"Growing Solo" is a 5 episode radio programme about a small scale farmer in Somerset with 5 acres who aims to provide all his own food and drink for a year from his farm. The only thing he allows himself to buy is Salt. He even grows a patch of wheat to make his own bread. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001yhhz

Its an interesting programme but a little unrealistic for most of us. First, he has 5 acres, half of which is a vineyard. He also has a cow to provide for his dairy needs (and a calf for meat), plus chickens and turkeys. Nonetheless, I enjoyed listening to it, the highs and lows and the reality of trying to be totally self sufficient in food.

Hopefully you’ll be able to follow my thinking! So you can help.

I have these      5m long 31cm wide. The plan is to keep them full length. cut them in half length ways (not all of them, som have other jobs). Use them as sheltered , slightly raised beds between my tunnels. If you can imagine the hosepipe in the next photo is the sides of my tunnels. I can make the gap between tunnels bigger if needed. The more I do that the least space I have for normal raised beds the other side.
    I have lots of these cradles for them to sit in. My first plan was to cut the cradles at the red lines and have a small pyramid type arrangement. With top cradle sitting on top of the bottom pipe beds. As the cradle is only 6cm wide I wouldn’t lose much growing space. Also the pipes once cut in half and are in the cradle sit 6cm higher          . Hopefully these 2 photo helps paint that picture, but possibly not. My next thought was is that top pipe going to shade the bottom ones too much? 
Considered a teared style not sure how to construct that. One thing I probably should have mentioned sooner is, it’s all very heavy! Before compost gets involved. Also considered use 2 at the same level. 

I have these other bits available in the construction if you can come up with anything.
          Unfortunately all the small pipe has been cut down to about 2m lengths

Any ideas, suggestions? Would be great. My brain is starting to hurt!

In the summer my garden shoes are the cheapest children's black canvas gym shoes. P and I are both of southern descent but he calls them plimsolls and I call them daps. He didn't understand what daps were.

Anyone else know what daps are?

I think it may have come from he name Dunlop Athletic Plimsolls.

Years ago, I used to make tofu from soya beans. It was such hard work, grinding the beans to grits, cooking them, curdling the liquid, straining the curds from the whey and pressing the curds. 
Recently I've been reading about making "tofu" from other beans and lentils. Tonight, a recipe for Burmese tofu dropped in my inbox and this seems far simpler - it doesn't start with beans but with bean, pea or chickpea flour. https://hodmedods.co.uk/blogs/recipes/burmese-tofu

I have some Marrowfat pea flour (use by 30/9/22 !!) so not much to lose if it doesn't work. The flour and water batter is sitting in a jug overnight, fermenting, and tomorrow I'll add more water & salt and cook it up.  I hope its a success as I have more pea flour to use up.

Honeymoon is a new tomato to me.  This one fell off the truss in a fit of pique. I'm hoping it will ripen up eventually in the fruit bowl with the apples and bananas.  I intend to improvise a sling for the remaining ones.

   

Hello everyone we regret to inform you that after the last 14 years Seekay horticultural supplies will be ceasing trade.
We want to thank all of our customers for your support and custom for our family run small business.
Due to economic climate we now are no longer able to trade.
We wish you all best with your growing endeavours and hope all blooms well, shame we can longer be apart of it.

All the best
Seekay Horticultural supplies

While on an afternoon walk yesterday. We found this.

    .

No idea what its originally purpose was. But I intend on using it as a walkway between tunnels. Not yet collected it. Because there’s a lot more of it , than is in the photo. And it’s a good mile back to the car.  

Unfortunately there’s lots of plastic ( mostly from the fishing industry) out there. Some people put it into piles. But I very much doubt it’ll ever be collected. 

So one day in the not to distant future we’ll walk back out there with some buoys. Tie the walkway and a couple of other bits we can find a use for, to the buoys. Chuck it all in the water at the nearest point. Then get our friends to give us a lift out there on his boat. For a recycling, reusing, rescue mission.

Since we have a Samphire growalong with SC, I thought I'd introduce another coastal, edible plant to tempt you. 
Official name - Mertensia maritima - common name Oyster leaf, Oysterplant, Sea Bluebells, Sea Lungwort. Lots of names for this one! Said to have a distinctive salty taste with slightly, crunchy, fleshy green leaves, reminiscent of eating oysters!
It grows wild in Scotland, SC, one for you to look out for on your walks.

I have some Pennard seeds, from a seed swap https://www.pennardplants.com/proddetail...d=Seed1170 Other suppliers are available including those we love to hate. 
Some pretty pictures at https://www.wildflowerfinder.org.uk/Flow...rplant.htm

I like Sungold tomatoes (a lot) but I'm mindful of of a wish to grow less F1 varieties, although I'm not succeeding very well in that direction. Anyone know of a non-F1 alternative to Sungold's sweetness?