I’ve had my own harvest festival this weekend; as I’d been offered the chance to help myself to anything in a relative’s garden while she’s away. Woo hoo!
I thought it was silly to bring the beetroot and carrot tops home with me, so cut them off and went across to the compost bins in her garden. One lid I couldn’t pull off, so I decided to try the other, quite forcefully yanking it off. A tangle of worms flew off the bin lid, scattering onto the outside of the bin, sliding down my jeans and onto my boot. Knowing my pro gardening relly these worms will have been flown in for their special composting services – so I’m there with a large crinkly leaf scooping them up and putting them back into the composter. Argh! I did take a quick photo of some, but it’s rather blurry as they are pretty fast wrigglers and I didn’t want them to get away.
After that mini episode of The Great Escape I took a bit of time out to stare at the flowers.
I can’t describe the sweetness of the crisp carrots, we munched a couple raw and had a few cooked for dinner. It’s like having your own kitchen garden just ten minutes away! I hope she goes away again next summer, just when the vegetables are ripe for the picking.
The tomatoes and peppers are my own. The yellow tomatoes are stacked up like a pyramid now as I gathered more this morning, ready for using. The bowlfuls around the house are multiplying as I’m picking more every day. Even I’m surprised to find a pyrex dish full of them on the windowsill in The Little Room when I draw the curtains! It’s a good job we love them isn’t it?
I cooked a couple of the green peppers and made Balsamic Chicken, one of my favourite easy peasy recipes, last night. We tried a slice of raw pepper first, just to taste it. I’ve grown chilli peppers several times, but not pepper peppers (capsicum.) Tonight we’re having a yellow tomato greek salad, pitta, taramasalata and other delights as we’ve had a return to summer today. I’m really enjoying thinking of tomato based meals to enjoy, it’s so much more satisfying to use homegrown. It will be salmon with cherry tomatoes and couscous tomorrow and Nigella’s tomato curry with coconut rice from Kitchen later in the week. Mmmmmmm.
Are you having your own harvest festival, or heading into Spring and dreaming of all that to come?
The Little Room of Rachell 
I don’t know about where you are, but here where i live harvest festival is a thing of the past. I miss it really. When we were young we used to collect all the fresh food and the baker would make a huge wheatsheaf, we would give thanks for our own fortune, whaich wasn’t very much in those days. Now i feel no one is thankful for anything and always striving for more..
The beautiful colours of food brings so many memories back. Thank you for sharing xx
Oh that is such a shame. I know lots of people who are growing their own bits and bobs and really enjoying it. There are expressions of gratefulness and pleasure that I see all the time, both online and in the material world. If you anticipate positives like gratefulness and kindness you’ll see them all the time – just small gestures that can really brighten the day.
In many schools there are still harvest festival celebrations, some take place in the church nearby (I’ve supervised many a little harvest themed play and taught songs, poems and rhymes about apples, pea and such!) while many are in the school hall with families bringing in donations of fresh and tinned food to give to local recipients.
Your message has made me feel really sad and I hope that you are reassured that a lot of celebration, thanks and appreciation is still expressed.
If you want solid proof I’ll send you a photo of my friend’s first ever 3 tomatoes and handfull of homegrown potatoes! ;-)
Best wishes. Xx
Nope. The slugs had a harvest festival so I can’t!! I did have a bit of a sweet pea festival when I got home from camping though :D
Ha ha lucky little slugs! *grin*
What is it with escaping things today? Worms…… Rabbits whatever next!
Think rabbits was far more traumatic for you than the worms
Would love to have my own little garden but I need to do a balcony one as I live in an apartment. I think I see a trip to the feed store soon for a tomato plant I think. :)
Where are you Kristan?
Lucky you with all that fresh veg! Shame to through those lovely beetroot tops away. I like the top almost more than the beetroot.
Baby leaves in salad are nice but these would be pretty tough?
I fry a little sliced onion then wilt the leaves and finally add a little lemon juice and tahini and serve as a hot vegetable – tasty!
sounds yummy. Yes, spring here but no veg in my garden for me :( Haven’t the patience to tend the young ‘uns and try and keep the slugs and snails away. But there is a great organic market just down the road….. :-)