Jerusalem artichoke

This is a picture of my freshly dug up Jerusalem artichoke tubers.  Why this tuber, related to the sunflower, is called artichoke is anybody's guess.  It is a pity that this tuber is not more commonly grown because it does not need any attention and will produce bumper harvest in the right soil condition.  I discovered this tuber about thirty years ago and finally discovered a nursery in Sunbury selling the seed tuber.  According to the nursery man people stopped growing Jerusalem artichoke because it has a tendency to go feral, like the bamboo.  The roots can travel beneath concrete and sprout up on the other side.  Unlike the bamboo, it is not that difficult remove should you ever have them sprouting all over your garden.  One solution is to grow them in a big tub.  That way it will be confined.
It prefers loamy soil.  It could be left in the gound to produce new plants in the spring but for better quality tubers it is best to dig up all the tubers and replant a few with more compost added to the site.  The tubers tend to shrivel when dug up.  One way to keep them fresh is to store them in a pot of compost or sandy loam, making sure they are slightly moist.  If you forget about them you will have new plants in the spring. 
I let my Jerusalem artichoke flower - yellow like the sunflower.  The plants can grow up to three metres, but mine went up to slightly over two metres.  I like to roast the tubers.  Clean them well and pop into the roasting tray with theother vegetables you are roasting and there is no need to peel them.  They make a lovely soup and do well in a stir-fry.

jonquil

Winter is not officially here yet and spring is months away but my jonquil is blooming.  At the garden club meeting someone brought jonquils and nerines for display.  The climate is surely changing!  Jonquils do appear early but I wonder if this time of the year is a bit too early for bulbs to start flowering.  The yellow of jonquil is always appreciated.  I have the bulbs growing in pots and in the garden.  They surprise me each time they make an appearance for I can never remember where they were planted.  I used to have a clump of pink nerine but the bulb must have rotted.  The amount of rain we have been getting is unbeleivable but I am not complaining.  Not after years of saving water.

Autumn colours

The Manchurian pear (top picture) is golden now but will turn to a deep red soon, I hope.  The yellowing chestnut leaves, next picture will remain yellow until they drop off.  The chestnut tree is actually in a pot.  Caley planted the seed many, many years ago when he was still at school.  I am enjoying the autumn colours in my garden and in other gardens I can see from my window.  The colours in the crab apple (last picture), may turn a little redder.  What I am looking forward to is the tree (name I am not sure) in the front garden (third picture), which will turn a bright deep red.  I hope it will happen before I go away for two weeks at the end of May.  The colours of autumn do not hang around for long.

watercress

Over a year ago I bought a tube of watercress seedlings at the Sunday market with little hope of seeing them flourish.  I was told there was no need for a running stream which I thought was necessary.  The seedlings were planted in a pot of half and half compost and potting mix and then placed in a bucket of water.  They are doing very well and if I could remember to buy more buckets I would start propagating.  The cress I bought at the market were grown from seeds but cuttings would easily strike roots in water.  I have a spot close to the compost bin where I have my water garden.  The area gets enough afternoon sun to keep the plants happy.  The two buckets of water chestnuts are doing well and will be ready for harvesting soon.  Eventually I will create a pond for the water plants and maybe keep a couple of fish.  I top up the water in the buckets but with the rain we have been getting that is not necessary. 

Cape Gooseberry or Physalis Peruviana

I know it as Cape gooseberry, a plant native to South America, hence the Peruviana, and was introduced to South Africa and widely grown in the Cape of Good Hope region.  My plant came from Daylesford about thirty years ago when a friend of a friend sent me back to my garden with a young plant.  I was captivated by the marble sized yellow berry encased in a crisp lantern.  I love the slightly tart berry.  Given enough water, manure and sunshine, the Cape gooseberry will do well and the berries will self sow.  It can be scraggly if left untended so I would prune it back in autumn.  The berries I pick throughout the summer months.  When I can accumulate enough I would add them to apples to make a delicious jelly.  I will be collecting the seedlings I am finding around the two bushes I have in the garden and they will be potted.  Once the bush gets too old and scraggly I will pull it out.  The plant will fill up a bare space very quickly and so long as you keep it pruned you will have an attractive bush to grace your garden.

banana

At the moment my banana grove is looking good but the frost will be coming soon and that means blackened leaves.  I have been thinking about putting up a simple framework around the grove and covering the top with clear plastic and the surrounding with a shade cloth.  That way the banana plants will be protected from the wind and the frost.  I have been harvesting some of the leaves and storing them in the fridge for use as wrappings for steaming or baking.  This is a fruiting variety but I don't know if I will ever see it produce anything, even a flower.  The banana flower is edible and much used in South East Asian cooking.
Two suckers have emerged.  I will transfer them into pots and perhaps allow them to grow in the pots rather than plant them in another part of the garden.  The banana plant loves the sun and shelter from the wind.  At the moment I am not sure if I can spare a spot to create another banana grove.