Friday, September 19, 2003
I like the autumn, especially the fruitfulness of September.... English apples appear in the shops - the local green grocer's rather than the supermarkets. In the latter this time of year I find apples from France, South Africa, America, New Zealand, etc. Fifty years ago some 200 different types of apple were grown commercially in the UK, these days it's less than 20 and only four or five to any extent.
Along with apples come the nuts, first in mid-month come the cob nuts - once grown commercially on a large scale down the road in Kent but now sparsely in that county. Its wild cousin, the hazelnut, is plentiful in Hampshire and over much of southern England.
Now, over in America, the cob nut is called a Hazelnut but though they are similar it is very easy to tell the difference: The Hazel is elongated compared to the cob, which is almost spherical. The Hazel, although longer, is smaller in cross-section. But I see that I have digressed (what's new then? you say) so I might as well digress some more.
When I was a boy - around thirteen - as I walked to school I passed a large hazel tree that grew behind a wall that surrounded a courtyard & garage at the back of a house. In season, I would creep into the yard and stuff my pockets full of the fallen nuts that no one else seemed to desire. I remember that they had a very special taste and texture which varied over time: at this time of the year they would be fresh and crisp but as the autumn wore on the nuts would soften and the taste would change until they were almost akin to cheese. (I'm sure some expert on these things would put that better!)
To my untutored palate the nuts got better as time passed - they also got rarer! No doubt but that I was competing with mice and squirrels (maybe other boys, although I never told any of my friends about the tree). Time is strange when you are a kid but I think that by my birthday in November all the nuts would be gone.
The other great nut is the sweet chestnut which ripens in October and, although not native, is to be found all over the south of England. The sweet chestnut is the supreme example of sweet pain because n order to get to the shiny cluster of nuts before the squirrels one is forced to open the prickled outers. If, however, you come across sufficient trees grouped together then the sheer number of nuts will mean there are plenty for you and the squirrels! The problem with our chestnuts is that they tend to be small compared to the Spanish and it is the latter that are sold in the shops.
I am a great lover of walnuts and the best I have ever tasted were purchased in a superb green grocers in Bitterne Park - these were French - expensive and incredibly tasty. Nearly all the walnuts eaten in the UK are eaten at Christmas and they come from California, that state's walnuts are very nice when young and fresh. They tend to have fairly weak shells and are easily cracked.
The walnut tree produces very good timber and in the past was used extensively as a veneer and, in my opinion, it is very pleasing tree. But it hardly gets planted these days. At the time I was picking hazelnuts my father was the caretaker of two small blocks of flats and we lived in an old converted coach house. ( It had been part of a private school before the flats were built and was converted from stables to sick bay to dwelling house.) On one side of the house were three walnut trees and the fruit fell to the ground and only I and the squirrels seemed interested.
One last British nut I will mention, one that was here long before any mentioned above but also one that very few people will have eaten is the Beech nut. The nut is triangular in cross-section and grows in a group of three within a hard outer shell, the individual nutshell is very thin and strong. This makes it hard to get to the flesh which is delicious but because the nut is small the Beechnut is too much work for all but the most dogged. (That's me!) Even more dogged and less sensitive to that strong layer of cellulose is the pig who traditionally would be put out into the forest to feast on 'beechmast' and acorns.
Yes, I do like nuts!
Along with apples come the nuts, first in mid-month come the cob nuts - once grown commercially on a large scale down the road in Kent but now sparsely in that county. Its wild cousin, the hazelnut, is plentiful in Hampshire and over much of southern England.
Now, over in America, the cob nut is called a Hazelnut but though they are similar it is very easy to tell the difference: The Hazel is elongated compared to the cob, which is almost spherical. The Hazel, although longer, is smaller in cross-section. But I see that I have digressed (what's new then? you say) so I might as well digress some more.
When I was a boy - around thirteen - as I walked to school I passed a large hazel tree that grew behind a wall that surrounded a courtyard & garage at the back of a house. In season, I would creep into the yard and stuff my pockets full of the fallen nuts that no one else seemed to desire. I remember that they had a very special taste and texture which varied over time: at this time of the year they would be fresh and crisp but as the autumn wore on the nuts would soften and the taste would change until they were almost akin to cheese. (I'm sure some expert on these things would put that better!)
To my untutored palate the nuts got better as time passed - they also got rarer! No doubt but that I was competing with mice and squirrels (maybe other boys, although I never told any of my friends about the tree). Time is strange when you are a kid but I think that by my birthday in November all the nuts would be gone.
The other great nut is the sweet chestnut which ripens in October and, although not native, is to be found all over the south of England. The sweet chestnut is the supreme example of sweet pain because n order to get to the shiny cluster of nuts before the squirrels one is forced to open the prickled outers. If, however, you come across sufficient trees grouped together then the sheer number of nuts will mean there are plenty for you and the squirrels! The problem with our chestnuts is that they tend to be small compared to the Spanish and it is the latter that are sold in the shops.
I am a great lover of walnuts and the best I have ever tasted were purchased in a superb green grocers in Bitterne Park - these were French - expensive and incredibly tasty. Nearly all the walnuts eaten in the UK are eaten at Christmas and they come from California, that state's walnuts are very nice when young and fresh. They tend to have fairly weak shells and are easily cracked.
The walnut tree produces very good timber and in the past was used extensively as a veneer and, in my opinion, it is very pleasing tree. But it hardly gets planted these days. At the time I was picking hazelnuts my father was the caretaker of two small blocks of flats and we lived in an old converted coach house. ( It had been part of a private school before the flats were built and was converted from stables to sick bay to dwelling house.) On one side of the house were three walnut trees and the fruit fell to the ground and only I and the squirrels seemed interested.
One last British nut I will mention, one that was here long before any mentioned above but also one that very few people will have eaten is the Beech nut. The nut is triangular in cross-section and grows in a group of three within a hard outer shell, the individual nutshell is very thin and strong. This makes it hard to get to the flesh which is delicious but because the nut is small the Beechnut is too much work for all but the most dogged. (That's me!) Even more dogged and less sensitive to that strong layer of cellulose is the pig who traditionally would be put out into the forest to feast on 'beechmast' and acorns.
Yes, I do like nuts!
Wednesday, September 17, 2003
The sun has continued to shine and no sign of rain, it's around 26 C here and probably higher than that inland. The Green continues to looked burnt in some areas. This morning there was a thick sea mist with visibility down to around 200 feet, by 10am the mist was only holding to the River. The Itchen Bridge ( see http://www.hampshirecam.co.uk/jun2303.html ) looked really strange as it disappeared into the mist.
Sunday, September 14, 2003
I must have picked 6 pounds of tomatoes today, goodness only knows what we'll do with them - give most away most likely! We have had a bumper crop of Basil, I've never seen such healthy stuff. All of the herbs have settled in really well.
We took out the bramble which was on the plot when we got it and replaced it with a pink rose. We had hoped that the bramble (a cultivar with large fruit and no prickles) would be the centre piece of the herbs but the fruit was tastless - all looks but not much more. It was obvious from the knarled root that the plant was way passed it's prime.
We have had success with sweet peppers too, a variety called Banana on account of it's colour - very mild flavour but so good compared to those hydroponically grown waterbags from the supermarket!
There has been very little rain here in the past 4 months and the ground has little reserve of water in the top 10 inches, the marrows and courgettes really suffer in this weather but given that we just can't eat them fast enough it not so bad :)
We took out the bramble which was on the plot when we got it and replaced it with a pink rose. We had hoped that the bramble (a cultivar with large fruit and no prickles) would be the centre piece of the herbs but the fruit was tastless - all looks but not much more. It was obvious from the knarled root that the plant was way passed it's prime.
We have had success with sweet peppers too, a variety called Banana on account of it's colour - very mild flavour but so good compared to those hydroponically grown waterbags from the supermarket!
There has been very little rain here in the past 4 months and the ground has little reserve of water in the top 10 inches, the marrows and courgettes really suffer in this weather but given that we just can't eat them fast enough it not so bad :)
