Sometimes You Just Need To Relax ... And Not Take Gardening Too Seriously ...

A Few Benifits Of Gardening ... From Wallace & Gromit (new gardening experts??)

And Cut Down On Your Heating Bills ...

At this time of year we’re all starting to sense the change in temperatures ... Nights are getting colder, frosty windscreens provide extra effort in a morning ... and at a weekend walking the dog now involves coat, gloves and scarf (hat to follow) as I crunch through the frosty countryside.

As well as you and I feeling the cold, so are our plants and Adrienne Wild from the Sunday Mirror reminded me this weekend that we can treat our plants well in the winter whilst still keeping costs to a minimum ...

“Cut down on greenhouse heating bills by making a heated propagator...”

Have You Got A Spare £165,000 In You Back Pocket??

If the answer is ‘yes’ ... are you single? Seriously though, you’ve just missed out on a gorgeous gourmet treat ... a seriously special white truffle ...

The World’s Most Expensive White Truffle ...
Gourmet history was made at the annual Tuscan Truffle Auction this month when a 1.5kg white truffle ‘tuber magnatum pico’ sold for the princely sum of £165,000 – just £110,000 per kilo ... more expensive than gold ... but not quite as long lasting.

No Leftovers ...
Stanley Ho, the lucky bidder, has only got a short time to enjoy his purchase ... a truffle lasts for just 20 days after being unearthed ... after that time it’s off! So, if you’re a friend of Mr Ho’s I’d say you should be sniffing out an invitation to a very special dinner ... mmmm

Walking The Dog Never Sounded So Good ...
There can’t be any better reason in Italy to take you dog a walk than managing to sniff out a truffle worth £165k! Truffle hunters use dogs to sniff out these most expensive delicacies and Luciano Savini and his son had an excellent find last week when their mongrel dog ‘Rocco’ dug up this white truffle near Pisa in Northern Italy.

So what I’m wondering is ... could I train my dog to find truffles rather than sticks when we go a walk? I’m thinking my chance of a truffle find in North Yorkshire to be fairly remote ...

If You’re Looking For Something A Bit More Long Lasting ...

Should We be Running The Other Way??

"Christmas is coming,
The geese are getting fat,
Please put a penny
In the old man's hat.
If you haven't got a penny,
A ha'penny will do,
If you haven't got a ha'penny,
Then God bless you."

It’s hard to believe I know, but generally I’m abit of a grump about Christmas ...

‘it’s too commercialised ...’
‘it starts too early ... just like when the supermarkets put Easter Eggs on the shelves in New Year, they start Christmas around September time ...’
‘I’m looking forward to getting the gift I never wanted from the relative I haven’t spoken to since last Christmas ... ah families eh?’
‘the shops are full of stressed Christmas shoppers trying to find the perfect gift for the pickiest person in the world ...'

I’m sure you’ve loads more moans than I about Christmas ...

But this year I’m determined to make the best of the festive season ...

Two Wests Is Counting Down To Christmas ...

Get Out The Way Jamie Oliver; Take A Break Nigella Lawson ...
I’m Going Back To Basics ...

"Good Eating" Suggestions for Wartime Dishes
A new selection of Daily Telegraph Readers’ Tested Recipes

Like many gardeners, I also like to cook ... I get to use fresh veg from the allotment, bumper crops can be preserved and when the weather’s too bad to get into the garden I’ve got time to make something sweet ...

As a child I remember standing by the side of my Nana, following recipes from a stained Bero cookery book – in fact it had seen some action ... it had even got ring burns from an old fashioned electric cooker! The piece of advice she gave me over and over and over again was "when you’re making pastry have cold hands" ... saga advice, especially for a youngster who would have hot, sticky fingers ...

I’d love to be able to find that book again ... basic recipes to remind me of my childhood ... but whilst I continue to search I found this book of ‘Wartime Dishes’ on Saturday and thought I’d share a few recipes and advice … I’m sure many of you will be transported back to your childhood ... when weight gain wasn’t a worry, when we didn’t know about cholesterol ... there were less supermarkets providing us with microwavable meals ... and many of us grow up on fresh meat from the local butcher, fruit came from our local greengrocers ... oh happy days!

I hope this week’s recipe stirs your memories ... if you’re looking for a particular wartime recipe just let me know ...

Weather Warnings On St Swithin’s Day ... Should We Start Building An Ark?

St. Swithin's day if thou dost rain
For forty days it will remain
St. Swithin's day if thou be fair
For forty days 'twill rain nae mair.

So, with St Swithin’s Day nearly over I think it’s far to say we could be in with another forty days of rain to come ...

So I’m guessing I should be investing in an ark building business, kicking out the suncream and finding the old thermals again ...

What’s St Swithin’s Day All About ...

They Can Be A Very Serious Business ...
But Today It’s All About Play ...

Did you know that today was the World Pea Shooting Championships? No ... well you learn something everyday don’t you?

Yep, if you can remember back to your days at school ... and I mean when schools were innocent places ...
when the television wasn’t available 24 hours a day ...
when we weren’t worried about saving the planet ...
when you could eat pretty much anything without worrying about your health ...

Well you might remember those naughty boys with pea shooters hitting you in the back of the head ...

On A Sunday Evening Gentle Humour Is Best ...