It wasn’t planned at all (the best things aren’t), but our Swedish guests Christian Odberger and Dante Hellstrøm stayed over until Monday evening to dig up a few (!) must-have plants from my garden. Our “camper” Berit Børte also accepted the offer to stay over until Monday. Christian had brought grafting material with him and kindly volunteered to do a grafting course for us, so here are the pictures of Christian, Berit and my garden helper Lorna from Belfast grafting some 6 varieties of apple on to a wild apple tree, the seeds of which I collected at Warsash (on the solent), Hampshire UK some 13-14 years ago!! AND it was a beautiful afternoon too! See also http://www.edimentals.com/blog/?p=4617
Monthly Archives: May 2016
Day 4 of the Permaveggies course and Ligularia wraps!
This was an unscheduled course day for me, my helper Lorna and Berit the camper, as it was a national holiday in Norway and Christian Odberger gave us a short course in grafting and I now have 6 or so new varieties of apples on a seed propagated apple. See also http://www.edimentals.com/blog/?p=4627
Permaveggies course / participant pictures
Here’s an album of wonderful pictures taken by 4 of the course participants, Lorna O’ Lynn, Ilka Clemens, Berit Børte and Christian Odberger :)
Permaveggies course Day 1 : Introduction to forest garden design
I was very glad to have Christian Odberger and Dante Hellström from Stockholm University as guests on this year’s course! They kicked off the course on Friday evening with a 3 hour joint talk on permaculture inspired growing and forest garden design, giving an excellent introduction to the weekend. Inspiring for most of the audience!!
The course was arranged in collaboration with Trondheim sopp- og nyttevekstforeningen and Norsk Permakultur Forening
Permaveggies Course Day 3: Ostrich fern tour along the Homla
As usual, the highlight of these weekends is the incredible walk along the river Homla just 20 minutes from home with large quantities of Ostrich Fern along the way, truly one of Norway’s most beautiful plants and also most delicious!!
Basidioradulum radula (Tannsopp), earlier classified with the Hedgehog fungi!
Permaveggies course 2016 Day 2
61 at 61
This evening’s salad (6th May 2016) with 61 ingredients, made with my first helper of the season…and I seriously need help this year!! Here’s the recipe…have a go yourself (it doesn’t have to be exactly these ones ;) )
Take a few tops of garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata), leaves of cow parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris), a shoot of lovage (Levisticum officinale), a rhubarb leaf petiole, leaves and flowers of wood sorrel (oxalis acetosella), ground elder (Aegopodium) leaves, flowers of Primula elatior (oxslip), Jerusalem artichoke sprouts, Hop shoots, lots of Hablitzia shoots, leaves and bulbils of Allium paradoxum, flowers of Primula denticulata, flowers of Primula “Red Strain”, Allium fistulosum (welsh onion) leaves, Trillium grandiflorum leaves, leaves of Megacarpaea delavayi, leaves of Allium victorialis (Granvin strain), leaves of Rumex alpinum, flower buds of perennial honesty (Lunaria rediviva), two flower broccolis of Barbarea vulgaris, Atriplex rubra (garden orach) seedlings, leaves of white clover Trifolium repens “Dragon’s Blood”, Black Isle Blush chives, shoots of jack-go-to-bed-by-noon (Tragopogon pratensis), Allium x cornutum leaves, leaves of Allium scorodoprasum, Allium hymennorhizum leaves, Ligularia fischeri leaves (Korean Ligularia), leaves and flower shoots of Allium zebdanense, flower shoots of Chinese Allium humile, Allium cernuum (Chicago onion) leaves, Allium douglasii leaves and flower shoot, Honewort leaves (Cryptotaenia canadensis), Angelica gigas (Korean angelica) leaves, Mentha spp. shoots, Aster scaber (Korean aster) shoots, Viola Canadensis (Canada violet) leaves, Cardamine bulbifera leaf, Cardamine raphanifolia leaves, leaves of Sorrel “Russian Giant” and Sorrel “Profusion” , Perennial Kale (cross) leaves *2 , Taraxacum “Vert de Montmagny”, Rumex patientia (patience dock) leaves, young garlics (from bulbils), carawat (Carum carvi) leaves, seakale leaves (Crambe maritima), Japanese chive leaves (Allium scoenoprasum var yezomonticola), day lily shoots (Hemerocallis dumortieri), Arabis caucasica “Pink” (leaves and flowers), Alchemilla (lady’s mantle) leaves, Catawissa onion (Allium x proliferum) leaves, Allium obliquum leaves, Scorzonera hispanica shoots, Myrrhis odorata (sweet cicely) leaves, Primula vulgaris flowers, German tarragon shoots (Artemisia dracunculus sativa) and Norrland onion (Allium nutans x angulosum)
I cut all the leaves with scissors, wash, add a simple salad dressing of olive oil and wine vinegar and a little salt, mix and decorate with the flowers and other interesting leaves and plants…EAT and enjoy the diverse tastes of spring, each mouthful is different!
Around the World in Oslo!
A full house of a mixed crowd of all ages, some 70 people, had turned up for my lecture at the Botanical Garden in Oslo despite the beautiful evening (we should have been outside) and the long holiday weekend! Thanks to the Norwegian Botanical Associtation and Natural History Museum for putting on this event and in particular Honorata Gajda.
Back home now after a night on the train…a fantastic week on the road, thanks to all the people who helped along the way….and some 60 books lighter :)