Does It Blend?

My new toy, the Nutribullet has changed my eating habits for the better.

I was chatting to my brother a short time ago and he was telling me about his “diet” Well, it’s not a diet as such as we know none of those really work. What he has is something called a Nutribullet. This is a glorified name for a blender (or extractor to use the sales pitch) that’s shaped like a 12” cone and does more or less the same thing as a coffee grinder except you put raw fruit and vegetables into it and it is very easy to clean.

Messy Juicers

I’ve tried juicing fruit such as apples with a very complicated juicing machine before, but at the end of the process you have used up half an orchard, been left with a bucket load of pulp and have two hours worth of cleaning the sieve ahead of you after drinking the juice.  The Nutribullet, my brother claimed has totally changed how he eats and feels great on it. I thought it sounded interesting as it’s more of a lifestyle change than a diet, which as we all really know, is how to lose weight. I had to buy one.

Simplicity

The idea is simple; you fill half of the large cup with raw green leafy vegetables. I started off with some of our own home grown kale and broccoli but found them a bit too ‘flavoursome’ so I put in spinach and shop bought broccoli. My brother then tends to put whatever is in the reduced to sell section of the supermarket or what he can get at the country market and as he is in Australia it’s usually exotic fruits like papayas, mango and bananas.  The mixes, I’ve found are never the same. I like to add nuts and berries into mine as well as sunflower seeds, sprouted seeds, and one of my favourites at the moment is frozen peas, it makes the drink sweet and also chills it.  Of course the drinks are as healthy as you want to make them. My lads opt for the biscuit, milk, peanut butter and chocolate spread option.

Breakfast

I have taken to having a ‘Nutriblaster’ as the marketing division call it, for breakfast and I must say it has made a bit impact on my morning.  I used to have a colossal amount of porridge for my start to the day (think one whole suet pudding in a bowl) and all I wanted to do afterwards was sleep. I also found that I couldn’t bend over, say when I needed to weed, as I got acid heartburn (I thought it was an age thing) That’s all gone now, I don’t have an energy lull mid morning and I can bend over in the veggie patch all day now without any bother.  The Nutriblasters are surprisingly filling too as you have all of the fruit and vegetables. When I say all, I mean all, you can put in the skins of everything such as oranges and lemons (including pips).  It’ll grind almost anything up to make the food easily digested but there are a few things that are recommended not to grind such as apple pips (the core is OK) as they have cyanide in them. It’s take a bucket load for you to feel ill but it’s a cumulative effect in the body so best avoided.  

Favourite

My favourite up to yet has been the one where I added lettuce,raw mushrooms, home grown tomatoes, avocado, banana, carrots, garlic and chilli’s. I thought it was delicious but for some reason no-one else in the family agreed. It’s the weird combinations that seem to work (for me anyway) My brother has had at least two of these blends a day for the last three years and he swears by them.  I’ve been on them for a couple of weeks now and I must say I am feeling the benefits. I occasionally have one instead of a cooked meal and of course for breakfast. They are good in the evening too as it’s so tempting to grill the cheese sandwiches for supper. One cup of the raw fruit and veg is a great substitute and takes away any craving for sweet food.

 

Made to last

I’m hoping it’s not going to end up in a cupboard like the Ronco food chopper or the Brevil sandwich maker as I do think it’s a great way to get the full amount of nutrition from fruit and vegetables as everything goes into the cup (which is the only thing to wash as you can drink it straight from that!) The marketers (and my brother) have done a great job at selling the Nutribullet to me and without wanting to sound like a repetitive infomercial – You eat LOTS of healthy raw food, there is NO waste whatsoever, everything goes in seeds, skins, unsightly bits and you can add in things you normally wouldn’t eat (in my case chicory).

There’s one added bonus too, it doesn’t matter if you have teeth or not!

It's Your Duty to be Fruity!

Gareth’s top tips for getting great apples

I’m passing you over to Gareth Austin, our own local community Horticulturist this week as he is extremely knowledgeable about apples amongst a myriad of other gardening related topics.  This week Gareth tells us how to choose and look after apple trees. There’s one to suit every garden!

Ever since Eve bit into the forbidden fruit apple trees have been a source of myth and legend. Top fruit is easily grown in any garden and depending on the type selected they can happily grow in pots or big tubs on the patio. Perhaps Apple are the most common top fruit that we plant and grow, with pears, plums and cherries making up the other popular types. 

How Big

When we first go to select apple trees the first decision is how big do we want them to grow, a Semi-dwarf apple tree grows on a specially selected root-stock which helps to restrict the overall height to around the 10-12' mark when grown in open ground

For the small garden or for growing in Patio tubs look no further than dwarf apples, types like the Golden Delicious  and spur apple variety can be happily grown in containers and pots on the patio or in open ground in small gardens. These trees are grown on a dwarf root-stock so the growth is limited to around the 6'.

Another type of dwarf fruit tree is the Coronet Apple Trees; these are grown on a Dwarf rootstock and will grow to around the 6' mark. These again are ideal for the smaller garden and for large pots on the patio. The habit is small and open, they look just like a small apple tree, and the fruit is regular in size. These can be grown in open ground but they soil has to be rich. The rootstock are slow growing so the roots aren’t able to go for large distances and source their own substance so if your growing in open ground ensure the local area around the tree (1mx1m0.5m) has been well enriched and is well nourished.

Decisions

Once you've decided how big you want your tree the next decision is to decide how you’re going to grow them. If you're choosing a Coronet Apple Tree or a Spur Apple Tree chances are your growing them in big pots on your patio, but if your choosing a semi-dwarf apple tree then you can decide to either grow them as a traditional apple tree in open ground or perhaps espalier against a south or west facing wall or fence . Espalier is a great way of maximising your garden space, it’s how I grow my fruit trees in the garden at the house. 

Spacing wise you're looking to plant espalier fruit trees at least 12' apart, and for traditional orchard trees you’re looking at least 12' apart also. Where space is really limited, and you only have space for 1 tree then why not grow a Family Apple Tree, on the one tree you can have 2 or3 different varieties of fruit grafted together, so your guaranteed fruit year after year (weather permitting of course!)

Cross pollinate

Selecting what varieties to grow is a matter of first deciding how many cookers and how many eaters you want to grow. The important thing is that the varieties you select will all cross-pollinate. To achieve this you have to ensure that they will flower at the same time (an early flowering apple tree may be passed flower before a late flowering fellow breaks bud...and then you'll have no fruit!). 

If I had to select 6 apple trees to plant I'd Plant Bramley, Discovery, Egremount Russet, James Grieve, Worcester Pearmain and Katy. I'd suggest these as there all varieties I've grown lots of before and I know them all to grow and crop well in our climate. However apple tree variety selection is such a personal choice that you should give it some good thought, remember that this apple tree is going to fruit for the next 25 years or more so careful selection now will stand you in good stead for years to come. 

Apple Trees should be pruned each Winter to ensure an open goblet shape, this ensures the trees is less 'packed' with branches and that any flowers which appear can be easily pollinated and the fruit receives enough sunshine to ripen properly and to a good size. Summer pruning is more important on espalier and smaller fruit trees

Care

Winter wash fruit trees after leaf fall with Winter Tree Wash, this helps to kill any overwintering pest and diseases, and helps to control moss, lichen and cankers....our wet weather is wonderful at promoting these!

Mulching and feeding of fruit trees is essential to help promote healthy plants, and autumn and early spring is a busy time in the fruit tree world with this task.

Remember....It’s your Duty to be Fruity!!!

Thanks for the tips Gareth!

Rehydrating Bulbs

Radiant and bright. That’s the Kaffir lily, not me.

I was cleaning the windows the other day and was amazed at how many spiders were nesting in the eves.  Maybe it’s just the fact that it’s autumn and that’s what spiders do, but it might also the fact that I have hundreds of caterpillars climbing the walls as the look for somewhere to cocoon themselves up and unwittingly finding themselves being a food supply .  I’m being very selective and moving the spiders to pastures new as I wash, i don't want to add to the negative press they are getting, the caterpillars are not getting the same level of attention though.

Talking of autumn things, I was in the beautiful Muff woods this week and noticed the fungi and mushrooms are out in force, leaves are starting to fall and I can’t fathom out if I should just be wearing a shirt, jumper or a full overcoat. We start the days off cool and damp then it turns hot in the sun then cool in the evenings.  This suits me as I can throw the clothes layers off and it certainly suits the fungi, I have never seem such a variety as this year.  

There are other types of plants that enjoy this type of weather and one of them is a new addition to the garden. The Kaffir lily or “Schizostylis coccinea” to give it its Latin name. I was given a clump of these autumn flowering bulbs by my mother in law, all nicely wrapped up in newspaper and ready for planting out just before their flowers came out.  For now I have planted them into a pot until I decide where in the garden they will go.

How to grow Kaffir lily

The flowers remind me of crocosima, or montbretia as they are also called.  The iris type flowers are pretty though and in the evening the flowers close and nod in the breeze. The plants originate from South Africa and enjoy warm wet summers and cold and dry winters so should be at home here.

There are many forms of Schizostylis coccinea. The copper-red 'Major' is the most readily available and a very good performer. There is a pure white form, 'Alba', which has narrower petals. You might see some other types in the garden centres from time to time.

Growing tips

They do survive in dry gardens, but they look miserable and flower poorly, if at all. It is possible to improve flowering by mulching them with a thick layer of gravel in spring after heavy rain. This will preserve moisture and allow them to flower. The gravel also filters winter rainfall. The frosts will kill off the top growth but they will return next year. If you have heavy clay, add lots of grit and put them in a sheltered position against a wall.

The kaffir lily will look good grown on their own, rather like nerines, and could be used along a sunny path or in a border. Position them away from the edge as they tumble forward. Or use them in front of deciduous shrubs and trees because the warm red or clear pink flowers, held well above the foliage, add a touch of freshness just as the leaves fall.

Buying Bulbs

As this week’s article reads like an actual gardening page, I’ll continue with another topic of the month- buying bulbs for spring and summer flowers.  The shops are full of different varieties for every type of garden. Lilies, gladioli, daffs, tulips, muscari, anemone, allium, the list is long. 

Some bulbs, (especially if you are like me and only buy them when they are reduced to sell) will be a bit dehydrated and in need of a bit of care before planting out.  

Amaryllis or lily-of-the-valley, will need  soaking before planting to give them a head start. Other bulbs, when you get them out of the packs, need to be checked over before planting.

Problems

There aren’t many problems to watch out for with shop bought bulbs, apart from checking that the bulbs are healthy to start with. However if you have them stored, pests to look out for include slugs, snails, squirrels (particularly with tulips and crocus) and diseases such as daffodil viruses, grey mould in snowdrops, narcissus basal rot, tulip fire and tulip viruses. Gently squeeze the bulb. If it is mushy or collapses, the bulb is dead. If the bulb is firm beneath your fingers, it's still alive. . Discard any that show signs of disease and rot.

Rehydrate a Dried Flower Bulb

If the bulbs feel a bit dry, fill a container with tepid water and remove any loose husks or dirt from the bulbs. If the bulbs have reproduced, gently pull the small bulbs away from the parent. They should separate easily.

Place the flower bulbs in the water. Soak for three to four hours. You can also soak overnight, but don't leave bulbs in water more than eight hours or they will absorb too much water and rot. Plant the bulbs in well-drained soil roughly twice as deep as the bulb is long. Plant as soon as possible after you get them.