter months. 

AND ......... tomorrow is a really, really, really special and amazing day. Tomorrow something fabulous is happening. Tomorrow, my new poly tunnel will be arriving. I am beyond thrilled. It's huge. It's 30 feet by 15 feet and I will be able to plant so much stuff. I just can't wait. Watch this space :-)

Garden Progress

This summer, there has been a lot of changes to the garden. A few months ago, a new garden design was planned and although at times it seemed that we would never get anything done, we have slowly but surely made great strides in our hope of becoming a bit more self sufficient. This is only a quick post, to show you a few pictures of the garden so far. I will go into more detail tomorrow when I have a day off work and the time to write a bit more about what we have been up to (if there is anyone out there who still reads my posts lol). Please bear in mind that it's still very much a work in progress and some of it still looks kind of like a building site but we are definitely getting there.

This is how my garden looked when I first started my blog. A rectangle of uninspiring, scruffy looking grass.

It's changed a bit over the years. First the patio was fenced off and a flower bed dug.

Then a few raised beds were added, very in-expertly by me, I might add, to enable me to grow some of my own veg.

 My first chickens arrived.

And started laying me some eggs.

And then my veg growing started to take off.

However, earlier this year, after a bit of a long talk, we decided to change the garden radically to make it more much more productive and a bit more beautiful.

So here is what my husband designed.

It's still a bit of a building site but we're getting there slowly. 

I will post a few more pics tomorrow after I find them from the hundreds I have taken over the last few months. 

The Great Goat's Cheese Debacle

In our house over the last few months, there has been much discussion about the future. Of potential house moves and possible projects that we would really like to undertake and one of those things was to become more self-sufficient and have a go at not only growing more of our own food but actually producing some of it too. One day, a few weeks ago, I happened to mention that I would love to have a go at making cheese and lo-and-behold, a couple of days later, three little kits plopped onto my doormat, a mozzarella making kit, a goat's cheese making kit and a bacon making kit (we will get to the making bacon one in another post). Needless to say, I was thrilled and couldn't wait for the weekend so we could give them a try. I had big plans for the cheese and in my head, I was already picturing us out shopping for cute little goats to start our own goat herd to begin our little cheese-making business. Unfortunately, for the time being, we are still goat-less so, with two large cartons of goat's milk duly purchased from the supermarket, we set about preparing the culinary delight. 

Source 

We followed the instructions to the letter. We heated and we stirred and we heated some more with our cute little thermometer, then we lined the colander with the fine muslin from the kit and we waited for the curds to form. And we waited ......... and we waited ......... and we waited some more. And ........ nothing! Not a curd in sight. We repeated the process as instructed in the "if no curds form" section of the instructions and we waited again. Still nothing. So, ever the optimist, my husband suggested leaving it a while. Soooooooo we made supper, had some wine and waited even longer. And nothing. Not a thing.

Making sure the milk is at the right temperature.

Looking hopeful ......

Not one single curd got caught in the muslin.

Anyway, we chalked that batch up to experience, checked the milk to make sure we hadn't bought UHT treated milk and that it was actually suitable for making cheese and the following week we tried again. The same thing happened. Not one single curd. I was mightily disappointed but decided that, for now, we would put the goat's cheese making on hold until we could figure out where we went wrong and try the other kit and have a go at making a batch of mozzarella. With a certain amount of trepidation, we once again, heated, stirred and waited and this time, 

Curds beginning to form :-)

Cutting the curds

Draining the curds.

At this point, to say we were ecstatic was a total understatement. We salted the cheese and turned to the trusty internet to find out how to heat and stretch the cheese in the microwave to get it to the stringy, stretchy, pizza-licious-ness everyone knows and loves and then we tasted it. It was delicious. Although I think we over-heated it slightly and it was a bit chewy, all-in-all, it was a total success. 

Ready for eating. 

I have to say, the un-stretched cheese was equally delicious and next time I make it, I probably won't bother with the heating and the stretching part and will just use the cheese in the curds stage just after it's been salted and mixed. It's perfect on pizza and in salads and next time I am going to add some chopped herbs as well and see how that tastes. Oh, and if anyone has any idea as to why the goat's cheese was such a disaster, a comment would be much appreciated. I'm not going to get very far with my cheese-making business if I don't actually know how to make cheese :-)