Plant. Eat. Repeat.

What Does “F1 Hybrid” Mean?

Some times when you see seeds for sale or for swap, they are labeled as F1 hybrids. But do you know what that means? If not, read on… An F1 hybrid is a result of crossing two pure genetic lines of plants, to make one new genetic line. But that’s getting a bit ahead of ourselves… […]

5 Ideas for Surplus Seeds…

It’s that time of the year again – things are beginning to fruit, and in a few short months we’ll be seed saving like the zombie apocalypse depends on us. Which is might, so seed save just in case. That said, I don’t know about you, but there are always too many seeds. If I […]

DIY Solar Oven Out in the Sun

This week the weather is fabulous. As a result, we are having to water the plants twice a day, because otherwise the pots are drying out and the plants are wilting. That said, the sun does have its advantages. It’s happily ripening off the chillies, and it’s also helping to dry them too. Solar ovens are […]

Picking Purple Peppers and Other Garden Tasks…

Today we’ve spent some time on the balcony just having a general tidy up. At this time of year, things are starting to blossom and fruits are starting to form, and that’s all a bit bloody exciting if you ask me. Earlier in the year, when the cayenne peppers and the bell peppers (California Orange, […]

Recipe: Strawberry & Basil Hot Sauce

Summer is here, or at least the strawberries are. But if the weather isn’t going to help me out a bit I’ve decided on my own course of action to get things hot in here… Strawberry and Basil Hot Sauce. I first tasted strawberries as an accompaniment to heat in a jalapeño and strawberry jam […]

Growing Grape Vines in a Container

When most people think about the plants that they can grow in containers, well, they don’t think big enough. Sure, your common or garden tomatoes will fair well. But what about an apple tree or an avocado tree or a grapevine?! On our roof terrace, eight floors up, we have two grape vines. One is […]

Garden Update #4

It’s been a busy two weeks, hence why there haven’t been any updates on the blog. I’ve had to fly back to the UK on short notice to deal with family things, as well as having to meet a lot of deadlines in my actual grown-up Head of Comms job. Something had to give because […]

Homemade Tabasco Sauce

Oh man, this time of the year I get ridiculously excited every time I step out on my balcony. My little chilli patch is brimming with chillies and blooms, and I can’t wait until everything ripens off. I literally couldn’t wait… Yesterday I was at the French supermarket and saw that they had slashed their […]

Sharing Stuff

The roof terrace is looking a bit of a mess at the moment. Like most of Europe, it has been raining pretty solidly for the past week or so. Added to that, I’ve been laid up with migraines which have meant that once my work is done (my actual paying job…), I’ve had little time […]

Garden Update #3 – Sad Tomatoes

My last garden update detailed how brilliantly happy my tomatoes were. I had even trained them up a recycled pallet trellis, encouraged their first flowers out, and generally felt awesome for the trouble. And then we got a dose of the dreaded Powdery Mildew. The two biggest tomato plants are now ridiculously unhappy, and wilting […]