Harvest Monday

Wow, it has been ages since I last posted! That's the trouble with being in the end stages of a thesis, you miss the days as they fly on by while you are knee deep in words and ideas. The good news is that it is coming together and I should submit on time. The better news is that the Autumnal Harvest is already underway.

Shortly before my self-imposed thesis work-a-thon I planted some Winter crops. In went broccoli, wombok, snow peas (both dwarf and mammoth on a pretty little though slightly dangerous trellis) beetroot, beans, carrots and garlic. I've already sampled a tonne of baby spinach and I can tell you it is divine. I harvest it almost daily. So green, soooooo good for you, and so easy to grow, I don't know why I didn't plant this sooner. I plan on adding more to the garden asap.

Thanks for all the lovely comments while I was AWOL, they are so heartening. I promise to try and write more about the balcony garden and less about theoterical considerations of Third Reich memoir for historians so this blog gets going again! No current pics alas (I've lost the connecting cord for the umpteenth time) but here a pic from a Winter's garden past to get us in the mood for cool weather balcony gardening.

For other harvest posts from around the world visit Daphne's Dandelions.

Name That Tomato

In the midst of the great tomato cull on the weekend I came across this interesting fellow. He was in the majorly overcrowded pot alongside the Mortgage Lifter, Green Zebra, Black Russian and Tigerella (which never fruited). He was not a member of either of these four families. He seemed to be attached, or an offshoot of the mortgage lifter, but was oxheart not beefsteak in shape.


He had yellow and red markings, but not as in a Tigerella, and inside he was both yellow and red in colour. Quite like a Hillbilly, except that the current Hillbillies in the balcony garden are mere seedlings, racing time to see if they can fruit before the weather turns. Mislabelled plant? Seems all but the Tigerella fruited in this lot, and this fellow definitely appeared to be a shoot off the Mortgage Lifter.


His flavour was softer than a normal tomato, without the citrus overtones of a Green Zebra and nowhere near the punch of flavour contained in either Black Russian or Mortgage Lifter.

What is this interesting tomato fellow and where did he come from? Any ideas? Cross polination with the nearby yellow low acid? I am at a loss, but he made a nice addition to my salad at lunch (alongside golden beetroot leaves, lettuce, lemon basil, a green zebra and some strawberry spinach from the garden, the avocado and carrots were ring ins from the markets)

Balcony Garden Dinner Party

While I would have preferred the view above, the apartment attached to the balcony garden looked a little more like this after the inaugural Balcony Garden Dinner Party ...


This is how we led up to it.

Course 1

Carpaccio of Balcony Garden Heirloom Tomato with Buffalo Mozzarella, Basil, Avocado, Olives and Panfried Proscuitto Viniagrette


The verdict on this one was excellent. The Green Zebras were the favourite, with the smokey Black Russian coming in a close second. The viniagrette topped it off well, and the buffalo mozarella did not go unnoticed.

Course 2

Balcony Garden Fresh Pesto Chicken with Rice, Steamed Broccoli and Strawberry Spinach topped Salad.

Another hit in the evening meal. The pesto was a little lumpy, as I traded pinenuts for walnuts which perhaps did not break down equally well.


However the taste was there and all enjoyed it. Though the jury is still out on the berries from the strawberry spinach.


Course 3

Poached Pear Stuffed with Vanilla Cheesecake, topped with nut crumble served with icecream and Lemon thyme, Lime basil Reduction


The aforeblogged Deconstructed Poached Pear Cheesecake. Absolutely divine, though we have so so so much crumble left over.

Course 4

Not really a course, we we had a cheese platter. The blue was almost roaring forties style in strength but the brie was soft a creamy and went down oh so quickly.


So the first ever balcony garden dinner pearty went down a treat. Lovely meals, great wine supplied by all the guests, including the first dessert wine I have ever enjoyed (usually find the sweetness offputting) However, with the dishwasher on the blink (and the fine china being brought out for the occasion which will NEVER see the inside of the dishwasher) the cleanup went well into the next day.

Pretty Pressies

Went to visit the Birthmum and associated family the other day, and took with me a little offering from the Balcony Garden. Some tomatoes of various sorts including the first Mortgage Lifter, a Roma, a Green Zebra, a Black ussian and the last of the yellows, herbs, chillies, onions, mixed lettuce, strawberry spinach and a little snap dragon.





I think they went down well. She also gave me a lovely pressie - a baby nectarine! Love it.

Strawberry Spinach

Ok so I know the above picture is simply a strawberry. We have a small pot with two Lowanna strawberry bushes on the window sill. Dwarfed by the triffid like tumbler tomato it sometimes gets a little neglected. I promised it a photo on the blog and there it is.

The strawberry I am more interested in is strawberry spinach.

I tried to grow some as a present for a friend. I planted it before christmas, and also sowed some seeds out on the balcony. The pot for the friend did not take off, but the ones in the large balcony pot did. The Strawberry Spinach shares its home with lime basil, and a lot of lime basil at that. I am yet to teach totally intelligent male friend the proper way of seed sowing (as in don't dump the entire packet of a thousand seeds in and not expect me to panic).


The leaves themselves are bitter but refreshing, good for a salad.


The berries are literally like a redder, softer version of the leaves. I took this photo a couple of days ago and the berries are much, much redder now. They too would be perfect salad fodder.


Indeed this Friday the Inept Balcony Gardener is playing host to a small dinner party. She who was to receive the mini pot of strawberry spinach that failed will be in attendance, and thus will get to try this interesting bit of greenery and redery (she also won't leave empty handed, I managed to get some lime basil to grow for her instead, albeit part of the panic driven fix it plan after the seed dumping 'catastrophe')

Will let you know what the consensus is on this interesting leafy German green.

On another note my garden today was covered with a small film of ash. And the fires continue to burn - at least the arrested and charged someone ...

*Updated photo below