Fresh Carrot Top Pesto and Carrot Chutney

When I think of carrots, I think of all the different ways I like to enjoy them.    I love to pull them out of the veggie patch, wash them under the nearest tap and enjoy the crunch as you bite into them fresh.  Without fail, I stop to savour the sweet smell of the freshly pulled carrots – nothing quite like it.  Or I just grate them and put them in a salad or on a sandwich.  Occasionally I juice them, sometimes freeze them but more often than not I just chuck them into the fridge for later on.  A very versatile veggie is the humble carrot. 

A couple of weeks back I was introduced to another way of eating carrots.  I was told that Carrot Top Pesto was a great fresh dish.   Ok I thought, not what I would normally associate with carrots but I thought I would give it a go.  The big difference is that you don’t eat the ‘normal’ orange bit, you eat the green tops.   So I got hold of the recipe and although I was skeptical I gave it a go.  To my surprise what was created was a beautiful pesto that was fresh and tasty.  It has a great texture and was nice on its own or added to a summer salad.  My wife also enjoyed it and once it was made we ate it over a couple of days. 

The recipe came from Marian who operates ‘Live It Well Transformations’ said I could share it.  So here it is.

• 1-2 cups of fresh carrot tops, stems removed.
• 1 handful of unprocessed nuts – your choice. I used cashews but almonds would be great too.
• Juice of a lemon.
• 1-2 cloves of garlic.

Place all ingredients into a blender and whizz it.  Eat in 1-2 days.  

A couple of weeks ago I needed the garden bed where I had the carrots growing for another crop, so I had to pull them all out of the ground and since then have been taking up too much space in the fridge crisper.   They keep getting in the way so this week I decided to have a crack at making carrot chutney.  I looked up a recipe online found one that looked easy and attacked it with gusto.  I had a lot of carrots so I made a triple batch.  It was quick and easy because I did all of the chopping and grating in the trusty Thermomix.  I was delighted at the result.  It tastes great on crackers as a dip or it will be an enjoyable accompaniment to my next salad I take to work.

So there is a couple of new ways to enjoy carrots. Give them a go.

Tomato report card - the results are in!

Being the start of a new year, it is appropriate that I present a report card on the performance of my tomatoes that I have been growing during 2014.  Overall I am rather pleased with the results.  I am still picking them but I have seen enough results to provide a report. 

This year I have split my tomato plantings into three dates.  

I purchased the first six varieties and planted them on 6 Aug.  At the same time I sowed another seven heirloom varieties into little peat posts in a sunny spot in the laundry and these were ready to transplant into pots three weeks later and eventually made it into the garden on 11 Oct.  The third batch of just two varieties was planted on 14 Dec for a late crop and are just starting to take off.

Super Roma

The Verdict!    Every variety is very different and I have rated their performance according to a series of ‘Meyles’ approved standards.  The rating is very scientific (NOT) and is based purely on my preferences.  I scored them on taste, ease of growing, resistance to pests and diseases and also harvest amounts. 

August planting.  All plants were purchased from Bunnings.

Super Roma:  An excellent variety.  Started picking on 20 Nov.  In true Roma style it did not have too many seeds and had plenty of flesh.  It is still going and I will pick for a couple of weeks yet.  I would definitely plant it again.  A couple of them were attacked by fruit fly but not enough to worry about.   Taste is OK fresh, but in my opinion is a real winner if you want to make any type of sauce, chutney or relish.  Score 8/10.

Cherry Ripe

Cherry Ripe:  A small cherry tomato that really knows how to produce.  Started picking 18 Nov and it is still going with a vengeance.  Bright red in colour about the size of a 10c piece and very sweet.  Nice fresh in salads or to freeze whole.  I have a freezer full and I will eat them throughout winter in soups or pasta sauce.  Easy to grow but can split easily if it rains or they are given too much water.  Score 9/10.  Definitely plant this one again next year.

Cherry Gold

Cherry Gold:  As the name suggests it is a small gold cherry.  It does pack quite a flavour punch and I started picking it 20 Nov and it is completely finished now.  Great to eat fresh or to freeze.  I tended to pick them a bit too late because I was not familiar with the changing colours as it ripened.  As a result I lost a few to splitting because they were over ripe by the time I got to them.  Score 8/10.  I would plant it again.

Yellow Sun

Yellow Sun:  This variety was the surprise package of the crop.  It was promoted as a variety with less acid and they got it right.  Bright yellow in colour and I harvested a good crop.  The biggest was a whopping 700g in weight and tasted really great with a bit of salt. Started picking 26 Nov and it’s almost finished.   No issues with fruit fly or splitting, but I did have a couple of caterpillars move in and bore a hole into them.  It does have a soft thin skin and once picked needs using quite quickly.  Great fresh or cook as relish, chutney or sauce. I will plant this one again next year.  Score 8/10.

Apollo Improved

Apollo Improved:  I have grown this variety in the past and had better results than this year.  The fruit had a lot of blemishes on it and as a result I cooked 90% of them.  I lost about 35% of the crop to fruit fly.  The taste of the fruit in comparison to others was disappointing and I would suggest it tasted more like a shop bought one rather than a vine ripened one.  Started picking 20 Nov and there are a couple still to come. Overall disappointing and it only gets a score of 5/10.  I will probably not plant it again next year.

Black Russian

Black Russian:  Marketed as an heirloom variety.  I have grown this before and really liked the taste of a vine ripened tomato.   This is a thin skinned variety and is easily damaged.  Taste is pretty good but I have tasted better in past years.  Started picking 26 Nov and I reckon I have 4 weeks to go with this one.  I enjoyed it fresh with salt, but I ended up cooking most of them because I had to watch out for fruit fly.  Lost about 20 percent of the crop to the little buggers.   Score of 6/10 because it is a lot of hard work to keep the plant healthy.      

Second planting.  Sown in to peat pots 3 Aug, transplanted into pots 20 Aug and into the veggie patch 11 Oct 14.  All heirloom varieties that I bought online from Diggers Club and Green Harvest Organic Seed supplies.

Black Russian:  Yep, I planted it twice for comparison sake.  The seeds produced a tastier tomato but it is prone to fruit fly attacks.  About 50 percent lost.  The fruit is larger but prone to splitting and deformities.  Cooked most of them.  Score 6/10.

Thai Pink Egg

Thai Pink Egg:  Shaped like a small Roma tomato and has a similar texture and is quite fleshy.  When ripe it is pink in colour and is sweet eaten fresh.  Started picking them 20 Dec.  Not a big producer and is not a vigorous plant growth wise.  Not too many growing issues and I would grow it again for taste and colour.  Score 7/10.

Oxheart

Oxheart:  I have not had a single decent fruit on this one. The fruit fly or caterpillars have eaten the lot so I cannot give you a taste test comment.   If I needed a variety to be the sacrificial plant to attract all of the problem pests, I suppose this would be the one.  But I am unlikely to want to grow it again.  Score 2/10.

Honeybee

Honeybee: Great name for a yellow cherry that is sweet as honey.  A cherry that is about the size of a 10c piece and is nice fresh with a bit of salt or in a salad.  Good producer that I started to pick 15 Dec, however has a thin skin and is prone to splitting if there is a bit too much water around.  Honeybee is a winner and will be planted again next year.  Score 8/10.

Violet Jasper

Violet Jasper: If you want to grow a tomato purely for interesting looks then grow this one.  Beautiful looking fruit in trusses that have 50c piece sized fruit that is perfectly round dark red in colour and has streaks of dark green.  Taste is great fresh and it produces very well.  A vigorous grower with good yields that I started to pick 20 Dec and there are loads to come.  Fruit fly got a few but there are heaps to go around.  I will plant this one again without a second thought.  Score 9/10.

Tommy Toe:   A vigorous growing red cherry tomato.  About the size of a 20c piece and a great producer.  Sweet to taste and easy to grow.  Started harvesting 20 Dec and it will be going for weeks yet.  Some splitting of the fruit because of excess rain but not an issue.  Score of 9/10 and I will not hesitate to grow them again.

Valentine

Valentine:  A heart shaped cherry tomato that is sweet to taste and a decent producer that I started to pick 15 Dec.  No issues with pests.  The light red fruit has a thin skin so it needs to be eaten soon after harvesting.  It didn’t stand out as the best producer, but it has performed pretty well. Worth another try.  Score 6/10.

Third planting.  Bought from Masters and planted 14 Dec 14.  The intent is for these to grow into the cooler months and possibly pick through winter.   I have put in Roma and Sweet Bite.  The verdict for these two is a long way from being in and I’ll let you know over time. 

So, the report is in.  I am quite pleased with the crop this year so far.  I reckon that I can do better next year and I have a couple of ideas to improve the results.  The season has been a hot, humid one and it has affected the vigour of the plants as the season progressed.  I have not used any sprays for pests or diseases at all and have let the birds and bugs look after them.  I did feed them regularly with slow release fertiliser and occasionally some liquid fertiliser to correct any suspect deficiencies of nutrition. 

All plants were trained to have two branches.  I only grew them for five trusses on each branch (maximum) then I trimmed off the leader to stop any further growth.  I remove all lateral branches that develop as the plant grew so that all energy is focussed on the development of fruit.  The main reason I restrict the growth this way is because the climate that I grow them in has heat and humidity that create a perfect climate for fungal diseases. The older leaves at the bottom of the plant tend to be vulnerable to these attacks as they age.  This can spread quickly up the plant and attack the rest of the foliage and before you know it the whole plant is infected.  So to avoid having to use buckets of nasty chemicals, I give the tomatoes a short life and plant fresh ones.  

If you need to review how I prepared the soil take a look at an earlier blog.   

So that is my tomato crop.  How has your crop been this year?  I would be interested in finding out about which varieties worked well for you and what you did to make your crop successful.   Give me a score on your tomato crop.

Why Marigolds in the garden?

People have asked me why I grow Marigold plants in among my vegetable patch. Well, the short answer is that they stop bugs dead in their tracks.  The long answer is that I need them to kill nematodes.  Nematodes are microscopic white worms that have infested the soil that I grow all of my vegies in.   The mongrel nematodes attack the root system of my tomatoes and capsicums and wreak havoc with all of my carrots and beetroot in the warmer months as well as attack and a whole heap of my vegies. 

 

If you have an attack of nematodes in the garden you will notice a reduced vigor of your plants.  In hot weather it’s particularly noticeable.  What they do is cause:

Nodules on the roots,

Stunted root systems and plants, and

Deformed root vegetables.

The loss of vigor is because your plants are having their water and food supply reduced as the roots are being attacked.

For those who are attempting to minimise the amount of crap that you spray onto your vegies, Marigolds are brilliant.  The way it works is that the root of the Marigold produces a chemical that kills nematodes in the soil.   The nematodes are attracted to the marigolds rather than the other veggies and latch onto the roots and that is the end of them.  They do not reproduce because they are rendered sterile and the cycle is broken and your soil becomes healthier.   As a bonus, Marigolds also deter aphids, squash bugs, thrips, tomato hornworms, and whiteflies.

If a whole area is infested I plant the whole bed out and dig them in as a green manure crop when they are mature, or if the garden bed is not infested, I plant as a precautionary measure a couple throughout crops as they grow.   Frogs also love them.

Zucchinis Galore - Freeze them

It’s the time of the year that Zucchinis grow so stinkin’ fast that there is no way I can eat them as fast as they grow.  In the morning they are too small to pick, by the time you get home from work they are so big you can play baseball with them.  

The solution to this dilemma is to freeze them.  I tried an easy way of freezing them last year and they proved to be fantastic for soups throughout winter.   So try it, this works well. 

 From this - The harvest.

To this - 11 bags, 1.8 kg ready for the freezer.

Grated in a couple of minutes.

Cut, grated and the first couple of bags filled.

The Secret of what I plant in November and December

The November Veggie Garden

Things really heat up in my veggie garden in November and December.  There is a lot that I plant that will be harvested throughout Summer and into Autumn. I keep in mind that whatever I plant this time of the year needs to be able to handle the heat and humidity of the summer months.

I have developed a plan for my veggie patch based on the records of all of my plantings over the last four years since I have moved here.  This strategy helps me avoid repeating the failures I have had in the past (there have been a few) and also help me to repeat the success of the good crops.  So, here is my plan over the next couple of months.

Sweet Corn

Tomatoes. I will buy a couple of cherry tomatoes and plant in mid Dec.  With any luck I should be able to harvest these into winter.

Sweet Corn. Plant seed directly into the soil early Nov and again in early Dec. Here is how to do it.

Chilli.  I will buy a plant in Nov and put it in a spot that gets sun in winter so I can harvest late in the season.

Beans. Sow bush beans seeds now and again in mid Dec. 

Zucchini, Cucumbers, Rock Melons and Watermelons.  Sow direct into a warm spot now and stand back!  They will grow like stink.  I will plant zucchini again in mid Dec.

Ginger.  I have mine in already, but if you haven’t, buy a piece from the markets and get it in.

Herbs I will plant in Nov are flat leaf Parsley and Dill.

Bush Beans

Salad Greens grow fast this time of year if you keep them moist.  I will sow direct or plant seedlings when I have space in the garden available.  Crops like:

Lettuce.  Plant seedlings every 3 weeks.

Radish. Sow directly into the garden every 3 weeks.

Coriander. Sow seed into a cooler spot every 4 weeks.

Spring Onions. Plant seedlings every 5 weeks. 

Rocket, Beetroot, Watercress and English Spinach for green salad leaves every 4 weeks when I get a spot. 

Zucchini

So, the cats out of the bag and my secrets are out.  I will tweak this plan depending on the availability of space in my veggie patch, but it is a good plan!

If you want to check out what I planted in September and October, check out the blog where I spilled my secrets.  I adjusted it a bit as the months progressed because I needed to, but it is pretty close.

Ginger - ready to plant

Spuds! Spuds! and More Spuds!

Spuds. We love em in this house.

I grew 4 plants each of 4 types of spuds.  They were all planted on 22 June and each variety competed to be the first harvested, with the biggest yield.  Here’s the results, in order of productivity:

Deseree -3.8kg. (Harvested 14 October.)  The first to the finish line.  This was an early crop with an excellent yield.  Deseree have pinky-red skin with firm flesh which holds its shape when cooked.  They are versatile – you can boil, roast, or mash these babies.

Pinkeyes – 3.5kg. (Harvested 18 October.) These little beauties have been the envy of every ex-Tasmanian in the area.  They are versatile too, but we love em just boiled and dobbed (generously) with butter (real butter, that is) and flakey salt.  We usually cook extra so we can have leftovers cold in salads the next day.  We also love these fried with rosemary, or just anyhow you want to cook them. These babies are so beautiful.  They are a much anticipated arrival every year in this house, and it’s a treat to sneak into the garden and dig a few early ones to have as a special treat.

Kipflers – 3.25kg. (Harvested 23 October.)  These small, long, finger-shaped spuds were a surprise and delight when I grew them for the first time last year as an experiment.  And definitely worth growing again and again.  They are a gorgeous buttery spud, great for boiling or baking. They hold their shape when cooked and leftovers (if you have any) are great in lunches the next day.  These would be close to our favourite spuds in flavour.  

Bintjes – 2.60kg. (Harvested 1 November.)  By now we are almost buried alive in spuds but we have yet another 2.6 kilos of my favourite carbohydrate. Big, oval shaped spuds with yellowy flesh provide an excellent yield for the latest maturing crop. 

Since mid October we have been scoffing spuds – Pinkeyes, Bintjes, Kipflers and Deseree.  We have spuds stuffed into every storage orifice in the house. Problem is, we have another harvest coming, with another 4 plants each of the same 4 varieties above, due for harvest very soon!  What the hell are we going to do with all these spuds?  

We will be knee-deep in spuds for a while yet.  And.....[pause for effect] loving it!

Summer Pests! – The Dreadad Two Spotted Mite and how to get rid of it.

As soon as it starts to warm up in late spring I keep an eye out for the inevitable explosion of pests that want to rob me of my hard earned veggies.    Without fail each year one of the most aggressive culprits attacks – the Two Spotted Mite (play Jaws music here). I expect them to appear around October or November, as the temperature starts to climb. 

Magnified Two Spotted Mites

The Two Spotted Mite so small you can hardly see them, but you can see what they do to your plants.

Which of my veggies do they attack:

Cucumbers, Zucchini, Pumpkin, Watermelon, Rockmelon, Strawberries, Beans, and Soya Beans (Edamame).  I am sure that they are not too fussy, and attack other plants also.

Yellowing on the edges of the Cucumber leaves

What look out for:

The plants may start to slow in growth and lose vigour for no apparent reason.  There also will likely be a discolouring of the leaves similar to what you would expect if your plants were experiencing a lack of nutrition in the leaves. 

So when it is a hot day, I turn the leaves over and look for little black spots that are about the size of a pinhead on the underside.  If you look very closely you may see them moving around slowly.

Some Options on what to do:

1. Use pesticides and spray  -  Not my preferred option because of the other insects around the garden that I am quite fond of.  Not to mention the frogs, lizards, birds, and all manner of animals. Also you could cause an imbalance and breed chemical resistant ones so your problem will be compounded.

First signs on Cucumbers - under the leaf

2. Keep the garden humid  - A better option, the Mite enjoys living in dry habitats, so keeping it moist will reduce the chance of an infestation.  You will not stop them though.  I have a moist garden and they move in every year without fail.

3. Use a biological control - The way to go I reckon.  The first year these little buggers attacked my patch it took me some time to find out how to control them.  What I wanted was a garden friendly way to control them and the best solution was to catch another little animal to predate on them.  I found that hard to do because I didn't know what to look for so I bought 2000 predators that feed on two spotted mites.  They are called Persimilis or in plain English, the Three Spotted Mite - your new best friend.

Beans - still healthy but a prime target

I order my new friends on the internet and a couple of days later they arrive in the post and I formally introduce them to the Two Spotted Mite.  The relationship becomes quite one sided, which is unfortunate for the Two Spotted Mite, but is good for me. Basically, the three Spotted Mite brings an appetite to the relationship and the Two Spotted Mite contributes the food. 

It takes a couple of weeks to have your veggie patch ecosystem balance itself. Have no fear, your veggie plants to bounce back.  It has worked well for me for three years now. All summer I will be able to find both populations of Mite on my veggie plants, but it is not a problem.  There is a balance that works. 

Healthy Zucchini

It gets too cold in winter and the Three Spotted Mites die out.  So I recruit a new batch of willing Three Spotted Mites every year and all is well in my Veggie patch over summer.

If you are interested in where I get them from here is a link.  Bugs for Bugs.  You get what you ask for - bugs!.  $50 will have them delivered to your door.  I’ll let you know when my new employees arrive.

If you want to see more detail on Two Spotted Mites, the Royal Botanic Gardens Fact Sheet is pretty good.

Go check your garden.  I dare you, go on. I would be interested to see if you can find them.