Search found 702 matches

by The Mouse
Tue Jan 12, 2016 9:51 pm
Forum: Best practices
Topic: Bolting Leeks
Replies: 14
Views: 6731

Re: Bolting Leeks

My leeks are not doing too badly considering - last year I had a lot of soft or rotten ones, due, I think, to leek moth or miner. This time I've kept the enviromesh netting over right up until now (and typing this has just reminded me that I must get it off before we get snow!!!), and there's far le...
by The Mouse
Wed Sep 02, 2015 10:51 pm
Forum: Seasonal tips
Topic: Storing carrots
Replies: 8
Views: 5876

Re: Storing carrots

I have stored carrots in dry compost, and it worked well for me. They kept well until the new year. Some did sprout, but it didn't prove to be a problem for me. However, I have started leaving them in the ground now as it is much easier and (as long as mice don't eat them!!!) they keep better and mu...
by The Mouse
Fri Aug 28, 2015 5:57 pm
Forum: Cooking tips
Topic: How long did your non-stick last ?
Replies: 29
Views: 13585

Re: How long did your non-stick last ?

My last-but-one frying pan was guaranteed for life. Unfortunately it died after only a couple of years, so end of guarantee. Well, that plus the fact that I hadn't kept the receipt! In fact, it was still very non-stick, but had buckled, making it pretty useless on my ceramic hob. I have a great wok ...
by The Mouse
Sun Aug 23, 2015 9:53 pm
Forum: Cooking tips
Topic: How to remove stubborn glue from jars and bottles
Replies: 15
Views: 10579

Re: How to remove stubborn glue from jars and bottles

That's strange, Felix - white spirit won't work for me on the really stubborn type of glue, no matter now much elbow grease I use. I was given eight jars this week to use for my jam making, and without my newly-found baking soda and oil solution, I would have had to throw four of them away. Luckily,...
by The Mouse
Tue Aug 18, 2015 7:10 am
Forum: General chatter
Topic: New joke thread to cheer you all up
Replies: 110
Views: 30281

Re: New joke thread to cheer you all up

This isn't a joke, but a 'mistranslation' that really made me laugh yesterday - someone tried to tell me in French that they had made a greek nut cake, but what they actually said translated as 'a cake made of Greeks' nuts". Mind you, you do hear of people selling body parts when they are despe...
by The Mouse
Mon Aug 17, 2015 5:09 pm
Forum: Cooking tips
Topic: How to remove stubborn glue from jars and bottles
Replies: 15
Views: 10579

Re: How to remove stubborn glue from jars and bottles

In the past I've tried nail varnish remover and it didn't work. I've also tried petrol, paraffin, white spirit and numerous other substances that OH has brought in out of the shed, but none of those did the slightest bit of good either. Some labels and glue wash off so easily - I wish that all manuf...
by The Mouse
Mon Aug 17, 2015 1:12 pm
Forum: Cooking tips
Topic: How to remove stubborn glue from jars and bottles
Replies: 15
Views: 10579

Re: How to remove stubborn glue from jars and bottles

WD40? I'll try that next time, though I'll have to see OH has any in the shed first.
by The Mouse
Sun Aug 16, 2015 4:19 pm
Forum: Cooking tips
Topic: How to remove stubborn glue from jars and bottles
Replies: 15
Views: 10579

How to remove stubborn glue from jars and bottles

Not strictly a cooking tip, but if you're like me, trying in vain to remove irremovable glue is something that you have probably tried to do when you are making home made jams and preserves, so I decided this was the best place for this. I've finally found a solution (thanks to Google, of course), s...
by The Mouse
Thu Aug 13, 2015 8:29 am
Forum: Cooking tips
Topic: rhubarb and strawberry-flavoured vinegar?
Replies: 4
Views: 4130

Re: rhubarb and strawberry-flavoured vinegar?

Fred: Raspberry vinegar does sound nice. My raspberries are only just beginning to fruit, but if I have a glut in a few weeks time I might give it a go. Primrose: For some reason, I could only find separate rhubarb vinegar and strawberry vinegar recipes on the Internet. That surprised me, given that...
by The Mouse
Tue Aug 11, 2015 2:07 pm
Forum: Cooking tips
Topic: rhubarb and strawberry-flavoured vinegar?
Replies: 4
Views: 4130

rhubarb and strawberry-flavoured vinegar?

Has anyone any experience of making fruit-flavoured vinegars? I didn't even know these even existed until very recently, but fancy having a go at it now. As rhubarb and strawberry go really well together in a dessert, I'm guessing that the same would be true in a vinegar. I don't suppose any of you ...
by The Mouse
Sun Jul 05, 2015 8:51 pm
Forum: General chatter
Topic: Your Favourite, or most referred to, gardening book
Replies: 22
Views: 7984

Re: Your Favourite, or most referred to, gardening book

My most used has to be Dr D G Hessayon's "The New Vegetable and Herb Expert". My copy is rather out of date now, meaning that some of the varieties that are recommended are no longer available, and no mention is made of some of the more recent garden pests. Even so, it was invaluable when ...
by The Mouse
Sat Jul 04, 2015 7:51 pm
Forum: General chatter
Topic: My worst ever vegetable growing mistakes
Replies: 9
Views: 3882

Re: My worst ever vegetable growing mistakes

Not labelling my pots. I thought that I would remember which pots were courgettes, which were cucumbers and which were butternut squash. Needless to say, I didn't! The same goes for the different brassicas - I learned the hard way that it's impossible (well, for me anyway) to tell sprouts, caulies, ...
by The Mouse
Sat Jul 04, 2015 7:40 pm
Forum: General chatter
Topic: And my best vegetable growing hints
Replies: 9
Views: 3675

Re: And my best vegetable growing hints

Check the weather forecast before transplanting seedlings into the soil - if scorching temperatures are expected in the coming day or two, put off the job until it cools down again. On a similar vein, don't transplant your leeks into holes if torrential rain is forecast. Wait until the risk passes, ...
by The Mouse
Sat Jul 04, 2015 4:51 pm
Forum: Harvesting Q&A
Topic: Ripening blackcurrants
Replies: 4
Views: 8575

Re: Ripening blackcurrants

Mine actually seem to have cooked on the bush - I noticed yesterday morning that a lot of still-red ones had fallen off the bush, and when I accidentally knocked a branch, loads more fell off. When I felt them, they had gone soft. As I had kept them well watered in the warm, dry weather, all I can t...
by The Mouse
Fri May 15, 2015 6:23 pm
Forum: Weeds, Pests and Diseases
Topic: leather jackets in lawn
Replies: 2
Views: 2987

Re: leather jackets in lawn

Thanks, Geoff. I have a feeling that my son would be reluctant to pay someone to deal with the problem, but we'll see! At the moment, he is thinking of treating it with nematodes, but I think he will have to wait until late summer to do that. Luckily, because it is only a small lawn, it shouldn't co...