Spring

2 October 2023

Spring is officially here :-)

Tomato, zuchinni, pumpkin, kamokamo, beetroot, onion, gherkin seedlings are ready to plant out. The weather can’t quite decide though a few days early Summer like temperatures then back to a run of days with the odd light frost.

Chilli seedlings should be ready to plant out at the end of the month (fingers crossed the weather has settled by then). We have got about 80 different varieties of chillies growing this year ranging from mild Poblano through to some Dragon’s Breath crosses. It will be exciting to try the new chillies as they come on about 30 varieties are new this season.

We are slowly (as seed runs out) taking a new direction this season and moving away from producing the fresh salads. We will concentrate on fresh chillies & chilli based products, offer up a few prayers on the way and hope taking the plunge works.

I have been experimenting with a few honey based products using our chillies etc and honey from a local producer. It has been a massive learning curve working with honey and understanding the science behind why it crystalizes and how to stop that happening in products.

It will be a busy few months ahead with seasonal annual markets coming up plus finishing off developing a few new lines plus turning the chillies left in the freezer into sauce/jam/chutney.

The last year has been really tough so looking forward to Spring being the start of better things :-)