Tomatillos, Turnips and Tatton

I've enjoyed a really beautiful crop of tomatillos this season. Tiny, but tender and flavorful.

There's not been a chance to make a single batch of green salsa though, because they are so delicious they are devoured whole within moments of being picked! What sweet, crunchy little morsels of heaven tomatillos are. I will plant more next season.

It's that time of the season to take an accounting of how your garden fared and how well you used the bounty. I'm making decisions now about how to structure next season's garden. Tomatillos are a definite increase, as is cabbage, potatoes, beans and peas. Next year, squashes will go in earlier, and lettuce will take up less space, since it grows so quickly. I'll also add more turnips.

Seems like I planted the turnip seeds only weeks ago. Surely it is longer since I've already been able to harvest greens that went into a stew Tuesday, and a few baby turnips to eat raw as a treat. My first introduction to the turnip was as a raw snack. I was playing with the children next door, and their mother handed me a raw turnip to eat along with her kids. The others munched happily on them, like apples. I'd never even seen a turnip before, purple and white and mysterious. It looked like a very pale beet. But I was instantly enamored of the peppery, crunchy, full bodied flavor. To me, it was exotic. I've loved them raw, ever since. Turnip greens came to me later in life. I find when eating them raw you can detect a slight hint of seaweed. The greens are just loaded with calcium. A healthy choice for the lactose intolerant.

GARDENING PODCASTS

I listen to podcasts daily. Mostly literature podcasts, but also some gardening ones. Gardening Tips From Tatton Park is a video podcast which I enjoy a great deal. They tend to run approximately five minutes, It's like a calming little interlude in the day. I've learned a ton from Head Gardener Sam Youd. Here's the link to the RSS feed. I subscribe to his twice monthly video podcast on iTunes and encourage you to do the same. Enjoy.

Paste this into your browser or click on the link below:

http://rss.splashbroadcast.com/podcast/tatton/tatton.xml

Tatton Park Podcast - Gardening Tips