A strong wind recently stripped lots of apples from local apple trees. This windfall bounty consisted of small fruit that had a few weeks to go before it would otherwise be ready for picking. The goats loved them.
Self-sufficient in Suburbia
We grow our own food in a suburban village in the North East of England. Follow us as we keep up the battle to be self-sufficient.
Thursday, 3 July 2025
And then there were 2
Penny was proudly lying down this morning with a baby next to her when I arrived this morning to feed the goats. She was chewing the cud but got up to have her feed. I assumed she was just having one kid. Though I was very happy she had had a baby, there was a hint of disappointment. The baby was a billy.
But when I came back at lunchtime, another baby had been born and it was a girl. Penny is our best milker and I was wanting her to produce a nanny to add to the milking herd. So well done Penny, great result!
Saturday, 28 June 2025
Lemon marmalade
We don't grow lemons - hardly a suitable crop for the weather in North East England - but we do use lemon waste to make marmalade. The peel is used to make marmalade. Nothing wasted.
How to make ginger tea
We are into the jam making season. One of the jams we've made is rhubarb, apple and ginger. We use fresh ginger which needs to be peeled. We waste nothing so the peel is used to make ginger tea.
Thursday, 26 June 2025
Guest chicks
Whinnies Wanderers are a group of parents and pre-school children based at the Whinnies Community Garden in Sunniside. Earlier this week, they invited me to bring some of our recently hatched chicks for the children to see. The good news is that they want me back next week. I will be bringing a goat instead!
Monday, 23 June 2025
First jam of the season
We are now entering the jam making season. First off the blocks was rhubarb, apple and ginger jam. This is one of my favourites and is easy to make: same weight of apple and rhubarb with a bit of fresh ginger to taste. Boil and then simmer. Once the fruit is pulped, add sugar - same weight as the rhubarb and apple combined. Bring to the boil and keep on a rolling boil until setting point is reached.
Sunday, 22 June 2025
Lovage and potato soup
We have quite an abundance of herbs at the moment. Given the large amount of lovage, an the problem that it never lasts long, we made some lovage and potato soup to which we also added fennel, oregano, thyme and sage. The problem we have now is that the store of potatoes is very low. We probably won't have any beyond the end of June and the new crop is struggling to grow, given the almost complete lack of rain during the spring.
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