We are in the season of root vegetables. It is high season for Jerusalem artichoke. Celeriac, parsnip, swede are in their element. Carrots and beetroot are still soldiering on while potatoes are all in storage. Always keen on trying something "exotic". Salsify and scorzonera take it turn about and this year we have grown scorzonera (sometimes called black salsify)
The flesh is white but the skin is markedly black:
Once peeled you need cook straight away as the roots exude lactose and discolour quickly. You can get away with dropping them into water with a spoonful of vinegar (or lemon juice) to acidulate it . The taste? Bland in must be said. Subtle might be kinder. It and its white sibling Salsify have been compared to oyster in taste. Not having tasted oyster I can't comment.
Scorzonera is reputed to contain protiens, fats, asparagine, choline and laevulin as well as minerals potassium, calcium,phosphorus,iron, sodium, and vitamins A, B1, E and C. Also containing the glycoside inulin, it is suitable for diabetics. So perhaps I should be more enthusiastic about it!
It is time to revisit the 4 seasons square foot vegetable bed for the winter harvest. The above picture was taken on 21st December and the ones below were taken today as the crop was lifted. ( If you want to see previous seasons posts just click on "4 Seasons" in the labels list.)
Here is the day's harvest
First prize has to go to parsnips. 5 roots out of 5 and all of them stout and long, The only problem with them was that they grew so strongly that their leaves flopped over their neighbours, depriving them of light.
The leeks also showed well with 6 out of 6 transplants growing long if slender. Some bonus parsley was also grown in the same square foot.
Celeriac was a bit bullied by the parsnip foliage, One tennis ball sized bulb (or swollen stem) would be a fine addition to a stew.
I left the swiss chard in the ground. It has already provided several meals worth from earlier harvest. Light picking over winter progresses but there is plenty more to come in late winter and early spring before new seedlings will catch up with it.
The pigeons had a good go at the Swedes but three survived and grew larger than tennis ball size after netting. These would have happily waited for Burns' night on 25th January.
Beetroots were only salad size, despite the long growing season. To be fair I think the larger ones were raided to make soup by one of the classes. These are just the tiddlers left behind. Also featuring in the picture below is the one mooli (white radish) that reached any size. There were some tiddlers too but this crop was the victim of being overshadowed by it's neighbour - parsnip.
Next is a real experiment: scorzonera. Plenty grew. The roots are long thin and whippy. Very hard to dig out without snapping. There is also the challenge of how to prepare them. Once peeled the white flesh oozes latex and rapidly turns brown. You need to turn to French cuisine to get tips on how to use this exotic ingredient. That said, they grew well regardless of the cold.
The only no show was carrots, which was a victim of its popularity with badgers. No sooner had they reached a reasonable size that the whole square foot was excavated and only the tops left as evidence! I am just relieved that the badgers restricted their mining activities to these (and some potatoes).
It is only a shame that this exercise can only be reported virtually as it was designed as an educational exercise for the children to participate in, Perhaps next year?
It is time for my warts and all annual review. Viewed from the East it is not very photogenic.
The view from the East End
In the foreground you have rows of brassicas (turnips, kohlrabi and swede) which I have as catch crops between the asparagus. Very few asparagus fronds came up after the last winter. I will be filling in the gaps next spring. Beyond the "asparagus bed" are next year's strawberries (Malwena) and a row of cucurbits. Aside from the Romanesco Courgette bush there is little to show. Beyond that is:
Sweetcorn
Sweetcorn. Really just an exercise in thumbing the nose at the naysayers who don't think it could possibly be grown in Scotland. It can - just!
Beets and Fennel
Beyond that we are on safer territory with beetroot, fennel, Swiss chard and lettuces. The beetroot this year has been very boistrous and I am hopeful that some of the bigger "roots" will survive well into the winter. Once they get gnawed though they won't keep, so some will be coming home for home storage in the coal cellar. Next is the remnants of the allium patch. Just a few shallots from seed left aside from the stalwart leeks. Beyond that is...
Allium Patch
The carrot temple. Looks rubbish but is the key to keeping the crop free from the tunnelling root fly maggot.
Carrot Temple
On past a row of scorzonera I am growing for a laugh, there is a solitary parsnip and 4 half haearted celeriacs. Then 3 rows of winter spinach (Amazon/Medina/Winter Giant) Only sown recently I want to see if any can survive rhe ravages of winter.
Spinach + Parsnip + Cleriac
Finally, to complete the run from end to end, we arrive at the potato patch. The main crop is still showing impressive folliage, I think you will agree?
Main Crop Potatoes
Earlies + Artechoke
The earlies have been harvested but there has been an unplanned reemergence of last year's Jerusalem artichokes smothering one corner of the patch. Turning through 180 degrees here is the single tubor I purposely planted in order to establish a new patch for the future:
Next Year's Artechoke
Moving to the Northwest corner to start the return sweep here is my fruit cage. The first of the three bays has goosberries redcurrants and new jostaberry and gojoberry bushes. The current cropper is....
Fruit Cage
Blackberries:
Blackberries
The middle bay is chocka with raspberries (Joan J producing Glen Ample and Glen Moy finnished but not yet cut back). Then the third bay was Marshmello strawberries but these have been grubbed up after a poor showing. To use the netted space I have planted out some spare brassicas in the hope of overwintering them. Already I have some casualties but the Daikon Radish is looking happy - and needing to be thinned.
Late/Early Brassicas
Also squeezed in are some very late sown peas. Hopefully I will be as happy as Monty Don in a few weeks if these come good. In the background is a fill in row of flowers where the early peas were!
Very Late Peas
Beyond them is a patch of green manure (clover) where the later peas were, and then there is a riot of runner and French beans.
Beans and Green Manure
The last "room" is the brassica patch proper. Not particularly pretty but a stalwart of any allotment.
Brassicas
Brassicas reverse view.
After the photos some harvesting:
I hope you enjoyed your tour of Mal's Edinburgh Allotment.
Just now the fare from the allotment is not too exciting, The brassicas are down to cabbage and kale with just the prospect of purple sprouting brocolli still to come. Now the carrots are finished and there are only a couple of pounds of potatoes left in storage its parsnip and jerusalem artechoke time. But this year for novelty value I've also grown.... (drum roll) ....Scorzonera!!
The hardest part of growing these is harvesting these without snapping them. They readily grow to 12 inches or more. Also, as warned about in books, once you peel them they ooze a latex like substance. So you want to peel them and cook them very soon after, or otherwise keep them in acidulated water (add some lemon juice or vinegar) . Internet research indicates that the great chef Escoffier had a way of cooking these "en blanc" - in a white sauce with shallots, but not being a great sauce fan I just chopped them up and boiled them like potatoes so as to reveal their essentilal characteristics.
I would describe their flavour (and texture) as being like a cross between potato and carrot. This was a surprise as years ago I grew sister plant salsify and that was much sweeter - like sweetcorn - and quickly broke down into a mush. Scorzonera is much better at retaining its structure. For a mid winter novelty I would say they are well worth the effort. Flavour wise - don't get too excited.
I left for the plot at 9 am this morning. The rain started at 9:05 and by 9:15 I realised that I had to turn back. Its been raining all day since. So instead of tidying up the now empty onion patch and cutting the grass on the path I have the opportunity to do a catch up on the state of the plot with a few pictures taken in the last week:
The biggest surprise has been the discovery of three Sharks Fin Melon/Fig Leaf Gourd fruit hidden away at ground level underneath all those leaves:
Surprise
Its already more than six inches across, as is this one, and another one. There are plenty more on the way too!
Not to be left out the Kabocha have started to bulk up too:
Kabocha
All in all there is a riot at this end of the plot. The Jerusalem Artechokes are now over 6ft tall.
In the foreground the parsnip is coming on nicely, and behind them, next to the carrot tent there is a bit of an experiment:
These are scorzonera:
They won't be ready for a long time yet, but I can't wait to try them.
The brassica patch is thriving on top of the weed suppressant fabric.
and the maincrop spuds are looking good:
Of course the earlies are looking very scruffy now by comparison:
but they are providing good eating.
At the other end the beans and the leeks are keeping each other company. The broad beans are all finished, but the runners have started cropping and the Canadian Wonder are being left for drying. In the background of this shot the fruit cage has given up on both strawberries and summer raspberries (although the Autumn have yet to start). Thank goodness for rhubarb which just goes on and on giving.
The signs are that the blackberries won't be long now with a bumper crop:
So a lazy day, but on review I am well pleased with the plot this year.
Looking through the seed packets I seem to have gone a bit root crazy this year:
Aside from the range of carrots in the top row there's parsnip, the old reliable "Tender and True", the annual challenge of celeriac and a collection of oddities I have accumulated in the bottom row - Hamburg Parsley, Scorzonera and Japanese Burdock. But pride of place goes to "Bulbous" or "Turnip Rooted" Chervil"
I tried this last year with seed from an overseas source and it was a complete no show. Having found a UK supplier I am hoping for success this year. We can all dream!
Still on the subject of turnip related veg, and in honour of Burns Night (tonight) here's this year's 'neep' or Swedish turnip variety: Melfort. It's skin is green instead of the usual purple, but it is every bit as tasty and sweet.
