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We harvested the rest of our butternut squash today. In total we've grown 20 so quite pleased with that! 😊

These are Inca Gold F1 which is a fast-maturing butternut squash specially bred to grow well and ripen reliably in our cooler climate. I sowed the seeds in April in 9cm pots and kept them in the greenhouse until I planted out early June after our last frost date.

They were planted out into a 6ft x 4ft bed so not a huge area but they really thrived. I didn't grow them vertically but just let the vines spread across the bed so it got quite bushy but this actually helped shade and protect the developing squash from the heatwaves. Then once they started to ripen I cut away some leaves to let the sunshine get to them ☀️☀️☀️☀️

This particular variety starts off with green skin and as it ripens it develops vertical orange/yellow stripes. Once they start to ripen they can be picked early and will continue to ripen off the vine or you can leave them on the vine but pick them before the first frosts.

Inca Gold is a lovely sweet squash and is fabulous roasted because they caramelise along the edges 😋 Mr P&P uses a crinkle cut knife to cut & chop them & this helps with the caramelisation. We'll just leave the rest of the squash to cure in the garage so that we'll have a supply of squash over the next few months 🥰

I'll definitely be growing these again next year 😊

#squash #butternut #butternutsquash #harvest #autumn by @sals_plotandpots

3

16

11 hours ago

Colourful Autumn harvests 🥰
💛🧡❤️💚💛🧡❤️💚

1.The chillies seem to be thriving on neglect!! They're in the greenhouse and we completely forget to water them but yet they seem happier than ever🌶️🌶️🌶️ 😂

2.The courgettes & patty pans are finally slowing down but we're still harvesting several each week 😊

3.The nasturniums are looking better now than they did in the summer so I'm cutting some every few days & using the leaves & stalks in salad - I love their peppery flavour 🌱🌱- and the flowers I'm using to make more nasturnium vinegar which will then be used to pickle my shallots 🧅🧅

4.The Autumn Bliss raspberries are in pots in the fruit cage. It's only their second year but they are producing so much fruit, I'm literally getting this amount every day!!!

Hopefully the weather will stay mild through Autumn & we don't get too much rain!!! Might be a bit too much to ask for here in Wales though 🙄😂

#autumn #harvests #chillies #courgettesandpattypans #raspberries by @sals_plotandpots

3

29

4 days ago

October sunshine 🩵☀️🥰

Can't believe the temperature, it's such a treat to be able to sit outside and do nothing but enjoy looking at the garden and the beautiful blue sky 🩵🩵🩵🩵🤗

Lots of things still growing in the beds plus the chillies, tomatoes & aubergines are still doing well in the greenhouses 🌶️🍅🍆

The cosmos are loving life, as you can see they are over 6ft in their pots 🥰💮🌸💮🌸💮🌸

It's wonderful to still see so many pollinators too, they are thoroughly enjoying the dahlias, cosmos and verbena especially 🦋🐝🦋🐝

The sunshine changes everything 🥰☀️💛☀️💛☀️ shame it probably won't last!! 🙄😂

#october #sunshine #blueskies #pollinators #enjoythesimplethingsinlife by @sals_plotandpots

3

20

13 days ago

I've already harvested over 40Kg of courgettes with more still growing but that's a story for another day🤦‍♀️ 😄 Because today some of my courgettes have been put to good use to make courgette & lemon drizzle muffins and a loaf cake ⬅️ to raise funds for @macmillancancer

Today is the official Macmillan Coffee Morning 2026 and Jan @theflowermummysgarden has once again organised a fun and creative fundraising event called #servedwithimagination2026
to raise money for @macmillancancer 💚💚

My mystery "prompt" for the challenge was "Lemon Drizzle" which was perfect because I love anything with Lemon and so Lemon Drizzle Cake is one of my favourite things to bake 😋🍋 But to make things a little more imaginative (and to use up the glut that is becoming uncontrollable 😅) I decided to add grated courgette into the mix!!! Honestly, it's delicious, the courgette gives the cake batter a fabulous moist consistency & you absolutely cannot taste the courgette 🥰

Macmillan do the most amazing work so every entry, every share and every donation will help them to keep supporting people affected by cancer and their families too by giving essential practical, financial and emotional support.

If you'd like to donate you can pop over to Jan's Instagram page @theflowermummysgarden and use the QR code on the final slide of her fundraising post or click on the link in her bio💚💚💚

So today I'll be having coffee & cake in memory of my Mum & Dad who both died of cancer over 36 years ago and 29 years ago respectively and thinking of everyone who is or has been affected by cancer in any way 🫖☕🧁🍰

Big hug and lots of love to you all 🫂💚💚💚💚💚xxx

@theflowermummysgarden
@macmillancancer

#servedwithimagination2026
#lemondrizzle
#courgetteandlemondrizzlecake
#macmillancoffeemorning2026
macmillancancer by @sals_plotandpots

3

22

22 days ago

Lots of late vegetables growing in the plot and we're well on the way to growing our Christmas dinner again 🌱🌱🌱💚

The turnips are Milan Purple Top and are so easy to grow although it's best not to sow them in hot weather as they bolt easier. Because we've had so many heatwaves I didn't bother to direct sow these until the beginning of August and they're now between a golf ball & tennis ball size 💜💜 Most of these will be chopped, blanched and frozen ready to be roasted whenever we want them 😋

The carrots are my third sowing and should be ready for Christmas🎄🥕🥕🥕🤞and the parsnips I also sowed later than usual so they'll be perfect for Christmas too 😊

The red cabbage is starting to produce decent heads so when I harvest them I'll shred & pickle the heads and shred & freeze the outer leaves to keep for Christmas dinner too. And I'll be keeping them under netting until I harvest them because the cabbage whites are still around!!! 🤦‍♀️😄

#growingchristmasdinner #turnips #carrots #parsnips #redcabbage by @sals_plotandpots

3

14

24 days ago

I usually grow my carrots in the raised beds but I ran out of space this year so I'm growing them in pots instead. I have four 45L pots that I've been successional sowing Nante carrots seeds in and they've done really well 🥕🥕🥕🥕🥕

Carrots like light, loose, stone-free soil so that their roots can grow without splitting or forking so we used our compost and added some horticultural sand. Plus the pots are about 20 inches high giving plenty of depth for straight roots.

I don't feed them but I did cover the pots with netting to keep the birds from pecking at the seeds & to keep the carrot flies away. Apparently the carrot flies only fly close to the ground, so the carrots are more protected when sown in high pots, but I wasn't taking any chances 😅

I also try not to thin carrots out because female carrot flies are attracted by the smell released when surplus plants are pulled up!! 🙄 This means my carrots tend to be smaller and more slender but I prefer that anyway. They're usually between 4 to 6 inches long and never need to be peeled, just a wash and gentle scrub & they're good to go ⬅️ 🥕🧡🥕😋

I wash & then keep the green carrot tops to add to homemade pesto, I've frozen this batch ⬅️ and they'll be blitzed with the wild garlic and basil I've had the garden which are also in the freezer, plus some of our garlic, some olive oil, salt, pepper and I'll add whatever nuts I have here, something like walnuts or almonds work well.

I do have some pots of Autumn King carrots too which will hopefully be ready for Christmas dinner 😊🤞

What varieties have you grown this year and are you growing any for Christmas! 🧡🥕🥕🥕🧡

#carrot #carrots #pesto #homegrownveg #nopesticides by @sals_plotandpots

3

34

a month ago

Still getting lots of lovely harvests through September 🥰 This has to be the most colourful one with patty pans, patio peppers, some chillies, cucumbers & of course courgettes 😄💛❤️🧡💚

We've also harvested the last of our runner beans and purple french beans ⬅️ another very long tromboncino it's around 75cm 😄 and an endless supply of Socrates cucumbers, which have been by far the best cucumbers I've ever grown!!! 🥒🥒🥒💚

The patty pans & courgettes have been ridiculous this year 🤦‍♀️😂 I mean I know I sowed loads of seeds for both but they're literally taking over the plot!!! 😱 I never thought I'd say it but I'm running out of ideas 😄 We're harvesting them every day, the courgettes are turning into marrows & the patty pans just keep appearing!! Send help!!! 🤣🤣

#september #harvest #harvests #homegrownveg #nopesticides by @sals_plotandpots

3

35

a month ago

This is the first year I've had 2 greenhouses and I did go a little over the top with tomatoes as you can see from some of the harvests I've had so far 🤦🏻‍♀️😂

I started sowing in late April and sowed 35 seeds "just in case" 😄 But basically everything germinated & I ended up with 35 tomato plants!!! I gave some away but kept 28 plus I also decided to try sowing some Micro Tomatoes this year & they all germinated too so I also have 9 pots of those 😆

So with 37 tomato plants and all the warm weather, I can safely say this year has given me my biggest crop of tomatoes ever!! 🥰😁

The greenhouses were packed though & we had to remove several leaves & stems from the tomato plants earlier than we usually would to allow airflow & prevent disease.
We also made sure to feed them regularly with an organic tomato feed.

Plus with so many tomatoes growing we've been harvesting them at the "breaker stage" - this is when a tomato is just starting to show a little bit of colour. As soon as this happens it's okay to pick the tomato as most of the ethylene gas, sugars, and nutrients are already present in the fruit & so it will continue to ripen indoors. I just left mine in bowls in the kitchen & they rippened beautifully without compromising the flavour 🥰🍅🍅

The varieties I've grown this year are:

Tigerella
Gardener's Delight
Roma
San Marzano

Tumbling Tom yellow
Tumbling Tom red
Yellow Peardrop
Chocolate cherry
Black cherry
Sungold orange

We still have loads of tomatoes in the greenhouse so hopefully we'll be getting more harvests through September 🤞🍅🍅🍅🍅🍅🍅🍅

#tomato #tomatoes #tomatotuesday #cherrytomatoes #homegrowntomatoes by @sals_plotandpots

3

28

a month ago

I grew onions for the first time this year!!! 🥰 I usually only grow shallots but thought I'd try growing standard onions too and I'm so glad I did!! 👍 These are "Red Baron" that I grew from sets which I planted in 15 cell module trays, started off in February in the greenhouse, with one set per cell. I also planted white onion sets ⬅️ called "Snowball" at the same time, also in module trays in the greenhouse.

They were all ready to plant out in the beds by the end of March ⬅️ when the green shoots had sprouted & by the end of June they had grown significantly ⬅️ I was itching to pull them up but resisted because I knew I had to wait until the green tops turned yellow & they softened at the neck so that they naturally fell over 🤦🏻‍♀️🙄 The reason for this being the onions won't cure & store properly if they are pulled too soon, so I had to be patient & wait until the middle of August 😂
Big thanks to Steve @snewland97 for all his onion posts & advice 🧅🧅 what he doesn't know about onions isn't worth knowing!!! 😄

They've been curing in the garage since then ⬅️ & although we'll store some for winter, we have used both the red and white onions and both are delicious!!! So I'll definitely be growing onions again, do you have any recommendations for a really good variety you've grown? 😊

#onions #redonions #whiteonions #growyourownveg #nopesticides by @sals_plotandpots

3

26

a month ago

I've grown Savoy Cabbage this year for the first time and they are absolutely fabulous!!! And even better the cabbage whites don't seem to like them so it's a win win!!! 😄👍 We pulled this one up yesterday for a Sunday dinner and still have around 11 Savoys left ⬅️🥬🥬🥬

I've also grown my usual Greyhound cabbages too ⬅️ which are always reliable but unfortunately the cabbage whites do enjoy feasting on these 🙄 and although I've had them netted all season the little sweethearts have found ways to infiltrate the netting 🤦🏻‍♀️ I've probably relocated around 12 butterflies to the sacrificial kale that I've grown this year so they can't complain 😂

Anyway, I'll be cutting back all the cabbages soon then washing, shredding, blanching and freezing them & I think we'll be pretty self sufficient with cabbage for the next 6 to 8 months 😄 So lots more roast dinners on the menu 😋 Speaking of which, we had our first roast dinner yesterday where all the veg was from the plot ⬅️🥰 - potatoes, carrots, runner beans, cabbage, shallots and our parsnips (from the freezer) and our onions & lots of our herbs in the stuffing 😊 It's just the best feeling eating a meal with home-grown produce 💚💚💚💚

#cabbage #savoycabbage #greyhoundcabbage #roastdinner #homegrownveg by @sals_plotandpots

3

23

2 months ago

Pulled my first sweetcorns today from this year's crop and I'm so pleased with them!! 🥰🌽🌽 They are around 8 inches long and no bare patches 😄 These are Golden Bantam which I haven't grown before but I'll definitely grow again!!

Every seed I sowed germinated with no losses or duds although to be honest I did think I'd lost an entire tray of seeds because the one tray of 15 pots just weren't producing anything whereas the other 2 trays started sprouting quite quickly!!🤔 It was only after about a month of watering & fussing them that I dug around in the pots to see if the corn seeds had rotted....only to realise I'd not sown anything in them in the first place!!! 🤦🏻‍♀️ Which explained why they weren't growing 🤣🤣

Anyway, the other 30 pots did have seeds in them 👍😄 & did all grow!! I sowed them in a grid of 6 x 5 to get maximum wind pollination but I did give them all a shimmy shake every so often to make sure the pollen from the male tassels at the top of the plant fell down onto the female silks below, just to give nature a helping hand 😂 so potentially I'll have around 60 cobs 🌽🤞

I usually grow Swift which have always produced a good harvest but I think the Bantam have produced bigger cobs plus there are 2 good sized cobs on each stem 💛💛 There are loads more cobs to be picked so hopefully I'll have enough to freeze a few for autumn/winter 🌽🌽🌽😊

#sweetcorn #cornonthecob #corn #goldenbantam #nopesticides by @sals_plotandpots

3

33

2 months ago

The French beans are really coming thick and fast now!!! 💚💚😊

We've been getting a constant supply of runner & french beans for a while mainly because I've tried to successional sow this year so the harvests will be staggered. We've been nearly self sufficient with beans over the last 2 years because I'll freeze them for the winter months so this year I wanted to sow enough to eat throughout the summer months but also have plenty to freeze & I think that's worked 🤔😂

We've eaten loads, frozen loads & still have plenty to pick, especially with the french beans. To be fair I probably sowed over 60 french beans, several of which didn't germinate so around 35 of them are producing. Out of all the french beans I sowed directly in the ground only 1 germinated 😱 but the ones I sowed directly into large 45L pots did much better!!! 🌱🌱🌱

Next year I think I'll sow the french beans earlier but into modules in the greenhouse, just like I do with the runners. After losing so many this year by just direct sowing it'll hopefully give them a head start & also increase & stagger the harvests more 💚🌱💚🌱😊

The french beans are Opera, Alba and Purple Queen & the runners are Scarlet Emperor 🧡🤍💜💚

Do you successional sow beans or anything else ? And do you direct sow or start off in modules? 🌱🌱🌱🌱

#beans #runners #frenchbeans #harvest #successionalsowing by @sals_plotandpots

3

18

2 months ago