Delicious Garden: A Yummy Book About Seasons (Yummy Board Books)

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Mary Jane Duford is a passionate gardener and well-acclaimed authority in the world of horticulture. As a certified Master Gardener and Permaculture Garden Designer with over a decade of hands-on experience, she has honed her skills to cultivate a deeper understanding of the natural world around us. Beyond her gardening prowess, Mary Jane holds a distinct edge as a Professional Engineer, an expertise that often intertwines with her gardening methodologies, bringing a unique perspective to her readers.

The August garden might be bursting at the seams but now’s a great time to be planning for next year. Delving deep into specific fields of study within horticulture, Mary Jane has an extensive knowledge base on sustainable gardening practices (including permaculture), soil science, and selecting cultivars well-suited to home gardeners. Her passion isn't just limited to plants; she's a staunch advocate for holistic, eco-friendly gardening techniques that benefit both flora and fauna. We're doing a lot of work conserving Scottish native flora, as well as plants that are dying out in the rest of the world,” says Kirsty. “It’s important to understand biodiversity and plant life – and the species that are struggling - so we can protect them…and raise awareness with governments.”Good news! We still have two workshops upcoming this year. Firstly, we have our ‘Fermenting the Garden’ workshop on Thursday 17 th March where you can spend the day learning all about fermentation. You will discover how different fermented fruit, vegetables and drinks have enriched our diets and improved health for centuries. You’ll enjoy interesting talks, demonstrations, lunch with our chef and much more! When putting these workshops together we couldn’t think of anyone better to join us than Mark Diacono! Local to THE PIG-at Combe and with over two decades of experience pioneering Kitchen Gardening across the generations with River Cottage and Otter Farm, Mark brings a wealth of knowledge to share alongside our own PIG expertise. Chris Collins and Fiona share tips on conserving water, the importance of nurturing your soil and your front garden. Our first event ‘The Perfect Kitchen Garden’ was held on the 9 th and 10 th February and was a huge success! The workshop was perfect for gardening beginners or people looking to make the most out of their veg patch learning how to grow at home – no matter the size of your space! The day started with a light breakfast on arrival in The Folly, followed by an introduction to Mark and Ollie and then teas and coffees – of course! Our group then headed to explore the Kitchen Garden to take a look at everything our team are growing currently which includes various different mustards, various brightly coloured chards and oyster mushrooms. We all then enjoyed a delicious garden-inspired soft tipple followed by Mark and Ollie discussing how to start your own Kitchen Garden and top tips for growing undercover.

Here are some crop idea lists to help you plan out your own food garden. Vegetable food garden crops Vegetables grown in kitchen gardens include savoury leafy greens, beans, potatoes, corn, carrots, onions, tomatoes, peppers, asparagus, and peas. Fruit grown in a food garden includes sweet strawberries, blueberries, kiwi, grapes, and tree fruits like apples, pears, and plums. Fiona finds out more about gardening in Scotland with our new Vice President Pam Whittle CBE – including her tireless work as president of The Royal Caledonian Horticulture Society and why accessibility to gardening is key to public health. He chats to Kirsty Wilson, herbaceous supervisor at the botanic gardens, to discover more about its 350-year-old living collection of plants and its research projects.

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In the afternoon everyone enjoyed a locally-sourced 25 mile sharing lunch in The Folly with THE PIG-at Combe’s Head Chef, Dan Gavriilidis, taking them through the menu and their lunch, explaining the importance of our 25-mile suppliers. After lunch was the time to ask those all-important questions! Mark and Ollie held a Q&A session to end the day so we could really get into the nitty-gritty of growing at home.