It was a while since we visited the plot the weather conditions and soggy earth not being conducive to plot activity. The only reason that we have been to the plot this month has been to harvest and we have been eating our way through our last big harvest. This, however, had dwindled and so a harvesting session was required to replenish stocks.
It's easy to see why certain vegetables have become traditional components of the Christmas dinner. They are simply the vegetables that are in season at this time of year. I'm curious as to what type of vegetables you guys in the southern hemisphere enjoy when having your Christmas dinner on the beach.
We've been harvesting carrots, parsnips and leeks for a while now. As you can see, the carrots come in all sorts of sizes. We don't thin the seedlings and so it is every carrot for itself. The first seeds to germinate maybe win the battle for space and grow much larger. The twin-rooted carrot at the top in the photo above is so large that it has split.
We picked our first lot of sprouts - a vegetable that divided the nation. We are sprout lovers but even the haters seem to have to include them on their Christmas dinner plate.
We just picked the sprouts from one plant so there's more for later.
A couple more first harvests of the season are a red and a savoy cabbage.
The red cabbage will be braised . It reheats and also freezes very well so it can be enjoyed out of season too.
By the time you are reading this some of the harvest will have been eaten but we should have plenty left if the weather continues to be unfriendly and keep us away from the plot.
Once again I am linking to Harvest Monday over at Daphne's Dandelions.
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Classic British winter veg! You are right about seasonality: the reason why eating Brussels Sprouts at Christmas has become traditional is because they are in season at this time of year! No-one eats Courgettes with their Christmas dinner, do they? Well, perhaps they do in the Southern hemisphere...
ReplyDeleteI wonder whether anyone from the Southern Hemisphere will assuage our curiosity, Mark
DeleteYou have produced a good harvest for over the winter. I washed and froze the prunings of a huge mint plant in autumn and used it in pea soup this week. The leaves just fell off the stemmy bits and they were just as tasty as fresh.
ReplyDeleteWe usually chop our mint down and make a batch of mint sauce for over winter, L
DeleteThere's only me in our house who likes sprouts but I always have them with Christmas dinner. We have my mum and dad with us too and they love them. I did sprouts, carrots, broccoli and parsnips for Christmas dinner, only the parsnips were from the allotment, I should hang my head in shame.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure next year you will have a bumper Christmas harvest, Jo
DeleteAll those Brussels sprouts makes me want to squeeze some into the garden next year...I haven't grown them since my first garden many years ago and the sprouts were only the size of peas. I'm sure I can do better now.
ReplyDeleteWe had a spell when the sprouts were a failure, Margaret and then we started to grow Crispus a club root resistant variety which seems to suit us
DeleteMy husband and I both love brussels sprouts, but I don't grow them, I've failed miserably every time I've tried. Perhaps that's a good challenge for me next year!
ReplyDeleteAs I have have just replied to Margaret the club root resistant variety turned our sprout failures round. Sprouts are hungry feeders so poor roots are no good.
DeleteLovely harvests. Here at Christmas we also include winter squash and sweet potatoes as traditional. But nothing seems more traditional than Brussels sprouts. Sadly no one brought them to Christmas dinner this year (we do potluck for the side dishes). I was so sad.
ReplyDeleteI bet everyone thought someone else would bring some Daphne.
DeleteMy sprouts weren't worth picking for Christmas lunch this year. There's a few tiddlers that might get a bit bigger
ReplyDeleteOurs aren't reallyf ull sized, Lou but big enough to enjoy
DeleteLove savoy cabbage!
ReplyDeleteI wish you very lucky 2015 year and many veggies!
And you to Nadezda
DeleteI'm not sure I knew what sprouts were when I lived in the USA. Since living in Ireland I have to have sprouts every Christmas. Didn't like them the first time I tried them but they grew on me and I really enjoy them now! November and December dinners in USA seem to involve lots of sweet potatoes.
ReplyDeleteI always associate the USA with sweet potatoes, Kelli
DeleteHow marvelous to have all those fresh veggies at this time of the year, I just love sprouts and am jealous of yours...you just can't beat them with a little butter and salt and pepper!xxx
ReplyDeleteIsn't it strange Dina how we gardeners seem to have a majority in favour of sprouts when in general many people don't like them.
DeleteYour harvest looks wonderful, especially considering it is the depths of winter.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your carrot growing tutorial, I have very clay soil as well and will give it a try this year.
Hello Phuong I hope it was this page that you found. Good luck for next year
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