https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-58879461

I just wonder what the World is coming to. This is the latest in a long line of ridiculous changes being forced on society. Makes you wonder how we have managed without for thousands of years?

   

You can use an imaginary name if you'd rather keep your initials to yourself.

So today I planted my garlic from saved bulbs from last year (can't remember the original variety I've been self saving garlic bulbs for several years now). 
For reasons of space and other things still being in other growing spaces I've planted mine in a selection of pots this year. 

Who else has already planted garlic and who's planning on doing so?

Spotted this on the BBC news site. Mainly based in Holland methinks but judging by my dog walks, little forests seem to be cropping up all over the place. Well done to ever instigated it.

  https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/stories-56003562

According to Real Seeds, onions, leeks, spring onions have a seed life of 3 years max. With this in mind, I've been going through all my allium seeds and pulling out all that have a sow by date of 2020/21 to sow now in my usual random way.
It is actually the right time of year to sow Chives & Garlic Chives, Winter Hardy White Lisbon Spring onions, Evergreen Bunching onions, Feast Spring onions, North Holland Blood Red Redmate onions for salad or bulb and Senshyu yellow onions - so I'll start with these. 
Since I'm hopeless at growing bulb onions from seed, I'm going to treat them all as "spring onions" and mix together all the seeds - sow a few in a seed tray and the rest will be scattered outdoors, probably in a square block so that I don't confuse them with grass.
In January, I'll do the same with the old leek seeds and a few more onions and in March I'll scatter the remainder. 
By then, I should have some idea about what has germinated and may be usable and, if very little, the leeks etc can be sown in the same square.
I'd like to grow enough alliums that I can pull one up whenever I want a bit of onion flavour - I don't need big, eyewatering onions.

I've had a good crop of sweet peppers this year but quite a few have had spots on that go right through the flesh. Some it is just a few spots but on others there is quite a lot making them almost unusable (except in curries may be ). I've had a good look round but can't find any pictures of similar anywhere. I have had it in previous years. Anyone any ideas?

My thoughts are a fungus of some sort, may be tomato leaf mould which has just appeared on some of my tomato plants.

   

I'm halfheartedly mulling over what toms to grow next year and think I'm going to grow more paste tomatoes for sauce.

What does the panel consider the best toms for a good flavoured sauce?

Apologies if anyone had access issues this morning, we have moved to a bigger server as we had neared the hosting limit on the old one. All should be OK now

The new one has 10x more space, that should keep us happy for a few years!

Purchased a Nissan Vanette camper van yesterday for Kato and I to have some days out together with an overnight stopover if we wanted.

Has MOT but needs a bit of interior work to get it the way I want it so may be stuck on the drive for a while. It has most of the mod cons including television, hook up cable, washbasin etc but is not in the configuration I would like it.

Would like to add a swivelling passenger seat and remodel the interior. It has an elevating roof so at least I won't have to crouch down inside.
I just hope it doesn't finish up as a half-finished project like some of my other follies!

As the title suggests, I have an absolute glut of pears, some have been bottled in port as well as some in brandy.

Any other suggestions for preserving/using pears?