The Greenhouse,

is about growing matters, focusing on my greenhouse and potager. I grow mainly vegetables, herbs and spices but flowers have their given place too. From seed to table, this is the nursery for my living food, we cook a lot of delicious food and I say a potager is the cook’s best friend. The greenhouse makes it possible to grow essential, colourful, warmth loving fruit and vegetables even in this climate such as tomatoes and chillies. My main blog is Tyras Trädgård/Tyra's Garden. View my profile

Tuesday

The KING and I - Edward a great spud in the garden

This post, 'The KING and I - Edward a great spud in the garden' was originally uploaded and written by Tyra at the blog The greenhouse in Tyra's Garden http://tyras-greenhouse.blogspot.com/ ABC Wednesday this week it is K for KING.





...named after this man



KING EDWARD (VII)


History of a great spud



It was developed by John Butler of Scotter Lincolnshire and introduced to Britain in 1902. It is one of the oldest surviving varieties in Europe. The Coronation of King Edward VII in 1902 coincided with the introduction of this variety of potato and its name is believed to originate as a ‘commemoration’ of this occasion.


Appearance is everything


This one is a beauty! King Edward potato is predominately faire skinned with lovely pink colouration. Easy recognize among all the other potatoes in the market. It is mostly oval in shape with and shallow eyes. The plant is upright and tall like an ordinary potato plant with numerous stems and rather small green leaves. The King Edward’s flower is redish/purple with white tipped petals and they generally fall off before the harvest.



Gardening for King Tater





The King Edward potato is traditionally planted in April for harvest in September. It is suitable to be grown commercially or in the allotment and can even be grown in pots or bags, although smaller early varieties are much more advisable choice for container cultivation. To do well King Edwards need soil that is rich in humus , farm-yard manure or compost in combination with feeding via a general fertilizer the soil pH about 5,6. It is also advisable to ensure plenty of watering during dry periods. Suggested spacing in a traditional plot are at a depth of 10 cm (4"); spacing - 30-40cm (12 -16"); width between rows - 70cm (28"). It is very resistant to Potato scab and offers some resistance to Potato blight but is susceptible to Potato cyst nematode.King Edwards are not particularly productive, but many people still grow them for their floury texture and their taste.


A Culinary Star


The King Edward potato has a variety of culinary uses and is renowned for its light fluffy texture, for this reason it is perfect for so many potato dishes, particularly suitable for Pommes duchesse, see recipe below, Roasting and Baking although it is also suitable for Chipping, Sauté and Steaming. King Edward is the best potato with which to make gnocchi, kartoffelknödeln, kroppkakor.


I King fit for a Duchess and smooth as satin


Pommes duchesse



Ingredients: 8-10 potatoes King Edward/Idaho boil and peel
2 egg yolk
2-3 tbl butter
salt and pepper to taste


Ingredienser: 8-10 potatisar King Edward, 1-1½ dl gräddmjölk, 2 äggulor, 2-3 msk smör, salt och vitpeppar. Det här blir en sagolik potatismos!



...more recipes with the KING



Recipes for Kartoffelknödeln a German dish.

Leif Mannerström’s recipe Kroppkakor a Swedish old Rustic dish.



Irish Champ 8 medium King Edward/Idaho potatoes, 1/2 cup milk, 5 tablespoon butter, a bunch of spring onions, chopped. and this is how you do it. Peel and cut potatoes and boil in salted water until tender. Drain and mash slightly. In a small pan, heat milk and butter until butter is melted. Add chopped spring onions. Fold mixture into the potatoes until well blended. For 6 people.



Read about more great ABC Wednesday's K here.



TYRA



References: Wikipedia 'King Edward' and 'King Edward potato'

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The Rose month and WWF's Earth Hour

This post, 'The Rose month - June and WWF's Earth Hour' was originally uploaded and written by Tyra at the blog The greenhouse in Tyra's Garden http://tyras-greenhouse.blogspot.com/

...ABC Wednesday J



JUNE – sometimes called the 'Rose month'.

This week started with white and ends with black...and some colourful JUNE in between.


The white, it has been snowing again here in Stockholm Sweden and as I’m boycotting the big white in my blogs for this season I’m not going to show you some lovely wintery ‘black and white’ish pictures of the greenhouse instead I give you J for June, much nicer, much brighter and in full colour.


June in the greenhouse and the livin' is easy in Tyra's garden.


At the start of June, the sun rises in the constellation of Taurus; at the end of June, the sun rises in the constellation of Gemini. However, due to the precession of the equinoxes, June begins with the sun in the astrological sign of Gemini, and ends with the sun in the astrological sign of Cancer. June is the month with the longest daylight hours of the year in the Northern Hemisphere and the shortest daylight hours of the year in the Southern Hemisphere. Wikipedia- june


...and now to the black


The black, WWF’s Earth Hour 28th of March 2009 - Turn your lights off at 8.30 pm wherever you live on this planet! 2,398 cities, towns and municipalities in 83 countries have already committed to VOTE EARTH for Earth Hour 2009, as part of the worlds first global election between Earth and global warming. Read more and take action, Vote Earth!



Read about more great ABC Wednesday's J here.

I wish you all a fun J round.



Greetings from Tyra in Vaxholm.

I almost forgot, I cannot have the 'Rose month' without a rose.




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Wednesday

I say I is for for IRIS

This post, 'I say I is for IRIS!' was originally uploaded and written by Tyra at the blog The greenhouse in Tyra's Garden
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I say I is for IRIS

..
from Iris to Gin and Tonic, I know it's a long way !

...


From the flower IRIS to Orris root (rhizome)

Orris root is the root of some species of iris, grown principally in southern Europe: Iris germanica, Iris florentina, and Iris pallida. Once important in western herbal medicine, it is now used mainly as a fixative and base note in perfumery, as well as an ingredient in many brands of gin. Orris root must generally be hung and aged for 5 years before it can be used for perfumery. This substance is left out of products that are labeled hypo-allergenic. Wikipedia
Iris rhizomes



From Orris root to GIN a botanical ‘Tonic’

Bombay Sapphire Gin – Vapour infused with 10 botanical ingredients. Distilled from 100% grain neutral spirit from a 1761 recipe, with 10 carefully selected botanical ingredients, including almonds, angelica, lemon peel, coriander, liquorice, cassia bark, juniper, cubeb berries, orris ( here comes my I for IRIS) and grains of paradise.

From GIN to my all time favourite medicine (malaria)



Tadaa ...Gin and Tonic!



Iris florentina
Iris florentina


CHEERS! /TYRA


Read about more great ABC Wednesday 'I' here.



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Thursday

Flower 'Prozac' Power !

This post, 'Flower ' Prozac' Power' was originally uploaded and written by Tyra at the blog The greenhousin Tyra's Garden




..Spring Collage.


Weather set back this week and I just had to make myself a 'Happy pill', my own homemade antidepressant...and it works! We got loads with snow this week and as I have banned snow on this blog now for this year I cannot show you the nuisance. In a few weeks it will all be better and until then I have to look at spring in your post and in my photo albums. This is a spring collage from last spring!



...



TYRA


Wednesday

Heirloom - The Gift from the Past

© This post - 'ABC wednesday Heirloom- the gift from the past' , was originally uploaded and written by Tyra at the blog The greenhouse in Tyra's Garden http://tyras-greenhouse.blogspot.com/


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ABC Wednesday H is for HEIRLOOM


An heirloom seed is seed treasured by people who love the plant because it’s nature. Growers have through generations learned to value the name, history, flavour, fragrance and outward appearance of the plant. The heir is proud to receive the heritage from their ancestors, it’s a precious gift. To be an heirloom, a plant must be open-pollinated. Open pollination allows the same cultivar to be grown simply from seed for many generations. 1951 was the year of the first hybrid (another interesting H) varieties because of that many growers consider 1951 to be the latest year a plant can have originated and still be called an heirloom. Some heirloom plants are much much older, some being apparently pre-historic.








Heirlooms have adapted over time to whatever climate and soil they have grown in. Due to their genetics, they are often resistant to local pests, diseases, and extremes of weather. This is great and amazing. But...

I have been thinking of that, the grower have to consider just that, because one heirloom plant tastes wonderful, have a superior fragrance and looks and all that in one place does not mean that it will be an excellent plant in your garden. Consequently I myself try to select heirlooms seeds that have been grown in similar conditions that I have in my garden, soil and weather-wise. Although sometimes of cause I fall for their names and history. Interesting names like Cherokee Purple, Plum Lemon or Belize Pink Heart are very tempting names of tomatoes that I would love to have a go at. The first two are actually on my 2009 growing list of heirloom tomatoes.

...




Baker Creeks Heirloom Seeds

Perennial Pleasures Nurcery

Real Seeds UK.

Impecta Sweden

Runåbergs fröer Sweden





Recent post Potager - Heirloom Tomatoes 2009



other Heirloom posts here in the Greenhouse...


Well that's all folks!



Read about more great ABC Wednesday 'H' here.



TYRA



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ABC Wednesday 'G' is for...

© This post - 'ABC wednesday 'G' is for...no not GREENHOUSE' , was originally uploaded and written by Tyra at the blog The greenhouse in Tyra's Garden http://tyras-greenhouse.blogspot.com/

...

...

ABC Wednesday and

G is for...no, not GREENHOUSE!

The first thing that I tought of was GOD....but I didn't have any great picture...hm...
The second was actually a spot and I didn’t have any great picture of that one either. I ask my daughter what was the first thing she thought about when I said the letter ‘G’ and she said Garden Gnome!?! That was a good one but again I didn’t have any great pictures on garden gnomes either.

After philosophising a bit everything was green, but of course. Greenhouse, greenfingers and greenthumb...
...

GREEN, GREEN, GREEN


First out in my GREEN parade is a GREEN fellow in my garden.



Two pictures of GREEN leaves in the acual true jungle. The Garden of the creator. I just love all those wonderful shades of green. The pictures are from Mexico. More about green hues and structure in a post from last year 'GREEN - Tyra's Garden'

Ops who is what? The Garden Gnome! wikipedia's gnome

and then the last picture is of the GREEN foliage in the Potager. Blue Hubbard Pumpin leaves and Syringa vulgaris.


Well, that was all from me, I hope you enjoyed my 'G'
.

TYRA



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